OSx86 Anyone?

[Sup3rkirby]

Eh, pretty sure this post is legal on these here forums(seeing as there have been post from staff about things like private WoW servers).

So, has anyone used OSx86? If you don't what it is, I won't 'shoo' you from here, but you must realize you will be of little or no help to my question(s).

OSx86 is basically a project that ports the OSX operating system(from Mac) to the standard x86 PC. I really don't know how exactly it works(probably something like PearPC that runs some emulation thing to get the Mac .dmg disc image thing to run on a PC).

I only got to try it once, sorta. I tried the disc on several PCs, and it started up very slowly(several minutes to load), and of course I ended up losing a lot of crap b/c I tried to partition a drive(with gParted). And on the one computer I did manage to partition without ruining everything, The partition manager in the OSx86 disc wasn't loading. If it was then it would have taken about 2 hours to load, so I'm just assuming that somewhere around 30-40 mins it just isn't loading.

I used cpu-z to check my PCs to make sure they could run it.


But yea, I wouldn't mind checking it out again, if I could ever find the disc images... I've looked for a while with no results. And mainly since now I got Acronis, I can back up my PCs with a full HD image so if something goes wrong(again), I won't be screwed(losing over 80 GB of data :eek4


[EDIT]
Not to run off topic, but I just thought of this, is there a good free/open source alternative to Acronis? Something similar that can make full backups of a hard drive, as in a hard drive image. So all you programs, settings and files can be restored at once.

 

[supersaf]

Hey,
It's pretty good. I used OSX86 on a media centre pc for a while. Luckily for me, everything worked
I put it on my laptop too. It is good but take care when partitioning!
Depending on your computer specs, it shouldn't be too slow. It was fast for me.

Don't know of any alternative to Acronis. That's what I use. It's the best!

I like OSX loads and just bought an iMac a couple weeks ago.

If you want any more information or help, then I'd be pleased to help. I'm sure me and other members can help you out!

 

[Sup3rkirby]

Well that's cool. I've really just been wondering where to get an OSx86 CD(DVD actually). My only guess is torrent sites, but then I'm not sure what to search for other than OSx86. Back when I had a DVD, I noticed it was called something else...

And really, I guess my questions are(other than my one above), how long does it normally take you to load the DVD(first time to install)? And is there any good test to make sure the DVD will work? Also, how is the compatibility(for instance, driver support)?

I really appreciate the help. I don't think I'd fully convert to OSX, but I use Windows and Linux right now and it'd be cool to round off the experience by using OSX too.

 

[Agenator]

i want to run osx86 cuz then I could have a wapple box But yea, it really looks tite...

 

[NSChan]

I tried running OSX on my machine a little bit back through Pear PC, it tried to install, but failed epicly, now i have a new rig i may try again though as i would love to have a Mac without having one if you see what i mean

 

[supersaf]

Hey,
Obviously you'd have to download it off torrents but bear in mind this is illegal and so please do buy a copy of OSX from the Apple website so you do own a legal license and you are contributing to Apple.
The best releases are labelled JAS. e.g. MAC OSX 10.4.8 JAS ......

Well, I think they are the best!

It took me about an hour to install OSX on both computer and laptop. So I'd guess that the installation takes about an hour give or take a little dependin on other factors.

By good test, do you mean check the installation DVD for any damage? Because when you start installing, the installer does scan the DVD for any errors and tells you if there are any. I tend to cancel this as it takes too long and there hardly ever are any errors.

The Driver support is getting pretty good. There is quite a large community working on drivers. I've got some links which I'll dig out and post. Check them out, they helped me a lot.



Links:


http://wiki.osx86project.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
Good Wiki-Website. Has a lot of information such as what hardware works out of the box and what needs tweeking. Got some brilliant Hardware Compatibility Lists (HCL) for ready bought computers and it's all categorized into the version of Mac you want to use.

http://forum.insanelymac.com/
A really HUGE community. If you have any hardware problems or queries then post in this forum and/or use the search. It's never let me down!

http://maconpc.org/vbulletin/portal.php
Also a very good community. Some good installation guides and so on.

I think you can put the new MAC OSX LEOPARD on your X86 boxes as well. Brilliant OS (I use it on my iMac), but I wouldn't recommend using the OSX86 version as it hasn't been out for long and isn't probably as stable as Tiger.

 

[Sup3rkirby]

supersaf, great post. When I meant good test, I was talking about testing your PC to see if it can run/install OSx86. Since the installer isn't the fastest thing in the world(mainly the initial startup), so waiting a while to find out it can't install is always a shame. I've heard of CPU-Z which will tell you about your computer so you can see manually if it meets some of the requirements, but I wanted to know if there were some test that would check for you.

