Dell Adds 'Apple OS X' Driver Download Section

How did you get a quad core already?

It's a dual core with Hyperthreading.

Lets see here, boot camp+EFI firmware with BIOS emulation+965 chipset+core 2+WWDC. Makes a person wonder. I have a feeling Steve will be having Michael Dell jump through hoops on stage in august.

I don't think the demand for OSX is there yet. Apple would need to sell a hell-of-allot of OSX licenses to make up for the loss in hardware sales.

It's a dual core with Hyperthreading

That makes sense. Thanks for clearing that up.

It's a dual core with Hyperthreading.

I don't think the demand for OSX is there yet. Apple would need to sell a hell-of-allot of OSX licenses to make up for the loss in hardware sales.

What loss? Current Mac users aren't likely to buy PCs. Apple isn't just about the OS.

What loss? Current Mac users aren't likely to buy PCs. Apple isn't just about the OS.

If OSX is able to be purchased on machines other than Apple's, it greatly reduces the perceived value of a Mac. Yes, some will still buy it for the looks, ergonomics, etc., but the majority of value does comes from the OS. Apple was made painfully aware of this the first time they tried licensing their OS to other builders.

"Current Mac users" are not what Apple is after, however thy would like to keep them (many "loyal" Mac users purchased machines from Umax and the like in the last license escapade - and why shouldn’t they have? They were cheaper and faster). Apple is after growth, and increased profit. Selling OSX on, say, a Dell may increase market share, however, it will reduce the perceived value of a Mac, and possibly the already low demand for one.

To over simplify: Each OSX license sold by Dell could be perceived as somewhere between 0.1 and 1 Macs not sold. The big question is how close is that number is to 1. The closer it is, the more licenses Apple needs to sell. If demand isn't there to fill those orders, then Apple has a problem.

To over simplify: Each OSX license sold by Dell could be perceived as somewhere between 0.1 and 1 Macs not sold. The big question is how close is that number is to 1. The closer it is, the more licenses Apple needs to sell.

Do I think Apple would take the loss of from not selling 100 computers in favour of selling 1000 Os licenses? 10 000? It's a gamble alright, but Dell is in much better place than Umax or Daystar to push the Apple OS. Dell already has a huge client base.

It does nothing for Apple unless they can dip into Dells market share.

It's a gamble alright, but Dell is in much better place than Umax or Daystar to push the Apple OS.

I'm not saying it wont ever happen, I just don't think the demand for OSX is there yet.

How many buyers that would go to Dell and choose "OSX" as the default OS in their system configuration wouldn’t otherwise just go to Apple.com and buy a Mac if they couldn't via Dell? Do you really think that number is 90% today (or 9 out of 10)??

It's a difficult question to answer, and one that could take Apple down hill quick if they got it wrong.

I'm not saying it wont ever happen, I just don't think the demand for OSX is there yet.

 

How many buyers that would go to Dell and choose "OSX" as the default OS in their system configuration wouldn't otherwise just go to Apple.com and buy a Mac if they couldn't via Dell?

 

It's a difficult question to answer, and one that could take Apple down hill quick if they got it wrong.

That quad pic is from a story that came out last october: http://www.hardmac.com/news/2005-10-10/#4588 probably fake, but interesting.

That quad pic is from a story that came out last october: http://www.hardmac.com/news/2005-10-10/#4588 probably fake, but interesting.

Interesting... Guess I was wrong.

2 dual core xeons with hypertheading?

Just wondering, although I'm sure someone must have already asked this: Who would buy a Dell over a Mac? Seriously, anyone who works with computers on a regular basis knows how much Dells totally blow. They over charge you for an under-developed piece of junk. They come standard with crappy motherboards, Intel processors, which may be a step forward for Macs, but are a step way back when AMD processors are available. It's really not that difficult at all to build your own PC that easily bypasses a Dell, yet for half the cost. Or you can be lazy, like me a buy a pre-configured Mac laptop, which is the area that Apple really excels at; sleek, feature-packed, dependable portables that you can take anywhere, so you don't have to worry about Windoz compatibility. I just looked at Dell's website and noticed they say many of their PCs are "Vista Capable." Any company that thinks the ability to run Vista is a plus doesn't deserve to run the Mac OS. I'm sure some/a lot of you will disagree, but come on! Build your own AMD rig, or buy a Mac Mini and download Boot Camp; don't waste your time, patience, and moolah! Dude, you're getting a Dell? Dude, are you mentally sane?

EDIT: Has any body seen the Dell XPS 700?

Dell, Dell, Dell.

That XPS 700 sure would run OSx86 nice.

