Psystar Releases 'Rebel EFI' Software to Enable Installation of Snow Leopard on PCs

[oldwatery]

I love it. If Apple's management would get their heads out of their you-know-whats, they'd drop that stupid license clause and would start to make some serious money with the mass of computer users.

You still don't get it do you!!!!

The reason the Mac OS is so stable etc is it's complete tie in with a very tightly controlled hardware base.
Remove that and the cost of developing an OS for every eventuality becomes horrendous and the results less than perfect.

I rely on Mac OS staying exclusive to the hardware and personally resent those that are attempting to undermine this great platform.

Oh and I guess you have some special knowledge on how the "serious money" would be made with your business plan.....

This is a public company and if the shareholders were unhappy with the less than "serious money" Apple are making they would have said something by now.

Oh they have....it's called $200 per share

 

[dukebound85]

You still don't get it do you!!!!

The reason the Mac OS is so stable etc is it's complete tie in with a very tightly controlled hardware base.
Remove that and the cost of developing an OS for every eventuality becomes horrendous and the results less than perfect.

I rely on Mac OS staying exclusive to the hardware and personally resent those that are attempting to undermine this great platform.

Oh and I guess you have some special knowledge on how the "serious money" would be made with your business plan.....

This is a public company and if the shareholders were unhappy with the less than "serious money" Apple are making they would have said something by now.

Oh they have....it's called $200 per share

your post reminds me of the same people who thought apple going intel will lead to macs getting viruses

explain then how linux, which runs on everything, is a stable os? thats the flaw in your logic

not to mention many people running stable hackintoshes either with non apple supported kexts

 

[gnasher729]

Wow, this is pretty sweet. If my x58 i7 rig is supported, I'll definitely be grabbing this and a copy of Snow Leopard. A Mac Pro for essentially $30 plus Psystar's program is a pretty good deal.

Am I surprised that you openly support copyright infringement? No.

 

[Lava Lamp Freak]

Psystar's website is back up.

 

[hachre]

So Macs aren't PCs now ?

Others don't have a right to do that. Not with OS X anyway. If someone wants to write a BIOS bootloader capable of running Darwin, more power to them, and Apple won't object because Darwin is open sourced and the license permits that kind of hacking.

I never said Macs are PCs. I'm just saying they are 100% compatible technically. The EFI / BIOS thing is not something I count as a real difference. There are ways to emulate EFI on top of BIOS before loading the OS so that OSX doesn't have to be touched. It won't know the difference.

Apple is doing the same thing with Boot Camp, just the other way around. They emulate BIOS on top of EMI. Windows doesn't have to be altered after all to make it install in Boot Camp.

 

[Loudest]

I think most of us Mac users like what we have, Apple hardware and Apple software. Still, this makes for interesting conversation--and speculation.

Judging by this forum and the fervor over any hint of hardware updates, I'd disagree that Mac users are content with their hardware. Not to say that I or them would resort to a Hackintosh, but Apple's hardware is limited in terms of choice and upgrade options. The technology (video cards, processors, blu-ray, etc) also lags a year behind PCs. Right now I have a separate Mac mini and PC tower because Apple doesn't provide what I need.

 

[Beric]

Well, no.

1. When you purchase MacOS X Leopard or Snow Leopard, the purchase is not final until you have accepted Apple's license agreement.

2. Apple's license agreement, which you have to accept to legally purchase MacOS X, states that you have no right to install this software on a computer that is not Apple-labeled (10.5) / not Apple branded (10.6), and that doing so will revoke your license.

3. Because of (2) you are committing copyright infringement when you install MacOS X on a computer that is not Apple labeled/branded, and you are also committing copyright infringement every single time you use MacOS X.

I expect that Apple will eventually ask Psystar for a complete customer list.

It's a civil case though, not criminal. And do you you really think Apple would sue customers? Way to get some bad press. Violating a contract is not a criminal offense.

 

[uofawildcats96]

back

psystar is back online.

 

[*LTD*]

QFT. Apple isn't making killer sales off of their expensive Mac computers.

Except that they are. Where have you been the past week?

 

[KnightWRX]

explain then how linux, which runs on everything, is a stable os? thats the flaw in your logic

Stable, User friendly, customizable. Pick two.

I never said Macs are PCs. I'm just saying they are 100% compatible technically. The EFI / BIOS thing is not something I count as a real difference. There are ways to emulate EFI on top of BIOS before loading the OS so that OSX doesn't have to be touched. It won't know the difference.

