I wish to test/debug/dev my software on all three popular platforms. I am wondering that am I allowed to gain an access to a free copy (e.g. a virtual OS) to test my software on Windows and Mac?
I wonder what most developers do to test their software. You obviously need the actual Win/Mac to be sure your software works as is, but you don’t want to be paying for all OSes especially because you don’t use them, other than test your software on them.
I am working on something that requires extensive testing. It’s made for developers, so, even if I happen to have extra cash to waste on OSes I don’t use or like, I can’t demand that for every developer using my product.
What are my options here?
Macintosh operating systems will only run on Macintosh hardware. There are “hackintosh” hacks out there were people have hacked the OS to run on non-Macintosh hardware, but by the very nature of them they are not trustworthy to test your software on, because it might run on a hackintosh but not on a legitimate version because it relies on the very hack that made the OS run on non-Macintosh hardware.
Besides, there is a word for trying to get free copies of something the manufacturer wants you to pay for: theft.
That said, I saw a demo from a guy from Sun. He’d installed OpenSolaris as his main OS on a MacBookPro, and then had Windows and Mac and Solaris virtual machines running using VirtualBox. And because the virtual machines were run on ZFS, it was very easy for him to restore them to the pre-test condition. It made for a consistent testing environment every time.