Apple's ability to run the Windows operating system may wind up increasing its share of the U.S. personal computer market by 300%, according to a stock analyst at the Needham Company.

Upgrading Apple's stock from "hold" to "buy" status, Charles Wolf issued a price target of 90$ per share, stating the reason for the upgrade as "...the prospect that a significant number of Windows users will switch to a Mac once it's able to run Windows applications."  A recent survey of Windows users in the U.S. indicates that 8% would switch to an Apple if it could run Windows. This would triple Apple's U.S. market share, and increase its global share 75%.

Last April, Apple introduced a beta version of Boot Camp, which allows the Mac to boot up from either OSX or Windows. Apple plans to bundle Boot Camp with its next version of OS X, called "Leopard," scheduled for release early next year.

If you're a hard-core geek - or just love the way computers have made many tasks faster and easier - you've probably also discovered that one machine does not fit all situations. Eventually, we're forced to "swing both ways." Last year, when I started making more of my living on-line, I (a loyal Mac user since the dinosaur days of the Apple II) had to break down and get a Windows PC, since the Web is not always Mac-friendly.

On the other hand, while I shoot machinema films and do all my web-work on PC, I still do 3d modeling, artwork and compose music on my trusty G4 - a bit of a pain, since the two machines are located on different floors.

Had I but waited a bit, I could have had the best of both worlds. The latest G5 Macs use the Intel processor, and now, thanks to the new "Boot Camp" software, one can switch from OSX to WinXP "with a simple keystroke; simply hold down the Option key at startup, and choose your OS.

System requirements:

Â?An Intel-based Mac running Mac OS X Tiger v10.4.6
Â?The latest Firmware
Â?10 gigabytes of free hard disk space
Â?A blank recordable CD
Â?Microsoft Windows XP, Service Pack 2, Home or Professional Installation Disk

According to those who have tried it, the XP runs just as fast as OSX.

There is also an interesting video that suggests there is a way to switch operating systems "on the fly." Is it for real, or not? Take a look at the screenshot above and notice the Windows Taskbar at the bottom, then check out this video.

A couple weeks ago I posted about my Boot Camp Fantasy. It seems that someone has hacked a similar functionality. Linked below is the video of it on YouTube. Basically they used Parallels to run the 'other' operating systems within their OS X environment. Then they fiddled with Virtue - an open source Virtual Desktop app - so that a cubed transition to a next desktop would reveal the operating system they want to work with.

Looks pretty sweet! I wonder what the hardware specs are on the Intel Mac Mini they're using. I'd imagine the RAM is way up there... Anyhow - looks cool, and I bet it works pretty nicely for them as well. Thanks for making my fantasy a reality (sort of)!

It seems that ExperCom is the place to go if you want to buy a MacBook Pro and run Windows XP on it. Especially if you're the non-techie type, or just plain don't want to fuss with all the Boot Camp process. ExperCom will pre-install Windows XP with Service Pack 2 using Boot Camp depending on the configuration of MacBook Pro that you order from them.

They are sure to point out that they don't support Windows, nor does Apple. There's also a reminder that Boot Camp is still beta software, so it's ultimately at your own risk. A base MacBook Pro with XP installed runs $2029 which is a pretty killer deal, considering it's only $30 more than you'd pay from Apple directly, and Windows XP Pro is like $200 or something like that. Not to mention they're partitioning and installing the Microsoft OS for you too.

This is the first I've seen of this service being offered, but it only seems logical. Especially once 10.5 ships, and Boot Camp [type] functionality is fully supported, and not just a beta situation.

With the advent of the Intel based Mac and the subsequent addition of bootcamp to allow dual booting of OSX and XP, Mac users have been blessed with the best of both worlds. The long running rivalry between the Mac and PC has come to a new place, leaving the Mac with a distinct advantage. As a PC user myself, who dual boots between Ubuntu (Linux) and XP, I can't help but have a bit of jealousy when I think about the new found capabilities available in the latest generation of Intel based Macs. Apparently, I'm not the only person who recognizes that the operating system support paradigm has shifted. According to James Coates, a writer for the LA Times, Michael Dell himself has voiced his desire to see operating system support reach a new found balance by implementing OSX support in Dell PC's. In a recent email to Forbes magazine Dell said, "If Apple decides to open the Mac OS to others, we would be happy to offer it to our customers." Naturally, Apple responded with perfunctory rhetoric; saying that it will only sell OSX for installation on Mac hardware. Microsoft was understandably silent on the issue. Presumably they are content making a few extra sales of their OS to Mac users and see no need for reciprocal action by Apple. Fortunately for wishful thinkers like me, Steve Jobs is given to flip- flopping (as he initially did with his decision against supporting XP on the Intel Mac). However, at this point I'm certainly not ready to hold my breath in anticipation of a situation where Apple will offer OSX support for PC's.

