In the ongoing debate of whether Mac or PC is better, Mac users usually smugly note that they have the added bonus of not being virus-magnets like PCs. Debbie, a devoted Mac user, wondered about such boasts.

Here's what she had to say:

I'd like to find out what anti-virus would be good for Macs. Techs at Apple have told me Macs don't need them, yet I read articles at C-Net and in MacWorld that say you do. I'd like to hear some discussion on that subject.

Local computer consultant G.J. Goldwyn offered up this advice:

Here is the truth on Mac OS and virus vulnerability. The reality: Nobody wants to be bothered at this point with writing a virus to infect the Mac. It's too much work and the results of a successful attack on the Mac OS would yield unimpressive results.

The reason is simple. The Macintosh may only account for 6% of the PC marketplace. Who wants to go to all the trouble of infecting a UNIX based operating system with a virus, when all you could possibly infect is 6%? Unix and the MacOS are more secure in nature than Windows, by design.

Of course, that's not to say that tomorrow, some Mac, somewhere, may become Mac operating system "Ten" or "X" patient zero.

Safe computing is the answer. Just be aware of what you click on.

Also, keep up-to-date with the Mac's built in "software update" feature. The moment there is a Mac virus in the wild, you'll hear about quickly it if you pay attention to my daily blog.

GJ's Web site is http://www.acomputerpro.com

Apple sure plays up the no virus thing. On their Web site, they outright tell people that they don't need virus software for their Macs:

Do I need virus software for a Mac?

No. While no computer connected to the Internet will ever be 100 percent immune to viruses and spyware, the Mac is built on a solid UNIX foundation and designed with security in mind. The Mac web browser, Safari, alerts you whenever you're downloading an application — even if it's disguised as an innocent picture or movie file. And Apple continually makes free security updates available for Mac owners. You can even have them download automatically.

http://www.apple.com/getamac/faq/

They even highlighted it in their 2006 "I'm a Mac/I'm a PC" ads:

http://www.apple.com/getamac/ads/

But what if you're just a little bit worried?

There are companies that make virus protection programs for Mac out there, so you can add a little backup if you're so inclined. This Washington Post blog from October echoes what G.J. said about virus protection, but I thought the comments offered a good bit of discussion:

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/securityfix/2007/10/antivirus_on_a_mac.html

By the way, in the interest of full transparency, I'm putting up the entire URLs so you know what you're clicking on. It may be a bit messier than using those tinyURLs, but hopefully it creates more clicking confidence.

Hope that helps. As always, please post additional comments and suggestions and keep sending questions my way at abruce@VenturaCountyStar.com

Note to readers: Questions may be lightly edited for length and clarity.