“Here at the Bleeding Edge Centre for the Study of Computer-Induced Unwellness, we are no strangers to the extraordinary responses otherwise sane individuals can sometimes make to apparently trivial setbacks at the hands of their PCs. Nothing, however, quite approaches the actions of a New York resident called Lew Tucker who, despite having a PhD in computer science, threw out a perfectly good desktop PC because it was full of spyware, adware and viruses, and bought a new one,” Charles Wright writes for The Age.
“Now, you might wonder how someone with a PhD in computer science could have comprehensively ignored the basic steps – install, update and run anti-virus and anti-spyware software and run the Firefox browser rather than Internet Explorer – that would have prevented contamination,” Wright writes. “You might also wonder why, if it was such a mess, he didn’t remove the partition or reformat and reinstall Windows.”
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: We wonder why Wright then launches ways to make disk image backups for Windows and Mac OS X without ever mentioning that Mac OS X users’ Macs don’t get “full of spyware, adware and viruses.” By the way, it’s a great idea to make a bootable disk image of a base system for Mac OS X, but not because of spyware, adware, and viruses; that’s a Windows user’s dilemma. Make a Mac OS X disk image for backup purposes and you can start up any Macintosh from the backup, or move your current OS X system from one computer to another or for syncing purposes.
Related MacDailyNews articles:
Windows users resort to throwing out PCs rather than cleaning spyware, malware infested machines – July 18, 2005
How Do You –
‘…Make a Mac OS X disk image for backup purposes…’
Well, I am a senior software architect at the company that used to produce the chips for the PowerMacs (Hint its a three letter company) and that does not mean that I enjoy formatting disks and installing crappy-software over and over again. That is why I use a Mac a t home. It has nothing to do with computer literacy it is just a question of what you want to do with your valuable time.
Carbon Copy Cloner is Tiger compatable with 10.4.2 and beyond and it’s donationware so please support us.
Get a external hard drive bigger than your boot drive, or bigger than your boot and file drive combined, and clone regularly. Firewire 800/4000 prefered.
You’ll have a alternate way of booting in case your drive fails or suffers from a software problem. If you can’t resolve the issue, you can copy your files and simply reverse clone.
It’s the best backup method and it will save you behind.
Much appreciated MIke B.
Sounds like a sound concept. Will check it out.
This guy here has a excellent how to clone guide
http://macosg.com/group/viewtopic.php?t=6239
http://macosg.com/group/viewtopic.php?t=6237
When backing up your main hard drive to an external drive, do you backup the entire hard drive to the back up hard drive or just the home folder?
Disk Utility does things that most people don’t realize.. it is VERY powerful.
1. It can clone the contents of one drive to another drive, even if that disk is larger or smaller, so long as you have enough space for the data – that’s under the last tab called Restore – and it works just like it looks like it should. Yes, even bootable volumes “just work” – i set a mini i was useing as a server to target disk mode, connected it up to the new, more powerful server, did a restore to its smaller (booting) hard drive, and bammo, it fired up, first time, no issues.
2. It can create disk images of just about anything – from CDs, DVDs., iPods, you name it. Just select your volume on the left and then click on the “New Image” icon in the toobar
3. It can create a secure disk image – so if doing your whole user directory is not feasible with FileValut (its not for me, i do video for a living) – do a “New Image” – make the image file as large as you need and then simply make it AES 128 encrypted. Great for carrying around your secret plans for world domination (or, like me, the files for the startup your trying to startup).
4. You can convert a disk image from one format to another – simply Open Image File, and then convert it to whatever format you like.
5. Did i mention that it does disk permission repair?
This thing is the bomb… i don’t use anything else except for Toast, because its just so damn powerful and informative. But between the two, theres absolutely nothing else i need. CCC – Bombich’s software – does not work with Firewire disks, and he says so on the site. Well, too bad, i need it to work all the time with Firewire, and i have no problems with Disk Utility.
Go play with the buttons on Disk Utility – you’ll be glad you did…
This message paid for by tofu eating lovers of Disk Utility, 1 Infinite Loop.
Carbon Copy Cloner does NOT work all the time on Tiger.
http://www.bombich.com/software/ccc.html
An update is coming, of course. In the meantime, use Disk Utility as it is VERY powerful, though the options can be a bit bewildering for newer users.
Or, try SuperDuper! The basic cloning feature is free.
Tera Patricks
Mac360
btw: i don’t meann to bash Mike’s software – its cool, but i simply don’t get what it does beyond what I get with Disk Utility? I mean, both can backup a particular folder without any issue, or a whole disk (unless your going firewire to firewire, then you can’t use CCC).
