I guess in the eyes of most users, security isn't a "compelling feature" because it's not very visible You got it. And there are two other big problems with m

I guess in the eyes of most users, security isn't a "compelling feature" because it's not very visible You got it. And there are two other big problems with marketing Vista strictly on security grounds. One is that Microsoft has very little credibility on security. I seem to recall a long, long era when security was an afterthought at Microsoft, and when security issues were downplayed. That, plus the energetic PR efforts of thousands of malware authors around the world, has pretty much tarnished the brand as far as security is concerned. The company does not start from a position of strength. The other is that Microsoft's market probably doesn't contain a lot of security-sensitive customers anymore. Those that haven't been driven to the Mac or Unix have evolved defenses: They're acclimated to running tons of antivirus software and periodically reinstalling their systems, or they've firewalled and proxied the living death out of everything. Or, you know, their machines have been 0wned and they're living in blissful ignorance. At this point, trying to convince long-time Microsoft customers that the new OS is safe and secure is like trying to talk grizzled survivalists out of their shelters in the mountains. ("We have no weapons! You can put down the rootkit scanner! You don't need to fear anymore! It's the 21st century out here and we've got a utopia!")