Perhaps not as much experience as you do but I bought my first Mac June of 1984. I still have it. I have Macs that run Sys 6.0.8, 7.1, 7.6.1, 8.1, 8.6, 9.2.2, and 10.4.8. I cut the memory chips off my 128K motherboard and did my own 512K upgrade in 1985. I have recapped SE/30 motherboards and installed SCSI upgrades in 128K & 512K Macs. I wrote software for the Mac in the 80's & 90's. What does either of our expierences with Macs have to do with the EULA and PsyStar issue at hand?
I have been working first hand with Apple (often times representing my clients) on these types of issues... specially for graphic design firms where they had a ton of Macs and we had to figure out site licensing with Apple for upgrading the OS on those systems.
That type of experience...
DIRECTLY DEALING WITH APPLE ON LICENSING ISSUES was the answer to your original question (
"How do you conclude that it is an upgrade?").
Really? Since when does Apple pass laws? Apple can only put forth its licensing terms and a court will decide if the terms are enforceable. Apple can get legal protection for its IP through copyright, patents, trade secrets, and contracts. When you say illegal what specific laws are being broken by PsyStar?
DMCA. Read it. Learn.
Apple doesn't make these laws, the US Government does. Go and read the laws for your self. These laws were enacted to protect makers of computer software from having their products usurped by others.
If you actually have software writing experience, you should already know about this stuff... so why are you playing dumb here?
Not true. I called the Apple Store in Orlando, FL Jan of 2007 and asked to get OS 8.5 installed on my B&W G3. They would not do it. I was told my only option was to buy an OS 8.x CD off of ebay and do it myself or have them install OSX (for a fee plus the cost of OSX). Maybe they should have done as you state but the fact is they didnt.
I said an Apple service provider
can, I didn't say that they all would. Heck, most people who service Macs today wouldn't know the first thing about older systems and Apple itself will not support anything older than a few years (10.2 is no longer supported by Apple).
I don't work for Apple, I work for my clients. Apple doesn't pay me, my clients pay me (and every so often I have to pay Apple for technical references on their products).
I provide technical support for every piece of Mac hardware and operating system going back to System 0.98 and the Macintosh 128 (though I haven't worked on anything older than a Plus in a few years). I have every Macintosh operating system from System 0.98 to Mac OS 9.2.2, A/UX 1.0 to 3.1.1 (though I've only actually worked with 2.0 onwards), Rhapsody 5.0 to Rhapsody 5.6, Mac OS X Developer Preview 3 to Mac OS X v10.5.2, and a number of AppleShare releases. I also have (and supply support for) other operating systems acquired by Apple like NEXTSTEP 3.1 to OPENSTEP 4.2 (which Apple continued to sell until 1999 and support until 2001). I can guarantee you that you won't find that depth of support at
ANY Apple Store.
I can legally provide an installation of the original operating system for any Apple hardware I come across. Additionally, I can do the same for any clone I come across or any NeXT Computer I come across (though I'm limited to providing only NEXTSTEP 3.3 plus Patch 3 for NeXT hardware without a previous OS accompanying it). Again, I can guarantee you that you won't find that depth of support at
ANY Apple Store.
Mac users should know that you rarely turn to Apple for anything more than a few years old. You should be looking for an independent service tech like myself if you want your older hardware/software to function correctly. Apple will suggest that you buy a new system where someone like me can get an old one up and running again like new.
If it is stealing why is Apple getting $129 for the copy of OSX? If it is theft all Apple has to do is file a criminal complaint with the local athorities. Plain and simple, there is no theft here as long as PsyStar is buying OSX from Apple or its dealers.
Tell me something... if you wanted a car that was worth $20,000, and you took it but left $10,000 for the original owner (be they a dealer or private person), would you be convicted of stealing?
Psystar hasn't yet delivered anything. I could say that I am going to steal the
Mona Lisa, but really I haven't done anything wrong until I make an attempt to actually do it.
People... the logic here isn't that hard to grasp. And wishing that it wasn't so isn't going to change the facts of the matter.