Do macs call home + is it harmful ?

[capybara]

ive read "somewhere" that macs call back to apple.com to

verify/ authenticate their software registration or

serial numbers or something. true or false? id love to hear your

personal experience not something "youve read somewhere."

 

Do you do anything to prevent this? Block certain ports or IPs ?

 

[Yes i know macs will call apple.com for network time sync or

auto-update if you allow it. But thats not what im talking about.]

[zurk]

only server versions. also update does if you havent disabled it and .mac if you havent deleted the registration. obviously updates=toast.

get spark3 http://www.shadowlab.org/Software/spark3.php and http://personalpages.tds.net/~brian_hill/brickhouse.html brickhouse

[GTR-33]

I don't think apple really checks. OS10 piracy doesn't stray too far past Mac enthusiasts. I would say a good portion of us already own at least one Mac and for a few the Hackintosh is nothing more than a nice little experiment/venture into the unknown. This is really the first time one can take a bunch of parts, that weren't built by/for Apple specifically, and build a Mac. Which is in itself exciting for Mac enthusiasts. Another reason I think is that since there are so few machines relatively speaking and almost none of them work 100%, that it really isn't a big deal. Actually updating your software can be a pain if not nearly impossible and you always run the risk of something not working the way it did before. If you like OS10 enough you might eventually work your way into a real Mac.

 

The only problem that Apple has from getting new buyers is a desktop that is somewhere between an Mac Mini and Mac Pro. Something that is largely upgradeable, unlike the iMac or the Mac Mini. Something along the lines of the G4 cube. A mini with upgradeable video would be great. The problem that faces Apple is that such a desktop might interfere with Mac Pro sales. As a few upgrades will easily get a mid range Mac to Map Pro performance for significantly less cost.

[~pcwiz]

Its not harmful if OS X call home...Its not like Apple is gonna come to your house and arrest you. This is not necessary but if you want to be extra careful, unplug the internet during installation and set up and then when you've got it working fully, plug the internet back in. I didn't do anything to prevent OS X from phoning home and my install went OK.