The E Development Platform: It's a real eye opener!

During last week's O'Reilly Emerging Technology Conference, Marc Stiegler introduced his E Development platform for creating "capability confined applications," demonstrating a capabilities-secure desktop, browser, and even a distributed filelsharing system.

Marc made a great case for capability confined applications across distributed systems that allow you to interoperate powerfully with others while only granting them limited authority.

He held up his wallet. "When you go to the liquor store, do you hand the cashier your wallet, and ask him to take out what it costs?"

The audience chuckled, and then grew progressively quieter as Marc demonstrated how even applications as simple as Microsoft's Notepad are allowed to have far more access to a user's system than anyone would ever reasonably allow, were they actually ever given the chance to grant the program permissions.

You can download the binaries or read more about it in the paper: The E Language in a Walnut.

Resources

• The E Development Platform: Exploiting Virus-Ridden Software
  
  (http://conferences.oreillynet.com/cs/et2002/view/e_sess/2223)




• Combex, Inc.
  (http://www.combex.com)

• 
  The E Language in a Walnut
  (http://www.skyhunter.com/marcs/ewalnut.html)




• E-Lib InterObject Semantics
  (http://www.erights.org/)

• Download E by Platforms and Versions
  (http://www.erights.org/download/0-8-17/index.html#platforms)

Do you think "capability secure" browsers and desktops are overkill? or a necessity?