Recycled Computing

To Hackintosh or Not to Hackintosh?

- 2009.12.03

Popularity:

Short link: http://bit.ly/5lIyla

Should I make a HackBook to solve my Leopard jones?

I have a copy of Mac OS X 10.5 "Leopard" just lying around, and the monkey on my back is something fierce. I just have to install this on a computer so I can compare it with my faithful Mac OS X 10.4 "Tiger", which is on my 10-year-old Pismo PowerBook.

Okay, there are some who would urge me to install a G4 processor on the Pismo and "force" an install of Leopard on the old girl. I'm not too sure that the Pismo is the best choice for Leopard, given the Pismo's primitive graphics capacity. Right now, I have to turn the display down to "thousands of colors" to make CoverFlow work in iTunes. Leopard, I feel, might tax the Pismo even more.

I could be wrong, but Tiger seems to be a better fit on the Pismo.

I could buy a new (or used) Intel-based iMac or MacBook. The problem here is that this would cost money, money that the Secretary of the Exchequer says we do not have. Christmas is coming, and even the dog is further up the Christmas list than I am.

I could see if we have an old G4 Mac desktop around the school that my boss is willing to retire to the "dustbin of history".

However, I am leaning towards making the jump to an Intel Max so I can use Mac OS X 10.6 "Snow Leopard" in the future. This would bring me back to buying a new (or refurbished) MacBook.

Or...

(If you are Steve Jobs, please stop reading right now.)

Here's the thing - Dell makes a netbook that is mysteriously supported by OS X. I am referring to the Dell Mini 9 or it's business equivalent, the Dell Vostro A90. I know, that I missed my chance to pick up an A90 when Dell blew them out over the weekend, but they still have them in their refurbished department. That would be an outlay of $200 or so.

However, I would also need to pick up a larger solid state drive. Adding more RAM is something I could put off to the future.

Bottom line: I could probably do the hack for $450 or so, since I already own a copy of Tiger that I bought from Apple. But is it morally right to put an Apple OS on a Dell? Can I live with the thought of Steve Jobs' disappointment in a lifelong Apple user switching to hardware from the Dark Side? What will my children think?

Just imagine - I would have an OS X netbook. It would be cool to show off at a Mac show, if I ever went to one.

Get thee behind me, Satan!

Join us on Facebook!, follow us on Twitter, use our Google+ page, or read our RSS news feed

Recent Recycled Computing Columns

Mountain Lion Obsoletes the MacBook I Just Bought, 2012.02.24. John Hatchett just got his first Intel Mac, a preowned MacBook, in December, and now it looks like it won't be able to run OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion.
Improving Tablets: Why Not a Slider Keyboard?, 2012.02.20. Perhaps the biggest drawback of the iPad and other tablets is lack of a buil-in physical keyboard. Many phones have slider keyboards....
Which Apple TV Is Right for You?, 2012.02.15. If you own an older TV set, the original Apple TV may be a better choice than Apple's current unit.
More in the Recycled Computing index.

Links for the Day

Mac of the Day: PowerBook 500 Series, introduced 1994.05.16. 'Blackbird' includes a 25 to 33 MHz 68040 along with smart batteries and grayscale or color displays.
May 16 in LEM history: 98: iMac reconsidered - 01: The exclusivist Mac - Cubed - Troubleshooting - 02: SE/30 catharsis - Microsoft free - 03: SCSI and OS X on a beige G3 - 05: Failures: Apple III and Lisa - Bigger, faster, more - 06: MacBook - PowerBook 3400 still useful - 07: 3 GB in a MacBook - 08: Mac Pro beats HP and Dell - Limited USB power in Santa Rosa Macs
Support Low End Mac

Recent Deals

About LEM Support Usage Privacy Contact

Low End Mac is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple Inc. Entire Low End Mac website copyright ©1997-2012 by Cobweb Publishing, Inc. unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Low End Mac, LowEndMac, and lowendmac.com are trademarks of Cobweb Publishing Inc. Apple, the Apple logo, Macintosh, iPad iPhone, iMac, iPod, MacBook, MagSafe, Mac Pro, Apple TV, and AirPort are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. Additional company and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks and are hereby acknowledged.
Advice is presented in good faith, but what works for one may not work for all. Please report errors to .
LINKS: We allow and encourage links to any public page as long as the linked page does not appear within a frame that prevents bookmarking it.
Email may be published at our discretion unless marked "not for publication"; email addresses will not be published without permission, and we will encrypt them in hopes of avoiding spammers. Letters may be edited for length, context, and to match house style.
PRIVACY: We don't collect personal information unless you explicitly provide it. For more details, see our Terms of Use.

Custom Search

Follow Low End Mac on Twitter
Join Low End Mac on Facebook

Low End Mac Reader Specials

Macsales.com for the Right Mac Memory. Most Popular: 16GB from $128; 8GB from $50. MacBook Pro & Mac mini Kits up to 16GB. iMac up to 32GB & Mac Pro now up to 128GB. - Macsales.com

Don't install Parallels to play poker online! Macpokeronline.com will show you how to download and play Poker on a Mac natively on your Mac in just minutes.

Affiliates

Amazon.com
The iTunes Store
PC Connection Express
Parallels Desktop for Mac
eBay