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Filed under: Hardware, Software, Snow Leopard

Psystar to pursue OEM licensing program despite legal woes

by Megan Lavey (RSS feed) on Oct 5th, 2009


Legal issues? What legal issues?

Psystar has announced that it plans to license its virtualization technology for OS X to third-party vendors despite its continuing legal issues with Apple. The Psystar OEM Licensing Program, designed to allow Intel machines to run Snow Leopard -- actually, certified machines from Psystar running the company's Darwin Universal Boot Loader -- can support up to six operating systems at a time in a single piece of hardware.

"Once a product is certified, consumers can purchase it off the shelf or through standard channels and when labeled Psystar Certified would allow the installation of Snow Leopard simply by inserting the retail OS X DVD," Psystar said in a press release issued today.

The cost of this licensing program is not available at this time.

Apple and Psystar go to trial in January 2010.

[MacDailyNews via Apple Insider]

Tags: Clones, os x, OsX, psystar, snow leopard, SnowLeopard

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Apple Corporate, Hardware

Member of Psystar's legal team quits

by Dave Caolo (RSS feed) on Oct 3rd, 2009

Earlier this week, David Welker (co-founder of lawfirm Welker and Rosario) left Psystar's legal team. He will be succeeded by Eugene Action, who is already listed as the council of record.

If you're unfamiliar with this story (and who could blame you, it's so ridiculous), here's a primer. Psystar sells Mac clones with Leopard installed. Apple played the conspiracy theory card and then declared copyright infringement and sued. Psystar responded with a counter suit, filed Chapter 11, recovered, sued over Snow Leopard ... you know what? Just check the history here. It's an epic exercise in red tape manufacturing.

At this point, Psystar is like that cricket you hear but can't find. Ultimately harmless, hard to ignore and supremely annoying.

Tags: apple legal, AppleLegal, clones, psystar

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Apple Corporate, Hardware, Snow Leopard

Psystar sues over Snow Leopard, abandons reality

by Dave Caolo (RSS feed) on Aug 29th, 2009

When I was a kid my neighbor had an enormous St. Bernard dog named Caesar. It lived in a grungy dog house in their back yard. Caesar's hobbies included barking incessantly. In fact, that was all he ever did. All day and all night that furry, drooling monstrosity barked. LIke a canine jackhammer to the face.

Caesar wasn't half as annoying as Psystar.

To keep a ridiculous story short: Psystar sells its own computers capable of running Mac OS X. The back-and-forth battle between Psystar and Apple has done almost nothing to dissuade the clone maker, and this week it's gone to a whole new level.

Psystar has moved to sue Apple over the release of Mac OS X Snow Leopard. In short, Psystar wants an injunction and damages due to Apple's "...anticompetitive attempts to tie Mac OS X Snow Leopard to its Macintosh line of computers." That's right, in some wacky attempt to turn a profit, Apple has released a proprietary OS meant to run on its proprietary hardware.

They claim that their method of running Snow Leopard is different than Apple's method, and if they buy copies of the OS and install them on machines which they then re-sell, then everything should be OK. I support Psystar's right to capitalist goodness, but their stubborn adherence to a lost cause is annoying.

Like Caesar.

Tags: clones, mac os x, MacOsX, psystar, snow leopard, SnowLeopard

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Hardware, OS, Apple, Mac Pro

Psystar releases Open(3), plays with fire

by Mike Schramm (RSS feed) on Mar 19th, 2009


Say, just for the sake of argument, that you're Psystar. You've been served by Apple for selling (they claim) illegal clones of their machines, and selling their OS (which you claim isn't even copyrighted) on illegitimate hardware. Sure, you've won a minor victory in the battle, but generally, the opinion is that you're a dead company walking -- when a company like Apple not only has it out for you but has pretty legit claims to back themselves up, you could be said to be in trouble. And so, what do you do?

Well if you are Psystar, you apparently release more computers. Determined to stick it to Apple as hard as they possibly can before they're legally wiped off the map, Psystar has announced the release of the Open(3), a desktop running OS X and packing up to a 2.53GHz Core2Quad Q8200 processor, up to 4GB of RAM and 1TB of storage, and all of the other usual options you'd want on a machine like this (6x Blu-ray burner, GeForce 9500GT). Technically, the box starts at $599, but as Engagdet notes, even if you max it out to around $2000, you're still paying less than an equivalent Mac Pro.