I think the only thing i can see that it does beyond DU is that restoring seems to be a little eaiser for folders.
now… one thing it CAN do that DU can’t do, i guess, is work over a network…. okay.. there’s 1.
Mike, can you elaborate on what CCC does that DU doesn’t do – other than networks and other than that most people know CCC more than they know what DU does? I’d prefer to hear it from the horses mouth than for me to keep guessing
Thanks
Tera,
Other than the layout is goofy – i mean, i didn’t even know that DU did disk cloning untiol someone told me “hey, click on that Restore tab…”
I think that i should sit down and write the definative manual on DU. I think that would help matters a lot, instead of me just bitching.
and after i get this assignment done for my boss.
Carbon Copy Cloner is a really great app.
http://www.bombich.com/software/ccc.html
It’s not just yet compatible with OS X 10.4 Tiger.
Their online forum has an announcement about it
http://forums.bombich.com/viewtopic.php?t=5264
which says:
“The new CCC version (3.0) is coming along nicely.
I don’t have an ETA yet, but it will definitely resolve many
of the outstanding issues we’ve dealt with in the past.
And I tossed in a much requested feature as well”
It sounds like it will be out very soon.
It’s a must have piece of software.
>Carbon Copy Cloner is Tiger compatable with 10.4.2 and beyond and it’s donationware so please support us.>
Yes, but SuperDuper is better.
Re: “you might wonder how someone with a PhD in computer science could have comprehensively ignored the basic steps”
Having worked with PhD’s in various capacities for 35 years, I would ask the question: Why would you assume that, because someone has a PhD, that they would know any more about anything than anyone else?
They have the same proportion of idiots as does the general population, it is just that their idiocy is more focused on a narrower subject, which usually leads to them being generally less functional in society, not more.
if the guy’s a PhD in comp. sci. he should know enough to use a Mac, and then it won’t become full of viruses,etc.
Man, I love you’re work. You are my favorite “actress.”
Re: “you might wonder how someone with a PhD in computer science could have comprehensively ignored the basic steps”
Hangon, I don’t care whether this guy has a vast understanding of computers or not…but shouldn’t the question be “you might wonder how
someone who just bought a (new) computer is supposed to take these
steps at all???
If you buy a car, no one expects you to update the tires, exchange the windows, alter the color or whatever – just not to run into trouble whilst
driving, right? Since when does this apply to “common sense”?
Admitted, I use Little Snitch to avoid unwanted traffic etc. – but that’s
nothing I’d have to do. It’s not like my computer will suffer if not
installing Little Snitch.
I don’t get how the majority of the computer owning population has
become used to put up with this kind of time wasting crap. Really, I simply don’t get it.
Honsetly, someone should sit down and try to calculate the total (or annual) amount of money (not to mention time) his/her/their country has lost
by choosing windows. This bill is mainly been paid by taxpayers.
I wonder what University is churning out such utter morons for computer science majors? If he knew dittlely about ‘puters he’d:
1) Be using a Mac, or
2) Using some other flavor of BSD
And if he had some valid reason for using Windoze, then he’d at least know enough how to secure it (or at least know better than connect it to the InterNet).
Methinks this is Urban Legend. If not, then it just goes to prove there’s more than a little truth in the old joke:
We all know what BS is. MS is “More of the Same,” and PhD is “Piled Higher and Deeper.”
A better question to ask is ‘Why did this PHd throw out a PC that was infested and go out and buy ANOTHER Windows PC???’.
Some people are just a glutton for punishment!
Get a Mac, for God’s sake!!
TMAN – spot on. Spot. On.
Just because you have a degree in computer science does not mean you know anything about operating systems. Otherwise all CS degreed people would be using OSX, Linux, or some other UN*X instead of windows.
Hey guys,
It seems that Windows Vista has something called Stacks, which groups certain files automatically according to keywords or type, but I thought that Apple had a patent on Piles, which was filed way back in 1994.
PHD: Public High school Diploma
AJ – close, maybe Public Highschool Dunce
T,
It seems that you are referring to Vista’s “new” concept of folders that arrange existing files according to keywords or metadata. This is an exact rip-off of Tiger’s Smart Folders! The difference is that Vista will come with an assortment of pre-set Smart Folders such as photos, PDFs, etc.
PHD or not, its not about his technical skills.
Time is money.
If you factor in all the time spent on cleaning up, running virus scans, running adware/spyware scans, reformating, re-installing, it may have been cheaper to spend $500-$600 to buy a new PC.
When I think about all the time I’ve lost cleaning up and fixing up my friend’s and family’s PCs I cringe. I am so glad I switched to a mac.