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- CatfishJones, on 10/12/2007, -8/+41Oh noes... the nasty virus writers have discovered the existance of Mac OS X... run for the hills!
"It's like an airline advertising that it has fewer fatal crashes than its competitors." - Uh, I'd make a point of flying with that airlines. Never-the-less, it is an interesting angle for Apple.
And honeslty, anyone capable of writing a virus for OS X has heard Mac users bragging about their 0 virus count for the last ten years. - SaintStryfe, on 10/12/2007, -2/+32Mac Viruses are like airplane crashes?
They're very rare? They only happen when proper safety measures aren't followed? They get a lot of news coverage dispite, at any given time, 500 other flights are in the air? - zweben, on 10/12/2007, -4/+30Everyone is saying that. Oh no, the backlash.
You know what? Mac users have been taunting and poking and at some points practically begging for hackers to make a successful virus for OS X. You know how long this has been going on? Years and years.
Way before the switch to Intel. Way before these ads. And you know what has happened? Pretty much nothing.
I'm not trying to sound smug or cocky, i'm just telling what I have seen. I honestly don't think anything is going to happen because of these ads. - thegreyfox, on 10/12/2007, -3/+27You have bad ram... If you have all those problems then there is a hardware failure somewhere. me thinks its the ram.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+21rewatch the ad, Apple say that the 114'000 viruses for the PC, don't run on the mac. Not that the Mac has no viruses (they legally cannot make that claim.) Your brain is just telling you that 'Macs have no viruses' so you have something to argue about.
- foobario, on 10/12/2007, -4/+20>I get a beachball every once in a while. Force Quit. Fixed.
>I got a kernel panic maybe a couple months ago.
>I don't even know what a grey screen of death is.
I've never had a virus problem in XP. I last rebooted XP in February, and that was because I had removed a program and the DLLs wouldn't unload without a reboot. The last time I got a BSOD I was using Windows 98. Photoshop has crashed a few times this year, but it's never taken the system down with it.
My suspicion is Macs make it easier for someone who doesn't know how to tweak the system (or doesn't want to) to just use their computer right out of the box. A properly tweaked XP box is excellent, but most people don't have a properly tweaked XP... they have whatever came on the computer when they bought it, which is worse than XP out of the box with a bunch of crap apps added and 50 icons in the system tray running a bunch of services for things you will never, ever use.
The first thing I do when I get a new computer is erase the hard drive and only install the things I want. This includes using nLite to remove parts of Windows that I don't find particularly useful and replacing the shell with Talisman. The result is a very stable and responsive system.
Every user has different needs, and a different way of working with their machine. Letting Gates or Jobs tell you how to use your machine is for the sheep. Use what works for you, ignore everything else. - jarcoal, on 10/12/2007, -6/+19these days virus writers don't write for the glory, they write for the profit. when it's profitable to have legions of mac zombie machines, there will be legions of mac zombie machines.
- esaba.com, on 10/12/2007, -1/+13The Mac ads are targeting non-techies.
The people who would notice a Mac virus created are completely different. They're techies, generally.
I don't think the slingshot is pulled back nearly as far as that article makes it out to be. - zweben, on 10/12/2007, -10/+22I would say.... you're wrong. Yes, i'm sure *your* Mac actually crashes more than *your* PC. But I do not think that is the norm.
I get a beachball every once in a while. Force Quit. Fixed.
I got a kernel panic maybe a couple months ago.
I don't even know what a grey screen of death is. - TheManiacKY, on 10/12/2007, -0/+11I know apple makes great hardware. But really it is the OS the makes it so secure. I've been running OSX on a machine not made by apple (GASP) for over 6 months and the machine has never ran better. I used to be reinstalling Windows every 4-5 months to get that new spring clean feel again. But OSX has never failed me and as soon as they release the macbook (not pro) I'll be sure to buy one to replace this computer that's manufacture rimes with Hell. :)
- Tobey, on 10/12/2007, -0/+11"They never mentioned windoze."
Well they're certainly not talking about Linux... - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10My housemate's mac crashes once in a blue moon. My home built PCs with linux and xp rarely crash after being on for weeks. My dell at work that I handle tech support for (small business) rarely crashes even after weeks of uptime.
