Member Avatar for chound

Is only the software part of the computer diff or is the hardware of Mac different from my pc which runs windows :o

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This thread (Sept 2004) captures the right instincts for its time: , and gave answers that matched the hardware landscape then. Two platform changes since 2004 are important context for anyone reading this much later.

Apple announced the Mac transition to Intel processors on June 6, 2005 and shipped Intel-based Macs afterward; later, Apple announced a move from Intel to its own Apple silicon on June 22, 2020. These transitions mean the “hardware difference” question changed over time — macOS has been compiled for different CPU families as Apple moved platforms, and Apple provided translator layers at each move to smooth compatibility. (apple.com)

The legal and practical reality today remains: Apple’s macOS license limits use to Apple‑branded computers, and that licensing plus firmware/driver differences makes installing macOS on arbitrary PC hardware a legal and technical grey area. Independent “non‑Apple” installs (the Hackintosh ecosystem) exist but are community workarounds with maintenance and compatibility costs and potential EULA issues. (apple.com)

Practical, legal ways to try or develop for macOS now:

  • Rent a real Mac in the cloud (examples: MacinCloud or hosted Mac services) for short-term testing or builds. (macincloud.com)
  • Use cloud Mac instances (AWS EC2 Mac instances) or dedicated Mac hosting for CI/build servers. (docs.aws.amazon.com)
  • Buy an inexpensive used Mac mini or laptop for local testing, and run VMs or Parallels on that Mac when needed (virtualization of macOS is supported only on Apple hardware under Apple’s license).

Summary: the 2004 answers were correct for that era; the long view is that Apple has changed CPU platforms twice, but the macOS license and platform ecosystem still make Apple hardware the supported and simplest choice for running macOS today.

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Member Avatar for kc0arf

Hello,

The easy simple answer is: Macs feature different hardware chipsets than PC's.

The better answer.

Macs use a Motorola - IBM jointly developed processor called the Power PC chip. They are based in IBM's POWER chip set that was started in the 1990's. PC's use chips based on Intel's 286 processor, although the Pentium and later chip families enhanced the capabilities of the processor.

The older Macs -- talking early 1990's -- used NuBus technology developed in Texas (I think it was Texas Instruments) for cards. Windows at the time was working with ISA technology. MCA was being phased out, as it was too expensive / proprietary for the Windows crowd. I should clarify -- the DOS crowd. Macs used SCSI busses (more expensive, but more capable) to access hard drives and scanners. PC's used the parallel port and IDE drives.

In the Mid 90's, Intel developed the PCI bus. They first came in Windows machines, and then Apple adopted the technology into the later PowerMac series before the G3 chip. Apple also got into internal IDE drives. USB came to both platforms later on.

In the 2000's, Apple developed Firewire that was adopted by Macintosh and Intel Platofrms.

So today's hardware is similar in terms of internal busses and expansion options. I can go to Best Buy and get a IDE hard drive, and place it into a modern Mac and format it and use it. A PCI network card, with the proper drivers, should be cross platform. I am not certain if video cards are supported cross platform -- many are not, but some might be. Apple's laptops do have a VGA video out, although we are seeing more S-Video outs.

But the heart of the computer -- the CPU -- remains very different. They access memory in different styles, they run different instruction sets. The PPC chips (G3 G4 G5) are very RISC oriented. The Pentium series are more CISC oriented. Both chips are getting deeper pipeline technologies, and branch predictions are continued to be developed.

This discussion was not meant to be exhaustive... others are welcome to it.

Christian

Member Avatar for chound

If i install Mac OS in my windows coumputer would it give any problem?

Member Avatar for Mr. Bob

If i install Mac OS in my windows coumputer would it give any problem?

the most accurate question i can give you is: no, because you can't install it in the first place. unless there is some hack that i am unaware of, it is impossible.

now, i know you can use programs such as PearPC to run osx 10.1 (not as bad as 10.0, but still very buggy and slow), but to get an idea of how slow it is you would have to watch golf in "step" mode.

but, that's kind of pointless, as there are literally hundreds of gui-hacking tools for xp that can make it virtually identical to osx' gui.

Member Avatar for kc0arf

Hello,

The official answer is, no, you cannot install Mac OS X on intel hardware. PearPC is an emulator, so you can install it inside of a VM (virtual machine), but no, not directly on the box.

I heard / read that Apple has OS X compiled for Intel, but it is not released or for sale. I would have to read more and search to find that article again.

If you wanted to run Apple OS X from your intel box, youc ould get a Mac, and then use VNC to control it from your PC.

Christian

Member Avatar for yellow

Marklar is the Mac OS X compiled on x86 hardware. It is not available to the public, nor I expect, will it ever be. (Publicly available) Mac OS X knows nothing of PC hardware and cannot be installed on FAT/NTFS volumes. Sorry buddy, you're stuck with Windows, Linux, and/or a BSD variant.

You could always buy a Mac! ;)

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