



AppleTV Becomes OSX Workstation 140
An anonymous reader writes "AppleTVhacks published a full howto install guide with 12 easy steps to turn your AppleTV into a full blown OSX workstation. With a processor emulation, hacker Semthex of hackint0sh.org, managed to get full blown OSX working on a AppleTV. The kernel for this hack is freely available under APSL and opens the legal way to a really cheap Mac Nano. With 300$ difference to the Mac Mini, this is becoming a fairly interesting deal." April Fool's, btw.
Re:I dont get it? (Score:5, Informative)
However, note the little bit in the OSX license that says you may only run OSX on Apple hardware. The A.TV is still Apple hardware. Your Dell isin't.
Re:I dont get it? (Score:3, Informative)
Two things:
1/2 the price, less than 1/2 the performance (Score:4, Informative)
granted the apple tv is tiny and cool, but if you're looking for a super cheap PC, you might as well go ahead and grab a mini for a little extra for the total package. Besides I'm sure you can find them for 500 bucks or so since they've been around for so long...
Re:I dont get it? (Score:3, Informative)
Apple's store [apple.com] sells MacOSX Tiger for $129.
That said, the cost of Apple TV + MacOSX Tiger is only $170 less than buying a Mac Mini with MacOSX pre-installed. And Apple TV doesn't come with a DVD/CD drive, and it's hard drive is 20GB smaller than the Mac Mini. Hmmm.. I think I know which one I'd buy.
Re:I dont get it? (Score:5, Informative)
One presumes this would change with Leopard (10.5), which should be the first retail-available install of OS X that would work on Intel or PPC machines.
Re:Don't play dumb. (Score:3, Informative)
While it may get you around your own personal moral qualms (and isn't a bad argument, frankly), Mac OS X 10.4.x (Intel) and Mac OS X 10.4.x (PowerPC) are simply not the same product, and you can't juggle licenses between them. Your family pack license is for Mac OS X 10.4.x (PowerPC) only.
There already is standing precedent for this: Mac OS X Server 10.4.x (PowerPC) and Mac OS X Server 10.4.7 (Universal) are not the same product, and have different part numbers, and the license for the former does not entitle you to the latter: it is a separate product that must be repurchased.
Let me reiterate I don't think the argument is fundamentally a bad one! I'm sure that people with family packs will feel they're well within the "spirit" of things if they then pirate or otherwise obtain Mac OS X 10.4.x (Intel) for their AppleTV.
The only product I can see, right now, today, that could theoretically be purchased and run legally on AppleTV is Mac OS X Server 10.4.7 (Universal). In the future, of course, Mac OS X 10.5.x (Leopard) gets added to the mix.
The final question, though, still stands: if legal push came to shove, would Apple consider AppleTV a "computer", since that's what the license agreement specifies? It's exactly that kind of legal gray area, lack of support, and the fact that it currently requires using a hacked kernel (making OS updates difficult, etc.), that will keep this to the hobbyist/hacker/experimenter crowd, and out of any kind of mainstream/business/institutional applications.
I will agree it's very interesting, though: AppleTV's basically just a little Mac!
Yes, it's a Hoax. (Score:3, Informative)
Re:MythTV? (Score:3, Informative)
Anyway, my reasoning for wanting to install Linux on it: Mostly it's small footprint. There is very limited amount of RAM in it.. and Linux, i think, would utilize the least. Thus leaving more RAM and processing power for running video's, etc.
Also, since it is so low powered, it would be great as a system to run all night to download torrents, etc. It has a decent sized drive, enough to download a DVD or two.
Re:MythTV? -- working on it (Score:3, Informative)
Re:MythTV? (Score:2, Informative)
Yes, MythTV runs just fine on OSX [mythtv.org], both Intel and PPC.
NOT AN APRIL FOOL (Score:1, Informative)
http://www.hackint0sh.org/forum/showthread.php?t=
Not an aprils fool (Score:1, Informative)
The anonymous idiot that answered before me is a retard, and probably some well known enemy of semthex.
Why would someone be as stupid as that UGLY dude from over there I think I would sMash him if I knew who he was
Wow /. (Score:2, Informative)
semthex: Seems like someone on Slashdot got drunk and marked the news of AppleTV as April fools. No it is not. Please read up on the forum, download the kernel, read the guide and test yourself. AppleTVHacks.net is currently down, possibly because of the monster traffic currently. I already contacted the owner about it but so far not got an answer. Once it is back [sic] again I will let you know.
from http://www.hackint0sh.org/forum/showthread.php?t=
Jesus .. Slashdot loosing quality (Score:1, Informative)