This is pretty much the computer retail equivalent of Bugs Bunny kissing the hunter. We can imagine Apple's lawyers steaming from the ears at this point -- here's hoping Psystar gets to have their fun while they can.

Tags: apple, clones, computers, engadget, illegitimate, legal, mac-clones, open, open-3, os-x, pc, psystar, release, retail

Filed under: Apple Corporate, Hardware, OS

Psystar continues to be stubborn

by Dave Caolo (RSS feed) on Jan 14th, 2009

Psystar, as you may remember, is the computer company that has begun selling computers with Mac OS X Leopard pre-installed. Of course, they drew the attention of Apple legal right away, but that only caused them to further dig in their heels.

Last month, they challenged Apple's claim to the copyright of Mac OS X, claiming that Apple never registered Mac OS X with the U.S. Copyright Office.

Previously, Judge William Alsup had dismissed federal antitrust claims, which only prompted Psystar to amend its countersuit with all new claims.

Now, they're trying yet another angle. Psystar is claiming the first sale doctrine. Similar to the right you have to buy a book and re-sell it, Psystar says that since they bought legit, retail copies of Mac OS X from Apple and installed them on their computers, they're in the clear. If they want to then sell those computers, that's fine and dandy. Unfortunately for them, they also bought shrinkwrap EULA's which impose license conditions. They don't "own" the software.

Everything else aside, this seems like an awful amount of time, effort and expense just to sell computers. There are less difficult ways to sell Mac OS computers, folks. At this point, you're just being stubborn, Psystar. Let it go.

Back in April, Psystar went public with the first commercial Hackintosh clones. For US$554, they'd send you a Core 2 Duo minitower with Mac OS X pre-installed. In June, they released rack-mount servers with Leopard Server pre-installed in both 1U (starting $1599) and 2U (starting $1999) configurations.

Update: It seems that Psystar has included claims to the first sale doctrine, as some of our readers have pointed out, for a while now. However, we don't feel that it's a "linchpin" of the case -- first-sale hasn't been rejected by the court. More on this seemingly unending story as it develops. Thanks to Alex at World of Apple for the heads-up.

Tags: clones, leopard, mac os x, MacOsX, psystar

Filed under: Hardware, OS

EFi-X USA among latest to sell OS X capable machines

by Megan Lavey (RSS feed) on Dec 12th, 2008

Update: The EFi-X development team contacted Engadget to report that they have nothing to do with "EFi-X USA" and they do not approve of this effort to sell Mac OS X-compatible machines. Classy!

Update #2 (6 p.m. ET): EFi-X has let Engadget know that it is shutting down EFi-X USA's plans to sell the Millennium machine, stating it refuses to support systems that would directly compete with any brand.

Engadget has reported that EFi-X USA is among the latest companies to announce that they will sell OS X capable machines targeted at high-end users. EFi-X is already known for selling a dongle, shown at right, that allows certain Intel machines to run OS X.

According to the Engadget post, the EFi-X Millennium 4 will contain the following:
  • An overclocked 3.8GHz Core 2 Quad
  • 4GB of RAM
  • A GeForce 8800 GTS graphics card in an Antec P180 case
  • The dongle that fools your machine into installing OS X
The kit itself will cost $1,899USD while the dongle is $199USD. According to Apple Insider, the US version of the EFi-X site will publish purchase details on Monday.

This announcement comes days after Argentina-based OpeniMac announced that it would begin selling Mac clones. Of course, there is still that small case with Psystar still going on.

[Via Engadget]

Tags: clones, efi-x, efix, openimac, psystar

Filed under: Hardware, OS

OpeniMac is now selling Mac clones

by Dave Caolo (RSS feed) on Dec 8th, 2008

The thing about clones is, they keep regenerating. The latest manufacturer we've noticed, Argentina-based OpeniMac, has begun selling Mac clones.