Apple is doing the same thing with Boot Camp, just the other way around. They emulate BIOS on top of EMI. Windows doesn't have to be altered after all to make it install in Boot Camp.

If you have to emulate some parts, it's not what I call 100% compatible. Or are you saying x86 is 100% compatible with PPC because of Rosetta .

 

[*LTD*]

Judging by this forum

That's your mistake.

This forum is in no way, shape or form representative of anything other than itself. It has nothing to do with the bulk of Apple's market. Macrumors is a bubble, just like most Apple fansites out there.

If Mac users aren't content, the numbers would show it. In fact, theyre showing the exact opposite. If you want to guage the satisfaction of Apple customers, steer clear of fansites, and simply look at the numbers and what is reported by the media. Apple's latest quarter tells the whole story. it's useless to attmept to marshall evidence against it.

You can't make a case for something being terribly wrong when Apple's market is overwhelmingly satisfied. Satisfied enough to pay more for Macs in a recession, and handing Apple record quarter after record quarter.

So are you speaking for yourself and that small yet vocal minority on MR? Because you sure as hell aren't speaking for the average Mac user.

 

[couto27]

Right now I have a separate Mac mini and PC tower because Apple doesn't provide what I need.

you mean money???
you want apple give you money????

 

[gohanmzt]

I am

I don't know anyone who is only running Mac OS X on a PC. Everyone is dual booting so they can still play games under Windows.

iAm™

But then again, you don't know me so your post is valid.

Cheers

 

[Cydonia]

I love it. If Apple's management would get their heads out of their you-know-whats, they'd drop that stupid license clause and would start to make some serious money with the mass of computer users.

make some money? I thought they were already making some serious money?

 

[Lava Lamp Freak]

Except that they are. Where have you been the past week?

Here. This should help you out. This is from their website.

Apple sold 3.05 million Macintosh® computers during the quarter, representing a 17 percent unit increase over the year-ago quarter. The Company sold 10.2 million iPods during the quarter, representing an eight percent unit decline from the year-ago quarter. Apple sold 7.4 million iPhones in the quarter, representing seven percent unit growth over the year-ago quarter.

Apple sold only 3 million Macs. They sold 10 million iPods and 7 million iPhones. So, as I said, they sell many more iPods and iPhones than Macs. I can only speculate on the amount of profit made per computer vs per iPod/iPhone, but still Apple is no longer Apple Computer. There is absoltuely no data to support claims that Apple would die if they open Mac OS X to the PC world.

 

[KnightWRX]

It's a civil case though, not criminal. And do you you really think Apple would sue customers? Way to get some bad press. Violating a contract is not a criminal offense.

No, but copyright infrigment can be, and Psystar distributing copies of OS X without a license to do so violates copyright.

Here. This should help you out. This is from their website.

Apple sold only 3 million Macs. They sold 10 million iPods and 7 million iPhones. So, as I said, they sell many more iPods and iPhones than Macs. I can only speculate on the amount of profit made per computer vs per iPod/iPhone, but still Apple is no longer Apple Computer. There is absoltuely no data to support claims that Apple would die if they open Mac OS X to the PC world.

Unit sales is pointless. Profit per unit is much more important and profit per product category. If you were to look those up, you'd notice the Mac is a big source of profit and revenu for Apple, moreso than 99$ iPods.

 

[Kristenn]

Yeah, Macs are PCs now, duh! lolz

I'm like the others here that don't agree. Its Apple's software... they can tell you what you can and can't do with it. Kind of like if someone drives a car to a different state.. and moves there.. they have to get new plates. Well, sorta like that. I don't want Apple to give Mac OS X to other people. Mainly because I think Apple makes the best laptops. And AIO now that they have Quad Core. Those other plastic laptops just feel cheap when you compare it to a light and sturdy Macintosh laptop.

Thats important to me right now... especially when taking it to school with me every day.

 

[Tudeski]

Visit their site. They have numerous typos on their main page for this new release. I would be vary wary of downloading anything from an organization with a website that has blatant typos, such as:

Psystar's next step in helping to provide open computing for all will be to begin distributing our Rebel EFI software that will allow users to operating systems of their choosing, including OS X, on their computers.

and

The software is available for download on the here.

SAY WHAT????

 

[Beric]

Am I surprised that you openly support copyright infringement? No.

It's not like it's stealing software. It simply voids my warranty on the software, which I don't care about. It's no worse than buying a game and using in on multiple computers for a LAN session.

