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 Apple
Computer has announced today (04/05/06) that it will support
running Windows XP on its Macintosh computers, via a dual boot method
where at startup the user can chose if they want to run windows or OS
X.
For
any PC user keen to get stuck into Final Cut Pro or the virus free
Macintosh environment, yet doesn't want to give up the superior games
or irrational crashes of the Windows platform, the announcement
provides a message of hope. To some Mac users it is simply confirmation
that the
freezing over of hell is complete.
 It
also opens the question whether the suprise departure of Apple's Chief
Technical Officer Avadis "Avie" Tevanian, former head of Apple's
software business, at the end of March was a related incident. Mr
Tevanian, 44, joined Apple in February 1997 from NeXT, which the
company purchased that same year. He spearheaded the development of the
Mac OS X operating system, which debuted in 2001. It has undergone
numerous revisions, but is still Apple's only operating system and
was until today, Appls only supported operating system.
How it will work
Anyone wanting to run Windows on the Mac will first need to make
sure they are use an Intel based Mac. They will next to upgrade their
system software and firmware drivers to the latest versions. They can
then download the BootCamp software from apple's site (link - www.apple.com/macosx/bootcamp/
) which will create a CD with all the correct Windows friendly drivers
for the Mac hardware. Users partition their hard drive (split it in to
seperate virtual drives) and install Windows XP (they must own the
disc) on the remaining partion. The process seems to be managed through
a typically user-centric interface.
Using Windows on a Mac
Mac hardware operates differently from PCs, and this public beta does not support all features of the Mac in Windows.
EFI and BIOS
Macs use an ultra-modern industry standard
technology called EFI to handle booting. Sadly, Windows XP, and even
the upcoming Vista, are stuck in the 1980s with old-fashioned BIOS. But
with Boot Camp, the Mac can operate smoothly in both centuries.
Leopard starts to prowl
Rumours have been floating across the net that Apple would soon
include a virtualised version of Windows in its next version of OS X
(10.5 - codename Leopard). The launch of bootcamp along with the
announcement that the name is probably temporary and the feature would
be an integeral part of Leopard almost guarantees the inclusion of an
easy Mac/Windows interface. Whether this option will extend to
GNU/Linux, remains to be seen (but if so would create the Holy Trinity
of computing - offering a chioce of the three leading operating systems
under one hood.)
Developers can learn all about
the sixth major release of Mac OS X this century at Apple’s Worldwide
Developer Conference, to be held August 7-11 in San Francisco. Apple
trackers will be able to watch Jobs next scheduled keynote via the
website.
A New Business Machine?
The move first to Intel and now to Windows should encourage greater
adoption of the Mac platform by businesses who are already attracted by
lower support costs and fewer security problems. Earlier this week the
Wall Street Journal reported that a Japanese bank planned to switch its 2,300 PCs to Macs.
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