“Microsoft Corp., the world’s largest software maker, unveiled on Thursday plans to launch a computer subscription service that would include anti-virus and security updates for personal computers,” Reuters reports.
“The Redmond, Washington-based software giant said it would initially distribute the service, called ‘Windows OneCare,’ among its employees this week and would offer a trial, or beta, service for PCs running Windows later this year. Users would pay a yearly subscription fee,” Reuters reports.
The Reuters report also contains this gem, “Apple Computer Ltd., which recently launched a major update to its Macintosh computer operating system, has long offered an anti-virus subscription service for its users.”
MacDailyNews Note: First of all, it’s really Apple Computer Incorporated, not Limited. Second of all, Apple used to offer their .Mac subscribers a free Anti-Virus application called Virex 7.5 from a third party, McAfee Security, much like Apple also once offered a free download of the game Marble Blast. One major difference between the two freebees was that Marble Blast actually did something, however trivial, for the user. There is no such offer for Apple current operating system, Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger. So, obviously, any actual research by Reuters would have revealed that Apple Computer Inc. has never offered an anti-virus subscription service for its users. Mac OS X has never had a virus, by the way.
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: There’s a tried and true name for people that will pay Microsoft for Windows and then pay them extra for some promise of protection: “suckers.” Hate to break it to you this way, but if you’re that stupid, you deserve to use Windows, and only Windows, for the rest of your life.
“A protection racket is an extortion scheme whereby a powerful organization coerces individuals or businesses to pay ‘protection money’ which allegedly serves to purchase the powerful organization’s protection services against various external threats, whereas the actual threat comes from the powerful organization itself. Those who do not buy into the protection plan are targeted by the powerful organization and are harassed to try to force payment of the protection money.” – Wikipedia
[UPDATE: 1:21pm ET: Added “Mafiasoft” to headline. Thanks, “FromSicily.” Added “MDN Note.” Edited “Related articles” below.]
Related MacDailyNews articles:
There are no viruses for Apple’s Mac OS X – May 13, 2005
Microsoft Windows Sober.P worm shows ‘epidemic’ spread; Macintosh unaffected – May 03, 2005
Apple touts Mac OS X security advantages over Windows – April 13, 2005
New ‘highly critical’ Office flaw embarrasses Microsoft – April 13, 2005
97,467 Microsoft Windows viruses vs. zero for Apple Mac’s OS X – April 05, 2005
Symantec details flaws in its antivirus software – March 30, 2005
Motley Fool writer: ‘I’d be surprised if Symantec ever sells a single product to a Mac user again’ – March 24, 2005
Symantec cries wolf with misplaced Mac OS X ‘security’ warning – March 23, 2005
Symantec’s Mac OS X claims dismissed as nonsense, FUD – March 22, 2005
Symantec warns about Mac OS X security threat – March 21, 2005
Apple’s Mac OS X is virus-free – March 18, 2005
68,736 Microsoft Windows viruses vs. zero for Apple Mac’s OS X – March 12, 2005
Microsoft tries to turn its own security flaw into commercial gain – February 25, 2005
Cybersecurity advisor Clarke questions why anybody would buy from Microsoft – February 18, 2005
Microsoft’s Gates espouses homogenous operating system environments for better security – February 07, 2005
Windows’ mounting security problems make some consumers eager to purchase Macs – January 03, 2005
Windows Media songs and videos found to carry Windows malware payloads – December 30, 2004
Anzae/Inzae worm affects all Windows versions after 3.1; Macintosh unaffected – December 28, 2004
Unlike Windows users, Mac OS X users surf the Internet without a care in the world – December 28, 2004
Multiple unpatched Windows holes crop up; Windows systems compromised within minutes in experiment – December 24, 2004
Windows spyware mess is out of control, get a Mac and surf with impunity – December 21, 2004
New Microsoft Internet Explorer exploit spoofs Web sites on fully patched Windows XP systems – December 17, 2004
Microsoft may charge extra for Windows spyware protection software – December 16, 2004
Detroit Free Press: Windows malware problem getting worse, it’s time to get a Mac instead – December 16, 2004
Sick of spyware, adware headaches? Get a Mac and surf the Internet freely – December 13, 2004
Mossberg: Windows PCs plagued with problems, Apple’s Mac is ‘rock solid, elegant and affordable’ – December 09, 2004
Security expert: Don’t use Microsoft Windows, Office, Outlook, Internet Explorer – December 09, 2004
Security test: Windows XP system easily compromised while Apple’s Mac OS X stands safe and secure – November 30, 2004
Sick of spyware, adware infecting your PC? Don’t fret, just get a Mac – November 01, 2004
Microsoft: The safest way to run Windows is on your Mac – October 08, 2004
Spyware plagues Windows users while Mac users surf Net with impunity – November 01, 2004
Ballmer blames Windows users for not upgrading systems as Microsoft’s biggest security problem – October 22, 2004
Windows users line up to pay for spyware removal; Mac users surf Web with impunity – October 18, 2004
Microsoft: The safest way to run Windows is on your Mac – October 08, 2004
Windows users’ security woes spark interest in Apple’s secure Mac OS X – October 06, 2004
Windows desktop monopoly threatened by secure, safe Apple Mac OS X – October 04, 2004
Even Bill Gates can’t avoid Windows malware; Mac users surf the Web freely – October 03, 2004
Cyber-security adviser uses Apple Macintosh to avoid Windows’ security woes – September 27, 2004
Information Security Investigator says switch from Windows to Mac OS X for security – September 24, 2004
