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Google Switches Away from Windows (Mostly to Mac) Due to Security Concerns

ccunning said:
You're paying too much attention to the quantity of the target rather than the desirability of the target. China was not hacking Google because they were using Windows. They were hacking Windows because Google was using it. Now there will be incentive for the hackers to learn to hack OS X.
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That's my line of thought to. I think this will put the security through obscurity debate to test.

I'm guessing Google will probably be issuing the Chrome browser to their users as opposed to Safari. It is curious why Google wouldn't have just made all their employees use Chrome on Windows, since I thought Chrome on Windows is very secure compared to IE and Firefox.
 
jaw04005 said:
Or even better their search/page rank algorithm, which many people have asked them to reveal for years.

But no one talks about that.
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That's exactly what I'm talking about. Google does not disclose any details about the AdWords algorithm. That probably generates about 97% of their revenue.
 
Um... I wonder how they will continue to write software for the 90% of the world using Windows. You kinda need Windows to test IE. :)
 
dacreativeguy said:
Um... I wonder how they will continue to write software for the 90% of the world using Windows. You kinda need Windows to test IE. :)
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Well, according to the headline, they haven't banished Windows 100%. They're really talking about getting rid of Windows for ordinary operations.

Whether it's a virtual machine or not really doesn't make a difference.
 
cvaldes said:
It's likely that the people who switch to Macs are sales and marketing folks.
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Huh? OSX is very popular with tech people. Pretty interface, real OS underneath. Linux is okay, but the UI blows and the CLI isn't any different from OSX. Go to OSCON in a few weeks and count the number of MBPs. It's insane.
 
That is awesome.

HHHHOORRRIBBLLE PR for Microsoft.

Awesome PR for Apple.

Steve Jobs is smiling.

I bet that google will be at the Apple Keynote. Did anyone ever wonder why google had one windows computer at the I/O and all the rest were Macs...


I really like google now, that they support Mac more. Obviously they released chrome for Mac for a reason. They seemed to start making more things for Mac and Linux after that "Hack"
 
commander.data said:
That's my line of thought to. I think this will put the security through obscurity debate to test.

I'm guessing Google will probably be issuing the Chrome browser to their users as opposed to Safari. It is curious why Google wouldn't have just made all their employees use Chrome on Windows, since I thought Chrome on Windows is very secure compared to IE and Firefox.
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The way I read the article, it is an indictment of the entire Windows OS, and the inherent lack of security therein, more than merely the browser.

They are not saying "IE sucks". They are saying, "IE sucks, and so does Windows, see ya..."
 
This is just the edge of an industry-wide trend. Rumor has it a "major" EDA company also going to standardize internally on Mac across the enterprise (globally) early next year.
 
miles01110 said:
Um, Google's tendency to [over]analyze is legendary. Either you're just being contrary, or you're living in the dark.
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Just the sort of dumb response to be expected here. I know their addiction to statistics, I took issue with the ones the fanboi choose to believe were correct.
 
iAlex said:
This is just the edge of an industry-wide trend. Rumor has it a "major" EDA company also going to standardize internally on Mac across the enterprise (globally) early next year.
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I find it extremely hard to believe that "industry", having just recovered from the worst recession in 75+ years, is going to suddenly shell out billions to revamp their entire IT infrastructure from the bottom up. Google is not a typical company.


jimmyjoemccrow said:
Just the sort of dumb response to be expected here. I know their addiction to statistics, I took issue with the ones the fanboi choose to believe were correct.
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Actually you called into question a well-known fact because you disagreed with the point another member was making. Not the same thing.
 
Rootus said:
Huh? OSX is very popular with tech people. Pretty interface, real OS underneath. Linux is okay, but the UI blows and the CLI isn't any different from OSX. Go to OSCON in a few weeks and count the number of MBPs. It's insane.
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I know that. Most of the Google engineering people who want to be on Macs are already there. They don't need to switch.

Again, this switch is for sales & marketing people and other non-engineering people.
 
Smart move by google.

First, they avoid any windows "holes."

Second, if there is a hole in OSX, now OSX becomes a bigger target. If its exploited, guess what, Apple is dragged into the security issue for bad PR.

Why is google using either one? Mandate employees use linux.
 
I actually never saw that coming..knowing maintaining Windows is expensive and very very vulnerable to hackers.
 
thevofl said:
These companies hop from each other's bed to bed to bed more than a soap opera.
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No, they do not.

That's why it's newsworthy (to a point).

Justin Bieber said:
I actually never saw that coming..knowing maintaining Windows is expensive and very very vulnerable to hackers.
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Hi Justin,

Shouldn't you be signing autographs or something, rather than commenting about operating systems?

:)
 
This is somewhat surprising given the current google/apple relationship. Regardless, another modest but noteworthy feather in Apple's cap.

cheers to the longs
JohnG
 
GroundLoop said:
Given the type of people that work at Google, I am betting that most of them would choose linux over OS X.

GL
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Are you actually betting, as in real money? Because I would take you up on that and bet the opposite by a wide margin. According to the Google employees I know, there is widespread Mac love at the company. Makes perfect sense if you think about it. Most Google employees are young, smart, make decent money and they see computers as more than just a commodity tool for work. In other words, they fall squarely into Apple's target market. Plus, Macs make ideal workstations for programmers. You get a polished, efficient UI that can run lots of commercial applications along with a full blown Unix environment and a nice package manager for all your Unix-y and open source needs.

I also doubt that Google would force the use of an OS that most of their employees dislike, and the article makes it sound like most employees have been voluntarily choosing Macs anyway. So I guess I'm confused about why you think most Google employees prefer Linux. I just don't see any evidence for that.

Keep in mind that the recent Apple bashing at Google I/O is probably more of an attempt to motivate Android developers than a reflection of existing feelings about Apple inside of Google. In fact, if Google employees love Macs as much I think they do, that might be precisely why their anti-Apple comments came off as so weak, petty and awkward. It's tough to speak authoritatively and passionately about something you don't really believe.



calsci said:
I was surprised os x was actually a choice.
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Yeah? I wasn't.
 
I wanna get rid of my Win machine at my job, but I can't.

We're pretty deeply entrenched in Windows and Mac support is almost nonexistent.
 
kgeier82 said:
Smart move by google.

First, they avoid any windows "holes."

Second, if there is a hole in OSX, now OSX becomes a bigger target. If its exploited, guess what, Apple is dragged into the security issue for bad PR.

Why is google using either one? Mandate employees use linux.
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#1) rumors create a stronger image of windows 'holes'

#2) Highlight the benefit of linux

#3) Highlight the benefits of an expensive competitor

#4) Release a competitor based off #2 into the space left by #1 and unable to be competed in by #3

#5 ???

#6 Profit
 
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