I'm always trying to convince Jennifer that she really needn't worry about the various e-mail viruses that make it to her Mac e-mail, as they are so unlikely to do any damage on a non-Windows.

Now, I realize that it isn't all about Microsoft being sloppy and Apple being tremendously security conscious. It is also very much about the relative popularity of the platforms. Targeting 95% of the computers out there is going to give you much greater hax0r cred than targeting 5%.

That said, I think it is worth considering sometimes in our rush to standardize and homogenize how vulnerable that makes us. Just as genetic homogeneity puts biological populations at risk, so technical homogeneity does the same for computer populations. It is hard to fit that idea into a Switch ad, and I suppose it would have fit into the Think Different campaign better anyway, but it matters.

P.S. If understanding cryptography matters to you, you should definitely have a copy of Bruce Schneier's book, Applied Cryptography. I loaned mine out some time ago. I don't know where it is, and I need to get a new copy.
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