Unless it's something castrostrophic like bad RAM and you get regular crashes, it's all about how the user takes care of the computer. Know what software you have installed, know how everything on your box interacts.
If you ever owned a firearm you should know all about regular cleaning and maintenance, a computer requires no less. - fullgl, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9Yeah... it's gonna be okay... don't worry guys. One opinion article doesn't change the wrold
- soopafly, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8Windows viruses
- volcomjerk, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7I think the ADs are very well done. They are generic enough that they don't really point fingers at anyone but at the same time they are indirectly pretty much saying "OS X > Windows".
I also like how aggressive the statement is without being totally obvious.
"They explain nothing and just say PCS suck at everything"
You pretty much explained nothing by leaving this comment... if you are going to bash have some backing to it. The AD's aren't trying to explain everything between a Mac and a PC. In a 15-30 second window they did an excellent job at getting the point across to a non-techie audience that Macs have some advantages over a PC. - Panoctopi, on 10/12/2007, -4/+11Please, give us a break. By far OSX is more secure, more stable, more visually attractive, easier to use (arguably), and that's precisely what the ads communicate. By the way it is an ad, if we were to hold every piece of advertising on TV to the standards that some here are putting forth, we wouldn't have commercial television
- fr3nch13, on 10/12/2007, -3/+9I am going on three years now with my 12 in. PowerBook only one kernel panic EVER, back when I was using 10.2 Jaguar. I've also had a Mac mini for about 6 months and never even had an app hang on it.
- merreborn, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Sorry, wasn't the commercial about _viruses_, not _crashes_?
Totally different things. Any product from any manufacturer is going to produce a few bad units, like your G4. That says _nothing_ of the security of the software installed on said units. - boff, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7I've had the gray screen of death on boot on my G5 iMac. It was, in my case, a sketchy hard drive.
- mikeazorin, on 10/12/2007, -3/+9Wrong. Apple ships with firewall enabled, and their system updater works great.
- tijer, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7This guy is really pulling this directly from his trunk.
Half the article, well, more than half the article, only deals with the absolutely obvious of the tactics involved in the campaign and has nothing what so ever to do with virus.
The last two paragraphs are actually the only ones you need.
What he basically is saying is that Apple shouldn't praise Mac's being virus free that much - because when someone eventually will make a virus that hits, they'll look pretty stupid.
Well if that was true, then nobody would ever be able to proclaim anything about their product.
He might just as well have replaced the content with a fully-fledged criticism om the "mac is better"-add from the same campaign. Stating that if some dude found a way to do some specific task smarter on a Windows-PC, then the whole idea behind the "mac is better" would backfire. Well, as you can easily imagine - that would not be the case.
Where is the button that lets me report this as "Pure speculation" or "Flamebait"? - Acill, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5I dont care what the PC/Windows lovers say. I have been Amiga and Mac all my life. I will admit the pre OS X days were hell. I havent has any major crashes under OS X ever. Not once. Virus? Sure if you call thsose lame attempts of a proop of concept things they let out. Face it. We have a better time using our computers them most others do.
- Dari, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6My gaming PC blue screens about once a week, at shutdown, for no reason at all. No indication as to why this happens, it just does. :)
As for Apple software, maybe you should do some research first. Apple makes some of the most highly regarded software in the computer industry. Ever hear of Final Cut Pro and Shake? iLife is also absolutely outstanding, and it gets better every year. OS X beats the living ***** out of Windows in terms of stability, quality.. not to mention, SECURITY. Security is the issue here. People think virus writers will jump on Apple because of an advertisement. Yeah, right. Independent companies have offered tens of thousands to hackers as incentive to get the virus train rolling on OS X. No dice.
You think an ad is going to do what money could not? Fat chance. - arthurbarnhouse, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6the article explained it. An airline doesn't boast that they crash less than any other airline, because then all it takes is one crash and they are in hot water with the consumer.
- kc0re, on 10/12/2007, -3/+8I had a blue screen on one of my remote XP boxes (service pack 2, all updates) just the other day, when doing... NOTHING.
- pkulak, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5I always had the feeling that virus didn't exist not only because noone bothered to write them, but because it was so dificult to do so. I mean, isn't it just difficult to write a virus for *ix?
