Choosing to use a Mac doesn’t mean you have to leave behind Windows OS and all of the software. You can set up a dual-boot system to run both in parallel, or use a Windows emulator for Mac. In fact, if you have to deal with various platforms then a Mac would even be a great choice.
In This Chapter. The Classic Environment.
Launching Classic. The Boot Process. Running Classic Applications. Maintaining and Monitoring Classic. Direct Booting Mac OS 9.x If you've never had a Mac or are a NeXT user who's happy to have finally found a home, Mac OS X probably has more than enough available software and functionality to make you happy.
Those of you who have been using the Mac operating system regularly for years, however, are likely to already have a software library that you rely on. To accommodate this need, Apple included the Classic environment. Classic provides a runtime layer for older, non-Carbonized Mac applications. It even allows certain pieces of hardware to be accessible, such as USB scanners and cameras. It is not a perfect solution, but it does allow for a high degree of compatibility with legacy hardware and software from within Mac OS X.
This chapter looks at the Classic environment, how it works, how to configure it, and what to do if you absolutely must boot into Mac OS 9.x. The Classic Environment As defined in Chapter 1, 'Mac OS X Component Architecture,' theClassic environment is a complete implementation of Mac OS 9.x on top of Mac OSX.
To Mac OS X, Classic is nothing but another application; to a user, however,Classic is a gateway to his older software programs. TIP You must have at least 128MB of memory to use Classic, and a 400MHz G3(or faster) is recommended.
When it comes to Classic, more is definitelybetter. Classic is a process under Mac OS X. Mac OS X must be running forClassic to work. In essence, you're booting two operating systemssimultaneously. When using the Classic environment, the 9.x operating system must access allhardware through the Mac OS X kernel.
This means software that accesses hardwaredirectly will fail. Users of 3Dfx video cards, hardware DVD playback, videocapture cards, and even some CD writers will find that their hardware no longerfunctions correctly. On the other hand, Classic brings the benefit of Mac OS X's virtualmemory underpinnings to legacy applications. Each Mac OS 9.x application can beconfigured for a much larger memory partition than was possible previously.
Tothe Classic environment, the virtual memory appears to be real memory. Programshave much more breathing room in which to function. Working with the Classic environment is a somewhat unusual experience.Depending on the application running, there can be graphic anomalies andconfusing file system navigation. This chapter will show what you'll seeand what to do when things don't seem to work right.
PowerPC application (Microsoft Word for Mac 2004) running on OS X for Intel 10.4.4–10.6.8 (Intel) Website Rosetta is a discontinued for that allowed many applications to run on certain -based computers without modification. Released Rosetta in 2006 when it the of the Macintosh from the PowerPC to the Intel processor. The name 'Rosetta' is a reference to the, the discovery that made it possible to comprehend and translate. Rosetta is based on technology. It has no, which led Apple to describe Rosetta as 'the most amazing software you'll never see.' Rosetta was initially included with 'Tiger', the version that was released with the first Intel-based Macintosh models.
Rosetta is not installed by default in 'Snow Leopard', but can be retained as an option via the installer or for users who need to run PowerPC. Rosetta is neither included nor supported in 'Lion' or later.
Therefore, with Lion and later releases, the current Macintosh platform does not support PowerPC applications. Rosetta is part of Mac OS X for Intel operating systems prior to Lion.
It translates, and instructions; however, it does not translate instructions. Therefore, applications that rely on G5-specific instruction sets must be modified by their developers to work on Rosetta-supported Intel-based Macs. According to Apple, applications with heavy user interaction but low computational needs (such as ) are well suited to translation via Rosetta, while applications with high computational needs (such as, games, or ) are not.
Pre-existing PowerPC versions of Apple 'Pro' media-production applications (such as, Motion, Aperture, and Logic Pro) are not supported by Rosetta and require a to a version to work on Rosetta-supported Intel-based Macs. CNET News.com. June 8, 2005. From the original on 2014-07-14. Retrieved July 4, 2007. From the original on 2010-11-16. Retrieved September 5, 2011.
March 3, 2012, at the. ^ AppleInsider Staff (February 26, 2011). AppleInsider, Inc. From the original on 2014-04-29. Retrieved February 27, 2011. Universal Binary Programming Guidelines, Second Edition.
Archived from (PDF) on August 3, 2012. Retrieved September 5, 2011. Universal Binary Programming Guidelines, Second Edition. Archived from (PDF) on August 3, 2012. Retrieved September 5, 2011. External links.
at the (archived January 7, 2011). at the (archived September 14, 2008).