Tag: computer
Apple’s OSX and it’s EULA, its a Moral Question.
by padapa on Mar.07, 2009, under Propeller Heads
Back to my complaint against Apple’s EULA that “OSX is only for Apple computers”. Those of us that work in the technology sector know this is not true, technologically. It becomes strictly a moral issue. Is Apple morally right to require Apple hardware and will those that buy the software live by the EULA that Apple requires you to click “I agree” to get the software to install.
If I bought a Macbook and removed OSX and replaced it with any Windows product from WinXP to Win7 Beta, the software would run just fine. People might say I had a very expensive Windows PC, and they would be right. People might look at me a little a little weird as the Windows logo comes across the boot screen, but neither Apple or Microsoft would sue me or demand I stop doing that.
Now enter the reverse model, where I want to buy a copy of OSX and buy a PC that has similar hardware to a Macbook and suddenly the EULA makes it wrong??? I think Apple is wrong.
Apple even includes a couple utilities to do just that in a dual boot style arrangement. BSD, the basis for OSX is a free operating system, but OSX isn’t???
Maybe someone should check the EULA of BSD and see if any derivitive works have any rules to live by … maybe Apple is violating the BSD rules?
It would be a whole lot simplier if Apple would modify the EULA to say, “if the licensee chooses to install OSX on non-Apple hardware, the licensee waives any support from Apple and waives the right to return the product, except for a failed media replacement.” Wake up Apple and do the right thing.
