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http://it.slashdot.org/story/09/08/25/1839246/Report-That-OS-X-Snow-Leopard-May-Include-Antivirus

What's that, multi-miilion dollar Mac vs. PC ads? Macs are immune to getting viruses, so OSX doesn't need anti-virus like Windows does?


Ahem, if anyone needs me, I'll be over here, with my Win 7 RTM and Gentoo Linux.
:smug:

Seriously? Platform wars? Yawn. Wow, an ad campaign famous for dumb oversimplifications doesn't thoroughly go into all the technical details about Macs and viruses? I are shocked.

The more popular the Mac OS becomes, the more it becomes a target for viruses. If Apple is going by the market or anticipating future problems due to increased popularity, so the hell what?

Smugness over choice of OS is one of those geek culture things that I never have and never will get.

I would think if windows was installed, it would open it up to more viruses, unless my Mac-obliviousness missed something that makes Macs more resistant to infection.

ZenMonkey said:

Seriously? Platform wars? Yawn. Wow, an ad campaign famous for dumb oversimplifications doesn't thoroughly go into all the technical details about Macs and viruses? I are shocked.

The more popular the Mac OS becomes, the more it becomes a target for viruses. If Apple is going by the market or anticipating future problems due to increased popularity, so the hell what?

Smugness over choice of OS is one of those geek culture things that I never have and never will get.

Click to expand...

It's because they spent so much money saying something that isn't true.

Apple, in all of their arrogance (arrogance that carries over to the majority of the userbase) has tried getting by with security thru obscurity. Meanwhile, they aggressively marketed their products, thereby making themselves a larger target.

Also, transferring data on USB flash drives is a giant security risk.

Cuyval Dar said:

It's because they spent so much money saying something that isn't true.

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Absolutely unheard of in advertising. Also, as I said, it isn't untrue, it's a half-truth. But if you really took those ads that seriously and aren't just pissing on Apple for fun right now, then that's just laughable.

ZenMonkey said:

Absolutely unheard of in advertising. Also, as I said, it isn't untrue, it's a half-truth. But if you really took those ads that seriously and aren't just pissing on Apple for fun right now, then that's just laughable.

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Damn, you caught me. It is a perfectly valid excuse to "piss on Apple for fun".

Steve Ballmer sez:

He looks like a screenshot from The Thing.

Cat said:

He looks like a screenshot from The Thing.

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Watch out! You've made him angry!

Quick, hide all of the chairs!

A) Doesn't building in an anti-virus make your OS "immune"? I mean taking the responsibility to make the effort yourself, as opposed to forcing users to buy a 3rd party add-on should be commended, shouldn't it? B) On the other hand, Apple deserves none of the credit for its safety. The 30 year old OS built from the beginning with network presence in mind deserves the credit. C) Anti-virus for Mac isn't exactly new news. My last university required Norton on Macs.

But now Apple is requiring it, after saying Macs don't get viruses.


And no, anti-virus doesn't make an OS totally immune.

An anti-virus needs to be updated - the huge majority of virus infections occur by new "strains" which quickly spread because there's no "cure" yet. The best anti-virus programs will have an update within a few hours. Free ones usually are a day or two late. If Apple integrate this anti-virus software, they'll need to update it daily then for it to be effective.

And about the rest: Apple has put themselves in an arrogant position, where they have been laughing at the "inferior" PCs while their white race.. sorry, computers, were said to be superior. You reap what you sow, really.

Cuyval Dar said:

But now Apple is requiring it, after saying Macs don't get viruses.


And no, anti-virus doesn't make an OS totally immune.

Click to expand...

Besides, because it's integrated into the system, it's going to be the most popular target to try and circumvent. It's going to be worthless after awhile unless they are willing to sink some serious money into keeping it up to date.

However, it is a nice feature to include in the OS. Windows doesn't come with an Anti-Virus and it's much more prone to being infected. This seems like a great PR move: "Hey, Macs hardly get viruses... but even if you do somehow get one, we got you covered FOR FREE!" Microsoft wishes it had thought of it first.

I'm getting SL on Friday. I have heard zero about an AV being integrated and the link in the OP calls it very much a "rumor".
I'll let you know if it does but I wouldn't hold your breath...

AshburnerX said:

Windows doesn't come with an Anti-Virus and it's much more prone to being infected. This seems like a great PR move: \"Hey, Macs hardly get viruses... but even if you do somehow get one, we got you covered FOR FREE!\" Microsoft wishes it had thought of it first.

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*facepalm*

a) ever heard of Windows Defender? Guess what that does?

b) Microsoft aren't as lucky as Apple who can do anything and get away with it. They've had to pay massive fines in the past for integrating software into Windows and you think they would get away with adding full blown anti-virus software?

Once Apple grows bigger, you can bet they'll get the same huge fines slapped on them. Did I mention Apple has been breaking European law for many years by being anti-competitive? I didn't? Well I did now. It would only be fair considering Apple are far worse than Microsoft in that respect: iTunes, sueing companies that try to get Mac OS X running on non-Mac hardware, etc. Microsoft got fined for a hell of a lot less:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3563697.stm