Vista successfully installed on a Mac

It was only a matter of time, but hey, for those closely monitoring the progress of Windows on Macs, it looks like peeps on the OSx86 Project forums have fully done the deed with Vista on an iMac. We're not going to get into the nitty gritty right here and now, but it sounds like the trick is to get Vista to stop trying to kill the OS X partition when installing with Boot Camp -- an urge in the installer that seems to be kept at bay by taking out the 200MB EFI partition. But if you're the type of person how wants to go for the gold and not just read about this stuff (which you probably are if you've gotten this far), we suggest actually looking into this a little further before knocking around partitions on your Mac just to get a beta Microsoft operating system up and running, mkay?

[Thanks, Mike and Jon]

[jon @ Apr 10th 2006 2:42AM]

Now that is beautiful. If only those Damn Macs were cheaper. At work we just bought a Dell Core Duo Notebook for $750 with a coupon listed on slickdeals.net

[Resort @ Apr 10th 2006 2:46AM]

I'm sure we'll see another delay in Vista's launch date. I'm not MS bashing, I work in software development... there's always things that could be tweaked, added and fixed. Finding a cut-off date where there's a satisfactory level of performance is a difficult task and with something the size of Vista, I'd be amazed if it was released in Q1 of 2007.

[LapTop @ Apr 10th 2006 2:59AM]

Why on God's green earth would any mac user pay for an app that looked liked it belonged on a Windows machine and required a shower after use? Why would a developer create such an app for the mac market when Apple provide an incredibly rich OS experience that has been well ahead of Windows for about 7 years in terms of graphics? I had to use an XP machine the other day and I immediately noticed the coarseness of the graphics compared the anti-aliased, pleasant look of OS X. urghhh!

[Chris @ Apr 10th 2006 3:17AM]

Why did Apple have to go and do this... *sigh*

[Intrepid @ Apr 10th 2006 3:20AM]

OK, am I the only one in the boat that says "SHUT-UP" on the side? Am I the only one who wants to shoot the next person who talks about Windows on Mac? WE KNOW IT CAN BE DONE, WE ALWAYS KNEW IT COULD, SO WHY KEEP TELLING US!
And by the way, I am in marketing and normally think that Apple is very clever, but letting another OS on their "elitist" machines may be the thing that ends their "eliteness" making them another HP, Dell or Acer.

[Gregory @ Jan 18th 2008 11:22AM]

I agree and I disagree. It really depends on Mac's next move to keep ahead of Windows as being not only unique but better.
Gregory West
Editor, SCUG Report
www.scug.ca

[Simon @ Apr 10th 2006 3:39AM]

Sounds cool in a way but is agree with #5

[Hamtaro @ Apr 10th 2006 4:18AM]

Omg like lets port windows tablet edition next ^____^. That would be soo hawt.

[x @ Apr 10th 2006 4:51AM]

That would be cool if Apple makes a Tablet PC w/MS Windows Tablet Ed.

[[e-mail] @ Apr 10th 2006 4:55AM]

Wait a sec thats really sweet considering Win XP MCE hadnt been installed yet on an intelmac. LAst I heard the installer booted up but the owner got cold feet. These guys installed Vista Ultimate (look at the screenshots) WHich includes the next generation Win MCE along w/ a bunch of other new features(aero glass, dvd ripping, instant search etc...)

[[e-mail] @ Apr 10th 2006 5:01AM]

Finnaly the mac mini can truly b a relatively cheap media center pc w/ the help of a mce compliant external tuner such as avertechs usb 2.0 (sorry abt the link external mce compliant tuners are sorta hard to find) extertunerhttp://www.avermedia-usa.com/2005home/product/tvtuner/usb/usbmce/usbmce_spec.shtml

[Matt G @ Apr 10th 2006 5:37AM]

#1 - jon,

When you compare the hardware of the iMac, to any plain old PC desktop (with accessories included in price: Camera, speakers, remote etc) Also, don't forget 3 years of virus and spyware protection - The iMac is BY FAR the better deal, usually by several hundred dollars. You're totally getting your moneys worth, ESPECIALLY when compared to what a Dell would cost.