Dell XPS series are kind of overpriced considering Dell sells very competitively priced pcs and notebooks throughout their product line. Most of the time you can buy the next best product from Dell for half the price of the XPS.

Obviously people who want the best Dell will opt for XPS, it is just not my cup of tea. I am always afraid of proprietary hardware anyway so buying expensive proprietary hardware just gives me some pretty special moments with freddy krueger.

Anyway, XPS series are very appealing visually and for that reason alone some people might choose XPS over any other OEM products out there. I would prefer to go the BYO way with cutting edge hardware for easy replacement/upgrade reasons.

Just wondering, although I'm sure someone must have already asked this: Who would buy a Dell over a Mac? Seriously, anyone who works with computers on a regular basis knows how much Dells totally blow. They over charge you for an under-developed piece of junk. They come standard with crappy motherboards, Intel processors, which may be a step forward for Macs, but are a step way back when AMD processors are available. It's really not that difficult at all to build your own PC that easily bypasses a Dell, yet for half the cost. Or you can be lazy, like me a buy a pre-configured Mac laptop, which is the area that Apple really excels at; sleek, feature-packed, dependable portables that you can take anywhere, so you don't have to worry about Windoz compatibility. I just looked at Dell's website and noticed they say many of their PCs are "Vista Capable." Any company that thinks the ability to run Vista is a plus doesn't deserve to run the Mac OS. I'm sure some/a lot of you will disagree, but come on! Build your own AMD rig, or buy a Mac Mini and download Boot Camp; don't waste your time, patience, and moolah! Dude, you're getting a Dell? Dude, are you mentally sane?

I think all the parties you've mentioned have issues (Apple, AMD, Intel, Microsoft), I think if you can pick one that works for you, you're doing well. The humour wasn't lost on me, btw,

Guys. You will never believe this if I told you. I bring you the actual answer to why dell did this and what this means. I talked to them via dell chat, and I got this response:

dell: this is to inform that latitude systems are designed in such a way that they support MAC os but Inspirons are not. So that's the reason I could not trace it.

me: so latitudes legally support mac os x? the full version, unhacked?

dell: Its not legally supported By Dell. However if customer installs it then dell has necessary driver to help them out.

me: How would one install the files provided?

me: Since, they are .exe, I see no way that they could be opened in mac

dell: Since I have expertise in troubleshooting Win XP, I will not be able to answer questions on MAC operating system. Its just for customers who know to install the MAC operating systems themselves and will be able to download necessary driver files from the support web site themselves.

me: My dad has a latitude x1, do you happen to know if the copy of Mac os x 10.4.6provided by apple will work? If i just boot it?

dell: No, to very honest with you, I will not be able to give you fake answer and land you in trouble. As I do not want to give you wrong information and set wrong expectations to you and make you upset and waste your valuable

time and money.

me: is there someone available at dell that I could talk to about this?

I was then given a number to contact another dell technician - this time - at Dell on call. I decided to call them, since I was on a breakthrough already. I talked with a rather nice lady, who, after about 10 minutes, decided she could not answer my question. I was redirected to another technician - a guy this time. Since it was on the phone, I'll give you the general information. He basically gave me the same bs as the first guy. He said that they are not completely educated on the mac operating system. He responded to this on numerous questions, including to why they are in .exe. I got a repeated response that "they are only for users who are knowledgable and are able to get Mac OS X on their laptops".

Does this information suggest help in the osx86project? We may never know. He did tell me to contact Apple's Mac OS X support, then report back to dell. Just though I'd fill everyone in that it is in fact NOT A MISTAKE. All that's left to figure out is - "what is dell's true intentions?", "What means of installation are they talking about - a legal method, osx86, or maybe some other controversial method?" Spread the word guys.

But wouldnt that be illegal to "help" someone out if they decided to? Its like they are supporting the whole project.

EDIT: I got curious, so i called Apple my self and asked them. They didnt know what the hell it was about, and couldnt seem to give me information on it. I directed the guy to that part of the website. He looked at it and told me that No, Dells can not run Mac os (obviously), and he said he didnt know what the drivers were for. I told him i had a chat with Dell about it using Franzy's chat with them, and told them what the Dell rep said from the chat. He then understood they were there to help people that reverse engineered the OS, which "Apple does not support". Pretty weird.

But wouldnt that be illegal to "help" someone out if they decided to? Its like they are supporting the whole project.

 

EDIT: I got curious, so i called Apple my self and asked them. They didnt know what the hell it was about, and couldnt seem to give me information on it. I directed the guy to that part of the website. He looked at it and told me that No, Dells can not run Mac os (obviously), and he said he didnt know what the drivers were for. I told him i had a chat with Dell about it using Franzy's chat with them, and told them what the Dell rep said from the chat. He then understood they were there to help people that reverse engineered the OS, which "Apple does not support". Pretty weird.

the whole situation is weird i know.

