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Neither does Microsoft with Windows.

• wyager 5y ago
  They definitely charged money for e.g. going to windows 10 from windows 7 or whatever. You also don't have to pay to install macos on non-mac hardware. By any reasonable definition, macos is free/gratis.
  • jaywalk 5y ago
    > They definitely charged money for e.g. going to windows 10 from windows 7 or whatever. No, they didn't. > You also don't have to pay to install macos on non-mac hardware. You "don't have to pay" because Apple doesn't allow it. If we're going to talk about bypassing restrictions and violating licensing agreements, you "don't have to pay" for most software because you can find a cracked version online for free. That's not an argument.
    • wyager 5y ago
      > No, they didn't. It seems they claimed to officially (which is what I remembered) but did not in practice. https://www.cnet.com/tech/services-and-software/windows-7-to-10-upgrade-seriously-heres-why-you-need-to-update/ https://www.cnet.com/tech/services-and-software/windows-7-to... https://www.laptopmag.com/articles/upgrade-to-windows-10-free https://www.laptopmag.com/articles/upgrade-to-windows-10-fre... In any case, this discussion is clearly just bickering over semantics. Apple has never asked me for money for an OS. Microsoft has asked me for money for an OS many times. Apple does not make money charging for unbundled OS sales. Microsoft makes money charging for unbundled OS sales. You can pontificate all you want about what it really means for something to be free, but from a practical perspective, no one treats MacOS as an independent product that you can go to the store and buy. MacOS doesn't "cost money" any more than the infotainment OS in my car "costs money"; i.e. not in a sense that most people would identify with.