I just compared prices between iMac 17" and Dell XPS 400 with necessary extras to compete with the iMac, the Dell cost an additional $600+ (The Dell had a slightly better video card, however, and also had a Pentium D 2.8GHz instead of a Core Duo, however I don't know if there is going to be a major performance difference between the two processors.) It also had 1GB of RAM, but Windows doesn't handle memory as well (No preemptive multi-tasking like Mac OS X) Therefore, I think it's quite even.

iMac is a bargain. At $1,499 it would still be a bargain.

[Siraj @ Apr 10th 2006 5:40AM]

Now, time for Blue Screens on Macs ..Ha

[nightwheel @ Jul 2nd 2007 10:31PM]

not on vista, it a red screen of death

[Steph @ Apr 10th 2006 6:01AM]

What's the point of having a mac if you put some ugly stickes on it ?

[David Stennett @ Apr 10th 2006 6:04AM]

Cool, now we can spend x 2 as much on a PC to run the same Windows operating system, woohoo! Sign me up!

[Gil @ Apr 10th 2006 6:07AM]

Matt G: I was going to stay out of this but this needs to be said. There is no way the Mac can be considered a better deal than other computers. If you compare the PCs a company like Falcon-NW creates with what you get from Apple at the same price the PC wins hands down. Even more what you get if you build your own PC you'll get far better results with much less money

[Zac Grose @ Apr 10th 2006 6:15AM]

Isn't it a shame that Apple's not about to release their OS?

[Intrepid @ Apr 10th 2006 6:27AM]

Agreed Gil. In fact the land of PC has much better economy due to a little thing called 'competition'. It drives prices down and speeds up.
Do you Mac guys think the Core Duo would even exist if AMD hadn't made the Athlon 64 x2? Would you have the graphics capabilities if it weren't for the PC based wars including names like 3DFX, NVIDIA and ATI? And as for iPod... Do you think mp3 is a Mac invention?

[mike @ Apr 10th 2006 6:49AM]

Brilliant.. we have people shouting "We know you can install Win on a Mac.. we know you can install WIn on a Mac"... and yet.. ignorance persists..

Look at the specs again. This company has a 4% marketshare.. and you twits are running out of excuses for not owning one of these babies.

Don't even get me started on grown men playing video games, but HERE IS YOUR ANSWER. No one uses windows for the OS, THIS IS THE OS THAT VISTA IS TRYING TO BE! Don't you get it?? You can have the most advanced OS on the planet, and use Windows like a 5 dollar ho once in a while to play games.

Who knows.. *sigh.. maybe one day you wont have time for video games... Then you'll have a REAL Mac. Virus-proof, totally stable, beautifully integrated system...

Yes it has Office *sigh


Lastly, I KNOW there are pros out there looking to use XP so they can run some apps that aren't yet on OS X. You guys are ACTUALLY informed, or you wouldn't be professionals. I don't begrudge you for using windows. But this is your solution.

Look.. MS has been lying about everything.. lying about the WinFS (gone) lying about the timing.. lying about upgrading to EFI (wow)..

Here it is.. let the masochism end!

PS. If you think Macs are overpriced, you don't value SOFTWARE.. which is ironic.. since.. MS is a SOFTWARE company.. and they seem to be doing alright.. obviously some people are willing to PAY for it..

you know.. coders need to be paid.. right?

[Till @ Apr 10th 2006 6:49AM]

why on earth would you want to crap up your mac with an os which is in-secure and looks crap!!!

Also has anyone thought about the fact that its not only the imac thats dual core - what about the mac mini that is also capible of running boot camp and surely at the price point of $599 to run two oss even if one is shit is a good deal...

[brian @ Apr 10th 2006 7:06AM]

How did they get Vista? is it out?

[skype_fan @ Apr 10th 2006 7:07AM]

Sure Apple prices are totally ripoff, guess why Mr. Turtleneck has so much money. However it is really really hard to understand why PC makers only bring out design that looks so retarded compared with Apple's design. Dell's stuff looks like they only get the drop outs from the designer schools. So I'm sure a lot of people will pay extra for better design.

[MaxCage @ Apr 10th 2006 7:27AM]

Its simple... Mac's decided to encourage Windows Piracy, like there isn't already. Well, I guess Vista on Mac would be like an apple that could taste like orange or watermelon, on preferance with Boot Camp on. Pretty Sad.