Mossberg: Apple iMac G5 ‘powerful, affordable, virus-free with better, more modern OS than Windows XP’ – September 23, 2004
USA Today: people are switching from Windows to Mac because of security issues – September 21, 2004
Windows besieged by hackers; number of Windows viruses soars by more than 400% – September 20, 2004
USA Today columinst angry about Windows viruses, adware, spyware – September 15, 2004
University of Chicago recommends all students patch Windows at least once a day – September 14, 2004
Windows XP worm speaks to users as it deletes their files; Macintosh unaffected – September 13, 2004
Security is top priority in Apple’s Mac OS X – September 12, 2004
Millions of Windows PC’s hijacked by hackers, turned into zombies; Macintosh unaffected – September 08, 2004
Mossberg: Dump your Windows machine and get an Apple Macintosh to free yourself of spyware – August 25, 2004
Tired of patching patches to patch Windows patches? Writer suggests getting a Mac – August 03, 2004
Windows ‘Scob’ virus designed to steal financial data, passwords; Macintosh unaffected – June 26, 2004
Gartner: Worms jack up the total cost of Microsoft Windows – May 07, 2004
Spyware, adware plague Windows users online; Mac OS X users surf freely – April 19, 2004
SmartMoney: Long-suffering Windows users can only dare to dream of Mac’s ease-of-use – February 12, 2004
Mac OS X has no viruses; what’s wrong with Windows? – February 11, 2004
Gates: Windows ‘by far the most secure’ system; tries to use ‘Mac OS X secure through obscurity’ myth – January 27, 2004
Columnist tries the ‘security through obscurity’ myth to defend Windows vs. Macs on virus front – October 1, 2003
New York Times: Mac OS X ‘much more secure than Windows XP’ – September 18, 2003
Wall Street Journal’s Mossberg on making the switch from Windows to Mac – September 18, 2003
Fortune columnist: ‘get a Mac’ to thwart viruses; right answer for the wrong reasons – September 02, 2003
Shattering the Mac OS X ‘security through obscurity’ myth – August 28, 2003
Is Mac OS X really inherently more secure than Windows? – August 26, 2003
Chicago Sun-Times columnist: Windows ‘many holes in its security’ but ‘none of my Macs have ever been affected – August 26, 2003
Sick of worms and viruses? ‘Move to Mac OS X’ suggests Chicago Tribune columnist – August 25, 2003
Virus and worm problems not just due to market share; Windows inherently insecure vs. Mac OS X – August 24, 2003
Look, I love my Mac, but let’s look at the facts. For a Mac you have to PAY to let QuickTime edit files or even play full-screen. Windows XP has that for free.
Windows XP comes with a great movie editor with tons of features. This comes with Windows XP for free.
For less then $20 a year, you get cross-platform email with 2GB storage. This is way cheaper and way better then the email you get for $99 a year.
Those who use both platform, I mean really use both, know that Windows XP was a lot to offer, including some things that must be purchased for an extra charge with the Mac OS.
I love my Mac, but let’s try and understand the facts.
And what do you get for those $20 a year besides the email?
google mail is free by the way.
.Mac is not *just* the email, or *just* the web publisher, or *just*… you got it. You do not get email for $99 from .Mac .
If you divide $99 by all the products you get the mail part comes at few bucks per year.
Usually you get more than you need with .Mac and to get the same from other single vendors you add up more than what you pay for .Mac .
It is like CDs vs iTMS. If you want the whole thing and booklet and the rest get the CD. Otherwise get the one or two tunes you really like.
If you get .Mac *just* for the email and not making use of the rest you are of course throwing money away.
For QT Pro. They might make it available as regular QT, but then again, especially now with QT7 and H.264 we are talking ’bout products on different leagues.
Crap PCs also cost few hundred bucks, does that mean Apple is stealing your money when you get a dual G5?
Markus, welcome to the Mac experience.
Concerning suckers, just hang around here for a while and maybe you’ll understand why MDN calls Wintel users that way.
Just hang around here to read some PC users posting their M$ apologetical nonsense of the month or their senseless attack to OS X or compare it to the great features of Longhorn. Then – maybe – you too will call them suckers in your heart.
Yeah.. I know.. Windows losers don´t suck..
1. Windows MovieMaker cowers in the shadow of iMovie.
2. Just because there are no Inc. in the UK doesn’t make it any better. Elsewhere on the Reuters site, Apple Inc. is addressed in the proper way. This article is simply a case of a crappy researcher.
3. I agree with Markus. Don’t insult someone because they don’t know any better…the majority of Windows users don’t. Ignorance is bliss to them. Sure, I’m all gung ho for making fun of the engineers at work who think their $600 Dell is better than my 2.7 GHZ dual proc G5. THOSE guys are the suckers, because they should know better. The mother who bought her 10-year old son a $400 Dell for school and play is NOT the sucker. Educate people, don’t mock them.
4. Funny that Microsoft calls their new product “OneCare”…because if Billy even gave one care about his own customers this product would never have been necessary. End of story. I switched to mac because I was sick and tired of having downloaded a gig worth of updates for a crappy OS. “Oops, there’s another hole we forgot to patch in the original release. Better throw out another update!”
Also, I love my mac. But let me add that implimenting widgets is (I think) the stupidest thing Apple could have done. The purpose of the widget could have been met in some other way. Now, OS X 10.4 has a new backdoor. Too bad Apple didn’t see that coming. At least they tried to fix it in the 10.4.1 update. Still stupid though. They got too zealous and tried to make everything so flashy. Get a Windows if you want that. Mac just WORKS. They should have been left that way.