Apple today released a public beta of Boot Camp – a new feature to be incorporated in the upcoming release of Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard which will officially allow users of Intel-based Macs to install and run Windows XP on their computers.
Note: Although Apple will be providing the technology to allow users to do this, the company also staunchly asserts that Apple does not and will not sell or support the Microsoft Windows operating system. Also note that this creates a dual-boot system. Meaning you’re either running Mac OS X, or you are running Windows. This is not a Virtual PC type setup which allows a Mac User to run a Windows within a Mac environment.
“Apple has no desire or plan to sell or support Windows, but many customers have expressed their interest to run Windows on Apple’s superior hardware now that we use Intel processors,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. “We think Boot Camp makes the Mac even more appealing to Windows users considering making the switch.”
To take advantage of this, you will need.
• An Intel-based Mac
• Mac OS X Tiger v10.4.6
• The latest Firmware update
• Minimum 10 Gb free hard disk space
• A blank recordable CD
• A printer for the instructions (You’ll want to print them before installing Windows)
• A bona fide, legal installation disk for Microsoft Windows XP, Service Pack 2, Home or Professional (No multi-disc, upgrade or Media Center versions.)
Boot Camp lets you set aside hard drive space for the Windows installation, without moving any of your Mac files around. Just drag a slider to choose partition size. Boot Camp also helps you remove the Windows partition, should you later change your mind. The software then burns a CD with the drivers Windows needs to recognize Mac-specific hardware. You are then guided through the Windows installation process.
Once you’ve completed Boot Camp, simply hold down the option key at startup to choose between Mac OS X and Windows. After starting up, your Mac runs Windows completely natively.
One other warning. Windows running on a Mac is like Windows running on a PC. So it is vulnerable to the same virus and spyware attacks that have been plaguing Windows users for years. So you will need to keep it updated with the latest Microsoft Windows security fixes and anti-virus patches.
But if you have to have Windows to run a specific application, at least you’ll have a one-box solution.