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Run Mac OS X On Non-Apple Hardware, With a Dongle
An anonymous reader points out Gizmodo's review of a USB dongle, made by a company called Efix, which allows for an effort-free transformation of a non-Apple computer into one that runs Mac OS X. According to the reviewer, the transformation is perfect (aside from a few quirks he describes as "trivial"); the included screenshots sure make it seem that way, too. The dongle costs $155, and works only on a subset of PC hardware. Non-Apple machines running OS X will no doubt make Apple unhappy, though, so, the reviewer concludes, "it's understandable if you wanna approach this with caution."
You still need a custom hacked Kernel to do it, this removes that need. Even hackintosh's need a custom DVD, this will install with an off the shelf Leopard DVD.
It actually connects to a USB header on the motherboard, which is good (no breaking it off or unplugging it by accident) and bad (not usable if your USB headers are crowded by other components or the case).
No kidding!!! What do you say at this point?
you know, i never really understood people's prejudice against mac users until now. but, wow, you're a douche.
helping people set up their hackintoshes would be a great way to expose some PC users to the benefits or advantages of OS X. someone who doesn't want to take the plunge and invest in a $3000 machine could use this dongle to try out the OS before they commit to a full Apple setup.
assuming that any hackintosh users must be pirating OS X is a rather condescending attitude towards PC users, and particular PC users who are interested in OS X.
There is no Apple Premium. There is shortage in variety in Apple Hardware choices. Apples Cost just as much as near Identical System (You need to include all the specs including weight and dimensions). However most people don't need all those specs only a subset of them. Thus can get a system elsewhere for cheaper as they do not need to spend extra to get the 17" screen and a Fast CPU with a lot of RAM, because they don't care that it is 1" thick and doesn't need Firewire, Lighted keyboard... However if you compare a System that has the exact same specs as the Mac (or very close) you find the prices are about the same +/- $100.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
They want me to put credit card information into a standard HTTP page? I'm absolutely SURE I trust them not to do something stupid like store that information unencrypted in a database.
FAIL.
someone who doesn't want to take the plunge and invest in a $3000 machine could use this dongle to try out the OS before they commit to a full Apple setup.
The price of the dongle plus the price of OSX is more than enough to buy a slightly used Mac Mini.
assuming that any hackintosh users must be pirating OS X is a rather condescending attitude towards PC users, and particular PC users who are interested in OS X.
Your right its wrong to assume. But he's right, most hackintoshes are built using pirated software. Deal with it.
helping people set up their hackintoshes would be a great way to expose some PC users to the benefits or advantages of OS X.
Presumably these PC users are already sold on trying OSX given they are working on a hackintosh. And again, if these PC users are willing to shell out a few hundred bucks on dongles and a copy of the OS to try it out, they can buy a slighly used mac mini, or an older ibook. Or shell out just a little bit more and get an new mini.
People have been runing OSX on PC hardware for a while now. So, given that -- how is this exciting at all?
Because, with other methods, you need hacks, and updates require more hacks. The idea here is that you can use a virgin install of OS X and it Just Works.
It isn't even any more legal than just dling pirated/hacked OSX install DVDs. The way I see it -- there is no advantage to paying $150 to break the law with a stinkin' dongle, when you can download a 4GB DVD torrent and get OSX for free. Both are equally illegal and violate Apple's EULA or whatever.
They are not "equally illegal". In your case, you are downloading copies of software (copyright infringement), and also the software has been reverse engineered and hacked (which might violate something). Then, in both cases, you violate the EULA with the installation (which isn't illegal). So, actually, buying the "stinkin' dongle" doesn't break the law, though violating the EULA will allow Apple to sue, provided the EULA is legal and enforceable.
but that iDeneb project is way cheaper as it does not require a dongle.
Others have found a way to hack their BIOS to use the Apple OEM ID and do their own EFI to run Mac OSX to fool OSX to think it is running on a real Apple Macintosh. The nice thing about EEPROMS is that you can flash update them easily, and anyone who knows machine language can hack their own BIOS file into one that can easily pass for an Apple Macintosh BIOS.
As for people like me, we don't even need a dongle to make our Intel PC turn into an Amiga that is even cooler than an Apple Macintosh running OSX, and has a much lower memory footprint so it runs faster than OSX, and has an interface and look and feel like OSX or Vista, but is 100% free, 100% open source, and 100% legal.
