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What you're thinking of is the Mac ROM, which used to be a megabyte or two of low-level code stored in a ROM chip on the mainboard. These were copyrighted by Apple, and were necessary for MacOS to run. This meant that PowerMac cloners had to license the ROM from Apple, and that MacOS emulators and virtual machines (Mac-on-linux, SheepShaver et al) needed a ROM image in order to run.

Since MacOS 8.6 however, the "ROM" actually resides in a system file loaded into memory straight from disk. New Macs being manufactured don't even have a traditional style "MacOS ROM" chip. Programs like MOL boot MacOS just fine using nothing but the ROM file from the install CD.

One point everyone seems to be forgetting in the "my OS is bigger.. oops, better.. than your OS" debate is that PowerPC Linux has what may be the killer app.. the MacOS itself.

Check out The Mac on Linux Page for more info.

I run it when I need to open that stray Word or PowerPoint document under Linux, and quite frankly, it rocks. Not everything is there yet (like sound support, and multiple serial line support), but what is there is impressive.

(Aside: the Sheepshaver developers were supposed to have a similar app for Power PC Linux, but nothing ever materialized. Pity..)

I'll soon try out additional Web resources for using MacOS Open Transport, MoL, and Linux ethertap support to create a "virtual" firewall. (Almost no configuration except for IP masquerading, no need to buy another box, and I get my MacOS-based VPN client when I need it. Life is good.)
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Someone already mentioned Mac-On-Linux. There are a couple more Mac emu's for LinuxPPC in development, though. SheepShaver is working on a Linux/PPC port of their popular BeOS/PPC product. And ARDI has just released a version of their Executor product for Linux/PPC. Executor doesn't emulate PowerPC, but it does emulate a 68040 quite well, and it doesnt require Macintosh ROM's, a real Macintosh, or MacOS to run Mac software.

~GoRK

I've found a MacOS runtime app for BeOS and linux PPC which can be found at SheepShaver.com. The linux version is in beta, and you should take it up with them to port it to linux x86. You can read all about it at their site.

SheepShaver will take care of that for you.

1. Mac OSX Server which is out now, has had the core parts open sourced but not the GUI or any of the other really cool apple stuff
2. Cost to user ~$90 US, or get it free with a brand new computer
3. Again this is Mac OSX Server. Mac OSX Client is not Unix. The API's have been substantially revised yielding what is known as Carbon (All life is based on it). The carbon API's are fully re-entrant allowing for true Preemptive multi-tasking and all that good stuff. It took them a long time to fix all this but it is being done right unlike the cheap attempt at multi tasking that is windows 9x. But it still is not Unix

Well actually you couldn't trap the hardware bootstrap so sheepshaver can't even use the code in the boot ROM to boot MacOS. It's loader is in fact the only thing really emulated. From the sheepshaver page:

On which systems does it run?

SheepShaver should run on any BeOS/Linux-ready PowerPC system (including BeBoxen and PowerPC Amigas). It does not run on Intel machines because MacOS and PowerPC Mac applications run natively under SheepShaver (there's no slow CPU emulation involved, it's comparable to the "Blue Box" of MacOS X). SheepShaver/BeOS requires BeOS/PPC R4. SheepShaver/Linux will require at least glibc 2.0, GTK 1.2, and a 2.2.x kernel.

On the other hand, you will be able to switch out your Mac BootROM so if you wanted to run an O/S such as Linux or Be, you could free yourself completely of the MacOS. I think that most of the other hardware under the hood is understood well enough for some third-party to engineer a BootROM independent from Apple's. You wouldn't be able to run MacOS or OS/X but there's always sheepshaver!

~GoRK

If it will run under LinuxPPC on one of these boxes, I am there.

Like it was mentioned, Wine and Vmware probably won't work. But if you don't have anything against Mac applications, maybe Mac-On-Linux or even SheepShaver (a commercial product) may work, if a port can be done. Anyone out there knowledgeable about the various PPC architectures have an idea on how feasible this would be?

Of course I have an agenda - MacOS crashed on me one time (well, 200 times) too many.

Sheepshaver will let you run MacOS in a window, like Apple's defunct Blue Box. And when MacOS crashes, as you know it will, you can keep on working.


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http://www.wholepop.com/
Whole Pop Magazine Online - Pop Culture

SheepShaver is gonna kick butt, Apple butt to be precise. SheepShaver will make it possible for LinuxPPC folks to use their (legacy ;-) MacOS apps right from their KDE/GNOME desktop. But wait, imagine running MacOS on an exported X display.. Even cooler!

All this Gaussian Curve bullshit is just that, bullshit. This curve only applies to closed proprietary Operating Systems. OS OS'es like Linux are creating a paradigm shift. No way you can compare it with dBase and Lotus shit :)