Well, a Federal judge ruled and Psystar lost their case. Apple has definitely shown the hand of God here. But the real question is: Will it be the end of it? Hopefully not.
On Friday, Judge William Alsup sided with Apple that Psystar has indeed violated the End User License Agreement (EULA). He ruled that installation of the Mac OS on non-Apple hardware is not allowable. Therefore, Psystar must discontinue their line of Mac clones. Finally, he ruled that Psystars’ counter claims are not arguable since Psystar altered the Mac software to run on other machines.
And now I will quote:
Today we celebrate a glorious anniversary of the information purification directives we have created, for the first time in all history, a garden of pure ideology. Where each worker may bloom secure from the pests of contradictory and confusing truths. Our Unification of Thoughts is more powerful a weapon than any fleet or army on earth. We are one people, with one will, one resolve, one cause. Our enemies shall talk themselves to death and we will bury them with their own confusion. We shall prevail!
Confused on where that is from? Well, it’s “Big Brother” from the 1984 Superbowl ad by Apple. It is followed by:
…You’ll see why 1984 won’t be like 1984…
That is true. 2009 will be like 1984. Little did George Orwell know, but he was writing about Apple 25 years later…
Just like everyone else, I agree with the ruling. Psystar had to alter the program to run on another machine, therefore they should have to pay. But just because that happened, doesn’t mean Hackintosh is going away. Just underground. Apple won the battle – not the War.
I still think that if Apple put out a OSXPC version, put a price on it and followed with “No support”, people would flock. The independent PC support person would then be asked upon to learn and understand so they can fix these problems. Apple wins by adding a new revenue stream and also because it’s creating new jobs. We get an unsupported system for $129, but it might lead to our next computer purchase being an Apple product.
As for Psystar, maybe they’ll appeal, but most likely Apple will take the company down. Welcome to the corporate world. R.I.P. Psystar.
Fanboys are out, indeed! Apple has just succeeded in alienating the rest of the compute market. The mac Mini Server is so cheap because in 99.9% of businesses it’s useless. Apple networking is a joke, even in an all Apple environment. Apple could use some new blood on it side for innovation. One of the things that have made the PC such a success and captured so much of the market is the amount of 3rd party apps available for it. I can build my own computer, sorry PC, for little or nothing and I can modify my PC as I see fit, not as Apple dictates. I do believe that Apple has won the battle but not the war. The Apple guys and Fanboy alike should be watching their rear and flanks for Linux. If Apple is not careful with all this high-handedness It will lose what little market share it has to a bevy of Linux devices. After all for For everything a Mac can do Linux can do as well if not better and cheaper.
Ah, the Apple Fanboys are truly out in force on this one! I can install Windows on any hardware I like. ANY. I might need to do some configuration but it can be done. Apple? Oh no, heaven forbid they should be a bit more open about their software. More of us might actually try it if they did. I have a Mac here in the house, just one. I have seven PC’s. I find the PC’s to be the more-used by my family than that sad little Mac iBook over in the corner. Why? Because the PC’s actually work better and offer more of what we need. Too bad for Apple. They are losing out on a huge market of opportunity, in my mind.
“Actually, Mac OS X is worth about $400 a copy. Apple sells it at a discount for its customers.”
I can go one further than that. Last month they introduced a Mac mini with Mac OS X server installed for only $999. Unlimited users. Compare that to Windows Server; $1000 for only 5 users.
Apple has the better value, and throws in a computer for free!
Let it be noted that OS X server only had 38.5 minutes downtime last year; Windows Server had 2.5 hours. https://www.pcworld.idg.com.au/article/311120/ibm_power_servers_most_reliable_new_survey)
We have no idea what Mac OS X is worth, James Katt, because it is not being offered for sale for any price without conditions.
Would the Hackers buy a copy for a thousand dollars, if they knew that those loading it on Apple hardware would be getting a $871 rebate? Wouldn’t the difference eliminate a need for a Hackintosh at all? So, the hackers next call would be to steal Mac OSX.
Will the Hackintoshes go underground? No more than before. Will a war ensue between the hackers and Apple? Sure, Apple has thrown down the gauntlet in blocking the Atom based Netbooks.
Can the hackers win? No, i don’t think so. Apple must have been planning for this day when it decided to move to Intel processors, four to five years ago. I’m sure Apple has its strategy well in hand. It just doesn’t have all its ducks in a row yet. But, it will have them in the next year.
Apple’s profits lay primarily in the high-quality of construction of their hardware and OS X is merely a vehicle that allows them to continue this path, why else would software upgrades be sold so cheaply? To put a crude OSXPC version out for ugly vanilla plastic boxes? That would utterly devalue the image that Apple to jealously guard.
This is really no different in principle to the game that Palm are playing with their spoofing of USB Vendor ID to allow the Pre to sync with iTunes. Apple have grabbed a huge share of the high-profit end of the computer market for themselves so it’s only natural that others will see this and try quick and dirty methods of grabbing some of the action for themselves.
Anybody who holds a valuable asset absolutely must protect it by any means necessary for their own good. I think the 1984 quote is taken out of context, we should remember it was aimed at the dull monolith that was mid-80s IBM (not Microsoft as many would think).
What a bunch of baloney.
Where is the similarities with 1984? What is the moral issue here? Where does Apple control your mind and your actions and your view of the world? Why do people feel that they have the right to steal something? Why do you feel that anybody has the right or should have the right to dictate how Apple sells its products?
Apple is a company created to make money for its shareholders. They owe you nothing. They create a product and they have every right to set whatever price they want for it. If you don’t like the price, don’t pay and don’t use the product. The price of OS X is the the markup that you think Apple charges for its systems. You want to use the system, buy the computer. You have no right whatsoever to force Apple to sell you the system that it created according to your own terms.
Apple doesn’t sell OS X. Period. They sell you a computer preconfigured with it. The standalone version that they sell on store shelves is an upgrade version.
Why don’t people try to force Microsoft to sell them the full version of windows for the price of the upgrade version? where is the outrage and the moral cry out for that?
I understand the wish to have something that you can’t have. I too WISH that Apple would license its OS for me to install on a mini tower (they don’t make my ideal configuration), but I’m not under the illusion that my wish has any bearing on Apple or that I have any legal right to get their system under my own terms.
If I don’t agree to their terms, then I’m free to use some other product that fits my terms. I can build my own PC and install Ubuntu on it. I don’t have to give Apple a penny. But I don’t have the right to force Apple to give me the system for the price that I want to pay.