[Intrepid @ Apr 10th 2006 7:39AM]

Mike. Firstly, most people who own a windows PC play games on it... yes thats 96% of computer users according to your stats. Here are some facts:
- Stability - Windows is made to be compatible with over 10000 hardware items, OS is made to work on Mac.
- Virus-proof - Would you write a virus that only affects 4% of users?
- Integration - Microsoft tries and the EU fines them for being too big. Apple gets away with it because they build sytems not just software.
- Professionals - name one multinational corporation (excluding Apple) that relies on Mac. This isn't because they can't get what they need on Mac, it's because they can't justify the expense of using Mac when Windows is corporate-ready.

[andy @ Apr 10th 2006 7:40AM]

hey thats good - considering it isnt gonna work on most pcs haha

[Gil @ Apr 10th 2006 7:44AM]

People... that is the Vista Beta 2 Build 5308 aka the latest Vista release meant for developers so that they can make vista compatible apps.

mike (#15) is correct about the platform being secure and what people need usually but frankly it can't do more than office tasks and visual editing.

I for one need MATLAB, AutoCAD, EngineeringPro, OrCAD and a whole lot of other programs that are not available on a mac so for me windows is the better solution.

What we need is competition. OSX will soon be bootable on any system side by side with Vista and then they can compete head to head. THEN we will have some healthy market competition instead of this poo-flinging.

BTW
OSX is not the next gen system. Instead Apple kept looking what Vista was promising and released minor updates to show "we can do it too". If Microsoft gets one idea slightly similar to one Apple has everyone goes "OMFGH!#oneone!! M$ is a rip0ff" but if Apple does the same thing then it's "Apple == genius!!! Jobs can have my babies". I don't love Microsoft but this is just gratuitous bashing.

[tony @ Apr 10th 2006 7:57AM]

#21:
Our company have ~500 Macs and less than 100 PCs (accounting and HR), and we have a small IT deparment of 4 people, 2 are on Macs and 2 are on PCs, guess what the 2 on PCs are a lot busier than the 2 on Macs. Considering >$100,000 employment cost for each IT person, the extra cost of each Mac is well worth it.
Give you another example many University departments run Mac exclusively, and they only have a part time person taking care of the whole network, beause that is all they need. They can not afford to hire IT professionals, period.

I uses PCs at home to play games and do streaming videos and audios for the only reason that there are more application for Windows.

[mike @ Apr 10th 2006 7:58AM]

Intrepid.. I like your thinking..

Know what Dvorak said ages ago?

MS = Business market
Apple = Home market
Linux = Server market

Because businesses will never surrender to ONE hardware supplier.. ms will always be an attractive deal.. but Apple should really take over the home market for computers.. and think about it.. Do you think Steve Jobs cares about the BUSINESS MARKET?

While financially it's the big kahuna.. Jobs and the rest of the 'dreamers' at Apple just wanna build cool stuff, and the business market is dry dry dry... Clearly Apple hasn't been trying to crack that market (unless you're talking about arts, animation, photography etc)


So Apple owns the home market for PCs then.. just as Dvorak said like 3 years ago?

[RZ @ Apr 10th 2006 8:07AM]

Apple is finally admitting reality and it goes far beyond games. There are literally thousands of vertical markets that OSX has not reached, it goes way beyond Visio, Project, CAD and games. Pick up any trade magazine for any industry and you will find ads for Windows software. Heck, my bank requires IE for online banking.
Apple still isn't going to get anywhere with this...for them to gain marketshare presumes an optimal juxtaposition of events including a robust economy where people worldwide will have plenty of disposable income to happily fork over the Apple premium and the cost of an XP/Vista license.
Government, educational institutions and the Enterprise worldwide certainly aren't going to embrace Apple, they have proven that already.
I don't know what marketshare XP and Vista must obtain for Apple users to finally admit that Microsoft hit critical mass years ago.
If OSX is indeed superior, and that is debatable, who cares? Security improvements and new eye candy will be judged "good enough" just as Windows 95 was judged "good enough" back when Apple had 12% marketshare.
Just watch, in a few years, Apple will still have 2.5% marketshare and the fan boys will still be saying "wait until next year".

[Chris Ashtear @ Apr 10th 2006 8:50AM]

to #10:

What the hell are you smoking? Windows has had pre-emptive multi-tasking since Windows 95. I think it may have even been before Apple had it....wait, yes.

from Wikipedia:

"Operating systems such as Microsoft Windows prior to Windows 95 and Windows NT1, and Mac OS prior to Mac OS X relied on this approach(Co-Op Multitasking) to execute multiple programs simultaneously. While its usage in modern computing is on the wane, RISC OS is an example of an operating system which still retains this method."

