Gates lashes out at Apple 'lies'

Denies Windows users are "klutzes" in interview

Bill Gates has branded recent Mac adverts lies and slated the vaunted security of the Mac OSX security.

The attack came in a Newsweek interview when he was asked about an Apple advert likening the upgrading of PC hardware for Vista compliance to human-surgery. He said: " There's not even the slightest shred of truth to it."

He denied Windows users are "klutzes" and, with a sideswipe at Apple's tight control over its machines, he added: "We've done a better job letting you upgrade on the hardware than our competitors have done."

Gates also challenged the preconception Macs are always more secure than Windows computers. He claimed: "Nowadays, security guys break the Mac every single day. Every single day, they come out with a total exploit; your machine can be taken over totally. I dare anybody to do that once a month on the Windows machine."

Apple released the 'get a Mac' adverts, which come in American and British versions, just before the launch of Windows Vista. They depict two men, one in a suite representing a Windows PC and the other in more informal attire representing a Mac, slugging it out over who is best.