- Rkstar, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6For the plane-crash analogy to be correct... that would mean one airline has 5,000 fatal crashes a year, and the other had one in it's lifetime. To me, that would be a great selling point. And if that were the case, I bet that airline would advertise that.
- mgleason007, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5You clearly have a hardware problem. Don't blame it on OSX. It is way more stable than XP anyday. OSX86 runs great even on non-Apple hardware.
- Funkly, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4who said apple said invulnerable? Just better... you cant argue that OSX isnt better. Windows blatantly follows OSX. Nothing wrong with that, it just is..
Oh yeh..... ITS JUST A ***** COMMERCIAL!! - spam4jan, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4I do agree, but you are only feeding the fan boiz/girlz. Most Mac users use their computer, end of story. There is always a small percent that has to 'sing the gospel' to everyone left and right. Windows and Linux users have this minority as well. They all use outdated information, and there is nothing reasonable one can say to convince them.
The best thing to do is to not answer back, like annoying small kids that are starved for attention, they may scream for a minute but after that they'll shut up. Hopefully. They are kinda like Jehovah's witnesses, they come around and make a racket at the door. If you keep quite and don't answer back they leave and maybe come back once a year. The second you answer, they'll be coming back week after week to 'save you' even if only opened the door to threaten them with a shotgun. - JDOG, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Wow.
That's all I have to say, as this thread has degraded to a total Mac vs. PC hate thread. I also love the fact that as an avid Mac user it disgusts me to see the rabid "You must obviously be mis-using your Mac" or "You have bad hardware" or "You're a LIAR" comments from what I can only assume are Mac users who can't comprehend somebody who enjoys and uses BOTH operating systems on a daily basis...for both work and play having an issue with OS X and more importantly Apple hardware.
To address each grievance:
1. I have the Applecare repair and testing sheets from each of my dealings with them with this computer over the years, you want to call B.S., call B.S., but I will gladly provide you with the case numbers and dates with repair info just to prove YOU wrong.
2. I love that you can crawl out of your internet cave to tell me I'm wrong about being irritated by my Mac crashing. As DjDole said, "The guy said HIS mac crashes often. He didn't say EVERY mac crashes often." This is totally true. I know several of my friends who have owned multiple macs for years and have only had one or two crashes, but then again I'm sure if you've got a mac that has never crashed, this is a new concept.
3. If I'm somehow mis-using my Mac by using Safari to browse the net and iTunes to play music with the occaisional forray into Word and Photoshop for work...it must be Microsoft & Adobe's fault because they're 3rd party software must be "mucking everything up." And no I don't have it by a giant magnet or throw it against the wall...thanks for that.
I am so sick of this debate, but moreso just Apple fanboyism at it's worst. I am a proud Mac user, but in response to the story at hand, I find it amusing that the new ad campaign claims amazing stability when my PERSONAL EXPERIENCE has been so negative. - elnerdo, on 10/12/2007, -5/+8foobario, If I could digg your comment ten thousand times, I would.
- djdole, on 10/12/2007, -4/+7I love how the mac zealots take the fact that this guy is voicing HIS bad experiences with HIS mac and his good experience with WinXP as an attack on THEIR computers and the entire OSX, and are digging him down for it.
The guy said HIS mac crashes often. He didn't say EVERY mac crashes often.
Seriously people, get over yourselves. OSX is not the be all end all of operating systems.
Stop freaking taking his comment as a personal attack...
....it's...an...OPERATING...SYSTEM. Not an extension of your genitalia. God damn.
The guy never said it was "The Norm".
Oh... and put OSX developers in the real world (of third party hardware, cards, and drivers) and see exactly how stable OSX is then. Until Apple totally opens up it's operating system for anyone to be able to build their own PC (with 100% third party components), and install OSX on it (then install WinXP on an identical system for comparison), there is NO way to fairly compare Windows stability to OSX.
Oh, and my work IBM T41 with Win2000 hasn't crashed ONCE or had any driver conflicts or needed matainence of ANY kind.
BTW, I prefer Linux, so put down your flame throwers you whiney Job-ites. - VargVikernes, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Hehe. Did anyone notice how many times (and with such an emphasis) they said "Microsoft Office"?
