Time for something a little new on this blog. I’ve noticed that lots of writers I respect have a weekly roundup of interesting articles from around the web. Rather than truly innovate, I’m going to steal a page from them and start doing my own roundups. Here are some of my favourite articles from the last week:

First off, on July 28, antivirus maker Avast released an interesting article on the state of rootkit infections. Their findings really shouldn’t be much of a surprise – pirated versions of Windows XP are a major attack vector for rootkit infections. This simple (and fairly obvious) fact leaves me wondering something very important – why don’t the people who use pirated versions of Windows XP switch to a modern (free and more secure) operating system like Ubuntu?

I have been closely following the Airbnb saga for the past week. It began when a relatively old article reached the front page of Hacker News, continued through some awkward TechCrunch coverage, and culminated in a little blowup between Paul Graham and Michael Arrington. I am a huge fan of both Mr. Graham and Mr. Arrington, so reading them spar was difficult, yet utterly fascinating. Then, another similar case came forward and finally, Airbnb did the right thing. Founders – this whole episode is a wonderful learning experience!

Chris Dixon (the co-founder of Hunch/Founder Collective) released a really wonderful article called “The downside of accelerated investment decisions“. From an entrepreneur’s perspective, getting a quick term sheet from an investor sounds like a dream, but Dixon shows how going too fast is bad for both parties. I admire any person who can take my beliefs, urinate on them, and leave me feeling a whole lot smarter for the process.

Finally, my favourite webcomic released an incredibly poignant strip about cancer. Randall Munroe’s (the author of XKCD) fiance was diagnosed with breast cancer last year. My family has been ravaged by cancer and, frankly, this strip is the first time that I have ever read anything that has made any sense. Mr. Munroe nailed what it is like seeing people you love suffer with that vile disease, and for that, I thank him.