Late last night news emerged that Google is banning Microsoft Windows from its corporate offices. This is the final resolution of the Google vs. China cyber warfare, a conflict that began with the hacking of a Windows-based computer at Google.
As of today, if you want a Microsoft machine at the Google offices, you need permission from the Chief Information Officer himself -- otherwise, Google employees are being given the choice of either a Mac or Linux desktop machine.
But... I wonder if Google spoke to Microsoft before publicly decrying and defaming the state of Windows security -- this is libel. This is yet another example of Microsoft unduly paying the price for old installations of Windows and Internet Explorer 6 -- something the CIO at Google should be held accountable for, not Microsoft.
All recent research and attempted hacks would suggest that Windows 7 and Internet Explorer 8 is one of the most secure Web browsing platforms out there. It's certainly more secure than Mac combined with Safari -- and if this is the start of a mass exodus from Microsoft to Apple in the workplace... well, Apple will be forced to tighten things up! As our our pale white inbred siblings at TUAW suggest, you can be sure that more malware will target Mac if it is adopted by large businesses.
And finally, what if Microsoft turned the tables on Google and simply banned you from searching it on Windows computers? What if 'google.com' was redirected to 'bing.com'? Microsoft certainly has grounds for such an act: after all, top Google results often contain spyware or malicious malware.
But alas, Microsoft would never do such a thing. Its balls have already been well and truly trampled after decades of litigation. Google, however... Google is just warming up; Google's just testing its mettle.
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