"It's chilly in here", said Satan

I was just back from ski in hell, had parked my flying saucer home and was about to go in the backyard to pull the teeths from my chickens when I saw this news:

Apple Allows Windows on Its Machines (Apple)

For 2 minutes, I looked for signs of an April Fool. Actually, even now as the news start to make sense and appears on the front page of the New York Times, I still wonder if it's an April Fool or not. That alone says how big and unexpected, just a few months ago, this announcement is.

Less than a year ago, Apple machines weren't even compatible with Windows. They were running on PowerPCs, a competitor to Intel. And Intel was the enemy. And Windows too. Now it looks like my Mac is about to turn into a PC.

Not that I mind. Apple considers itself as a hardware company so this is just one way to sell more hardware. Go Apple. As long as they keep developing Mac OS X - 75% of the reason why I'm a Mac user - they can allow any alien on other people's machines. Hey, I might even install Windows one of these days!

I expect Apple to gain a bit of market share with high-end and style-conscious users. As long as nobody will offer technical support, I don't expect the mass market to pay much interest. Those who needed Windows but weren't convinced by the emulation solutions offered - often too slow.