First off: Viruses are written for operating systems and apps, not for processors. Even PC´s with AMD processors get viruses.
MacOS X is more secure than Windoze because of the way it was built. No app is allowed to take over the Operating System/computer, even if you´re the admin user.
There are no viruses for Mac in the PC sense. The few scripts that circulate require the user to do something actively stupid, like running apps as Root, a user above Admin user, and one that´s not enabled by default. Most Mac users will never even know Root exists. No reason to. The UNIX core: You´ll never need to know anything about either. But having a UNIX core makes OS X the most stable OS around, protected memory means no crashes, apps may die, but the OS won´t, true multitasking means you can run several apps at a time, each process does´nt interfere with the other providing you have enough memory.
Security comes from the design of the OS, and MacOS was built to be a network OS, because of it´s UNIX roots. WinXP was not. It is reasonably secure from SP2 on, but you still need firewalls and virusprotection if you want to surf securely. Before SP2 a WinXP machine lasted 12 minutes before it was infected in tests. Now it´s up to a few hours. Provided you don´t download or surf...
I have never lost data because of virus on a Mac. Got my first in 1988.
Apple´s move to Intel have nothing to do with Microsoft. Intel has the processor with the most power per watt, the Core Duo, making it possible for Apple to make an iMac that is 4 times faster than it´s predecessor, at the same price. It´s a fantastic machine. I spent 2 hours testing it today.
But more importantly: They can make what is effectively a dual processor laptop, that has long battery life, does´nt overheat, and is only an inch thick. Again 4 X the speed of it´s predecessor. I´ll get one next week.
The result may well be that you get a computer that can run both Windows, Linux and OS X. There are ways already to do that, but it´s not simple. Yet. And Apple does´nt mind if you install Windows, and Microsoft does´nt care. As long as you buy their products.
As for installing OS X on a generic PC/Wintel machine: It may happen but, I don´t think you´ll be able to just buy MacOS X and install it. It´ll be on a limited number of well defined configurations. Windows, apart from being inherently unsafe and unstable, has the big problem that it has to support a wide range of hardware, processors and cards, relying on drivers, not allways well written, to work. A Mac is Mac. The OS works on any Mac. No extra drivers needed, because the hardware is a known factor: It is allways made by Apple. MacOS X, 10.4.5, works on machines from 1998 untill now with no problems. You just install it. If Apple were to support al possible motherboards and processors it would be a supporters nightmare.
I´m not just a home user, though I have 5 Macs and 2 PC´s at home. And a Mac server for music and pictures. But when I´m not hanging out here, I´m an ACSA, Apple Certified Server Admin, the highest certification Apple has, I´ve been a Mac user and supporter since 1988. I´m certified on Windows too. I´m responsible for two research departments, and student IT at a University, at the Dept. of Health Sci. 500 Macs, 6 X-Servers and 2600 users.
We are 2 people to support the Macs, and 8 for 550 PC´s... That should tell you the difference in workload between the platforms. And they are used for more or less the same things, with most of the heavier stuff being done on Macs. Because of the Unix based opensource Apps used in research.
As for repackaging iPods... When you improve the product, add features, and lower the prices you can hardly call that repackaging. The new iPods play music and movies, shows pics and records and lots more. And are smaller, lighter and cheaper than the ones they replaced.
As for not wanting one... Since Apple has 72% of the market for mp3 players plenty of others do...
