While Mac users bob and gasp in the wake of the release of Apple’s new operating system, Snow Leopard, Windows users are gloating (a bit preemptively). As Microsoft gears up to unleash its long-awaited operating system, Windows 7, friends and foes alike are hailing its amazing security. One industry publication declares that “the new version of Windows is stacking up to be the most secure to date.”

That’s a high and mighty claim for an operating system that has historically had more bugs, viruses, glitches, malfunctions, spyware, malware, and problems than all the other operating systems combined. Ok, that sounds a little harsh, but when you’re a household name in computing and founded by the erstwhile richest man in the world, people will throw rocks at you. Those rocks came in the form of a veritable torrent of hack-happy engineers unleashing their twistedness to deconstruct Windows versions from the system BIOS up. It’s been going on for a long time.

Windows 7 plans to change all of that. SC Magazine, the security professional’s most authoritative source, is even giving the new system a double thumbs-up for its various deterrents, securities, and fixes.

Apparently, it’s hacker-proof. Impenetrability doesn’t come easy, and for Windows 7, it is “thanks in part to the OS patching routes to inject malicious code into the memory.” Another wall of defense comes in the form of Windows Filtering Platform (WFP), which is codespeak for a firewall-sharing opportunity that allows third parties to double up their own firewall with Microsoft’s, coalescing into a double firewall, so to speak, that foils would-be attackers.

New developments of the Internet have led to new entry-points for hackers. Windows 7 has been proactive rather than reactive, forming thick walls against such potential attacks. Now, social site hackers will be disappointed when they try to chip into Windows 7 through Twitter, MySpace, Facebook, or similar sites. The defenses are already in place.

It’s common in hacker world to direct efforts toward the new kid on the block. At the end of October, when Windows 7 makes its official debut, no doubt it will send the world aflutter with hackers eagerly developing new methods of attack. However, if the reviews, testing, and rumors are true, many of them will be disappointed.

Gloaters, gloat on. While Mac disciples hurriedly rush to cover up the boo-boos in Snow Leopard, Windows user may enjoy the refreshing ease of settling into an operating system without the concerns.

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