Would you buy a mini just for the software? (Tiger & iLife)
I assume that the mini will come preloaded with Tiger after the release.
Given that Tiger is going to cost, what?, $130 and i life costs $80, that brings the additional cost for the hardware to only $290 ($500- $210). Now if that means I can switch the panther install on my pbook to the mini and Tiger to my pbook (along with iLife) it's like I'm getting a $300 mac!
Of course, this might be prohibited by the license, but the principle is sound.
Given that Tiger is going to cost, what?, $130 and i life costs $80, that brings the additional cost for the hardware to only $290 ($500- $210). Now if that means I can switch the panther install on my pbook to the mini and Tiger to my pbook (along with iLife) it's like I'm getting a $300 mac!
Of course, this might be prohibited by the license, but the principle is sound.
Comments
I would assume that the disks that ship with the Mini won't be useable on other machines without some sort of hack.
Anyone know how to get the installer from a new machine to work on an old one?
Also, we bought her AlBook a couple of weeks ago, any ideas on if we'll get Tiger via up-to-date?
Once you know when they will do the $20 upgrades for Tiger, order a Mac Mini, from Amazon.com or something. It will come with Panther, send in for your $20 Tiger upgrade, and use that disk on both machines. Of course, this won't give you iLife.
Originally posted by ibook911
You could do this:
Once you know when they will do the $20 upgrades for Tiger, order a Mac Mini, from Amazon.com or something. It will come with Panther, send in for your $20 Tiger upgrade, and use that disk on both machines. Of course, this won't give you iLife.
That's not a bad idea. But I think their usually is a simple hack for getting around the model specific installs. Isn't it usually just a matter of opening the package contents and getting to the individual installers?
Apple does this to screw ME over. Sorry this spills over and effects you guys, I didn't know Applecare would be so sensitive to prank calls.
For iLife? I dunno. There isn't anything the Mini can do that my current hardware couldn't with iLife '05. I'd just buy it for $80 and save $420.
But if your hardware is quite outdated, it may be a different story.
comparison shoppers fail to see.
If you were to break down the cost of usable software features included in OSX and iLife'05 and add that cost for similar software to an " affordable" PC, the Mac mini really shows it value.
What OS will come with the mini I ordered in late February that could possibly be delivered after Tiger is released? (based on the current 10 week average wait for a BTO model us poor Aussies have to endure) and how much memory will be installed?
The way I see it, if I have to wait so damn long for a Mac mini, Apple could at least throw in a little "sorry it took so f***ing long" present
Powermac Sawtooth, 576 MB RAM, 12 GB 7200 RPM HD, 120 GB 7200 RPM HD, Combo drive, 32 MB Radeon. Owned.
$400 - 1.5 GHz 7455 G4 upgrade
$129 - OS X 10.4 "Tiger"
$79 - iLife '05
$608 - Total
Mac Mini, BTO to approximate specs of my Sawtooth.
$599 - 1.42 GHz G4, with a slightly faster (33 MHz) bus than my Sawtooth.
$75 - 512 MB RAM
NA -120 GB 7200 RPM HD.
$674 - Total.
Of course the Mini doesn't come with any PCI slots, and if I wanted to upgrade to a Superdrive it's a 2 minute installation for my Sawtooth, but a nail-biting day or two with the mini. The Mini cannot accommodate fast HDs at all, and it certainly can't handle two, so I'd be left with a mess of wires and individual components on my desk. So much for the Mini's styling.
It's pathetic, absolutely pathetic, that Apple is still selling crapware that is LAME in comparison Apple products from the last century. My Sawtooth is what the Mini should have been; a "mini" tower, smaller than the Sawtooth and with a bit less expansion capacity, but nevertheless a powerful machine that will last. What are the chances of a Mini lasting me as long as my Sawtooth has?
Oh, and BTW, if you buy a Mini for the software, you will be surprised to find out that the software will only install on the Mini. You've got to buy Apple's software on its own if you want unlimited installs. Of course legally you can't install iLife or Tiger on multiple Macs without paying, but Apple knows the game. IMO, it's cool if you install it only on your own Macs, or on your family's Macs, but as soon as you start passing around copies to friends and acquaintances, it breaches into piracy. But my opinion doesn't count for anything with Apple.