The lucky people down at GearLog's PC Labs have managed to get hold of a Novatel X620 high speed ExpressCard. The unit they tested was a prototype and can only be used of XP at the moment. In saying this, they tested the card on a HP Pavillion dv5000 and a Boot Camp-enabled MacBook Pro, the drivers for the card are expected to become available through an update from the Apple website once the card is released. The ExpressCard is set to be the update to the PCMCIA standard, by offering lower power consumption, smaller size and a faster data transfer. This has already been taken on-board by many companies such as Dell, Lenovo, HP and Apple, who are taking advantage of the high speed cellular transfer which up and until now has only been offered by phones and PC Cards. The installation was simple, all that was needed was a new install of VZAccess Manager, and once complete the card was inserted and very quickly the card was running at 700 kbps. It might be worth mentioning that the card was built for access on Verizon and Sprint networks, and for the test it was being used through Verizon. The pictures show the size of the card, ignore the top accessory, that was a dongle for the wireless mouse that was used.

  

Worried that Boot Camp'll expose the Apple of your eye to malware? No need to worry, says analyst firm Gartner - that sort of thing's just hype and should be ignored.

Gartner Research VP Michael Silver says, and we quote, All users should ignore any hype about the possibility of exposing the Mac OS to more viruses or worms. The Mac software will be located on another partition within a different file system; thus, running Windows on a Mac will not expose the Mac software to more malware.  What a relief.

Still, though, he cautions that if Boot Camp helps make Macs more popular, they could become an attractive target for viruses, worms and what-not. Let's see how things end up.

It seems that the launch of Boot Camp hasn't gone all to plan. There are many angry and distressed users on the Apple forum complaining that they can't boot back into Mac OS X because of serious crashes. This problem has probably been caused by the partitioning software used in Boot Camp, but to make matters worse Apple aren't providing any support. The problem is going over 10 users, and mind they are ones that regularly use the Apple forum, so God knows how many people are facing this problem in real life. Some users are posting ways to fix the problem, however these do seem a bit on the technical side, and for many they just aren't a real solution for beginners, however it can be said that the  main users of Boot Camp would be those who have a technical background.

Clearly the hottest news this week is Apple's release of Boot Camp.  The ability to dual boot Intel Macs is supported by Apple - and that's a huge step in the computer industry.  But just how supportive of Boot Camp is Apple? 

According to a discussion thread on Apple's website, one user got some sketchy information.  A warm MacBook Pro spooked this user, who then ran a hardware test.  A "Left_middle-front error" - which I am not at ALL familiar with - caused him to call Apple Care.  They referred him to the Apple store for support on this issue.  (That in itself is iffy to me.)  When talking to the person at the Apple store he was told, "You didn't install Boot Camp did you? That's a beta and it voids your warranty."  Whaa??? 

So Apple releases this killer new piece of software - granted it IS beta - and then they say that if you use it, your warranty is void?  I can't imagine this could possibly be true.  Apple would be facing massive user complaints - not to mention law suits in this sue-happy age - were this to be the truth. 

Further down the page people claim that no, it is in fact false.  Your warranty should be safe - which makes logical sense.  I haven't checked this myself, but it's an interesting topic.  Have you any input?  Let's hear it in the comments.

Oh - and concerning the user mentioned above.  Apple laptops get hot.  It's a fact of life with these machines.  My opinion is that he was spooked easily.  My PowerBook is burning my legs as I type...

Surprisingly, Microsoft has responded to Apple's boot camp with a positive stament: "Windows is a great operating system," a Microsoft statement said. "We're pleased that Apple customers are excited about running it, and that Apple is responding to meet the demand.", never missing a chance to plug their own operating system.

Apple have also used the release of boot camp as another positive for their operating system, Mac OSX. In a statement Apple said "Boot Camp makes the Mac way more appealing to Windows users who are considering the switch by lowering the barrier to moving to Mac", which is very true, as I myself am now considering the switch to Mac on my next PC purchase. Brian Croll, senior director for Mac OS X product marketing, also clarifies that 'Apple will not preinstall or sell Windows, so users must provide their own copy'.