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'OpenMac': A Poor Man's Macintosh


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[url="http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/04/openmac-a-poor.html"]http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/04/openmac-a-poor.html[/url]
[quote][b]'OpenMac': A Poor Man's Macintosh That Possibly Violates Apple's EULA[/b]
By Bryan Gardiner EmailApril 13, 2008 | 1:13:03 AMCategories: Apple

Openmac

In a move that's sure to get the attention of Apple's lawyers, one company has started advertising a new $400 hackintosh dubbed the "OpenMac." Mind you, it's not the desktop's name that's likely to cause trouble, but rather the fact that Psystar (the company selling the machine) is claiming it will ship with a fully compatible version of Leopard.

This is apparently accomplished with the help of an EFI emulator and a few drivers.

Says Psystar:

With the EFI V8 emulator it is possible to install Leopard's kernel straight from the DVD that you purchased at the Apple store barring the addition of a few drivers to ensure that everything boots and runs smoothly.

Now, it's clear the company is trying to market the OpenMac as a cheaper, more expandable alternative to a real Mac, which is great. But Apple's End User License Agreement is pretty clear about where its OS can appear: That would be Apple-branded hardware exclusively. And while it's one thing to do a little tinkering on your own, I suppose it's quite another for a company to do it for you — and potentially make a profit off of it.

Note: Psystar is at least making people pay for certified copies of Leopard.[/quote]
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  • 4 weeks later...
Wow, kind of sounds like a POS.

[url="http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/05/macworld-unboxe.html"]http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/05/macworld-unboxe.html[/url]

[quote][size=3][b]Macworld Unboxes Psystar's Open Computer[/b][/size]
By Charlie Sorrel EmailMay 07, 2008 | 7:12:07 AMCategories: Hacks, Mac, PCs

If you buy one of Psystar's Hackintoshes, you'll get even less than you thought you might. Macworld ordered one to test and has filed an unboxing post on the site. We've already heard about the leaf-blower fans, but Macworld's Open Computer came with a power cable tangled in the fan and, according to reviewer James Galbraith, [b]"As soon as I hit the power button it sounded like I’d turned on the garbage disposal". [/b]Attention to detail: Minus one point.

Apple's legendary packaging design is also missing, replace by a cardboard box full of foam packing peanuts. But the most important missing feature? The "it just works" design of all Apple products. Time Machine fails (there is a fix on Psystar's site), FireWire Target Mode doesn't work. Neither do "SafeBoot, zapping of PRAM, and startup drive selection via the Option key " or, as previously mentioned, Software Update.

So it looks like the PC level price will get you a PC level experience: hardware troubleshooting, downloading and manually applying patches. This isn't to knock PCs – there will always be incompatibilities with such a huge array of hardware and software available. Apple makes the whole shebang, inside and out. That's why it just works. And Psystar's little science project is the best argument yet against Apple licensing its OS to third parties.[/quote]
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did they expect a top of the line performance for $400 or whatever?

is it just me or is there a pissing contest tone to the whole thought of this succeeding?

"UGUGGHHHHH PACKING PEANUTS?!?!??!?!"

"my MACINTOSH comes with squirrel semen softened elk balls for a comfortable, glossy finish adding transit"
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[quote][b]Apple makes the whole shebang, inside and out.[/b] That's why it just works. And Psystar's little science project is the best argument yet against Apple licensing its OS to third parties.[/quote]

Processor = Intel
Motherboard = Intel (inc north and south bridges)
GPU = ATI
Sound = Creative
Memory = whatever
HDD = whatever
Case = APPLE!
OS = APPLE!

Basically you have a really expensive PC in a super slick case running a proprietary OS and BIOS and a mouse with one button.. I don't have any problem with Apple's OS's... And back when they actually used different architecture I respected their technology as well..

But the snobbish attitutde of many Mac users gets my goat sometimes.. There is absolutely no reason a high end PC could't run Leopard just as well as a PC from Apple (yes it IS is just a PC now, same exact hardware).

There is just plain no real difference hardware-wise between an Apple and some other high end PC manufacturer save the OS and case (sweet fucking case though).. And the only reason I can't load leopard on my PC is because Apple won't let me.

I would like and respect Apple so much more if they would quit pretending they are somehow above PC's and Microsoft.. They engage in the same kind of tactics as Billy, except Billy never really pretended to be trying to do anything other than take over the world.
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