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Daggers

All things Mac

By Daggers, in Entertainment Forum

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Babylon

Babylon

Posted
Posted
Whoever says Mac's cant get viruses are talking a load of tosh. Pointless argument anyway because those capable of looking after Windows don't get viruses anyway. :D

Ahem...

"There are, as far as we know, no Mac OS X viruses in the wild.

To prove that assertion wrong, you only have to name one.

Academic proofs of concept and theoretical vulnerabilities don't count. Neither do computer worms, Trojan horses, spyware, adware, spam or any of the other nasty species in the zoology of malware.

That eliminates Inqtana-A, iBotNet, MacSweeper and a handful of other examples of Mac malware usually trotted out at this point by PC apologists. Nor can you count the 10-second Zero Day Pwn2Own Safari exploit that got so much press attention last March. None of these, strictly speaking, were viruses.

The issue comes up anew because Apple's (AAPL) latest Get a Mac ads are once again hammering Microsoft (MSFT) for those "thousands of viruses" to which its operating systems and application suites are heir. And that, in turn, has led to a resurgence of comments in this space to the effect that a) Macs are just as vulnerable as Windows machines and b) the only thing that protects them is their miniscule market share.

Those ideas, while widely promulgated on the Web, are wrong. The fact that Mac OS X represents less than 4% of the worldwide installed base of computers might explain why there are fewer Mac viruses. But it wouldn't explain why there are none.

So what's the answer?

First, let's define some terms.

A Mac OS X virus in the wild, to use the definition put forward in a short-lived contest that offered $25,000 to the first hacker who could write one, is executable code that attaches itself to a program or file so that it can spread from one Mac to another. "In the wild" means it has infected, or is currently infecting, new machines through normal day-to-day usage.

By this definition, there have been hundreds, if not thousands, of Windows viruses (see partial list), a handful of Mac OS 9 viruses, and not one for Mac OS X.

The reasons for this have been extensively debated by security experts, who offer several explanations:

* Small market share. There is some truth to the "security through obscurity" argument. Many virus writers are motivated by the power they can command — and the money they can make — by seizing control of large numbers of computers. That puts a financial premium on Windows viruses.

* Mac OS X, with its Unix-based file system and kernel, is harder to infect with a self-replicating program. (See Claudiu Dumitru's MacOS X Vulnerabilities for background.) Windows, as I understand it, allows users to write run executable code outside their own protected memory space; Mac OS X does not.

* Viruses are going out of style. The action these days, I'm told, is in Trojans and spyware.

This is not to say that OS X is invulnerable. The frequency of Apple's security updates and the emphasis the company is putting on the new security features in Snow Leopard are proof that it is not. Maybe Apple is just lucky. Or maybe it's better at protecting its users from infection than Microsoft.

That said, if the built-in anti-virus protection in Windows 7 is as good as some earlier reviewers suggest. the security gap could close when Microsoft's new system finally launches next month.

Which may be why Apple is hammering home the "thousands of viruses" message now."

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Guest

Guest

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Posted
As to wanting Apple to drop their prices I don't see why they should. It's like asking a Michelin star restaurant to sell their main courses at the same price as an extra value meal in Mcdonalds. :thumbup:

In your opinion.

What is this guff about Mac prices?

The spec of my MBP in a Windows-driven piece of kit will command a price well into four-figures - the differential is the only thing worth debating and I believe it's worth three hundred quid extra to ensure a functional system.

It's what you want the thing for too - if your life doesn't stretch beyond MP3s or internet porn then why spend over £250 on something? I got this for 'app' development and (if time permits) some general coding fun.

I could have saved myself a few hundred quid buying something else but I'd have been getting pissed off at every lock-up. My last lappy cost me £1,500 and I lost count of the number of times I had to do a full re-install. Seemed to make no sense to do it all again.

I want a netbook. I want internet access, I want to be able to do my work on the train, and I want something small enough it's not going to get on my nerves. The Mac version I saw was about 3 times the cost of something Windows based. I am used to Windows and its flaws, and don't feel like shelling out for something that looks nicer.

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Daggers

Daggers

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I want a netbook. I want internet access, I want to be able to do my work on the train, and I want something small enough it's not going to get on my nerves. The Mac version I saw was about 3 times the cost of something Windows based. I am used to Windows and its flaws, and don't feel like shelling out for something that looks nicer.

Netbook?

You should be getting one of those cheap Linux-run Dells then ;)

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Babylon

Babylon

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and don't feel like shelling out for something that looks nicer.

Until you use one consistently you won't realise that's not what it's all about though, IMO it's just a bonus that they look good.

Being a designer I had to use macs as the company I joined had them (as does any decent design company). It was like going from driving a Nissan to driving a n Aston Martin. Ultimately they both get you from A to B, but one of them gets you there in more comfort and with a bit more style.

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Edmund

Edmund

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I am used to Windows and its flaws, and don't feel like shelling out for something that looks nicer.

