Apple G5 won't run Virtual PC, may take a year for fix

[DaveSimmons]

If you're thinking of a G5 and need to run a few Windows apps with Virtual PC, you'll need to keep using a G4 for a while longer. Now that Microsoft owns Virtual PC, the timeframe for a G5 fix is months instead of days. This despite MS-VPC having known of the problem for months already.

ZDNet - no VPC for you!

That's because Virtual PC, the leading emulation program for running Windows on a Mac, doesn't support the G5. Microsoft, which acquired Virtual PC from Connectix in February, said a fix for the problem is not around the corner.

"It will be in the next (full) version of Virtual PC," a Microsoft representative said Wednesday, adding that a new edition of Virtual PC is expected within a year.

...

The reason for the incompatibility, according to Microsoft, is that the current version of Virtual PC for the Mac relies on a feature of the PowerPC G3 and G4 processors called "pseudo little-endian mode," which helps boost performance of a Mac when it is trying to emulate a Pentium chip. ... the new G5 processor does not support this feature

 

[bjc112]

Originally posted by: DaveSimmons
If you're thinking of a G5 and need to run a few Windows apps with Virtual PC, you'll need to keep using a G4 for a while longer. Now that Microsoft owns Virtual PC, the timeframe for a G5 fix is months instead of days. This despite MS-VPC having known of the problem for months already.

ZDNet - no VPC for you!

That's because Virtual PC, the leading emulation program for running Windows on a Mac, doesn't support the G5. Microsoft, which acquired Virtual PC from Connectix in February, said a fix for the problem is not around the corner.

"It will be in the next (full) version of Virtual PC," a Microsoft representative said Wednesday, adding that a new edition of Virtual PC is expected within a year.

...

The reason for the incompatibility, according to Microsoft, is that the current version of Virtual PC for the Mac relies on a feature of the PowerPC G3 and G4 processors called "pseudo little-endian mode," which helps boost performance of a Mac when it is trying to emulate a Pentium chip. ... the new G5 processor does not support this feature

Bummmmer.

 

[Lyfer]

At the price Virtual PC costs ($300), I don't see why not just build a cheap rig.

 

[Nebor]

That's great, Microsoft has control of something vital to Macs... hilarious.

"In related news, Microsoft aquired IBM today, and announced that a mysterious fire wiped out the G5 chip production assembly."

 

[gsaldivar]

Originally posted by: Lyfer
At the price Virtual PC costs ($300), I don't see why not just build a cheap rig.

 

[LethalWolfe]

Originally posted by: Lyfer
At the price Virtual PC costs ($300), I don't see why not just build a cheap rig.

If you only need the app at yer desk that is an option, but if you are a laptop user then hauling around that mini-tower, monitor, and kb/m while looking for a place to plug in doesn't seem like too much fun.


Lethal

 

[synapse02]

Originally posted by: Nebor
That's great, Microsoft has control of something vital to Macs... hilarious.

"In related news, Microsoft aquired IBM today, and announced that a mysterious fire wiped out the G5 chip production assembly."

Ive been working with PCs for quite some time, and i have very limited experience with macs. Last fall i was using a mac at the college, and i was very surprised to see that most of the software on the macs was Microsoft software(MS IE for mac, MS Word for mac, MS powerpoint for mac...). If you're going to be running all microsoft software, why not just buy a computer system for which it was intended to function on. In general I was not impressed and decided I dont have any reason or desire to venture away from what im familiar with.

 

[synapse02]

not sure i could live with a computer that only has one botton on the mouse either...

 

[DaveSimmons]

Originally posted by: synapse02

Ive been working with PCs for quite some time, and i have very limited experience with macs. Last fall i was using a mac at the college, and i was very surprised to see that most of the software on the macs was Microsoft software(MS IE for mac, MS Word for mac, MS powerpoint for mac...). If you're going to be running all microsoft software, why not just buy a computer system for which it was intended to function on. In general I was not impressed and decided I dont have any reason or desire to venture away from what im familiar with.

Many people don't use macs specifically for IE or Word, they use them for PhotoShop and other multimedia software (3D, audio, video). Other people just prefer the mac user interface even with MS software running on it.

 

[bigpow]

ROTFLMAO !!!

One more tomato toss to the chick computer

 

[addragyn]

Originally posted by: Lyfer
At the price Virtual PC costs ($300), I don't see why not just build a cheap rig.

And then use RDC (MS Mactopia). It's free and damn good software.

---

Far far more intersting is that XLC and XLF for OS X have just landed.
http://www-3.ibm.com/software/awdtools/ccompilers/

 

[addragyn]

Originally posted by: Nebor
That's great, Microsoft has control of something vital to Macs... hilarious.

How is VPC vital? I'm sure MS has control of *everything* vital on your machine. "That's great"!? Office X is native on the platform. Some Office junkies say it's the best version for any platform. I've read it has some exclusive features. I could really care less but hey. MS makes money off the MBU and it's really that simple.

Originally posted by: synapse02
not sure i could live with a computer that only has one botton on the mouse either...

So ask your ma to plug in a different one. Seriously I use MS Intellmice Explorers on all my machines. Well the PCs and the Macs anyway. BTW - Ars just posted Macintosh Browser Smackdown.

