| By Stephen L. Michel | Article Rating: |
|
| June 6, 2005 11:00 PM EDT | Reads: |
16,383 |
What does the Apple/Intel thing mean? It may not mean an awful lot.
The first question that springs to mind is, will Macs be cheaper? Maybe, in the long run. And Mac users will probably get faster processors sooner now than they would have from IBM. But probably not as fast or as soon as we would have if Steve had climbed into bed with AMD instead of Intel.In the portable arena, the changes will be more dramatic; the G4 & G5 have been notoriously difficult to produce in minimal wattage systems.What it doesn't mean, especially in the medium term, is that you'll be able to buy a shrink-wrapped copy of OS X to run on your inexpensive no-name PC clone. Apple will probably continue to control the hardware as much as possible, selling its own Macs, and making sure that you have as hard a time as possible running OS X on that no-name clone.Otherwise, does Apple become just another OS in the arena, another software maker? Doubtless, at least in the shorter term, OS X will be running on Apple hardware exclusively, though one shudders to think of the hoops Apple will be jumping through to keep you from running OS X on that Vaio.
Another big question: will you be able to run Windows in a more native mode on your Mac? Maybe. The current crop of emulators remain novelty items only, useful for those who are testing, or who have to run some old legacy apps. I doubt, though, you'll have a much better experience than, say, Linux users have running Wine, without buying some software (like, say, an OS) from Microsoft.
The Power Platform was, it should be noted, a platform chosen, designed, and implemented in the years Jobs was in the NeXT wilderness, away from Apple. NeXT, originally a 68000 chip OS, like the Macintosh, did move its software over to x86.So Jobs, and his management team, has some experience doing this, and have had OS X running on Intel for years. So you might look at this as one more step in the transformation of Apple into a total Jobs company, after his returm from NeXT in 1997. First the clones were gone, then
A couple of other random thoughts: 1. Going after switchers? Is this going to drive more customers to Apple just because Macs now sport "Intel Inside"? (Well, maybe if Macs were cheaper, it will.) 2. Goodbye Classic. Though the number of users who have been relying on it has to be diminishing rapidly, this should finish it off.
In the meantime, my advice is, don't worry. Don't change any buying plans you have now: that Mac Mini is still just as good (or otherwise) as it was yesterday. Instead, fire up iTunes on whatever box you're on, go download the new John Prine album, copy "Taking a Walk" to your iPod, and hit the trail.
Published June 6, 2005 Reads 16,383
Copyright © 2005 SYS-CON Media, Inc. — All Rights Reserved.
Syndicated stories and blog feeds, all rights reserved by the author.
More Stories By Stephen L. Michel
Steve Michel is a developer and writer living in the Berkeley, CA area.
![]() |
MacHead 06/11/05 02:26:56 PM EDT | |||
A hint to the x86 base is that Steve Jobs used a Pentium 4 system on the keynote.. However, Apple might tweak the cpu as they did with the G4 and G5 (Velosity engine is added by Apple). |
||||
![]() |
MacHead 06/11/05 12:08:53 PM EDT | |||
First Mac on Intel article to straighten it out! I have read Linux people moaning about competition, not being the only alternative to Windows on x86. Not to mention the spaculations about Mac OS X on cheap hardware... there will be no real difference! There is one difference tho... There will be lots of opurtunities for new software projects. Not a bad move by Apple. Maybe they don´t want us to buy now? |
||||
![]() |
Lachlan 06/07/05 06:07:11 PM EDT | |||
What I do not understand is "Where does it say that using Intel chips means that they will be x86????" Everyone asumes that, but it does not need to be. I am not for Intel. Believe me, but I give Apple mucho more credit than that |
||||
- Kindle 2 vs Nook
- Is Cloud Computing Like Teenage Sex?
- GovIT Expo Highlights Cloud Computing
- Tactical Cloud Computing Panel at 1st Annual GovIT Expo
- Cloud Computing Can Revitalize Your Career as Software Developer
- Ubuntu-based Open Source Linux Mint Tests KDE Version
- Yahoo! SVP Shelton Shugar to Discuss Innovation at Cloud Computing Expo
- Virtualization Journal "Readers' Choice Awards" Voting Is Now Open
- Einstein, Sharks and Clouds: IT Security in the Cloud
- Adobe Flex Developer Earns $100K in New York City
- Virtualization Expo Call for Papers Deadline December 15
- Amazon Web Services Database in the Cloud
- Kindle 2 vs Nook
- Cloud CEOs, CTOs & SVPs to Speak at 4th International Cloud Computing Expo
- Is Cloud Computing Like Teenage Sex?
- 1st Annual GovIT Expo: Letter from the Technical Chair
- Ulitzer News: Search vs New Media
- The Difference Between Web Hosting and Cloud Computing
- Cloud Computing Expo: Exclusive Q&A with Yahoo! SVP Cloud Computing
- Confessions of a Ulitzer Addict
- GovIT Expo Highlights Cloud Computing
- Twitter, Linked In, Ning and Ulitzer: Easy Personal Branding Strategy
- My Thoughts on Ulitzer
- Tactical Cloud Computing Panel at 1st Annual GovIT Expo
- The i-Technology Right Stuff
- Linux.SYS-CON.com Exclusive: Linus Discloses *Real* Fathers of Linux
- After Ubuntu, Windows Looks Increasingly Bad, Increasingly Archaic, Increasingly Unfriendly
- Linus' Top Ten SCO Barbs
- A Closer Look at Damn Small Linux
- Netscape Co-Founder's 12 Reasons for Growth of Open Source
- Introducing "Cooperative Linux" - Linux for Windows, No Less
- *POINT - COUNTERPOINT SPECIAL* What's Wrong with the Open Source Community?
- Where Are RIA Technologies Headed in 2008?
- Linux.SYS-CON.com Exclusive: What Would UserLinux Look Like?
- i-Technology Viewpoint: The New Paradigm of IT Buying
- Is Linux Desktop-Ready Yet...or Not?






























