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Will apple reclaim the spot they've had over the last decade or so(that they recently lost) as #2 OS?
There's been speculation that an intel mac will be seen in january. I suppose only time will tell, but the hurdle for them to reclaim the #2 spot isn't nearly as large as the one in front of them for #1.
(I'm talking about userbase/size)
>>>That is that a patent has been discovered that allows Apple to protect the installation of the Mac OS X to just Apple-produced hardware. The patent describes a process whereby users would be able to load one of three operating systems as their primary OS and then load a secondary operating system as their secondary OS
So Apple will allow Windows (and Linux?) to be installed on their hardware, but OS X cannot be installed on any hardware than Apple's.
Seems like a brilliant idea to me, it ought to bring into the fold the people who have been on the brink of switching, but have been held up because of software availability.
Apple will probably even make dual-booting a fool-proof process (iBoot?).
That question is based on a faulty premise. Most of the Linux computers sold in the Far East are reformatted by customers with pirated copies of Windows.
Mac OS X is currently the #2 operating system in usage, between Windows and Linux.
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If Apple is going to take on Microsoft, they're going to have to do two things.
1) Apple branded office software that is compatible with Microsoft file formats
2) Buy a game software company and start by turning out great ports of PC games, and later start producing their own games
The first item is the only way they'll really make inroads into the business market. The server-client integration that Apple already has is terrific and cross platform, for the most part. The basic technologies are already part of Mac OS X, namely LDAP, Bonjour, and solid network integration and security. Office software that protects data, seamlessly integrates with file/print/document-sharing servers and is backward compatible with Microsoft Office would be a major killer, especially if the licensing is more generous, and the features more robust. A mere Office clone would be a disappointment, and it wouldn't match Jobs modus operandi.
The second item is a necessity made simpler by the transition to Intel's hardware. Now the only translation will be the APIs, and not on the machine code. If Apple purchases a company like MacSoft and applies their expertise to the porting of games that have never made it to the Apple platform, then the resistance to the purchasing of a Macintosh will be decreased further.
Better office software, better or equal gaming software.
