[X4U] Windows on Mac Fact

[Jim Robertson]

On 1/12/06 2:52 PM, "Eddie Hargreaves" <meged at earthlink.net> wrote:

> On 1/12/06 2:06 PM, Richard Gilmore <rgilmor at uwo.ca> wrote:
> 
>> I was just surprised to read that for real Apple admitted you'll be able to
>> run Windows on a Mac.
> 
> You just found this out? They admitted it last June when they first made the
> Intel announcement.

Actually, Windows XP will NOT run natively on the MacIntel Macs. Windows XP
and all earlier versions of what started as MS-DOS require BIOS (basic
input-output-system) as part of the chipset. Part of what made the PC engulf
the Mac in marketshare was the fact that IBM told anyone who listened how to
make BIOS and welcomed them to do so. Those of us with gray hair or no hair
may remember the early 1980s when it was important to know whether an 8086
computer was a "true" IBM clone.

The chipset in the new Macs doesn't include BIOS, so some emulation software
will be necessary, if only to make the Windows OS boot.

I've read "will too"/"will not" type arguments about whether Microsoft's
implementation of boot code in Windows Vista will allow it to run without
modification on the new Macs.

Jim Robertson
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