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Once again that is because you can only lawfully run MacOS on Apple Hardware. Read the EULA. Therefore if you have the hardware it is assumed you or someone pai

Once again that is because you can only lawfully run MacOS on Apple Hardware. Read the EULA. Therefore if you have the hardware it is assumed you or someone paid Apple for it so the software was also indirectly bought with it.

smoldesu 4y ago
That doesn't mean I inherantly paid for it. My dad could hand me down his old Mac and I would be able to lawfully download and use it without spending a dime. The software is free (to download), it is not freely licensed though.
- Grazester 4y ago
  Does it matter who hands you the software? If he didn't download it then you could have done so yourself, there was nothing preventing you from doing so and using it on the Mac that was already paid for(even if not by you).
- boomboomsubban 4y ago
  Pretty sure I can freely download Windows 11 too, and if my father passed me down his old laptop I could reinstall Windows on it. I get what you're saying, but MacOS isn't cost free. It's only sold bundled with Apple hardware, and you must buy both.
  - smoldesu 4y ago
    Hence the "technical" clause in my original comment. Nothing stops me if I want to go (hypothetically) Hackintosh my Thinkpad. Apple lets you download the recovery image right from their CDN and (hypothetically) it's a cakewalk to mount OpenCore on it with an EFI off Github. Apple sure didn't make it, but they also don't have an "Activate MacOS" popup after you partition your drive (at least, in my expe- erm, hypothetically). So, agree to disagree. The preeminent point is that Microsoft is the only one charging directly for the licensing of their software, which is ironic if it spies on you incessantly. Agreed?
    - gjsman-1000 4y ago
      Malarkey. MacOS comes with a Kext called "Don't Steal MacOS", also known as "DSMOS." If it detects you are running on unapproved hardware, it stops your boot and also echos this message to your logs: "Your karma check for today: There once was a user that whined, his existing OS was so blind, he'd do better to pirate an OS that ran great, but found his hardware declined. Please don't steal Mac OS! Really, that's way uncool. (C) Apple Computer, Inc." It's not just a simple detection either, but actually uses encryption to decrypt certain MacOS components after the verification check (namely, Finder, Dock, SystemUIServer, some others). Removing or bypassing DSMOS is required for all Hackintoshing tools, and it's actually a DMCA violation do that (see Apple vs. Psystar). Legally, removing it is the equivalent of removing or disabling Windows Activation, or using a Windows Activation crack tool. The bypass is most often accomplished with the simulated, fake SMC. However, (again) legally, that qualifies as a DMCA circumvention tool by including the specific key that MacOS is looking for.
      - smoldesu 4y ago
        It's illegal, but all of the components required to make it are free. I don't know what to tell you, it's like saying that PS2 emulation is actually $200 because everyone needs to buy their own PS2 to dump the firmware from. Hypothetically, you're right! Technically though...
- gjsman-1000 4y ago
  > My dad could hand me down his old Mac and I would be able to lawfully download and use it without spending a dime. You would be able to lawfully download it, but you would only be able to lawfully use it on an Apple-branded computer (which, by definition legally speaking, requires a computer that was legally manufactured by Apple). Look up Apple Inc. v. Psystar Corp., a company that tried to get around Apple's EULA for this exact clause using every gymnastic of law imaginable. They lost multiple appeals, were charged millions in damages, and went bankrupt.

smoldesu 4y ago

That doesn't mean I inherantly paid for it. My dad could hand me down his old Mac and I would be able to lawfully download and use it without spending a dime. The software is free (to download), it is not freely licensed though.

Grazester 4y ago
Does it matter who hands you the software? If he didn't download it then you could have done so yourself, there was nothing preventing you from doing so and using it on the Mac that was already paid for(even if not by you).
boomboomsubban 4y ago
Pretty sure I can freely download Windows 11 too, and if my father passed me down his old laptop I could reinstall Windows on it. I get what you're saying, but MacOS isn't cost free. It's only sold bundled with Apple hardware, and you must buy both.
- smoldesu 4y ago
  Hence the "technical" clause in my original comment. Nothing stops me if I want to go (hypothetically) Hackintosh my Thinkpad. Apple lets you download the recovery image right from their CDN and (hypothetically) it's a cakewalk to mount OpenCore on it with an EFI off Github. Apple sure didn't make it, but they also don't have an "Activate MacOS" popup after you partition your drive (at least, in my expe- erm, hypothetically). So, agree to disagree. The preeminent point is that Microsoft is the only one charging directly for the licensing of their software, which is ironic if it spies on you incessantly. Agreed?
  - gjsman-1000 4y ago
    Malarkey. MacOS comes with a Kext called "Don't Steal MacOS", also known as "DSMOS." If it detects you are running on unapproved hardware, it stops your boot and also echos this message to your logs: "Your karma check for today: There once was a user that whined, his existing OS was so blind, he'd do better to pirate an OS that ran great, but found his hardware declined. Please don't steal Mac OS! Really, that's way uncool. (C) Apple Computer, Inc." It's not just a simple detection either, but actually uses encryption to decrypt certain MacOS components after the verification check (namely, Finder, Dock, SystemUIServer, some others). Removing or bypassing DSMOS is required for all Hackintoshing tools, and it's actually a DMCA violation do that (see Apple vs. Psystar). Legally, removing it is the equivalent of removing or disabling Windows Activation, or using a Windows Activation crack tool. The bypass is most often accomplished with the simulated, fake SMC. However, (again) legally, that qualifies as a DMCA circumvention tool by including the specific key that MacOS is looking for.
    - smoldesu 4y ago
      It's illegal, but all of the components required to make it are free. I don't know what to tell you, it's like saying that PS2 emulation is actually $200 because everyone needs to buy their own PS2 to dump the firmware from. Hypothetically, you're right! Technically though...
gjsman-1000 4y ago
> My dad could hand me down his old Mac and I would be able to lawfully download and use it without spending a dime. You would be able to lawfully download it, but you would only be able to lawfully use it on an Apple-branded computer (which, by definition legally speaking, requires a computer that was legally manufactured by Apple). Look up Apple Inc. v. Psystar Corp., a company that tried to get around Apple's EULA for this exact clause using every gymnastic of law imaginable. They lost multiple appeals, were charged millions in damages, and went bankrupt.