So you don't mind investing in a product which doesn't work as well as it should? Fully knowing it has flaws beforehand but will work around it :dunno:

Would you then also buy a new car with the knowledge it has flaws just to save a few quid, resulting with breaking down every 100 miles.

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coale39

coale39

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So you don't mind investing in a product which doesn't work as well as it should? Fully knowing it has flaws beforehand but will work around it :dunno:

Would you then also buy a new car with the knowledge it has flaws just to save a few quid, resulting with breaking down every 100 miles.

Windows 7 seems to contradict that.

Ive also never had a problem with Vista.

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Edmund

Edmund

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Windows 7 seems to contradict that.

Ive also never had a problem with Vista.

lol I knew I should have stayed away from this thread. There is no right or wrong I suppose.

The problem with owning a mac is you know how well they work you want to shout from the rooftop and it's what makes us mac users smug and go on like our shit doesn't stink lol

At the end of the day what ever works best for each individual so be it.

I can't be arsed with a geeky tech argument.

I'm out. I'l leave Babylon to it. :D

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Guest

Guest

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So you don't mind investing in a product which doesn't work as well as it should? Fully knowing it has flaws beforehand but will work around it :dunno:

Would you then also buy a new car with the knowledge it has flaws just to save a few quid, resulting with breaking down every 100 miles.

Everything has flaws. If it didn't, there would be no need or room for improvement.

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MC Prussian

MC Prussian

Posted
Posted
iLife and MobileMe: Any point in getting them?

MobileMe is only worth it if you're in need of access to personal/business files 24/7 no matter where you are in the world. It's a fancy idea, but that's what portable harddrives are good for (there's fairly small and cheap ones available these days, anyway).

iLife '09 is a great add-on (especially when you look at the geotagging in iPhoto '09 or the guitar/piano lessons thing on Garage Band '09), but I thought all 2009 Macs are already equipped with it? Yours isn't, Daggers?

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Edmund

Edmund

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Daggers I recommend TOAST for all your cd/dvd burning needs. It's the best software I've come across for this and mounting/creating disk images.

Also a tip if you want to buy any mac software/hardware legitimately get someone you know who's going to uni to buy anything mac related as you get education discount on all mac items.

If you want to upgrade the memory don't buy ram straight from Apple as they are a rip off and you can get the same thing off the web a lot cheaper. You might know these things already but just my two pence worth. :thumbup:

And any music software you need don't hesitate to ask and I'l point you in the right direction. :)

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Anish

Anish

Posted
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So you don't mind investing in a product which doesn't work as well as it should? Fully knowing it has flaws beforehand but will work around it :dunno:

Would you then also buy a new car with the knowledge it has flaws just to save a few quid, resulting with breaking down every 100 miles.

Windows has potential flaws - but if you look after your PC and don't go around installing crap then it works perfectly smoothly.

You talk as if every Windows PC is riddled with bugs and viruses from the moment you turn it on, which obviously isn't the case. I've had no viruses/malware affect my computers for around 10 years, so I would say that if you're sensible about what you use your PC for then you aren't likely to have any problems either.

As Lisa says, if you want a computer for word processing, internet and not much else then there's not much point in buying a Mac for double the amount (netbooks at £299 v Macs at £749).

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Sir Fynwy

Sir Fynwy

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I've come to the conclusion that for most things that a home system is being used for a dumb terminal is about the best possible option, I can stream just about anything I want to watch or listen too and don't have to pay for storage to hold loads of junk I'll never watch/listen too, in fact the PS3 is brilliant for this. A cheap linux or windows netbook for work processing etc and I don't have to pay big dumb corporations all my money for their stuff.

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Guest

Guest

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I've come to the conclusion that for most things that a home system is being used for a dumb terminal is about the best possible option, I can stream just about anything I want to watch or listen too and don't have to pay for storage to hold loads of junk I'll never watch/listen too, in fact the PS3 is brilliant for this. A cheap linux or windows netbook for work processing etc and I don't have to pay big dumb corporations all my money for their stuff.

Has Santa been told this?

:santa:

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Daggers

Daggers

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iLife '09 is a great add-on (especially when you look at the geotagging in iPhoto '09 or the guitar/piano lessons thing on Garage Band '09), but I thought all 2009 Macs are already equipped with it? Yours isn't, Daggers?

Waddyaknow!

Yes it is, now I found out what it is :D

Daggers I recommend TOAST for all your cd/dvd burning needs. It's the best software I've come across for this and mounting/creating disk images.

Also a tip if you want to buy any mac software/hardware legitimately get someone you know who's going to uni to buy anything mac related as you get education discount on all mac items.

If you want to upgrade the memory don't buy ram straight from Apple as they are a rip off and you can get the same thing off the web a lot cheaper. You might know these things already but just my two pence worth. :thumbup:

And any music software you need don't hesitate to ask and I'l point you in the right direction. :)

I want CS4.

I can't find CS4! :angry:

Even with my educational discount Adobe UK are taking the f-ing piss.

The second I find someone with a disk I'm grabbing it!

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