I think these ads are cool. Nicely produced and all, but wether Apple will get burned by them is up to debate. I don't think they will, but will be interesting to see. - Acill, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Oh just go get OS X and use it for christ sake!
- STKD, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6You say that as if it would be a bad thing somehow...
- deepsub, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4"iTunes is horrible."
How is it horrible?
And what is a better alternative? - baskervillain, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I think '***** software' is grossly misinformed. Have you used iTunes? iPhoto? Mail? These are incredible, intuitive pieces of software that firstly aren't terrifying to a new user withOUT dumbing down, and secondly, can enable an advanced user to really get what they need from them without being completely unintelligible. I'm not saying that all Microsoft software is awful, I just think you're naive in stating Mac software is *****.
- geekee, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4People write malware to make money these days. An ad from Apple saying they're invulnerable is false advertising, but I doubt it will motivate programmers to do anything differently.
- soopafly, on 10/12/2007, -10/+13Funny, my new Dell computer at work crashes way way more than my Mac. My Mac has been on 24/7 for over a month of heavy use.
Go figure - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Thankyou foobario - common sense for the rest of us. I've had one virus ever - a cascade virus from a floppy back in the Commander Keen days. Since then, i've had to reinstall due to dodgy Norton/McAffee at least 4 times!
Since XP, its always been fine with updates and a decent firewall (and no, i don't open every attachment claiming to be Kiera Knightly in the nude...)
That said, my XP box at work is ***** - crashes twice a day - horrible. But then, despite admin rights, i can't reinstall a clean upbolloxed copy there.
Its about the implementation people - this applies long after you install! - Dari, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3My Mac Mini is a year and some old, now. It's been through Panther, and all the Tiger updates, and it's still as fast and stable as the day I got it. I only got the Kernel Panic once, and repairing permissions fixed that.
- StarManta, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4There are antivirus programs for Mac.
Bald people can buy shampoo. Will it do them any good? Only if they're worried they might grow hair one day. - afrazkhan, on 10/12/2007, -4/+6
"Funny, my iBook G4 is on it's third set of hardware (2 HDD replacements & 3 logic board replacements...all through Applecare) and continues to regularly crash nearly every day I use it."
I call *****. Or more precisely, FUD through misinformation.
I work with a number of OSs, OSX and XP being two of them, and I'm saying that unless you keep your Mac next to a massive electromagnetic field, or smash it against the wall every morning, you sir, are a liar. - MoofTheStoof, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Actually, Apple makes spectacular hardware AND software. Do I see apps crash? Yes. World of Warcraft tanks once in a blue moon. I use macs for work and play and that's the only app crash in memory. All my internet, media, and development software works fine. Do I see machines crash? No. Last time I had a machine lock up was when I bought a bad stick of RAM for my Cube in 2002. I have 5 desktop macs of various ages all running latest and greatest OS X, and one 17" G4 PowerBook. (Rev. B Bondi iMac, heavily upgraded G4 Cube, heavily upgraded Sawtooth PM G4, heavily upgraded Gigabit Ethernet PM G4 dual, and June '04 dual 1.8 GHz G5). All of them run spectacularly. Am I worried about a virus coming along and ruining my beautiful utopia? No, because OS X was designed to be secure, and Apple works diligently to keep it that way.
- silent1, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Backlash? You mean such as these idiotic discussions that get sparked every time the subject is broached?
- geekee, on 10/12/2007, -3/+5A successful virus on a machine with 5% market share is difficult, unless it's also a Windows virus, which would then act as a carrier to expose more Macs.
Demonstrating vulnerabilites in MacOS is not however. Just look at what Apple's patched recently. - fightzero01, on 10/12/2007, -5/+7well.... don't they? :)
- kc0re, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Oh yeah, and Norton has one. It sucks, and it's a resource hog, but it is there
- ButtonDownBobby, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Wait a sec... The two personalities on the commercial are PC and Mac...
Joe and Jane public will be interested in a hassle free computer experience will look into a Mac. Most likely if boot camp is up and running the "Switch" can be easier to digest.
Now if you run Windows on Mac Hardware will Joe and Jane assume they are still running a better machine? (A non virus/crash prone computer) I'm going to assume the worst and say they still expect hassle free because it's the Mac. I could see this posing problems on a sales floor level... -
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