Howdy bluey, you are fundamentally correct in thinking Linux is a better OS for virus protection but not, I feel, for spam. Because Windows is so ubiquitous, it has become the target of choice for virus authors: there are relatively few Mac OS/Linux viruses. Bear in mind that these people have a lot of time on their hands and as Linux becomes more popular then the amount of viruses will correspondingly increase. As for spam, doesn�t that reflect your e-mail address rather than what system you use to manage it? Or are you referring to anti-spam utilities in-built with Linux? Linux is great and the Gnome GUI looks very much like Windows but I have always though: why use a Windows wannabe when I can use the real thing? That�s not fair, I just want Linux to be Windows and I think Windows does a better job at it.