Why can't they make the spy and spam protection and the security/firewall stuff just a configurable part of the operating system? I mean, I understand they couldn't anticipate everything, but now, it could actually be a differentiator....uh....if there were some competition in O/S land...uh
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Regarding firewall class methods...
Native firewall and other forms of TCP/UDP port access control have been a part of Unix and Unix variants for some time (even Win NT 4.0 contained some primitive level of port control) though many users are unfamiliar with where this stuff is located and how to use it.
Microsoft has attempted to address the need for a robust, OS-based firewall function via Windows XP service pack 2. Not a bad effort.
Regarding native spyware, spam and antivirii protection...
Spam is an email based, cross-platform issue that's addressed best via filtering at both the mail server and client levels (to provide defense in depth).
But as for other types of annoyances...
Unix vendors haven't had a compelling need to build this functionality into their products since most malware is targeted against the Win16 and Win32 platforms (there are Unix viruses but they're comparatively rare and require a higher developmental level on the part of the cheeky code monkey writing the intrusive app).
And as for Microsoft...well, there've been noises, off and on, for years about Redmond extending a clanking metallic tentacle towards the protective app market but so far its all been smoke and mirrors.
The disincentive, I suspect, can be found in the moving target aspect of the protection biz. That is, although they could easily include an anti-malware product into the OS they may not see any benefit in maintaining the necessary infrastructure to keep each copy's virus/spyware/trojan signatures up-to-date.
There's also the appearance of impropriety: if you undercut the business of major vendors like Symantec by bundling in a competing (and competition killing) product there may be legal consequences and repercussions (plus shouts of joy from virus writers across the galaxy who just know Redmond will screw it all up somehow and create yet another smoothly paved onramp to the OS).
.d.