The Facts

• Mac OS X is a current operating system created and sold by Apple and shipped on all Macintosh computers, iPhones and iPod Touches. It is based upon Darwin, a variation on the Unix operating system, and uses the HFS+ file architecture. Windows XP is a last-generation operating system created and sold by Microsoft and was bundled with most pre-built PC computers between 2001 and 2006. It was based upon Windows NT and used the NTFS file system. It was superseded in 2006 by Windows Vista, but is currently still supported by Microsoft.
  
  

History

• Mac OS X Cheetah was released on March 24, 2001, and has gone through five major updates: Puma, Jaguar, Panther, Tiger and Leopard, with an upcoming update, Snow Leopard, currently in development. Each update offered major changes in appearance and functionality as well as fixing prior bugs.
  
  Windows XP was released on October 25, 2001, in multiple editions targeted at specific markets and price ranges called XP Home, XP Professional and XP Media Center, as well as embedded and tablet variations meant for mobile devices. In 2002, Windows XP 64-bit Edition was released, offering support for 64-bit processors. XP has gone through three major updates, called service packs, which have added additional support for new hardware, improved functionality and minor changes in appearance and fixed prior bugs.
  
  

Features

• Both Mac OS X and Windows XP follow the standard "desktop" format for user interfaces, with "files," "folder," a "trash can," "launchbar" and "toolbar." OS X puts the toolbar at the top, while in XP the toolbar is at the bottom. Similarly, while XP positions buttons for common window functions like "minimize" and "close" on the upper-right corner of all windows, OS X places the same functions on the upper left. OS X separates an application's menus from its windows, having them appear instead in the toolbar, while having a separate bar at the bottom of the screen for the launching of applications, while XP puts the launchbar together with its main toolbar and keeps menu functions in the windows of the applications. Both operating systems use the "alt-tab" hotkey for application switching, but OS X adds Expose and virtual desktops, allowing applications to be viewed and sorted by snapshots and to be bound to their own desktops. Both operating systems offer file previewing, allowing some types of files to be viewed as thumbnails of their data without opening the file.
  
  

Controversy

• The Mac versus Windows debate is often characterized as one of personality types, and this has influenced the design and marketing of the modern examples of their operating systems. OS X is focused, like all Apple products, on delivering a seamless and integrated experience, but limits the user's ability to modify her system or use third-party software. Windows XP is focused on power and versatility, without worrying too much about user experience. The result is that you have OS X, which will work almost flawlessly and allow you to easily move from one common task to another so long as you are using Apple software and hardware, and you have XP, which will not work nearly as well or seamlessly, but it will work with almost all software and hardware.
  
  

Misconceptions

• Advertising is a powerful tool, and both Apple and Microsoft have done their best to represent their rival in misleading ways. It is not true that OS X is immune to viruses, malware and spyware; the vast majority of malicious software does not target OS X because the majority of people and businesses do not use OS X, thus achieving "security through obscurity." It is also not true that Windows XP is riddled with security holes that make it vulnerable to malicious software or attack; a properly updated installation of XP contains fixes for all currently known exploits and includes a tool for detecting malicious software. It is not true that OS X has no bugs while XP is bug-riddled. All software has bugs and all operating systems make errors.