10.4.8 is probably the best version to start with, correct? I'll probably just stick with that, but you can upgrade to 10.4.9 after the first install from what I've read.

 

[supersaf]

Hey,

Unfortunately, like you say the initial bit of the installation is a little slow and there isn't really any way to check to see if your computer will run it successfully.
Like you said though, CPU-Z is a brilliant program. http://www.cpuid.com/cpuz.php
The program doesn't require installation, it's just a simple click and run program. It should tell you whether or not your processor will be compatible or not. As long as it is SSE2 or SSE3. It should mention this in the CPU tab. After you know this, you should be able to decide which kernel to choose when you do the install. I tend to just choose universal, less bother.

Or and another thing, If you do happen to install OSX and you dual boot with Windows Vista, then if you get any problems like HFS+ partition error or the like then use this program (EASYBCD): http://neosmart.net/dl.php?id=1
It's a life saver. It can fix the error just by you checking a box and pressing ok!

Obviously the EasyBCD program is only of any use if you dual boot with Vista.

If you do decide to go through with installing then post your machine specs and whether you'll be dual/triple or even quad booting and what hard drive you want to put OSX on (existing or different) and I'll try to help you out as much as I can. I've got a lot of tutorials and instructions and will try and find you the one most appropriate to you. If you need any help finding the special OSX86 needed (JAS) then I'll try and find it.

Oh and how do you connect your computer to th internet? Wireless? because then you will have to find additional drivers!

 

[NSChan]

+ for you supersaf, those links were a great help to me, looks like i have to buy a copy of OSX now i cant lend one off my collage lol

 

[supersaf]

+ for you supersaf, those links were a great help to me, looks like i have to buy a copy of OSX now i cant lend one off my collage lol

Same goes to you, If you need any help then post your machine specs and details and I'll try my best.

I've had quite a bit of experience now with OSX86 and so hope I can pass on some 'knowledge' on to others.

It's definitely a good experience using OSX on your Windows PC!

 

[Sup3rkirby]

Is 10.4.3 a decent version, or should I just go with 10.4.8? How easy is an upgrade from 10.4.3? I ask this because the version I would install would be 10.4.3. But i'll check some more later to make sure the newer(10.4.8) isn't out there.

I actually wanted to put OSX on my PC(desktop), which would be using ethernet for internet, but another hope is actually to dual boot it on my laptop, and this would use wireless. I actually have no idea where I would get mac drivers for my laptop. It is an Acer Aspire 3000. I'm pretty sure the processor is compatible(looking at cpu-z), but last time I ran the installation, it sat there for the longest time and I gave up. Is there anything equivalent to ndiswrapper for OSX? ndiswrapper is an easy way to install windows drivers for wireless devices on Linux. It'd be nice if there was a similar thing for macs.

Also, can you install OSx86 on any virtual PC? I think I've tried but the CD will never boot. I've tried MS Virtual PC so far. I don't think I had the disc when I used VirtualBox. It'd be cool to just run OSX on a virtual pc rather than a full install on a system(even as a second boot). No risk involved really since you have no partitions or anything.



Also supersaf, could you explain exactly why it has to be on a DVD+/-R strictly? I honestly don't know why it won't install from an RW and have been told over and over it must be R only. Just wondering if there was an easy to understand explaination.

Thanks supersaf.

 

[supersaf]

Hey,

Sorry about the EXTREMELY late response! I've been away and haven't been able to post back.
You've probably installed it now! but for anyone else who wants help...

To answer some of your questions..

I'd stick with 10.4.8, its much better and I'm not sure how easy it would be to upgrade from 10.4.3 to 10.4.8! I upgraded from 10.4.8 to 10.4.9 and it wasn't really that hard but did take a bit of time.

Ethernet would be the easiest way to connect but it's getting more and more easier to get drivers for wireless cards. There isn't any alternative to ndiswrapper for OSX. I used to use it on linux. Would be good if it was on OSX but nope, it isn't.

You can't use OSX86 in MS Virtual PC, but you can use Vmware. Don't know if you've heard/used it. It's brilliant software and you can actually use it to install virtually and then have it trasnferred to hard drive to use natively.

As for your last question, Not sure why it's DVD+/-R only. I remember being told this as well. Hmmm, if you find out then, I'd like to know too!

If you have any more questions, then I'll get back to you a.s.a.p, not the week it took me!