Start Up Goal: Run Software on Any Chip

This could be really big. I think some investigative research should be conducted ASAP

Thats AWESOME! When I buy my PC soon (for porting a OpenGL game) I won't feel as bad, at least it will be a mac someday (maybe).


:D

I could see 2 different uses with it for Apple.

1.) Go with Marklar (or whatever it's called), and use this to allow mac programs to run on the x86 architecture, or...

2.) Stick with the PPC architecture (IBM just built a 3 billion fab, with Apple in mind as a major customer...) and have this as a solution for running all of your PC software on your Mac. With the processing power of the G5, I don't think you will see much of a slow down, even with many PC games, such as counter strike...

This could be a way for Apple to strike at micro$oft...

"That's ok, you don't have to continue IE development for the Mac, because we're already using your latest version for windoze, on our G5's!"

Of course, if Apple does use it, we will probably have to wait until 10.4 to see it in action, but even then, it should be available before longhorn... I'll just add this to my OS X 10.4 feature wishlist...

I've said it before, and I'll say it again.

Macs gaining the ability to near-seamlessly run Windows software at near full speed is a BAD thing.

Why? Because then companies will see no reason to write Mac versions of software.

No Mac software, no Macs.

Of course, with Apple killing 3rd party software left and right, who knows? ;) (Note that I don't think this is necessarily a bad thing -- there's a reason people are adopting the Apple software: it rocks.)

Also worth considering is that Macs are fast becoming UNIX boxes.

I don't know. I was all hyped up about it, but Alexander made a good point, I think. I'd rather have an official Mac version of software than this..........thing.

I've been imagining something like this for a while.
Perhaps some sort of 'card' that would hold CPU used for translating code so that speed is 100% as on native platform isn't a bad idea? :)
I say its about time to bring OS X to PC's!
It will increase market share, and if implemented bad enough, make people buy Macs!

Originally posted by Alexander
I've said it before, and I'll say it again.

Macs gaining the ability to near-seamlessly run Windows software at near full speed is a BAD thing.

Why? Because then companies will see no reason to write Mac versions of software.

No Mac software, no Macs.

That is not true since in the 3dfx time, people could run all PC games on Macs without slow down and it did not kill the mac gaming market. That is the time the Mac game market started to take off. People will still develop for the Mac as long as people still buy Macs. This is because the programs will run much faster on PPC when optimised for it. Anyway we all buy Macs for the OS because it is better than Windows.

Anyway this would not be the use for it. If it was used by Apple, it would be used in Marklar to run PPC apps on an x86 version of Mac OS.

But what I want it for is to run Mac OS X on my PC. All the apps I need are already on the Mac (expect for some games). I heard about this a few years ago, but I expect something will happen to stop someone releasing it to the public. TransMeta was meant to release a chip that could run x86 and PPC code, but they did not in the end because of problems from Apple.

Originally posted by G4scott

This could be a way for Apple to strike at micro$oft...

"That's ok, you don't have to continue IE development for the Mac, because we're already using your latest version for windoze, on our G5's!"

Of course, if Apple does use it, we will probably have to wait until 10.4 to see it in action, but even then, it should be available before longhorn... I'll just add this to my OS X 10.4 feature wishlist...

Talking about longhorn... running IE for Windows requires Windows to be running on your G5. And the issues that crash a Windows PC will also be translated realtime ;-)

The Amiga company has been doing this for a while now...

http://www.amiga-anywhere.com/

Originally posted by hvfsl
That is not true since in the 3dfx time, people could run all PC games on Macs without slow down and it did not kill the mac gaming market. That is the time the Mac game market started to take off. People will still develop for the Mac as long as people still buy Macs. This is because the programs will run much faster on PPC when optimised for it. Anyway we all buy Macs for the OS because it is better than Windows.

Anyway this would not be the use for it. If it was used by Apple, it would be used in Marklar to run PPC apps on an x86 version of Mac OS.

But what I want it for is to run Mac OS X on my PC. All the apps I need are already on the Mac (expect for some games). I heard about this a few years ago, but I expect something will happen to stop someone releasing it to the public. TransMeta was meant to release a chip that could run x86 and PPC code, but they did not in the end because of problems from Apple.

Since when could people use a mac to run a PC game? Its impossible without emulation, which is a lot slower than native. Am I missing something or misinterpreting what you said.

You may want OS X on your PC, but apple sure has heck doesn't. If apple ever does release markler, it will probablys still be on proprietary hardware just as it is now, since thats how they make their money. the advent of the G5 makes the argument for going x86 weaker.

I don't know that transmeta was ever makign such a chip, and if they were, i'm not sure apple would have cared. having a powerPC compatible chip doesn't mean it can run OS X. I can go out and buy generic PPC logic boards quite easily, but they won't run a scrap of mac software because of the hardware rom.