Snow Leopard Takes Security Shine Off Apple

I’ll be the first to admit that I enjoy “Mac vs. PC” television commercials; they are pure entertainment genius. When I saw them pull in the strapping Patrick Warburton – aka Joe from Family Guy and Puddy from Seinfeld – I started roaring with laughter. Where John Hodgman is emblematic of the PC geek, the baritone Warburton is perfect exemplification of the stodgy, buttoned up corporation (think Mad Men as a PC). The Justin Long “Mac” and his cute consumer just make buying choice for Mac look fun and simple.

But this commercial is about not compromising when it comes to security, not fun and entertainment. In the spot, the consumer talks about wanting a machine that isn’t prone to “thousands of viruses” and all kinds of “problems.” I hear from Mac users all the time about the superiority of their platform in both functionality and performance. For a while it came across as a bit cult-like. When Apple announced the coming of Snow Leopard (OS X 10.6), the new version of the Mac operating system, a near frenzy broke out as the Apple faithful clamored for pre-orders and waited with baited anticipation for the release date. Microsoft, which is now encouraging people to throw Windows 7 release parties, can’t buy that kind of enthusiasm. Mac users can afford their enthusiasm because they feel secure in their PC choice in terms of security, usability and reliability.

But are recent security problems with Macs going to tarnish that image and consumer perceptions?

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