Mactel dual boot contest jackpot tops $10,000

It is possible to dual boot OSX on Intel/AMD x86 hardware, though I've only done this on VMware on XP so far. There's a number of tutorials on the web found by searching "OSX x86" or "deadmoo". Performance on a 2Ghz Turion left a lot to be desired in my experience.

Well, there's $10,000 that could have been put to better use!

:)

I think it would be more benificial to me to be able to dual boot OSX on other non apple hardware then to run windows on apple hardware. If Vista can be run on Windows hardware then we might see Apple to enter in the OS market.

I guess only time will tell.

this guy won?: http://deepquest.code511.com/blog/more.php?id=346_0_1_0_M

anyone can confirm the step by step works?

The ironic thing is, Microsoft would make 100x that in the first week in OS sales if it was possible to boot Windows XP on the Mac.

Although I did actually contribute to the winonxp.com context, I have my doubts whether XP can be cajoled onto running on hardware which Apple stripped of legacy support for existing x86 OSes, reasoning their shareholders might flay them alive if they were seen to be undermining their own OS on their own hardware.

Word on the grapevine is that a Microsoft developer has Windows Vista up and running on an iMac Core Duo, and that running it on public computers outside Microsoft may be possible with the next CTP release of Vista around Feb 21.

(The decision will probably be a political one - does Microsoft want to anger Apple with such an egregious move onto their hardware space, or will they reason, like me, that it is a win-win situation: more hardware sales for Apple, more OS sales for Microsoft.)

In any case, piracy aside, the CTP releases are not for general consumption. If you're interested, perhaps join the Microsoft developer preview program.

I read that because of the BIOS conflicts, an Intel dual boot wouldn't be feasible until Vista. Is that not true? I'd actually prefer a Vista dual boot to an XP one, since XP is on the end of its life cycle and Vista will be here soon(ish).

I know his initial post said that if no one came up with a solution he would refund their donations. Now he is keeping it an donating it?

pnarse, EFI can support legacy BIOS with a CSM (compatibility support module). Apple chose not to include one.

What really surprises me is that this fancy new BIOS replacement doesn't have any BIOS compatibility layer or something for backwards compatibility.

If it didn't rule out booting almost every x86 OS on the market surely it would have caught on a little quicker?

I bet the Electronic Frontier Foundation will be very happy :)

I wonder how many Intel iMacs have been fried in the past three and a half weeks. What a waste.

ahhh, the power of nuts!