All those hackers who got Windows running on their Intel-based Macs can relax now that Apple has released Boot Camp which provides that capabililty.
So, is this how it will go in businesses across the country? I bet Apple does.
February – “We don’t do Macs. Windows only.”
March – “Windows runs faster on those new Intel Macs than on my pc?”
April – “Since we can run Windows on a Mac, let’s buy one and check it out.”
May – “It is faster! And this OS X stuff is interesting.”
June – “I just created some widgets that will really be useful for everyone. Since we have to replace all our pc’s anyway, let’s only get Macs.”
2007 – “Vista’s released? So? We don’t do Windows. Mac only.”
Apple Computer on Wednesday unveiled new software that allows Intel-based Macs to run Microsoft’s Windows XP. Apple shares rose nearly 7 percent in early trading.
The computer maker said its new Boot Camp software is available as a download beginning Wednesday. It allows users with a Microsoft Windows XP installation disc to install Windows XP on an Intel-based Mac computer.
“Apple has no desire or plan to sell or support Windows, but many customers have expressed their interest to run Windows on Apple’s superior hardware now that we use Intel processors,” Philip Schiller, Apple senior vice president of worldwide product marketing, said in a statement.
Boot Camp makes it easier to install Windows software on an Intel-based Mac, with a step-by-step guide. It also lets users choose to use either Mac OS X software, or the Windows software when they restart their computer.
Users can download the new Boot Camp software from Apple’s website. A final version of Boot Camp will be available as a feature in the upcoming Mac OS X version 10.5 “Leopard.”
Apple shares gained $4.07, or 6.7 percent, to $65.24 in early trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market, while Microsoft shares rose 23 cents to $27.87 and shares of Intel Corp. rose 9 cents to $19.39.
I think Mac OSX will stay alive. Apple will be selling tons more Macs than before and with that they’ll be charging everyone one license of Mac OSX and one WinXP license at the same time. I don’t think any company can claim to selling two OS’s off one machine … double the profit.
Even if 50% of the new users won’t use MacOS X but Apple will be still making the profit off them. What’s more important … people buying or using the OS? In the end, it’s all about the money. With added users, means more profit to put into development…
This is the beginning of the end for the Mac as an innovative alternative to the PC. As beautiful as OSX is and as wonderful as the integrated Apple “computing experience” may be, these esoteric metrics will never overcome market forces and something as concrete as corporate profit.
It used to be that a developer would sell OSX versions of their software in order to get their share of the Mac user market. No more.
The incentive to invest big dollars to develop software for the OSX platform just went out the Windows now that the Apple users can load up XP. Why would Mohammed go to the mountain when the mountain will come to Mohammed? With fewer third party titles under the OSX banner, the shine on the OS from a developer’s perspective will rapidly tarnish. Apple has essentially ditched the work and momentum that has been garnered behind their OS and platform over the past five years. Selling boutique PCs to the “latte and Pilates crowd” will not sustain Apple’s Mac business model. Full stop.
Apple is following Sony and has now morphed itself into an entertainment distribution company that also sells hardware. The Apple handycams, digital cams, TVs and universal remotes are just around the corner.
If Apple were truly interested in staying in the computer business, they would have done what Gates did to IBM years ago. Microsoft broke ties, flipped a parting bird in the rearview mirror then turned around and went head-to-head with IBM’s PC software division.
Likewise, an Apple Computing Corporation interested in dominating the computer business would have released OSX for the PC platform, flipped a bird at Microsoft and their Office suite and taken advantage of the pending underperformance of Vista by offering a true, viable and well supported alternative to the Windows OS.
I will miss the old Apple. I can’t wait to see what the Sonyfication of Apple produces.
Multiple boot machines no matter which software they use (Linux/Windows, Mac/Windows, Linux/Mac, Linux/Mac/Windows) are a headache for any corporate IT department. Just think now I have to make sure all avaible OS’s on each machine has the latest patches, has the latest virus definition files and has the latest spyware definitions. I also have the users, IT team and help desk trained on multiple OS’s and multiple sets of applications. I just increase my workload by a factor of two ot three. K.I.S.S. saves money in the long run.
I think Kris misses a serious point — one that came up, last night, when I discussed the Boot Camp phenomenon with my wife when she returned home from work. The only geek in the extended family actually earning all her living as a geek!
Because we started from examining earlier [in this page] suggestions for a version of Linux that runs best on the MacIntels. There is an obvious answer to that question if you’re asking about — a version of Unix that runs best on an Intel Mac. It’s OS X.
And, Kris, as near as I can ascertain, there will always be a significant number of programmers who will choose to write within the most sound, consistent and strong, OS framework. OS X is the choice over Windows.
I agree the moneyboys will prefer Windows — for now. But, then, they used to invest in PC-DOS. Or CPM.
I appreciate your point, Eideard but the industry always follows the money. The industry never follows the superior technology unless the bottom line indicates the money is in that direction as well. CP/M was technically superior to MS-DOS. WHo survived? The original Mac architecture, VAX architecture, SPARC architecture were all technically superior to the PC architecture – who survived? OS/2 was technically superior to Windows 3.1. Who survivide? Beta was technically superior to VHS. WHo survived? VMS was technically superior to every other operating system on the planet in 1985 – now it’s a footnote in history.
OS X is technically superior to XP, NT, 2000, CE, ME, and Bob put together. You would have to be “a moron in a hurry” not to see that. But if Apple were interested in pushing that advantage, they would have coded it to run on a PC while they were doing the Intel port. Then, they would have bundled iLife, Pages, Keynote and Mariner Calc as “iBiz” or “iRule” or “iDontgiveaflyingf*ck” and proceeded to go after and MS butt.
As it turns out, Apple is going after other fish. You can make money creating hardware or creating software. But that pales compared to the fortune you can make distributing content onto that hardware.
In the future, you will see movies created by Apple/Disney studios, distributed by Apple iTunes/iFlix, on your Apple PC Media Player version 21.3 under MS Vista 2010.
Dvorak is a visionary or a nut.
Dvorak is a vsionary AND a nut.
It had to be said.