It also runs pretty well with 1GB of RAM. I can't say the same for IE though, which throws a fit if you have more than 25 windows open.

[Tim @ Apr 10th 2006 8:56AM]

I am always amused by the term "fanboy", especially when used by PC users to describe Mac users. The real fan boys are the MS drones who will continue using Windows even in the face lousy peripheral support, poor memory and processor management, and constant system failures. They love MS so much they want to cheapen a Mac by putting Windows on it. I have respect for the people out there who want to dual boot their Macs for business reasons: OS X as the primary OS, Windows for some archane software their office demands the use of.

As for games, why are their tonnes of people racing to get Windows on a Mac. Deep down, it is because even Windows users accept the fact that Apple just makes better products, especially hardware. Look at the iPod. 70-80% market share. Steve Jobs didn`t catch a leprechaun or make a pact with the devil to sell the iPod. It is just better than anything else on the market, and for good reasons.

The users I respect most are the ones who figured out long ago that there is a better OS that Windows for the PC market: Linux

[Tim @ Apr 10th 2006 8:56AM]

I am always amused by the term "fanboy", especially when used by PC users to describe Mac users. The real fan boys are the MS drones who will continue using Windows even in the face lousy peripheral support, poor memory and processor management, and constant system failures. They love MS so much they want to cheapen a Mac by putting Windows on it. I have respect for the people out there who want to dual boot their Macs for business reasons: OS X as the primary OS, Windows for some archane software their office demands the use of.

As for games, why are their tonnes of people racing to get Windows on a Mac. Deep down, it is because even Windows users accept the fact that Apple just makes better products, especially hardware. Look at the iPod. 70-80% market share. Steve Jobs did not catch a leprechaun or make a pact with the devil to sell the iPod. It is just better than anything else on the market, and for good reasons.

The users I respect most are the ones who figured out long ago that there is a better OS that Windows for the PC market: Linux

[cbh @ Apr 10th 2006 9:47AM]

I mean no disrespect to Ryan Block or the editors, but the excessive and awkward wording of this article makes it nearly unreadable. A competent copy editor or two would work wonders.

I make no claim to be the latter, but here's an example of the original 158 word article redone in 53 words with no loss of content:

Reports of Windows Vista running successfully on an iMac have surfaced at the OSx86 project forums. Special steps are required to prevent Vista from doing damage to the native OSX partition, and we urge you to do some research before mucking around with Mac partitions on behalf of a beta Microsoft operating system.


A chatty tone is fine but IMO needs to be balanced with substance. In this case the article reads like, well, mostly fluff.

[jon @ Apr 10th 2006 10:15AM]

I agree...engadget tries to hard to be smug on their articles and it just ends up not making any sense at all.

Windows Vista has far more security protections than anything seen on a Mac. Macs are largely unprotected and have escaped the eye of hackers and virus writers only because market share is so pathetic (2.5%). Windows Vista looks better than OSX and has many things OSX simply does not....Media Center...the popularity of Media Center is becoming huge. OSX has no media center alternative even though this is the area that Apple claims it is superior in. Can you stream Movies, Music and Videos from OSX to a 360 or other MCE extender? Nope.
The new WMP is looking amazing as well.
Not to mention vastly improved search, security, a new IE7, major graphics improvements...3D interface with ease of use of windows task based OS. DirectX 10...and the list goes on.

You will certainly be able to get allot more done with Vista than OSX...that's for sure. And the beauty of Windows is that when a feature is not included there are thousands of 3rd party apps that fill the gaps...think Konfabulator, Google Search & Sidebar, etc...etc...etc.

[Justin @ Apr 10th 2006 10:25AM]

"You want to license the software?" -IBM Exec to Billy G
"We want to retain ownership of the operating system" -Bill

"That's fine, the profits are in the computers themselves, not this software stuff." -IBM Exec

(from Pirates of Silicon Valley)

[Wes @ Apr 10th 2006 10:31AM]

I hate all of you ugly mac people.

Your OS stinks

Your hardware stinks

I hate all of your flashy OSX graphics and FX. It's not charming. It's annoying. I run XP in old school mode with no SFX. Why? because I'm not a girl. I'd rather every single bit of my processing power goes to something useful.

Take your stupid OSX and your starbucks and your ipods filled to the brim with crap music and flush them down the toilet.

