I hate spyware

Security is about the weakest link, and getting rid of spyware is a royal pain in the tail end. If you're getting a new computer, can you make sure that this doesn't happen to you?

You bet.

There's the expensive option, and the cheap option. Expensive means that you get everything that you want - it's only money. Cheap means that you give up a little, but $ave some coin.

Expensive Option: Get a Mac. My experience is that you'll spend about 25% - 40% more than a PC, but you don't need an antivirus. OK, there are, like, three viruses for the Mac. And there may be a New Wave of malware that runs on the Mac. I promise I'll tell you.

In the meantime, you'll save a cool $50 a year on antivirus cost. Over 4 years, that may pretty much eliminate the cost difference between the Mac and a PC.

You're pretty much screwed for games, but you can always run Windows inside Parallels. Just don't use a browser in your Parallels session, unless you want to get some free spyware. You'll have to pay for the Windows license, but I did say that this was the expensive option, didn't I?

Cheap Option: Ubuntu Linux. It's free, and it runs on cheap PC hardware. You can even get it pre-installed on the nifty, cheap Asus Eee PC netbooks. Internet and email work just fine, and you'll never get spyware. OK, OK, this might change, too, but I promise to let you know.

You don't get iTunes, but there are some nifty MP3 players like Banshee which will work just fine with your iPod. Amazon sells DRM-free MP3s, so it's pretty easy to live an iTunes-free life.

Note to Apple Marketing: You Are Teh Stupid.

You also don't get games, so you'll need to run Windows inside VMWare, or dual-boot Linux for every day or Windows for gaming. You'll have to pay for the Windows license, but new computers typically come with Windows pre-installed, so you're probably covered here.

Why go to the bother? Because you'll never have to worry about Nuking your Computer from orbit after it gets infected.