PS: thanks Jeezoflip - i was going to call apple but you beat me 2 it

Evidently, Maxxuss works for Dell now. J/K.

I just can't believe Dell would write drivers for a hacked version of OS X. I am no expert regarding DMCA, but I'd have to think it'd be illegal.

So we have three possibilities I think:

1) Dell is writing drivers for OSX86

2) Dell is writing drivers for printers that can be used with the new intel macs and their database doesn't know where to put them.

3) OS X really is going to be licensed.

On a side note, I wonder what percentage of the machines that download software through software update are hackintoshes. Apple has to know.

Long-term it seems to me hackintoshes are an incredible boon to Apple for this reason: It is getting mindshare with computer experts...the informal tech support guys for their friends and family. I know the Mac now, I am almost an expert, I can fix problems, and I would recommend to my mom that her next computer was a mac. And when I get a new machine, it will probably be a mac. This won't instantly be reflected in sales figures, but long-term I think it's a big deal.

MarkW, I think you are right in terms of what choices we are left with to believe. But it was surprising and shocking to hear what dell had to say about the whole incident. They claimed that, "it was for users who are able to put mac os x on their dells, and dell wants to be able to give them support". It shocked me when i asked them if a legit mac cd from the apple store would work on boot, and they responded "i dont know" and recommended i dont waste my time and money trying. The thing that still confuses me is that only certain laptops are listed as Mac OS X. the dell technician said "it is to show that latitudes support mac os x, but inspirons do not.

Another probablility is that dell doesn't know why the drivers are there either. However, i think its pretty weird to get the same answer from two dell technicians - one over the phone, one through live chat. Also, Apple seems to suggest that this driver actually is for illegal methods. What a predicament!

Somehow, I don't see dell turning to our side. Anyways, any involvement with apple is purely expected - we all know how much Michael Dell has been pleading to Steve Jobs to sell him Mac licenses and permissions for his dells.

- For that - i am actually purely in Michael Dell's favor. I truly dislike Steve Jobs and I don't think I would ever pay for an apple computer. They have always been the same parts as a regular computer - same internal hardware, except covered up by an inferior, and over-accessorized, eye candy of an operating system. Now that its running XP, people fail to realize that an Asus laptop, hundreds of dollars cheaper, runs faster than a MBP on XP. And, MBP runs slower on Mac than XP because of rosetta emulation. So no contest! However, many people i know fail to realize this and like to {censored} away money. I installed os x for x86 on their systems, but it made them want a mac even more. I think this is what happens when you a super rich noob who can't fix glitches on your own

Anyhow, anyone else have any ideas about dell?

Anyhow, anyone else have any ideas about dell?

Ideas about what? The printer drivers for OSX??

I'm sure everyone's realized this... but the Mac OS X downloads are the same as the XP downloads from three categories. Diagnostics, FlashBIOS and Printer Drivers.

The EXE file is an exe not because someone screwed up and meant bin or hqx or dmg... but because it's the same file used for windows.

Dell has award winning service and support. Unfortunately, the awards it wins are the Darwin Awards and "Worst Technical Support Based In India"

Dear Lord, please don't let us all die without the answer!

Because I deal with Dell for some reason or another on a weekly basis for work, I think I know the answer to this question: It was an error in the pages. It was there for about a week, and now it's gone. It's not any kind of secret. It was a mistake in the dev of the site and it has been fixed as far as I have seen.

Dell has a large lineup of Networkable Printers; they require drivers when installing them onto a Print Server in order to have all the features of the large Multifunction Printers available. They have a nice web based gui to administer them and add Email addresses of the users that will be scanning docs or pics to be included in emails for use with software like Faxination or Fax World.

IMHO, there are already enough topics that we can theorize on and on about their conspicuousness, but OSx86 is definatly not one of them.

Id laugh if they started offering osx86 iso downloads on their site.

max

i hope dell never gets it's grubby indian tech support hands on anything made by apple.. hackintosh is one thing but massively diluting the apple brand with thoughtless garbage computers is beyond awful.....

I buy mac's because they aren't {censored}e, i own a hackintosh because apple doesn't make a netbook and lugging around my macbook pro when i just need to give a presentation seems silly..

Jumping from "Jul 8 2006" to "Mar 7 2009"? Just let this topic die.

Jumping from "Jul 8 2006" to "Mar 7 2009"? Just let this topic die.

Agreed. Topic Closed.