ACK has pretty much confirmed that their high-end Amiga system will use PA Semi chips. In an IRC session, Adam of ACK replied to the question how ACK was going to build a system faster than anything Apple ever produced on the PPC side: "Think PA Semi quad-core chips." Adam also said ACK started talks with PA Semi about a year ago, while also promising specifications of the high-end system to be released coming Monday.
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Member since:2005-07-06
While the idea of putting Amiga on old Macs may sound appealing there are two problems with this: Will someone go on eBay and buy an old Mac to run the Amiga? A small fraction might but not that many.
Second, Amiga would have to reverse engineer the Macs to run their OS. Seems simpler to have your own hardware.
Member since:2005-09-28
A lot of the reverse engineering has already been done in order to get Linux up and running on PPC macs.
I don't think there would be many people who would be willing to pay for expensive custom hardware and yet wouldn't be willing to grab an old PPC Mac from ebay to run it. At least that hardware would be capable run Classic/OSX+ a well tested and supported set of Linux dists in addition to Amiga.
I don't see how it "easier" to custom design some hardware as opposed to porting to an existing stable, cheap and fairly well understood platform.
Member since:2005-12-13
Second, Amiga would have to reverse engineer the Macs to run their OS. Seems simpler to have your own hardware.
Wherein lies the difference in supporting a newly put together, non existing platform as opposed to say Power Mac G5's? Working forwards or backwards hardly make a difference to the Amiga lovers that have been hearing news like this on and off for years, now...
Actually I'd think it'd be better to actually get someplace instead of just dreaming of it!
Plus: Since it's been possible for OpenBSD and NetBSD - not to mention Linux - to support the 'odd' Mac hardware, it should also be possible for the makers of the Amiga OS - if they want to...
Member since:2006-02-01
Member since:2005-07-06
I've always preached the combining of AmigaOS and the VIA EPIA paltform. Small, all-in-one motherboards, more than enough horsepower for AmigaOS, and best of all: they are readily available unlike expensive custom hardware. Now, that would've at least given the Amiga a fighting chance.
Member since:2005-07-23
Yeah, but I guess they think everyone would copy it then, but if $25.000 was all Hyperion got for it (I don't know if it was, just a number I saw, doesn't matter, say xxx $) just let the community buy it of and make it free.
The AmiZilla project is up to $10,373.02 (would be sad if they where never paid out, poor people who donated.), those money can't be used to pay for AmigaOS source code and rights but if it was...
Member since:2006-01-24
You know that windows XP can be run on 3-4 year old hardware without any problems, why does not people go buy old hardware instead of new? I think that is an stupid question just like your statement. Of course people would like to have an fast computer, no matter what OS it is running, it is not only the OS that will be running on the computer, so even if the os has an small footprint ans is blazering fast to work with, the software that will be used on the computer might require even more power.
Member since:2005-07-15
You know that windows XP can be run on 3-4 year old hardware without any problems, why does not people go buy old hardware instead of new?
Because not everyone is sucking on the MS teets. I can install OS X on a old decrepit iMac and it works great. Just because MS bloats its OS beyond reasonable proportions does not mean all other vendors do as well. 
Member since:
2005-09-28
"Bah!", I say. If they wanted to make Amiga OS 4 available to the masses they would release a version that can be loaded on old Macs. There exists a cheap and plentiful supply of such machines.
I don't believe that the their motivation is to place Amiga OS onto absolutely cutting edge hardware. Why does Amiga OS even /need/ cutting edge hardware? It's a small, efficient OS.
I'm sure that most Amiga who are still following Amiga OS 4 would be happy to pick up an old 500mhz PPC mac and then pay $50 or $100 dollars for a copy of Amiga OS 4.
The whole custom hardware path is built around the IP owners attempts to block piracy (if it became a problem, there would be other methods that could be used) and to build in massive margins for themselves.
Having re established the platform in such a manner, they could then pursue pie in the sky, custom hardware solutions.
Why should Amiga heads invest any more time in a company that puts its own interests so far ahead of the userbase? Oh, and the guy forgot to add the usual, "...and it'll be available in 18 months" rubbish that Amiga users have come to know and love.