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Run Windows Applications Natively in OS X?

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the predictiontastic dept.

mcho writes "Unlike other speculators, who get no spam, Robert X. Cringely offers an intriguing reason behind Apple's recent strategy of Boot Camp. From the article: 'I believe that Apple will offer Windows Vista as an option for those big customers who demand it, but I also believe that Apple will offer in OS X 10.5 the ability to run native Windows XP applications with no copy of XP installed on the machine at all. This will be accomplished not by using compatibility middleware like Wine, but rather by Apple implementing the Windows API directly in OS X 10.5.'

5 of 521 comments (clear)

  1. As usual.... by wiggles · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Cringely is out of his mind.

    1) There is no way in hell Microsoft would document their API to the level necessary to allow Apple to duplicate it.

    2) It's blatantly obvious he doesn't understand precisely what Wine is. Remember: Wine Is Not an Emulator. It's a built-from-scratch implementation of the Windows API.

    Idiot.

    1. Re:As usual.... by wulfhound · · Score: 5, Insightful

      The problem is not whether or not it's possible, but whether it's feasible for a development team to do it well enough (for Mac users, who expect much higher standards of such things than Linux users) and in a short enough time frame.

      Personally I think it's doubtful for that reason.

  2. YHBT! by NutscrapeSucks · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Cringely and Dvorak must be making humongous ad-revenue trolling Mac Fans lately. They're eating it up!

    It's understandable because Apple has made some radical moves lately (Intel, Windows), so the Mac Zealot's universe must seem like it's in total flux. No longer can they confidently predict Apple's next move using their supposed expertise in everything-apple. If Apple will put Windows on Macs, pretty much anything goes!

    Obviously these columnists sense the uncertainly and are having fun stirring things up a bit. Anyway, before you fire off your 1000 word point-by-point response denouncing Cringely, keep in mind he probably wrote this column in 15 minutes while high on cough medicine.

    --
    Whenever I hear the word 'Innovation', I reach for my pistol.
  3. Re:What's the incentive to write a program for OS by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Cool! All of the spyware and viruses can run in OS X too. That would be great.

  4. Wine vs Windows API by dokebi · · Score: 5, Insightful

    A lot of comment so far correctly point out that WINE is is an implementation of the Windows API, but they miss Cringely's point that Apple licensed the Windows API. The whole shebang. So unlike the WINE development team, OSX-XP project team doesn't have to reverse engineer undocumented and cryptic API's. Anyone who remembers IBM's OS2 knows that IBM licensed the Windows API, and included it into OS2, and could run all Windows programs. OS2 failed because of lack of consumer appeal (eye-candy), not because of lack of compatibility.
    I imagine Apple could pull a better OS2 than IBM. Security, stability plus consumer appeal plus Windows compatibility.

    Even if all this is speculation, it probably gives Messrs Dell and Gates nightmares.

    --
    In Soviet Russia, articles before post read *you*!