Is windows just another virus?

[dirty.deeds]

No, Windows is not a virus. Here's what viruses (viri?) do:

They replicate quickly -- okay, Windows does that.
Viruses use up valuable system resources, slowing down the system as they do so -- okay, Windows does that.
Viruses will, from time to time, trash your hard disk -- okay, Windows does that, too.
Viruses are usually carried, unknown to the user, along with valuable programs and systems. Sigh... Windows does that, too.
Viruses will occasionally make the user suspect their system is too slow and the user will buy new hardware. Yup, that's with Windows, too.
Until now it seems Windows is a virus but there are fundamental differences: Viruses are well supported by their authors, are running on most systems, their program code is fast, compact and efficient and they tend to become more sophisticated as they mature.

So, Windows is not a virus. Just a thought

[Tormod]

I was going to say "but people don't willingly buy viruses" (or virae) but come to think of it I once bought a piece of spyware remover that a) promptly installed spyware on my PC and b) launced a virues-infected .exe which tried to phone home. Luckily I'm on broadband...

[alxian]

waiting with baited breath for a google OS

[nemo]

You already have it - you just don't have the batallion of uber-geeks to tweak it for you.

Mix 2 parts Linux, 1 part MySQL, a handful of custom code and sift all social life from the mix. Bake on 350 for about 2 years and enjoy.

[alexander]

Didnt you mean "Bake on a quad dual core AMD 64 server for a couple of years" Nemo?

Hey, there is one more argument for windows not being a virus:
viruses spread with a wild speed from one computer to another occupying tens of thousands of computers in the first hours of deployment, and quickly spreading... The use of windows is declining as people realize that there are better alternatives out there then microsoft