What if they wrote an operating system, and nobody logged on? In May 2005, I wrote a column called "Mad as hell, switching to Mac." A lot of folks got mad as hell at me, but not nearly as many as those who began migrating to the SOW - Something Other than Windows - operating system. My reasons for migrating my company (and friends, and clients) to OS X were based on security issues, from malware to availability.

Then along came Core Duo. Even Walter Mossberg, The Wall Street Journal's geek curmudgeon, called the first generation of Apple-Intel gear the finest-engineered computer in the history of the universe (slight literary license). OS X was already considered a rock-solid platform, but with the migration to an Intel platform, suddenly the Mac was no longer just a Mac; it had entered mainstream consciousness.

Now along comes Vista. The bad news is that to take advantage of Vista's aero look/feel and other enhancements, some serious hardware is required. That's money. The bad news is that the reviews seem to agree: Vista is a nice, pleasant XP makeover, but is it worth the new software and licensing fees? That's money.

The bad news is that Microsoft is trying to implement its own security. The European Union and top security firms are furious about the kernel lockout, thus allegedly keeping many third-party developers from offering Vista security products. The bad news is "who wants to migrate an enterprise to Version 1.0" of anything that can affect negatively operations and security because of unknown glitches we expect in first releases. The bad news is that Vista and the new Office are so different as to require additional employee training. That's money.

In addition, along comes virtualization. Virtualization software for running Windows on Linux and Macs from start-up Parallels is yet another major step toward complete operating-system glasnost: the total openness of choice of operating system on single hardware platforms based on applications and operational needs rather than contrived functional availability.

Virtualization is perhaps the single greatest security tool of the third millennium. Consider this: Assuming you can budget new hardware for a pilot rollout, get Macs. Kill the old PCs (tax benefits?) and use the XP licenses on new partitions. Just for giggles (but not necessary), install Linspire Five-0. Cost: about the same as or less than a Vista-ready WinTel PC, and you get three distinct operating environments, each with its own pros and cons - such as security. Then, make four rules: