Hackintosher emerges from bankruptcy
And that's the bad news
The on-again, off-again slugfest between Apple and Hackintosher Psystar has taken yet another turn - and this one puts the feisty Floridians in a bit of a bind.
The US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida has granted Psystar's request to dismiss its Chapter 11 bankruptcy case. But there's a twist: The presiding judge, Robert A. Mark, has stipulated that the Hackintoshers can't delay their upcoming trial with Apple (scheduled to begin on January 11, 2010) by refiling for bankruptcy protection.
The exact period of the injunction against filing is unclear, as the dismissal order states "that this case is dismissed with prejudice to the filing of a petition under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code for a period of six (12) months from the date of this Order."
Calls to Psystar's lawyers to clarify if the period during which Psytar is barred from another bankruptcy filing is six months or 12 months were not returned.
The inability of Psystar to protect itself under the shield of bankruptcy not only prevents it from ducking the upcoming Apple trial - US law automatically puts a stay on court proceedings against companies under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection - but it also exposes the Hackintosher to legal actions which might be filed by its other creditors.
And there are plenty of them. When Psystar filed for bankruptcy in May of this year, court documents showed the company to be about $260,000 in debt.
This June, Apple successfully petitioned the Florida court to lift the automatic stay. And now Judge Mark has blocked Psystar from using the same bankruptcy dodge.
And so Psystar stand exposed. But it remains unbowed. In a recent post to its company blog entitled "The Circus Comes To Town," the spunky defendants told the world that Apple's lawyers were on their way to observe their facilities during the trial's discover phase, saying that "We believe the only thing they will discover is what we have been open about from the start, and of course the scorching Florida heat."
Psystar also said that they are "developing an addition to this Community site detailing an overview of the case and any relevant materials." We look forward to reading their take on the entire saga.
As Psystar's blogger wrote to end his "Circus" posting, "Stay tuned..." ®
COMMENTS
FL Heat
While the lawyers may discover the "scorching heat" during the discovery phase, they will enjoy average temperatures of 70°F (21°C) during the trial phase in January.
Attorneys may be troglodytes unable to appreciate subtleties such as "weather", but I welcome them to the peninsula just the same. Spend up that Cupertino money while you're here.
Accusations that Psystar is being bankrolled by a third party with ulterior motives seem flimsy with the timing of recent events. Best of luck to psystar. You may not win, but hopefully your actions will encourage others to read EULAs before they purchase an — overlord, sorry, OS.
If only...
If only Pystar could make money out of news stories and flame wars - then they would have a great business plan. As it is, they are doom to die horribly.
Think about it
If you buy OS X and hack to run on a homegrown box, Apple doesn't really care. You bought OS X for $129 (or $29 this time around, yay!), which they wouldn't have gotten otherwise. You probably got it to tinker around with, test drive, poke around here and there ... remember, Woz and Jobs started off selling to hobbyists. They're cool with it, but don't, of course, expect much help from customer support or a genius bar.
Now, if you do that and start reselling the computers, then they got issues. Their cost of doing business will escalate as people call in for support. Their reputation drops as the quality is iffy, and Apple has built their reputation for quality goods; it's a large part of what keeps them profitable even in this consumer market. And the people you're selling to are far more likely to be people who would buy a Mac, thus cutting under their profit. And just how much are you returning to Apple for each copy of OS X sold?
Different cases. One is being a hobbyist, the other is using the OS in a way that is against the EULA and undermines Apple's business.(And this from a pro-business libertarian, I'll have you know.)
OS X on non-supported hardware
"What is the current position on the running of OSX on non-Apple hardware, both legally and technically?"
OS X runs just fine on non-Apple hardware, although it's against the terms of the EULA. Apple tends to be pretty relaxed about this sort of thing (although don't expect any technical support from them, obviously). Selling a Hackintosh with OS X installed is an entirely different matter, of course. Expect a letter from Apple Legal if you do this.
EULAs...has anyone ever read one?
Hey, I may be a married'w'kids, Appletard, but even I have a life!
