[just txt and calls mam]

Soon it will be time to replace the laptop and I have always wanted a mac, they are tempting even more as they have reduced them now by around $300

Also I dread windows 7 and ie8 as I always found xp to be great but vista has been a pig

something I read in the open forum about anti virus, I saw two mac users say they did not have anti virus because they had a mac.. what is this about?

also when you went from windows to macs how was it?

[zoi]

Well, it is true that macs do not need an anti-virus.
Theres probably 2 or 3 virus' at most for macs, and they're extremely uncommon.

When I got my first mac about a year ago, the transition was simple. I had always wanted one also. Macs are more user friendly than windows. I had no problems with freezing or slowness(keep in mind, the mac I got was a used powerbook g4 from about 2003) So theres no telling how amazing of an experience you'll get with a newer and never used one. Macs basically cater to a certain type of person. If you have the patience and time for Windows, go for it. Also, if you're big on programs/torrents and what-not, it's not for you. Macs are a simple solution for someone who is a simple person and wants something for work and play.
Go for the mac. I sold mine and have been regretting it ever since, and now my new one is coming on Monday.
If you do get one, and need it to be cheap, I recommend a Titanium Powerbook G4. Granted, it doesn't have iSight(webcam) and it's older, it is by far my favorite mac I've ever tried compared to the Macbook Air, iMac, Macbook, and Macbook Pro. I've never tested an Ibook, while they are slightly cheaper, they're for more play. A powerbook incorporates both work and play.


Ignore this long post, I love sharing my amazing experiences with Macs.

[Teek]

Here is the reason apple gives.
Is a Mac safe from PC viruses?

Yes, a Mac is 100 percent safe from viruses designed to attack PCs. And although no computer connected to the Internet is completely immune to all viruses and spyware, the Mac is built on a solid UNIX foundation and designed with security in mind. The Mac web browser, Safari, alerts you whenever you’re downloading an application — even if it’s disguised as a picture or movie file. And Apple continually makes free security updates available for Mac owners. You can even have them download automatically.
Apple - Get a Mac - FAQ


Get one, You'll LOVE it, unless you have immediate plans to use it with your blackberry lol

Out the box, they don't play well with BB's but there are several workarounds.

[Crayons15]

i looove my mac! i had to use macs in college for my degree and ended up loving them soo much more than windows!! so i got a macbook pro! i will never go back to windows. get one, you'll love it!

[SaraBear]

I agree with the other Mac lovers--you will end up kicking yourself for not switching sooner. I switched 15 months ago and have found OS X is an amazingly easy thing to use. Make sure you check out places like MacRumors after you get it so you can learn the billions of tricks and shortcuts that make Mac so simple to use. You will not realize how awesome it is for a few months until you get it down pat.

I do a lot of design work, website work, recording and editing, etc, and the programs for Mac are simply better than those for Windows. A lot of times, even Microsoft's programs are better on Mac (Word for instance has features that the Windows counterpart does not have). RIM/Blackberry is the only program that is lacking, unfortunately, but the RIM desktop manager is supposedly being beta tested now (several folks at MacRumors have said they are trying it) and will hopefully solve that problem very soon.

You have no practical need for worry about viruses. 99.9999% of the time, in order for you to get infected on a Mac, you have to download a virus, open it, install it, and ignore the dialog box that asks you if you know what you are doing, then give it your password! It isn't like Windows where you can get infected while not even at your computer or by flipping by some evil website.

[just txt and calls mam]

Thank you all for the replies, very very helpfull

No problems worrying about syncing with a blackberry. I have had many smartphones and the storm was my first foray into bb and as such has ensured I will be leaving bb well alone for the forseable future

I liked in particulary the comment re-Macs are a simple solution for someone who is a simple person and wants something for work and play.

Now I'm not simple but I get your drift. In this day and age there is no exscuse for technology that is used everday to be to complicated. it is paid to due a job..not confuse you. I suppose that is shown most obviously between an Iphone and a storm

Once again many thanks for the replies

[TheScionicMan]

Saying Macs are immune from viruses is like saying your neighborhood is immune from crime because nobody's been robbed yet...

Our days as smug "malware free" Mac users have been fading for about a year, but now, the fall from grace is happening a little faster. On Tuesday, security research firm Paretologic posted a warning regarding a porn site that downloads a trojan containing malware that targets, and affects both Windows and Mac OS X. Mac users get redirected to a pagemac.php page, which then begins to download what appears to be a QuickTime.dmg file; it is not.

Anti-virus software maker Sophos today warned in their blog that they had discovered a new version of the Mac OS X Tored worm, according to a Sophos blog post. Visitors to a porn site a promised a really hot porn download, and told that they must first download an Active X component in order to see it. Instead, they download a Trojan, dubbed OSX/Jahlavc. In both cases, users still have to authenticate and install the downloaded file, but a fair number of folk are quite likely to do just that, and essentially create a private entrance for whatever entity created the Trojan.

Our days as smug "malware free" Mac users are limited

Macintosh security consulting firm SecureMac.com on Tuesday issued a critical warning for what it says is an unpatched Java security vulnerability in Apple's Mac OS X.

According to the man credited with discovering it, Landon Fuller, the Java flaw even affects the latest version of Mac OS X, 10.5.7, released just a week ago. Fuller has gone so far as to release a proof of concept for the security hole.

The vulnerability could be used to perform what SecureMac refers to as "drive-by-downloads," or the ability to infect a computer by simply visiting a Web page. Fuller explains that the flaw allows malicious code to run commands with the permissions of the current user.

In a post on his Web site, Fuller clearly seems upset and mystified that the vulnerability remains unpatched in the latest versions of the operating system.

"Unfortunately, it seems that many Mac OS X security issues are ignored if the severity of the issue is not adequately demonstrated," Fuller said on his site. "Due to the fact that an exploit for this issue is available in the wild, and the vulnerability has been public knowledge for six months, I have decided to release my own proof of concept to demonstrate the issue."

"We are aware of the issue and we are working on a fix," Apple spokeswoman Monica Sarkar said. She could not give a time frame for the fix and declined to comment further.

Fuller's demonstration runs on "fully patched" Intel and PowerPC Macs.

The only workaround for the vulnerability is to disable the use of Java applets in your Web browsers and turn off the preference to "Open safe files after downloading" in Safari, he said.

Security firm warns of Java flaw in Mac OS X | Apple - CNET News

[skwij]

Also, if you're big on programs/torrents and what-not, it's not for you.

Say what? I torrent all the time, have a buncha free apps installed. ANYthing I did on Windows I can do on my Macs, and usually easier.

The only downside is the NEED for Windows to properly backup your BB and install apps to the BB (those that aren't available OTA, that is).

[zoi]

Say what? I torrent all the time, have a buncha free apps installed. ANYthing I did on Windows I can do on my Macs, and usually easier.

The only downside is the NEED for Windows to properly backup your BB and install apps to the BB (those that aren't available OTA, that is).

What I mean is that it's harder to find programs compatible with mac on torrents. It's not impossible, but not as many as windows.