As if using the word "iMac" wasn't adequate bait for Apple's lawyers, who are probably en route at this very moment, OpeniMac has begun selling two computers that run Mac OS X Leopard. The OpeniMac features a 2.53GHz Core 2 Duo processor, support for 2GB of RAM, a 320GB SATA drive, SuperDrive and an ATI Radeon HD PRO video card for $990US.

The OpeniMac PRO sports a 3.0GHz Core 2 Duo processor, support for 4GB of memory, a 500GB SATAII drive, a SuperDrive, and a Nvidia GeForce GS video card for $1,710US. But wait, there's more! They both come with a built in 6-in-1 memory card reader.

As for their looks ... no one said clones had to be pretty.

While the Psystar case waits in legal limbo, it would seem that opportunists are jumping on the bandwagon. Begun, this clone war has.

[Via Engadget]

Tags: clones, openimac, psystar

Filed under: Apple Corporate, Hardware

Apple: Psystar clones part of a larger conspiracy

by Dave Caolo (RSS feed) on Dec 4th, 2008

Earlier this year, manufacturer Psystar began selling computers capable of running Mac OS X Leopard. They've gotten the Mac community's attention, and Apple's. Of course, Psystar found themselves involved with Apple legal shortly after their announcement. That was no surprise, but this week's news kind of is.

Apple is claiming that Psystar is part of a larger group of individuals or corporations. Here's a quote from the recently amended claim:

"...persons other than Psystar are involved in Psystar's unlawful and improper activities described in this Amended Complaint. The true names or capacities, whether individual, corporate, or otherwise, of these persons are unknown to Apple. Consequently they are referred to herein as ... the "John Doe Defendants"...Apple will seek leave to amend this complaint to show the unknown John Doe Defendants' true names and capacities when they are ascertained."

Yikes. What does make sense in light of this accusation, if proven to be true, is Psystar's apparent brashness. When faced with an opponent as high-profile and well-funded as Apple, they've continued to sell machines. Either they're crazy or they've got some serious backbone. We shall see.

[Via World Of Apple]

Tags: apple legal, AppleLegal, clones, legal, psystar

Filed under: Apple Corporate, Hardware

Psystar countersues Apple

by Dave Caolo (RSS feed) on Aug 27th, 2008

The Psystar saga continues. Back in April, Psystar went public with the first commercial Hackintosh clones. For US$554, they'd send you a Core 2 Duo minitower with Mac OS X preinstalled. In June, they released rack-mount servers with Leopard Server preinstalled in both 1U (starting $1599) and 2U (starting $1999) configurations.

Last July, the inevitable happened and Apple filed a lawsuit against Psystar citing copyright infringement, and demanded that they recall all machines. Psystar responded by acquiring legal representation from Carr & Ferrell, who previously settled with Apple in another case.

Still with us? Good. This week, Psystar seems to be preparing to countersue Apple, citing anticompetitive business practices. Specifically, the suit alleges that Apple's practice of restricting OS X to Apple hardware is "...an anticompetitive restraint of trade."

We think that's a stretch, but this story sure is fun to follow. We'll keep you updated as soon as anything changes. If you want a claim-by-claim breakdown of Apple's suit against Psystar, check out Nilay Patel's full accounting over at Engadget.

[Via Electronista]

Tags: apple, clones, lawsuit, mac os x, MacOsX, psystar, suit

Filed under: Apple Corporate, Hardware, OS

Open Tech plans to release Mac clones

by Dave Caolo (RSS feed) on Jul 21st, 2008

A few years ago, I was walking through downtown Boston with my Burger King bag and Coke. I ran into a friend in Kenmore Square who was on his way into a pizza joint. He asked me to join him and we both sat down.

As I unwrapped my Whopper, anticipating the greasy goodness that would undoubtedly shorten my life, the owner began shouting from behind the counter.

"Hey!" he said with a heavy Boston accent. "You cahhn't eat that in here. Go pahhk it someplace else!" You see, I was eating the competitor's food in his shop. Or, in geeker terms, running their software on his hardware. That's a no-no in some circles.

Someone tell Open Tech.

