Filed under: Humor, Odds and ends, iMac
Microsoft Norway Demos Vista on a Mac
Some things just speak for themselves. In this video on the Norwegian site VG TV (apparently associated with Norway's largest newspaper), a Microsoft Norway executive demonstrates Vista on what is clearly an Intel iMac (they don't even bother to hide the Apple logo). My Norwegian not being what it should be, I have no idea what they're saying, but our tipster tells us that they go through the entire demo without once mentioning that they're running it on a Mac!Thanks Olav!

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
andy said 2:09PM on 1-25-2007
This is the second time microsoft has demonstrated on mac hardware, it was a macbook pro if i recall correctly last time.
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mebejoe11 said 2:26PM on 1-25-2007
Remember the days when you'd see a print ad for a generic beige PC that had the MacOS photoshopped onto the screen?
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Rubbinz said 2:27PM on 1-25-2007
Why should it matter to MS what brand of computer you're running Vista on? All they want is for you to buy it. It's a trivial matter to wipe OS X and install Vista as the only OS, you don't "need" Boot Camp.
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NitRam Den Gale said 2:30PM on 1-25-2007
Just goes to show that Microsofts operating system works on almost every computer :P
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Martin Chamberlain said 2:33PM on 1-25-2007
Why should anyone be surprised? Microsoft is not in the business of selling computers. Also, we've all known for a long while now that the iMac makes for an excellent Windows XP/Vista platform, we can only expect to see more and more people running MS operating systems on their Macs.
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Jon Niola said 2:36PM on 1-25-2007
When it comes down to it it does not matter who runs what OS on what hardware. Run what works for you.
I have three machines at home - Windows XP box, Mac Mini, and a Linux box.
The Mac is my main desktop for web, email, chat, etc. The Windows XP box is for gaming. And the Linux box is for when I am doing web application development, etc.
Sure I could do all this on any one of the three platforms with relative degrees of success, but my current setup now reflects my comfort in different tools for different tasks.
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Jerid Hill said 3:01PM on 1-25-2007
The reason I find it surprising is Steve Ballmer. He clearly has a hate for Apple, otherwise he would not brainwash his kids into not using Apple products.
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Jerid Hill said 3:03PM on 1-25-2007
Steve Ballmer Link:
http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2006/04/03/8373041/index.htm
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drivebybiped said 4:02PM on 1-25-2007
Ok, now lets see you buy OS X and do that on a generic beige box? Who cares that its running on an Apple? Microsoft cares about selling the software. Doesn't matter what it runs on.
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mroach said 4:44PM on 1-25-2007
That's pretty good! I only understood about 50% of it but it was still enjoyable. Thanks.
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homemadefading said 5:54PM on 1-25-2007
I just tortured myself through 20 minutes of Vista and bad filming/editing, to find out that IT IS NOT MENTIONED THAT VISTA IS RUN ON A MAC.
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The Jeremy said 6:29PM on 1-25-2007
When I see Microsoft showing off running their OS on Mac hardware, I take it as a thinly-veiled attempt at coaxing their actual hardware partners to raise their A-Game on design to match what Apple is doing.
Sure, highlighting the fact that Windows (Vista) can run on a Mac might actually increase their retail box sales of the OS, but how many "switchers" will actually do so? If Microsoft shows this, they run the risk of having many switchers buy Macs and then realize they really do not need to use Windows at all. It has happened before...such as with the ColecoVision and their Atari 2600 adapter/emulator. People went ahead and bought the console because they had the security in knowning that at any point, they could buy the 2600 adapter and not miss out on any 2600 games. Few actually purchased that adapter though, but Coleco (and not Atari) was the beneficiary of the endeavour.
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Ron said 7:14PM on 1-25-2007
Okay I got the next Apple "I'm a Mac, I'm a PC" add, they could say "PC - I got to go upgrade my video card and processor so I can run my new Vista software, Mac - oh....I can already run your Vista using my Boot Camp and I don't have to upgrade a thing"...LOL
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Dim said 7:35PM on 1-25-2007
Lol, I bet they forgot their demo computer and took the one that they usually use. =]
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Sean Hayford O'Leary said 10:32PM on 1-25-2007
"Her har vi en some 'live preview'..."
["Here we have a sort of 'live preview'..."]
Hehehe. I used to live in Norway, and I found it as amusing then as I do now when they mix Norwegian and English like that. :-D
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Nathan said 10:58PM on 1-25-2007
#3, I don't think you can run Vista on a Mac without bootcamp, because I heard Vista doesn't work with Intel's EFI that is on the Mac?
If true, maybe MS will release a new version later that will support it: "Windows Vista Superfragilisticexpialadocious for developers 64 bit edition with EFI support"
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Oscar said 3:46AM on 1-26-2007
the reporter even asks explicitly what kind of computer you need to run vista. The MS guy then smiles and says that you need at least an 800MHz processor for basic compatibility...as noted before - doesn't sat anything about the fact that you can run it on a mac:)
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ds said 6:38AM on 1-26-2007
He-he, looks like the MS rep wanted to use a computer that WORKS (even with Vista), rather than risk embarrassment on TV... so he used a Mac!! LOL
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Kristoffer said 10:28AM on 1-26-2007
I live in Norway and have seen the clip of Vista being shown of on an iMac. There's one pretty important thing that hasn't been said, which is that it is the newspaper (VG, largerst in Norway) who invited Microsoft to this showoff and it is probably one of VG's own Macs. So I therefore doubt Microsoft Norway chose this computer for the demonstration. But anyway, it is a funny showoff.
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Werthog42 said 11:02AM on 1-26-2007
Off-topic, but a good quote from the Ballmer link (which predated the iPhone announcement):
Q: Think you can you crack the iPod market?
"It's going to take an innovative proposition. In five years are people really going to carry two devices? One device that is their communication device, one device that is music? There's going to be a lot of opportunities to get back in that game. We want to be in that game. Expect to see announcements from us in that area in the next 12 months."
Ha ha.
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