Both Microsoft and Apple operating systems were originally designed for one user, sitting at an isolated computer. Security? Take the keyboard with you. Along came Novell,local area networking, and passwords. Then came the Big One. The Internet. Users connected worldwide. And viruses flourished.

Apple swallowed hard, then replaced its leaky code with a tough BSD core. Microsoft kept patching… and patching… and patching. Sadly, many experts agree that, even patched and updated, Microsoft’s operating system is simply too easy to penetrate.

The obvious solution? The Apple way.

Microsoft’s solution? Attack. Sell the suckers software to protect them from your own failings. For Microsoft shareholders, it’s a hard strategy to fault. Bill’s done them well.

For the rest of us suckers, it’s getting a bit hard to swallow.