No, but copyright infrigment can be, and Psystar distributing copies of OS X without a license to do so violates copyright.

So you're saying that if Psystar sells OS X, it violates copyright? What at all does that have to do with Rebel EFI?

Visit their site. They have numerous typos on their main page for this new release. I would be vary wary of downloading anything from an organization with a website that has blatant typos, such as:

Psystar's next step in helping to provide open computing for all will be to begin distributing our Rebel EFI software that will allow users to operating systems of their choosing, including OS X, on their computers.

and

The software is available for download on the here.

SAY WHAT????

Psystar has been selling products for over a year. They've been proven a reputable company.

 

[Stavros.P]

Ummm... if you LEGITIMATELY own OSX, it belong to you. Just like the iPhone. Apple needs to realize something. We do not lease there products. We own them.

Yes you own the product, but you don't seem to realise that Apple owns the rights of the products that bare the Apple logo on! In other words Apple owns the rights to the software and hardware. It is your computer, but you do not, in whatever way, own any of the legal rights of the product! And that is why Apple should sue the cr*p out of them and close them down! Go Apple Legal Department! Make them cry!!!!!

 

[hachre]

No, but it needs to be understandable. We can't debate or answer you if we don't even understand what you are saying. Writing concise responses is important.

You are simply stating what we all know here. What was your point exactly ? IP law is IP law. If you don't agree with it, you can always choose the FSF in their crusade against it with their "copyleft" philosophy.

I'm sorry if it was that hard to understand.

I thought I had replied to a person saying something by the lines of "What other company than Apple is so great that it actually allows other operating systems to run on their computers" Maybe I forgot to quote it.

My reply was to point out that in fact all other consumer computer companies allow other operating systems to be installed on their computers. I don't even know of any company that actively tries to prohibit any other systems to be installed than their own.

Apple owns Mac OS X. They own the copyright, they own the trademark. The are the licensor. They have every right to decide how you get to use and/or distribute their IP.

You are simply stating what we all know here. What was your point exactly ? IP law is IP law. If you don't agree with it, you can always choose the FSF in their crusade against it with their "copyleft" philosophy.

My point is this:
Microsoft also owns the IP and all that other stuff for Windows and IE. Still they got into massive problems tying them together. The same will happen with Mac OS and Apple hardware that is artificially tied once the market share rises high enough.

Apple has the chance to keep their we-are-such-a-nice-company-face by dropping that EULA statement now which will be futile in the future anyway. I suggest they do it. The pressure won't drop after/if Psystar is gone. Their own popularity will make it rise.

 

[gnasher729]

But you are innocent until proven guilty.. in the eyes of the law. Right now Psystar has done nothing illegal apparently.

No. Have you heard the saying "it is better if nine guilty people go free than one innocent person being convicted"? That clearly means a person is innocent when they didn't commit a crime or guilty when committed it; what is proven or not doesn't make a difference to their guilt or innocence.

What "innocent until proven guilty" actually means: If you are member of a jury, you mustn't let the fact that someone is in court accused of a crime make you believe that the person is guilty of the crime. You have to wait until evidence is presented, and make your decision based on the evidence.

It is quite apparent that Psystar has done quite a few illegal things so far; the US court system is just a bit slow which means there has been no court decision yet. "I have not been convicted" and "I have not done anything wrong" are two very, very different things.

 

[Cydonia]

your post reminds me of the same people who thought apple going intel will lead to macs getting viruses

explain then how linux, which runs on everything, is a stable os? thats the flaw in your logic

not to mention many people running stable hackintoshes either with non apple supported kexts

Linux stable on everything? Yes you might be correct but not all hardwAre is supported. Drivers are an issue if you run Linux.

 

[KnightWRX]

So you're saying that if Psystar sells OS X, it violates copyright? What at all does that have to do with Rebel EFI?

If Psystar don't have a license to re-sell OS X, it violates Apple's copyright.

Rebel EFI probably falls under anti-circumvention provisions of the DMCA though, not copyright law is you properly assumed. Doesn't make it right.

 

[Tudeski]

It's not like it's stealing software. It simply voids my warranty on the software, which I don't care about. It's no worse than buying a game and using in on multiple computers for a LAN session.



So you're saying that if Psystar sells OS X, it violates copyright? What at all does that have to do with Rebel EFI?



Psystar has been selling products for over a year. They've been proven a reputable company.

Maybe proven reputable, but certainly not articulate. I hope they don't write code like this.