Do you remember the first time you encountered a computer virus? I remember the first time that I saw one. It was the Stoned virus. It happened in 1992 or 1993 on a computer that had a 80386 processor running at a blistering 16 MHz. That was roughly 18 years ago, and I am sad to report that very little has changed. In fact, the situation is far worse.

Back then, floppy disks transmitted the viruses from one computer to another. Today, the computers are all connected and can easily spread their infections if the owner has not taken the precaution of installing numerous security applications.

I have spent the past 18 years fighting against viruses, trojans, spyware, and other varieties of malware on my own computers and the computers of my friends and relatives - and I am tired of it.

That is why I have decided that I’m done fighting this battle. Starting in 2012, I’m going to start transitioning all my PC’s and laptops to Apple and Linux-based software. I don’t want to hear any more talk about the progress Microsoft is making to patch the vulnerabilities in their operating systems, and I don’t want to hear any more talk about grand notions of open source vs proprietary. From this time forward, I only want to use software that works easily and securely.

The first step is to set up my PC’s so that they are dual-boot between Windows and Ubuntu Linux. I already have a netbook set up like this, and thanks to Wubi (Windows installer) it is now easy to install Ubuntu without the need to repartition your hard drive.

The second step is to buy an iMac or at least a Mac Mini. I have been pricing Macs on eBay, and I have found that they can be bought used for about the price of a new PC. Yes, they are more expensive, but I am starting to think that I am willing to pay more if it means not spending countless hours of my life fighting against computers infected with malware.

I may not be 100% Microsoft-free when I am finished with this transition, but it is certain that Microsoft products will only be used when the need occasionally arises.

Existing Apple fans will cheer me, and Microsoft fans will jeer me. That’s okay. Cover me Chewie. I’m going in.