[lug] Malware refuge?

[Dru Whitledge]

I was, the other day, minding my own business editing some 
educational MP3s ripped form ancient cassettes when I noticed a 
volume problem. Me or my machines had screwed up the volume on the 
whole batch -- way too low. I tried MediaMonkey and MP3DirectCut to 
no avail, but a quick Google disclosed a quick and cheap savior in 
"MP3Gain" -- freeware.  When I went to download it I somehow 
discovered that it, or other utilities like it, were wrapped in 
controversy. CNET / Download.com and sourceForge and SoftPedia? all 
now -- so it seems -- almost  openly -- use a wrapped installer that 
automatically infects your machine with malware -- if you can't stop 
it. One comment on the practice indicated that it was a challenge of 
unchecking boxes and reading fine print -- as in jumping through 
hoops -- to prove you are smart enough and alert enough to not get 
infected -- which some said you couldn't un-infect and would also get 
further future infections.

Now for the Linux part you've been patiently waiting on.  I don't 
usually expect to find a lot of quick convenient utilities like 
MP3Gain on the Linux platform -- and accordingly don't even really 
look that hard for them -- which tends to keep my functionality on 
Windows -- which is, of course, eaten up with Malware.

So, is Linux still, and likely to stay, a safe haven't from Malware 
where I could avoid all this crap? Are there wrapped installers doing 
this same crap on Linux? Is there a fast and efficient way to 
determine (or almost, sort-of determine) that a cheap quick utility 
like MP3gain (or it's utility) is available for the Linux platform 
and a way to get it where I won't stumble while jumping through Malware hoops?

Dru