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Tech journos far and wide have been quick to jump on the story that while Apple says it isn't doing anything to specifically prevent people from installing Windows on an Intel-based Mac, the new Extensible Firmware Interface (EFI) that Apple is using on the new Macs won't work with current generations of Windows.

EFI is the next-generation replacement for the 20-year-old BIOS, the oldest part of modern PCs which is in desperate need of an overhaul. EFI allows devices in the PC to be initialised before the operating system boots, and has features like full network support before the PC has even booted, allowing drivers to be downloaded and updated before an operating system loads.

However, Intel Australia, while being careful not to comment on Apple's hardware specifically, says motherboards based on the Intel 945 chipset already support EFI and can boot Windows with no problems.

This cryptic statement can't be taken as full reassurance though: it may be that 945 boards support EFI but do not come with it installed by default.

Officially, Microsoft says it will support EFI natively with Windows Vista, so it's almost certain that Intel-based MacBook Pros and iMacs will be able to boot Vista when it is released later this year.

But a year is a long time in computing and there would be great utility for many users in a notebook that could run Windows XP during work time and OS X at home, or one that could easily be rebooted to Windows to play the latest games.

Apple is typically cryptic in its response on the issue of whether Intel-based Macs can run Windows XP: the official line is that Apple has no plans to sell or support Windows. But notably, this answer doesn't rule out running Windows on a Mac. Indeed, Apple's vice president of Worldwide marketing, Phil Schiller, said as much following Steve Jobs? keynote announcing the Intel Macs. "That doesn't preclude someone from running it on a Mac. They probably will."

source: apcmag.com