I hate it when I download an app and it has that cancel sign on it. Some apps that I want are intel only, which is frustrating. This said, is there a way to emulate an intel app on a Power PC Mac? That would be cool...
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Rosetta for PPC
- Thread starter Drew017
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Realistically the only reason it worked from PPC to Intel was that the Intel CPUs were so much faster than the PPC CPUs they were "emulating" via the translation layer. Imagine how slow Intel apps would be running emulated on PowerPC.
Hi Drew,
It is * technically* possible, you can get apps like virtual pc that emulate a whole x86 pc so running a mac native app, albeit for a different architecture, should be just as possible.
I haven't come across any software like this, I think due to the speed it would run at, ie really, really slowly.
Your best bet would be to find a native PPC alternative, what software is it you a trying to run? Someone here is bound to know of a good alternative.
It is * technically* possible, you can get apps like virtual pc that emulate a whole x86 pc so running a mac native app, albeit for a different architecture, should be just as possible.
I haven't come across any software like this, I think due to the speed it would run at, ie really, really slowly.
Your best bet would be to find a native PPC alternative, what software is it you a trying to run? Someone here is bound to know of a good alternative.
This an issue.
Well, you can run x86 windows apps via darwine (which uses QEMU to emulate an x86 CPU and WINE as the translation layer). I believe the roadblock for some kind of darwine like implementation for x86 OS X is that there is no legitimate way to get OS X running in QEMU.
You can't run an Intel-only Mac app on a PowerPC Mac. Can't be done at all. You can emulate an entire Windows PC on a PowerPC using Virtual PC.
OK. The reason I posted was because my dad is thinking about getting an older mac (iBook, Powerbook...) off of eBay, and the older ones usually are priced lower. He invests, and needs a windows app called Qcharts. I have an iBook G3 (Tiger) and I'd like to test it out before he makes his decision. If not, he will spend some extra $$$ to buy an older Macbook.
RDC is the word you're looking for...
this. REALLY (REALLY!!!) slow. even as a mad hacker/tweaker pulling out all the tricks on a windows install, it was hard to use.
best idea i have for these types of questions is remote desktop. get a running windows pc (or laptop) for cheap, put it on the network in a closet or garage or whatever, and the use the free RDC (remote desktop client) to control the pc. follow the links, then click 'Remote Desktop' and then download the '1.0.3' for PPC, or the '2.1.1' if you have an intel mac.
NOTE: the pc would need to be running XP Pro or the newer equivalent to be able to support the remote connection. the 'Home' version won't do this.
cheap, easy, won't slow down the Mac lappy, easy to support, update, backup, etc. i do this with an old piece of crap dell running in my crawl space under my house. it's cool, i dust it out once per year, it's totally silent or at least i can't hear it running from anywhere in the house. won't work for games/movies, but any regular apps look as good as running on a native PC.
best of luck.
this. REALLY (REALLY!!!) slow. even as a mad hacker/tweaker pulling out all the tricks on a windows install, it was hard to use.
best idea i have for these types of questions is remote desktop. get a running windows pc (or laptop) for cheap, put it on the network in a closet or garage or whatever, and the use the free RDC (remote desktop client) to control the pc. follow the links, then click 'Remote Desktop' and then download the '1.0.3' for PPC, or the '2.1.1' if you have an intel mac.
NOTE: the pc would need to be running XP Pro or the newer equivalent to be able to support the remote connection. the 'Home' version won't do this.
cheap, easy, won't slow down the Mac lappy, easy to support, update, backup, etc. i do this with an old piece of crap dell running in my crawl space under my house. it's cool, i dust it out once per year, it's totally silent or at least i can't hear it running from anywhere in the house. won't work for games/movies, but any regular apps look as good as running on a native PC.
best of luck.
Last edited:
Exactly. I kinda miss my pc days.. I learned everything I know about computing in XP Pro.
Exactly. I kinda miss my PC days. I learned almost everything I know about computing in XP Pro.
It was just about unusable, even on a Quad G5. At the time, it really was much more worthwhile to just buy a cheap PC if you had to spend any time in Windows.