Comment Re:No biggie (Score 1) 610
If Microsoft modified Windows 7 64-bit edition to BAN support for AMD 64-bit processors, and therefore encourage users to utilize only Microsoft Approved or Microsoft Manufactured hardware that utilizes Intel microprocessors.
Microsoft would be in court, at the wrong side of a lawsuit, pretty fast...
Are you really implying that Microsoft, a confirmed monopoly, would get sued for... not expanding their monopoly as much as possible? I think that if Microsoft stopped supporting AMD 64-bit processors they might see less court time. As a matter of fact, if they stopped supporting Intel 64-bit processors too, you could say they don't have a monopoly at all! (for 64-bit platforms anyway)
When companies decide not to support something, it is a cost decision. In this case Apple has no economic reason to support hardware they don't produce. Maybe Apple intentionally broke support, maybe they simply introduced optimizations that work on their hardware but cause problems on other hardware. Maybe they don't test unsupported hardware to know there was a problem, and maybe they do know but simply don't care. However it worked it out, they have the right to support, or not support, whatever hardware they wish.
Likewise, if Microsoft decides to stop supporting certain hardware, that's fine too. Virtual PC stopped supporting Linux when Microsoft acquired it. All that did was help move people to VMWare and other products. If it's more economic for Apple to require people to move to Windows/Linux/whatever on non-Apple hardware rather than letting them using OS-X, well that sounds like fair game to me. You don't buy the OS-X software, you lease it. Use of the software is governed by the EULA. Those users had no right to use it anyway.
Apple is making a statement. Perhaps they are saying that the software cost, assuming those users actually buy OS-X, isn't significant. Maybe Apple loses money overall on the software and rely on hardware sales for profit? Perhaps Apple does make money from the software, but it doesn't cover the cost of maintaining unsupported configurations due to the additional development time? Perhaps none of the above is true, and they simply want to push their brand of "it just works," and to keep the brand value high -- which to them is worth more than allowing flaky computers out there giving their OS a bad name. Because, in the end, it doesn't matter if you think the other processors work "just fine" or not. And having Atom support removed, if it was in fact deliberately removed, may have little to do with whether the Atom processors work "just fine" or not.
Unless you're a share-holder, your opinion probably doesn't matter much. If you are a share-holder, realize that their decision was made with the intention of making you more money, not bringing world peace (or whatever other values you think they should make their decisions on).