Unfettered by Psystar's recent run-in with Apple Legal, Open Tech has announced their new hardware lineup, including a desktop able to run XP, Vista, OSX Leopard and Ubuntu, featuring
  • Intel Pentium D 945 3.40GHz Dual-Core Processor
  • 500 Gb Hard Drive
  • 3 GB of DDR2 Ram (667 MHz PC 5400)
  • CD burner
  • 802.11g Wi-Fi.
Pricing and availability has not been announced. The main difference between Open Tech's model and Psystar's is that Open Tech is not selling computers with Leopard pre-loaded. Instead, they provide an OS-free machine and instructions for installing the OS of your choice.

Still, we are talking about Apple's Whopper in Open Tech's pizza joint.

Personally, I don't see why I shouldn't be able to run whatever OS I please on my own machine. Sadly, that's not the way things are.

[Via MacNN]

Tags: clones, hardware, leopard, open tech, OpenTech, os x, OsX

Filed under: Apple Corporate, Hardware

Apple sues Psystar for license violations, copyright infringement

by Cory Bohon (RSS feed) on Jul 15th, 2008


Like we didn't see this one coming: Apple is suing Psystar for copyright infringement. Psystar is the interesting little startup Mac-clone maker who allowed Mac OS X to run on their systems without the consent of Apple. In its license agreement, you are not allowed to run Mac OS X on any non-Apple hardware.

Apple filed the complaint in a federal district court in California saying that Psystar violated its shrink-wrap license and trademarks. Apple is also alleging copyright infringement. In recent months, Psystar had begun cloning Mac OS X servers, which definitely made us feel a little uneasy about this small company.

[via Engadget]

Tags: clones, legal, Leopard, Mac, Mac clone, Mac OS X, MacClone, MacOsX, Psystar, sue

Filed under: iPod Family

Wired finds bargain Nano Knockoff

by Erica Sadun (RSS feed) on Apr 17th, 2007

For about $100 (£50), Wired has found a Nano clone that appears to offer more features than the $250 (£129) real thing. Your money buys you a 4GB player with video support, an FM tuner, and a built-in voice recorder. Wired's Charlie Sorrel describes the sales presentation as cheeky (don't you love that?) and full of lawyer-bait, quoting from the sales page: "The groundbreaking new MP4 players have a similar look and feel to a Nano, but that's where the similarity ends".

Tags: cheap, clones, knockoffs

Filed under: Humor, Leopard

Where OS X 'Big Cat' code names REALLY come from

by Michael Rose (RSS feed) on Mar 10th, 2007

OK, so imagine this: You're Apple Computer, Inc. (still) and it's December 1997. You've just blocked British Mac-clone maker Shaye from licensing Mac OS 8, thereby putting it pretty much out of luck for new products; in fact, Shaye will revert to selling genuine Apple gear at the end of the year. Still, there's something kind of catchy about Shaye's branding... something vaguely feline: Cheetah, Puma, Jaguar, Panther, Tiger, Leopard, Lion and Lynx. Nice ring to those "big cat" names. Mrowr!

Reader Andreas Tellefsen spotted this incredible coincidence on Mac-clone history site everymac.com -- it seems that almost all of the Shaye model names have mysteriously transformed into Mac OS X release codenames. 'Lynx' is even one of the two additional big cats trademarked by Apple ('Cougar' is the other). Is this an innocent case of parallel branding? A sneaky repurposing of deprecated product names? Nothing more than a tempest in a litter box? You be the judge.

Update: Ola and other commenters note that the Mac OS X names also match up with the names of German tanks and AFVs, which is a wee bit more disturbing.

Tags: clones, code names, CodeNames, leopard, OSX, trivia

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion

Mac OS X on Beige Boxes; An Excellent Essay

by Damien Barrett (RSS feed) on Mar 16th, 2006

An excellent essay written by Codepoet at MacGeekery.com popped up on my news radar today:  Should Apple Sell Mac OS X For Beige Boxes. And I'm shocked that at the time of this writing, its read count is only 56. This essay is too well-written and makes too many cogent points to have only been read 56 times. The author makes a compelling argument for why Apple shouldn't sell Mac OS X for computers other than Macs. Go read it.

What, are  you still here? Go read this essay!

Tags: beige boxes, clones, mac os x, MacOsX, x86

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