For those who want to pirate OSX, get real, get AROS instead and support AROS developers to develop more AROS drivers and software. Why settle for a monopoly from Microsoft or Apple, when you can be free and use a non-monopoly OS that will run on almost any PC, Mac, Amiga, MIPS, PowerPC, etc system on the market?
You want an alternative to Windows? Wait until ReactOS is done. It will run Windows applications. If you want an alternative to Windows that does not run Windows programs get HaikuOS when it is ready as it is a free and open source BeOS operating system. Once OSFree is finished it will be a free OS/2 open source OS, but I heard they will make it run under Linux to run OS/2 applications. Support your favorite free open source operating system instead of pirating OSX. Who cares enough about bloatware to pirate OSX or Vista, they are both bloated and buggy! If you want a free OS, get a free open source OS as I listed above when they are finished and out of beta testing. If you can't wait join in their beta program and give them feedback on how to fix it, or join the developers to help them get done faster.
Boycott Vista and OSX, and get Linux instead and install a Macintosh skin on Linux instead of pirating OSX.
Remember, Slashdot does not have a -1 disagree moderation, and no, troll, flamebait, and overrated are not substitutes.
Exploding capacitors
Quick straw poll for slashdotters:
How many years have you been using PC-based hardware and how many exploding capacitors have you encountered?
I'll start: ~20 years, 0 exploding caps.
If libertarians are so opposed to effective government, why don't they all move to Somalia?
Yeah, I totally agree with that. Apple just doesn't offer enough hardware options to make it attractive. I mean, comeon, either the mac Mini which sucks as soon as you are looking for something that you want expand. The MacPro? Sure, it is a great platform, but very expensive...
I built a hackintosh out of a quadcore Q6600, 4GB of Memory, two 500GB drives and a 512MB geforce card. My cost was less than a thousand dollars and it works great (plus a 30" monitor), even better than my Official Macbook Pro. Apple just does NOT provide that kind of configuration for that price. The equivalent config with a MacPro is $2850...
OSX is unsupported on VMware and it runs really really slowly. I'm not sure if this has been improved but the one time I tried it was just too slow to be usable even for testing.
Sometimes my arms bend back.
Oh, and not one single hackintosh user that I have come across in #MacOSX has ever said they are using a boxed copy of the software, the same names always come up - Maxxus, JaS etc etc.
Actually that's the old method of doing it, individual releases hand made by various guys. The new technique uses boot-132 which allows you to install from an unmodified retail DVD. Basically you make a boot disc that includes any extra drivers or kernels you need for your setup, boot off of it, then swap the CD for the Leopard install DVD and run a normal setup. What people can do now is make boot CDs for OEM machines and you'd only download the ISO which only uses say 50MB or so, then theoretically you buy a legal copy at the store and use that. There's also generic boot CDs that include a ton of common drivers and hardware and will work for most people.
Just sayin... the copyright infringement aspect of using a hackintosh is now eliminated. As for EULA's, well that's another story.
Cwm, fjord-bank glyphs vext quiz
Who says you cant just go out and buy a copy of OSX and modify and run it via hackintosh? All that is needed to get around the install is to emulate the EFI on boot and there's a program out now that does that thanks to some reverse engineering by someone in the hackintosh community. With that you can even run the Apple update. This also works on AMD CPUs as well. Might have some problems running things that use PCI slots, but certain soundcards do have drivers out there. Honestly, I don't give a rat's butt what Mr. Jobs thinks (and his "oh no, you have to buy my overpriced [now pc hardware other than the EFI mobos Intel makes for them] hardware to run my OS). I should be able to do with the software once I purchase it at full price, so long as I am not distributing my copy to everyone else.
For more information, check out this site. Their faq will tell you the basics and they also have a list of hardware people have sucessfully installed OSX with here as well as a list of sound card drivers for pci if you do a search.
Lack of upgradability was what kept me off laptops for so long. Then I realised that when I upgraded, I tended to replace the CPU, which meant replacing the motherboard (new socket) and the RAM (faster), and often the hard disk (why not, while the case is open) and sometimes the case (although ATX becoming standard removed that one). The first PC I built had 5 PCI slots and 2 ISA slots, and a lot of them were full. The last PC I built had only one expansion card sitting in the AGP slot and everything else built in to the motherboard. Now I just use a laptop, and upgrade it roughly every three three years by getting a new one and demoting the old one to some other use. Even among geeks, upgrading a computer has become rare. The low cost of new hardware has meant that it's often not much more expensive to replace the whole machine (and much less effort), and the fact that a lot of people can get by with something like a 1GHz P3 means that it's easy to find a good home for the old one.
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