Get a PC, download warez, steal music, and stop being a hippe.

[john @ Apr 10th 2006 11:53AM]

#30 Wes's post = quote of the year. Amen to that.

[x23 @ Apr 10th 2006 1:54PM]

"I hate all of your flashy OSX graphics and FX. It's not charming. It's annoying. I run XP in old school mode with no SFX. Why? because I'm not a girl. I'd rather every single bit of my processing power goes to something useful."

yet you run a GUI? a GUI is for sissiest girls in all of girl valley junction. real men use a command line. a command line attached to a real OS.

but then even i find a command line almost too wussie. so i rely entirely on a linefeed or punchcards. even that is almost too much a waste of my maximum processing power so i tend to limit everything to an array of 64 flashing lights and some toggle switches. anything more and i might as well put on a bonnet and skip to the fair for a pony ride.

[john @ Apr 10th 2006 2:14PM]

x23 fails at being funny.

[Will @ Apr 10th 2006 3:58PM]

I have nothing against Apples hardware or software. It's the users that make me turn away.

I get sick of listening to these gullable sheep with their self-rightous, holier than thou, iTude.

[James @ Apr 10th 2006 4:23PM]

agreed Will. these people who defend apple anytime anything negative is said are so sad. ZOMG windows sucks microsoft sucks! apple is the best! their OS looks better! windows sucks!

to jon, there is no use arguing with these guys. they are like mindless sheep. to them, windows is the devil. ms is the devil. bill gates is the devil. apple can do no wrong.

[TexRob @ Apr 10th 2006 4:49PM]

You people complaining like poster #5 just don't get it do you? MS has said Vista won't be able to be installed on a Mac due to EFI issues. So yes, putting Vista on even an Intel Mac is a pretty signifigant step. My guess though is that the BETA build of Vista doesn't have this enabled, but if it can be disabled by them, surely the community will find a way post release.

[Wes @ Apr 10th 2006 4:56PM]

Command lines are for nerds dillhole. I'll go there if I have to

Shush baby. You have no point.

cddoom
doom

The last time command line was cool...

Go blog on your stupid box you ninny. Keep livin' the ilife.

[BIll @ Apr 10th 2006 5:57PM]

It's impossible for arguements like this to stay mature, thoughtful, and logical. Yes, Mac has no viruses, but neither does windows, just download virus protection software (they make the free kind) and you're done. Mac guys say Mac has no viruses, the PC guys say that's because they have 4% of the market. So? That doesn't change the fact that Mac OS doesn't have viruses. Neither GUI looks better than the other, because there is a plethora of free software that can change your Windows GUI anytime. I don't think these platform wars are worth it. You should try and find which one suits your needs better. WHy can't both camps be friends?

PS: I currently am using both OS's, it's important to know how to use both, especially if you're going to bash them. Vista is a beutiful OS and I am looking forward to installing it on my MBP when it comes out.

[Vinnie the Fish @ Apr 10th 2006 6:22PM]

I'm with the guy above -- #31 -- where he states, "get a PC, download warez, steal music, and stop being a hippie"

I feel that statement makes me at home in the heart.

[Intrepid @ Apr 11th 2006 2:28AM]

Wes, you are a man who rises above all others (including ones in turtlenecks carrying iSheep).
TexRob, I am user number 5 and I get it, but I am over hearing about it. It isn't news - its repition. And hopefully MS makes it impossible to put Vista final on Mac... that would make me laugh - ha ha ha.

[SBish @ Apr 11th 2006 5:06AM]

Sweet Jesus, this bickering is pathetic. You're all so concerned with turf wars and crowing about your dad being bigger than everyone else's that any shred of the original story has been lost. When all of you people are trying to one-up each other about your OS being better while only using its amazing nuances and incredible power to post pithy comments to a web site, I have to wonder whether the irony is lost on you. Heh, or even me. Now, back to work...

[Mike Watt @ Apr 11th 2006 9:17AM]

It think x23 is very funny. Most of you really need to learn to laugh. You take this whole affair way too seriously. Take a look at what you are saying and reflect on it. There are much more pressing things to worry and argue about in this world than which OS is better dolled up.

[Janos Renz @ Apr 11th 2006 9:27AM]

#47

Ahh... Finally someone with the long-lost skill of 'Common Sense'!

Thank you for some sobriety, for the last 10 minutes reading the comments I was feeling like a 10 year old!

J