---

I don't understand why some cheer homogenization. I enjoy that we have ATI and Nvidia. AMD and Intel. Solaris, Linux, Windows, OS X, BSD, etc. I lost my desire to be like everybody else after 6th grade recess ended.

 

[dullard]

So the G5 has a feature left out (which the G3 and G4 had), and you claim it is Microsoft's fault?

 

[addragyn]

I don't what "feature" you're referring to but the G5 definitely has something the G3 and G4 don't. Speed. The G5 is a much better machine that its predecessors in so many ways. Microsoft's fault?? I don't follow.

---

IBM now has a PDF with info about XLC & XLF vs. GCC up. Some *nice* performance gains. (Pages 21 & 22 have those graphs.)

 

[DaveSimmons]

Originally posted by: dullard
So the G5 has a feature left out (which the G3 and G4 had), and you claim it is Microsoft's fault?

Actually I do -- since this problem was known about months ago, VPC would probably have been patched in time for the G5 launch if MS wasn't now in contol of the product.

Think that's paranoid, then go play KOTOR on your PC. Oh wait you can't, because MS paid Lucasarts to delay the PC version to help xbox sales. Go play Halo on your PC instead. Oh wait, you can't, because MS shelved the PC version when they bought Bungie to help xbox sales. MS doesn't want to help the G5 launch so they're dragging their feet on a VPC fix.

 

[yak8998]

Gawd, I never had anything against microsoft besides theyre severe overpricing, but that game stuff just ticks me off...

now i hate microsoft

 

[EeyoreX]

Think that's paranoid, then go play KOTOR on your PC. Oh wait you can't, because MS paid Lucasarts to delay the PC version to help xbox sales. Go play Halo on your PC instead. Oh wait, you can't, because MS shelved the PC version when they bought Bungie to help xbox sales. MS doesn't want to help the G5 launch so they're dragging their feet on a VPC fix.

Boo hoo! Microsoft wants to make money for their product. It's okay, though, that Apple makes software and hardware (save for a few examples) compatible ONLY with Apple stuff. Gee, maybe because they want all your money. They won't get all your money if they made it so OS X works on your PC. But that's okay, because it's not Microsoft doing it.

Puh-leaze. If you want to run Mac software, buy a Mac. If you want to run Windows software, buy a PC. Or esle wait until the emulator works. You'll live.

\Dan

 

[TerryMathews]

Before you all cast stones, little to big endian conversion is a big deal. The fact that the G5 can't natively handle little endian like the G3 and G4 can means a pretty significant re-write of the VPC core.

Little endian and big endian are inverses of each other and have to do with byte order. A fairly good example would be:

.backwards sentence this Reading.

The G3 and G4 could handle executing byte-code like that fairly well. The G5 does not have that functionality. So now, not only does the emulation layer have to convert x86 asm ops to PPC, but it will also have to reverse the order of each binary sentence.

 

[magomago]

Go play Halo on your PC instead. Oh wait, you can't, because MS shelved the PC version when they bought Bungie to help xbox sales

If you are actually excited to play that game now you are caaaa-raaaayyyy-zzzz



Anyway the reason I think there is M$ software on the Mac is a) They make money since even my teacher used it on his G3 back when those were new and b) It helps microsoft permeate (Sp?) through all forms of media and technology so regardless of platform they are the "undisputed" leader so to say...I'm not sure how to explain it so I'll let someone else who knows what I'm talking aobut do it

 

[grant2]

I just wonder what person pays a premium to buy a mac & then wants to run windoze software on it. Seems really weird to me!

 

[Sunner]

Originally posted by: EeyoreX

Think that's paranoid, then go play KOTOR on your PC. Oh wait you can't, because MS paid Lucasarts to delay the PC version to help xbox sales. Go play Halo on your PC instead. Oh wait, you can't, because MS shelved the PC version when they bought Bungie to help xbox sales. MS doesn't want to help the G5 launch so they're dragging their feet on a VPC fix.

Boo hoo! Microsoft wants to make money for their product. It's okay, though, that Apple makes software and hardware (save for a few examples) compatible ONLY with Apple stuff. Gee, maybe because they want all your money. They won't get all your money if they made it so OS X works on your PC. But that's okay, because it's not Microsoft doing it.

Puh-leaze. If you want to run Mac software, buy a Mac. If you want to run Windows software, buy a PC. Or esle wait until the emulator works. You'll live.

\Dan

The difference is that Apple is a hardware company.
OS X is the biggest advantage their hardware has, so to speak, to port it to x86 would make no sense whatsoever.

Microsoft on the other hand is a software company.

 

[synapse02]

 

[magomago]

Originally posted by: grant2
I just wonder what person pays a premium to buy a mac & then wants to run windoze software on it. Seems really weird to me!

Word. If I had a mac I'd use Claris Works - not MS Office.

 

[mosco]

Originally posted by: grant2
I just wonder what person pays a premium to buy a mac & then wants to run windoze software on it. Seems really weird to me!

i used to use it to copy dvds, until i got a pc. but after i bought a pc, the copying app came to the mac.

 

[ViRGE]

Originally posted by: grant2
I just wonder what person pays a premium to buy a mac & then wants to run windoze software on it. Seems really weird to me!

Most people don't buy a Mac just to run PC software, but often, there's some software that simply isn't availible for the Mac, so VPC is a realization and resolution to that. People buy a Mac for what the Mac does, VPC simply covers the last stumbling block for some people.