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RE: I have a question, Mac or PC?
October 20, 2009 at 7:19 pm
I set my trackpad up so that you can tap to click, and use two fingers to right click. It's easy.
Also, virus support? You do realise that like Linux, Mac OS X doesn't have many viruses, and the ones that it does have don't cause any damage to the system itself? It's all to do with the way administration accounts work, and the security layer built into the file system. Note that if you want to alter system files on your Mac, you have to type your system administrator password. Viruses can't do that.
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RE: I have a question, Mac or PC?
October 20, 2009 at 8:02 pm
Yes, and this is fine for 'normal' use, but I think it completely takes the utility out of macs, you can't access the bios to configure something differently, you cant run command line as well... It is just as easy to get norton 360 and not get viruses. I prefer linux, even though I am too acustomed to windows. PC hardware is better, you can go buy a mac that will be one hell of a computer, but it will be way overpriced, I personally prefer to build them myself for the reason that I will end up with a better computer than a factory built mac or PC for the money.
Has anyone really been far even as decided to use even go want to do look more like?
"Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys" - P.J. O'Rourke
"Being powerful is like being a lady. If you have to tell people you are, you aren't." - Margaret Thatcher
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RE: I have a question, Mac or PC?
October 20, 2009 at 8:35 pm
Yes, thats one of Mac's selling points (And for TBF: its negative points.) However, I have a great dislike for bugs... and want to purge every single one of them from about a meter around me (Including those in my computers and sickness and those annoying things that fly in the air) 
So essentially... no system is perfect... but any improvement is an upgrade Also, the biggest reason that there aren't very many viruses on Mac and Linux... is that not as many people use them, so viruses will much more often be targeted at the much more prevalent PC.
However, I prefer to avoid ALL of the following:
Which can cause a hell of a lot more damage to you than a mere system virus. And all of these are becoming increasingly prevalent on Macs (More people are buying Macs). So I think it is due time that at least spyware protection becomes part of the package (I like Mac Scan for instance, but I'm sure that there are other good ones.)
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Where sometimes is heard a discouraging word
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RE: I have a question, Mac or PC?
October 20, 2009 at 9:17 pm
I can run the command line perfectly well. You can also access the BIOS.
Anyway, why use Norton? It's one of the worst virus scanners out there. Avast / AVG are far better.
The reason there aren't viruses for Linux / Mac isn't because they are "unpopular". That's an argument from a Windows fanbase which holds no merit (I do computer security at university, I know these things). Most of the internet is hosted on Linux servers. The world's banking and personal information is stored on these machines; it is a far better target than any personal machine. Create a virus for Linux and you could get access to so much private data.
The real reason there aren't viruses for Linux / Mac is for the reason I stated. They are built with security in mind, as opposed to an afterthought as with Windows. In Windows, you don't need to use a password to change system files; in Linux / Mac / UNIX you do. It's a minor annoyance, but neccessary for security.
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RE: I have a question, Mac or PC?
October 20, 2009 at 9:30 pm
(This post was last modified: October 20, 2009 at 9:31 pm by Violet.)
Hmm, I actually didn't know any of that. However, wouldn't a Keylogger make using passwords useless? Since Mac Scan scans for Keyloggers, I am assuming they are a valid concern?
Oh, to save a question from TBF: how do you access the bios or command line of a Mac?
Please give me a home where cloud buffalo roam
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Where sometimes is heard a discouraging word
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RE: I have a question, Mac or PC?
October 20, 2009 at 9:41 pm
Keyloggers wouldn't be so much of a problem since they usually have to embed themselves in the system, and that requires either an exploit (rare), or a administrator password (stupid). They also usually require a connection to the internet so they can send the raw data back to the person behind the keylogger, and if you have a good firewall, this shouldn't be a problem. I have Little Snitch installed, which does the job perfectly.
Also as you pointed out, Mac Scan checks for Keyloggers, and Mac Update would releases fixes for exploits as soon as they were available.
The command line on a Mac is accessible by running the program "Terminal". Use Spotlight (CMD + Spacebar on my machine) and type in "Terminal".
There are various ways of accessing the BIOS, as outlined by doing a simple Google search. It's not impossible. It might be a bit tricky to get into at first, but it's still there.
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RE: I have a question, Mac or PC?
October 20, 2009 at 9:57 pm
I see... thank you for all the information, Adrian I take it a trojan would have to embed itself as well?
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RE: I have a question, Mac or PC?
October 20, 2009 at 10:07 pm
Quote:I can run the command line perfectly well. You can also access the BIOS. ...[shortened]... In Windows, you don't need to use a password to change system files; in Linux / Mac / UNIX you do. It's a minor annoyance, but neccessary for security.
That is why I like windows systems better for a non-networked controller or something where security is not of concern like for controlling a cnc machine, as it is easier to utilize than mac; for servers however I choose linux every time, and networked workstations also. Dsl is also nice for all the 90's computers I have laying around (and never use, they are more like space heaters than anything).
Has anyone really been far even as decided to use even go want to do look more like?
"Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys" - P.J. O'Rourke
"Being powerful is like being a lady. If you have to tell people you are, you aren't." - Margaret Thatcher
"Nothing succeeds like the appearance of success." - Christopher Lasch
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RE: I have a question, Mac or PC?
October 21, 2009 at 3:37 am
(This post was last modified: October 21, 2009 at 3:38 am by fr0d0.)
Viruses are no longer much of an issue, malware is... I remember when the Mac Air was release Apple took it to a conference and asked the audience to hack it. The audience failed. Then one person asked them to visit their website and had total control within 2 seconds.
You can use a computer to act as inbetween client and server and sniff everything that passes between them.
You can connect hardware keyloggers.
Linux Web servers are hacked all the time. Admins have to constantly patch them to keep ppl out. And you have to know your stuff to make them secure in the first place.
Windows security has been non existent by design although MS are trying to reverse that and adopt the linux model. XP doesn't really do security you have to bodge it.
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RE: I have a question, Mac or PC?
October 21, 2009 at 1:03 pm
(This post was last modified: October 21, 2009 at 1:06 pm by binny.)
I used my windows machine for 2 years without virus protection and never had a problem. My firewall was ZoneAlarm. I never used outlook, only web mail, and I used firefox for my browser, except when I was told I had to view a particular web page with IE. Either that worked for me or I got lucky.
Speaking of macs I got this email yesterday;
http://www.apple.com/imac/#video
binny 
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