Just recently, several high profile people have switched to the Macintosh computer as their primary work platform. These switchers have caused the Mac to become a high-profile issue, as the reasons they are switching involve security issues on the the Windows platform. They are tired of the problems and maintenance associated with working on a Windows-based platform.
These are very much the same as the reasons I switched to a Macintosh as my primary workstation in 2003. Now, in terms of full disclosure, I have been a Macintosh user for over twenty years. I have also been a Windows network engineer, a Windows systems administrator and an Exchange and Lotus Domino mail administrator. I have been involved with the MS-DOS and Windows-based machines for almost twenty years as well. My arguments for switching to the Mac are as follows.
Most users are not skilled IT professionals, and not aware of the precautions that must be taken to protect a Windows machine properly. This includes installing and updating a good antivirus software package, installing and updating a personal firewall, and routinely running anti-spyware packages. Often, a single anti-spyware package isn’t sufficient to protect a machine. As for the people saying that it is merely user error that causes Windows-based machines to have many of the problems with viruses, spyware and trojans…this is exceptionally short-sighted thinking.
These precautions being necessary aren’t the fault of the user, but are due to the design of the operating system. Most OEM installs of Windows XP come with a default password that is blank for the Administrator user. Also, almost all users on Windows XP systems are “admin” users and the OS does not require applications making modifications to the system settings to have the user enter the password, but gives the programs administrative privileges by default.
Without these precautions, a Windows XP SP1 box has an average survival time, on the internet, of less than seven minutes, which is less than the time needed to download the service packs and security patches required to secure the machine against most attacks. Windows XP SP2 machines have improved the survival time to the point where they are not completely disabled by viruses, spyware, trojans or other malware, but are still affected to some degree by them. So these machines also still require the same security precautions.
On the other hand, Mac OS X, which is based on a BSD UNIX variant, has far fewer vulnerabilities by default. Also, the OS requires an admin-level user to authenticate when programs require higher system level access. Applications and processes do not run with “admin” privileges, unless the user authenticates them. This greatly reduces the ability of the malicious programs to propagate themselves or to damage the system. Currently, there are no viruses, trojans or spyware for the Mac OS found in the wild. There have been several “proof of concept” trojans, but none that are found on the internet.
The Mac GUI is one of the most usable user interfaces, and the Mac OS supports most of the major application suites. Word processing, spreadsheets, accounting software, e-mail, websurfing, photo and video editing are all easily within the capabilities of the OS. Many common Windows software packages are also available for the Mac. Adobe Creative Suite, Macromedia Studio, Microsoft Office, Quicken, Quickbooks and many others are among those that are available.
The Mac also has some software packages that have no real analogue on the Windows platform. The most important of these is iLife, which is Apple’s media suite for digital photography, music and video. Last year, an entry to the Sundance Film Festival was produced entirely using software from the iLife suite. The total production cost was $218.32.
The Mac OS X platform also has the ability to run most of the Linux-based open-source software packages with little modification. Nessus, snort, nmap, and most of the other common network security utilities will run on Mac OS X with little or no modification. If there is a need to run the few Windows-only applications out there, most can be run via an emulator package like Virtual PC or GuestPC.
All of this can be done on a platform that requires less time for routine maintenance, in order to stay a viable working platform. I can spend more of my time working, and less of my time trying to keep the system running. I don’t see a downside to it.
Yes, the hardware is slightly more expensive, but with each successive update to the OS, it gets more efficient and runs more smoothly… something that cannot be said for the Windows-based platform, where each successive OS generally requires newer or upgraded hardware. The hardware also generally takes longer to become obsolete. The average Windows-based PC is replaced every three years; the average Windows-based notebook, every two years; the average Mac is replaced every five-to-seven years; and the average Mac portable every three-to-four years. These aren’t hard numbers, but based on my years of experience with both platforms.
The one area where the Windows platform truly outshines the Mac is in gaming. Most games are not available on the Mac platform, or do not perform as well on it as they do on the Windows platform. Most games released for the Mac are available a few months to years after they are available on the Windows platform.