Hi, I think I may have a virus because my battery has been running down unreasonably fast. Each time I restart afterwards there is a message saying my clock has been reset to before 2001 which may cause some programs to behave erratically, but the clock usually resets itself and the problem continues.

Please HELP!!!

Thanks!!

(And please let me know if this should be posted in a different forum.)

More then likely, it is your battery on the logic/mother board. You need to replace it so it keeps the correct time.

I thought that might be the problem, but 1969 is an awful interesting date for it to reset itself to... Is there any way to make sure it isn't a virus? I've run Norton and it didn't pick anything up.

it's quite an interesting technological commentry that if a computer starts acting broken, it's blamed on virus' more than actually thinking "there is something physically wrong with this thing".

to clarify, there are no virus' for the mac platform, and no forecast for there to be any, no matter how many column inches may be taken up by the subject. if there were a virus for the mac, then it's likely it'd take down unix, too. which would embarrass a lot more important people than the niche market that is the mac. UNIX of course being the brain child of the most amazing computer scientists in the field.

there has been a trojan, but only about 3 people were affected by it before it was stopped, and as is the nature of trojans, requires malpractice from the end user to let it cause damage.

'... I think I may have a virus' - your Mac does not have a virus; however, you may or may not.

'... but the clock usually resets itself' - maybe the 'System Preferences' 'Date & Time' utility's 'Date & Time' tab's 'Set date & time automatically:' check box is check marked?

A 'Google (http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=mac+powerbook+%22December+31st%2C+1969%22&btnG=Search)' search for 'mac powerbook "December 31st, 1969"' would yield actual information, instead of supporting an unfounded assumption.

'I've run Norton and it didn't pick anything up.' ... Symantec Firewalls Vulnerable to Intrusion, DOS (http://news.netcraft.com/archives/2004/05/13/symantec_firewalls_vulnerable_to_intrusion_dos.html), Symantec Antivirus Library RemØte Heap Overflows Security Advisory (http://www.rem0te.com/public/images/symc2.pdf), Researchers: Antivirus software has flaw (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060525/ap_on_hi_te/antivirus_flaw), ...

Thanks for the help Lt. and barhar. Turns out I can get a free new battery because the model had been recalled. And I'm glad to know there aren't any viruses out there for Macs. Cheers, mate.

Thanks for the help Lt. and barhar. Turns out I can get a free new battery because the model had been recalled. And I'm glad to know there aren't any viruses out there for Macs. Cheers, mate.

Which Mac do you have (and model number too, if you wouldn't mind)?

I have noticed my MacBook Pro's clock (see signature) has been acting strangely. I thought it had something to do with my switching back and forth from Windows to Mac OS, but if your model is the same as mine, perhas I should get it checked out.

i think apple's time servers are going tit's up, mine always wants to be an hour behind. i've turned off live updating now.

You sure, Lt., your timezone is set up correctly and every update (there _was_ one about time-zones, I believe?) has been done? It always just worked for me here...

hmm, i reckon it was since 10.4.6. i;ve set it for GMT, which would be right, but it wants it to be an hour ahead of what it actually is.

strange...

Odd that no one has yet brought this up... all Unix based systems (not just Macs) reset their clocks to 1969 if their internal battery dies. This is because the very first Unix (UNICS) system was made in 1969.

So it isn't that odd a choice of dates as their wasn't a Unix before that date... that, to a Unix system, is the beginning of time. :D

Odd that no one has yet brought this up... all Unix based systems (not just Macs) reset their clocks to 1969 if their internal battery dies. This is because the very first Unix (UNICS) system was made in 1969.

So it isn't that odd a choice of dates as their wasn't a Unix before that date... that, to a Unix system, is the beginning of time. :D

I'm surprised you didn't include trivia on why you called it "UNICS."

http://www.multicians.org/general.html :D

Hmm. Doesn't a dead battery only affect the clock if the computer has been unplugged? I seem to remember computers keeping time as long as they didn't lose wall power. Could be wrong though :-P

once it's completely shut down, it no longer draws any power from the wall.

I'm surprised you didn't include trivia on why you called it "UNICS."I was running late for an appointment. :D

is this on a mac you are talking about or pc?
if it is on mac you will not have a virus as it don't exist if it is on a pc you have got a virus it comes preinstalled and it is called 'Windows'

That's a silly troll, even if you're just trying to preach to the choir.

OS X is not invincible; moreover, it's necessary to its survival as a viable platform to understand this. OS X requires as much vigilance and intelligence to secure and maintain as does any sophisticated operating system.

For instance, this report from two years ago (http://www.techworld.com/security/news/index.cfm?newsid=1798):

One thing the hard figures have shown is that OS X's reputation as a relatively secure operating system is unwarranted, Secunia said. This year and last year Secunia tallied 36 advisories on security issues with the software, many of them allowing attackers to remotely take over the system - comparable to figures on operating systems such as Windows XP Professional and Red Hat Enterprise Server.

Now, the same company (Secunia) will also tell you that there are at this moment 0 unaddressed vulnerabilities (http://secunia.com/product/96/) in OS X. That means that Apple and the security community are doing their jobs; the community identifies problems, and Apple addresses the problems as software updates. When you get a software update that describes "security fixes", that means that, prior to that update, there were security flaws.

Any operating system that automates file handling (http://db.tidbits.com/getbits.acgi?tbart=07680) or other user-level tasks is going to run into security problems. Any operating system that runs on a Unix platform has to deal with the Unix permissions scheme, and all of its attendant issues. If one Unix variant addresses a security flaw, then Apple has to consider that flaw as potentially applying to OS X as well. If this doesn't happen, then you run into trouble. For instance, this article (http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/security/soa/Ancient_flaws_leave_OS_X_vulnerable_/0,2000061744,39234678,00.htm):

"Bugs like this require a simple glance over the code to notice and are long dead on other operating systems.… When we spoke to Apple on the phone about this issue, the security team had never even heard of the application, and burst out laughing at the simplicity of the vulnerability," said Archibald.

Dancing about proclaiming the absolute perfection of Apple products makes Apple users look silly now, and will make us look ridiculous when the inevitable sh*t hits the inevitable f*n.

well said.

I have to agree with billaloney on this one as well. Yes, Mac OS X isn't as bad as Windows, but it's far from perfect. Consider that there are still tons of holes that are still open in OS X, as well as every other application and operating system. Remember that even in Linux there are some viruses and those people that continue to run as root are the ones usually getting infected. It's all a matter of how well you maintain your computer, not so much the operating system you're using. THe problem with Microsoft is that they're sometimes undoing all the work of others who have tried to maintain their systems well-patched, as can be evidenced by some of their more recent Windows Updates.

Are there code auditing tools that Mac developers can use?

One thing to mention: they don't recall CMOS batteries (do they call them CMOS batteries in Macs?). The battery that's making your time reset is NOT your laptop's normal battery (which quite possibly DOES need recall if you're a PowerBook G4 owner), it's a small round battery not normally accessible to the end-user in laptops.

Take the computer to an Apple-authorised repairer.

It seems to me that any of several things could be wrong if the clock is constantly resetting: the power management unit, the OS itself (e.g., here (http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=25374) and here (http://forums.macnn.com/archive/index.php/t-278249.html)), the NVRAM/PRAM. I don't know if BenT80 is ever going to sign on again, but he may find that getting a new PB battery doesn't solve the issue.