ubernub.com » Oh, you’re killing me. Killing! Me!

Citing the new Mac ads as a reason to start this holy war again, Greenvilleonline did a little article on a local guy switching from PC to Mac. The story was a quaint and cute human interest type story until they started spouting off a technical comparison of PC vs Mac.

One of the bullet-points makes my eyes go cross:

Viruses: PCs are more vulnerable. That’s not a PC flaw. It’s a reality of hackers targeting the biggest market. Logic says more-popular Macs will attract more viruses. Optimism says they’ll stand strong.

I sent this email to the reporter:

Give me a break. Macs have 10% of the personal computer market, 3-5% of the total computer market and they have 0 viruses. Hackers can’t hack Macs and so there are zero viruses and not 10% or 3-5%. Not to say that Macs aren’t un-hackable, it’s just tougher.

Windows is open by default (you can create a file on C:\ , which is the root level directory)
OSX is closed by default (you cannot create files on / , which is the root level directory).

I’ll spare the rest of the details. But OSX debuted in 2001 and it pains me to hear people spouting off “hackers target the largest market”. No. Hackers target the possible market. If all things are equal, it should be easy enough for at least one rogue hacker on all of planet earth to take a few moments and create one measily little virus to knock the 0-virus record off its pedastal? Do you not see the massive prize awaiting this feat? Climb a mountain that has never been climbed? Be the first in all of OSX’s history to do this? Be responsible for 100% of the Mac viruses? Is this not motivating?

In fact, “hackers target the largest market” is the least technical and least accurate statement a speculator can make. Microsoft is big, everyone knows that but the association to security is some Urban Legend that won’t die off like “Jesus was born on December 25th”.

Phew. I feel better.

5 Comments so far

…And I’m sure that you are the only one pointing this out to this guy.

He probably received a few dozen emails about such unfounded statements. Do you know why he said such a thing? Because it’s more popular to write articles about how Microsoft is a large company.

(awaiting the flaming email from the reporter telling my how such a statement is unfounded and without merit).

By the way, what do you care about some small time, South Carolina web-paper anyhow?

“Macs Suck”

http://www.infoworld.com/article/06/08/02/32OPstrategic_1.html

@sponge: That was an interesting article on what he neglected to label as the concept of fanboyism. I was hoping for some well-deserved critcism on maybe printing, gaming or other areas that Macs do suck at however the quote was from the author’s son (unknown age).

Yes, yes, and scrunchies rule.

I’m shocked it took as long as it did to bring up Jesus. Digression from hating Microsoft-branded journalists into fighting the entire basis for 70% of the world’s religions seems inevitable.

I do, in all respects, think you’re being naive to say that Macs aren’t benefiting from small market share.

Wait wait wait – before you hate me – look at why a person hacks a PC or writes a virus. It brings down businesses, it gets personal information, it steals important corporate data or opens back doors to said corporate data. How many Fortune 500′s (Aside from Apple) run a completely Mac network? I’d say such a small percentage it would round to the same % as Mac has viruses. Zero.

I fail to see how/why people base their argument for “market” on stupid home PCs and Best Buy sales. Corporations and large networks (universities and medical facilities) have always been the prime target. Everything else is just a bunch of carnival magic show antics. Put $3B in corporate infrastructure, HR records, and sensitive data on a completely Mac network (outside of Apple) and you’d see more interest.

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