Originally posted by foamy
Well my girlfriend just got a new 12" 1.5 AlBook and I tried using the installer on my 15" TiBook and the installer would not install the OS or the additional apps. I also tried on a 1GHz 12" Al book and no go as well.
I would assume that the disks that ship with the Mini won't be useable on other machines without some sort of hack.
Anyone know how to get the installer from a new machine to work on an old one?
Also, we bought her AlBook a couple of weeks ago, any ideas on if we'll get Tiger via up-to-date?
Simple Solution...backup your TiBook then put it in Target Disk mode..connect it to your firlfriends (Firewire) then use CCC to transfer OS & Apps... :-) no hacks needed...
Originally posted by NoBackUp
Simple Solution...backup your TiBook then put it in Target Disk mode..connect it to your firlfriends (Firewire) then use CCC to transfer OS & Apps... :-) no hacks needed...
This method may not install all the required components for the second computer, unless the second is a Mini or something with a similar configuration.
Originally posted by Junkyard Dawg
This method may not install all the required components for the second computer, unless the second is a Mini or something with a similar configuration.
I don't believe this is true. OS X is not machine-specific at all. If it detects the hardware, (Airport, Bluetooth, etc.) the relevant parts of the OS load on boot.
For example, I cloned my Cube install of 10.3 straight across to my G5 dual 2.0. Worked great.
I have booted different macs off of the same install on my iPod, and get different configs depending on the hardware present (like Airport, if I boot my Powerbook)
A restore disk might not function in the wrong machine, but the OS is certainly cloneable across different makes of Apple hardware.
Originally posted by heathpitts
couldn't the tiger install be completed by booting up the other mac in target disk mode, copying over all programs and files needed to the mini. Then using carbon copy cloner, clone the drive back to the mac you want tiger installed on. I have used a cloned external drive to boot an imac, powerbook, and a cube doing this. The operating system will boot up on any mac you have it on. Unless this gets changed in tiger.
If you're going to go through all that, just download a friggin' copy from the usual sources.
Originally posted by chris v
...For example, I cloned my Cube install of 10.3 straight across to my G5 dual 2.0. Worked great...
Wow, your Cube came with 10.3?! Oh, you must be refering to the FULL RETAIL INSTALL on your Cube. So, not relevant. Right.
The machine specific CDs are just that, machine specific. Yes there are ways around it, but come on, how can anyone on these boards call themselves Apple Fanboys (tm) without being willing to shell out a mere $95 (amazon.com) for the retail version of our favorite company's new schwag?
Kidding aside, as other people have noted, machine / hardware specific kernal extensions are loaded at boot time, making any install fairly robust in terms of being able to freely boot any other machine.
The method Apple uses to limit installs from bundled (machine specific) disc is two-fold... first, the discs are DVDs, or at least with any machine that ships with a DVD drive (almost all). This means people trying to install on older hardware may often be thwarted, and not even realize why. Second, the installer checks the hardware it is being run on. So, if you buy a Mini and wanted to install 10.4 on your AlBook, or even an old iMac sans DVD, just hook it up to the Mini via FireWire and boot it into target disk mode. That is, unless Apple has gotten smarter, and blocked the ability to install to external disks when using machine-bundled discs.
Bottom line, PAY FOR IT! Seriously, why do some many people seem to think they should be allowed free software all the time? Is it that it's so intangible? Most of the people b!tching about paying $129 for Tiger probably have cell phones. Right? You pay at least $35-$40 PER MONTH for that, right? Do you go around complaining that Verizon should just give you a new phone every 12-18 months? Do you expect Comcast to all of a sudden give you 250 channels of HD cable and dedicated 10Mb broadband just because? I really don't get it. You want new software, PAY FOR IT! It's not like 10.3 is going to self destruct when 10.4 comes out.
[/rant]
[edit] yeah, topic switched...I read this from Wilco part way through my post... " If you're going to go through all that, just download a friggin' copy from the usual sources." and it pissed me off. [/edit]
Originally posted by concentricity
[edit] and it pissed me off. [/edit] [/B]
Big. Fucking. Deal.
During the early days of MacOS X there was also a workaround for upgrade disks where you would simply remove one file from the installer package (version-check) and burn the remainder to a new CD giving a full install disk set. Does not work since 10.2. anymore.
Sometimes buying cheap can be very expensive.