"and the PC for its limitless possibilities."

You really stretched to find something good to say about PC's, didn't you? There are other good things about PC's.

You wouldn't build a mac look-alike for it's "divine aesthetics " either. If a person really cared about what their computer looks like they wouldn't build whatever PC version you posted a picture of; it's just plain ugly.

I also really hope that the only perk you could think of for having a Mac is that it's pretty.

No one likes a wanna-be.

I don't buy Macs for their looks.

If we're going for divine aesthetics, I can say this - the Zune software is lightyears ahead of iTunes in terms of functionality, speed, system resource usage, and visual appeal. If you're not tied to an Apple music device that requires iTunes, definitely give it a shot.

About 5 or 6 years ago I built a machine using the Lian LI V2000, very similar to the one pictured. My reason was definitely not to emulate a mac pro, it was simply a well made case that met my needs. Lian Li's fit and finish is always perfect... much better, I think, than apple's even. It was a great case, and is still being used by my girlfriend's father (with updated hardware).

Making a PC look like a Mac is just silly – it winds up looking like a cheap knock off. If you want a PC that looks like a Mac, buy a Mac and run Windows on it. Period. Otherwise, roll your own understatedly sexy style.

-=-=-=-

@ChristopherB: Instead tie yourself to Microsoft devices that require Zune software? I see no difference there, however you spin it. Microsoft was going somewhere with PlaysForSure until they went ahead and made their own (new) proprietary system and spat in the faces of all their partners.

Hmm, spend $1000 on a PC that looks like a mac, or just buy a Mac? Hmmm. Tough one

No.

If you really like the aesthetics of Macs, both in it's hardware and software design, just get one and use built-in software like Boot Camp or 3rd party such as Parallels or VMWare (which allow you to run Windows software without seeing the Windows UI).

Not this.

Hey, people customize cars to look like pickup trucks, and pickups to look like cars. Give someone a blowtorch, and you'll have ?art?

Then video someone building it and you'll have ?performance art?

I really respect this site. I like the posts. I find at least one inspiring post a day. I do not however, appreciate the Mac fanboyism that runs a muck.

ChristopherB is right about the Zune software. If you are not locked in I would give it a try. The store isn't worth much, but I've always been an amazon mp3 guy anyway.

Why don't you have a look at http://www.million-dollar-pc.com/. There's a site with some gorgeous computers.

I'm really getting tired of PC bashing. You had a post a while back that mentioned the tackiness of PC modding. I'm really beginning to thing your staff doesn't know what they are talking about.

@adventrising- it's best to just ignore the zealotry from all sides. The debate over computing platforms is just as idiotic and pointless as political debates, gets absolutely nowhere (why would anyone waste so much time trying to change someone else's views because they don't agree with them? I'll never get it.) and smacks of self-esteem issues.

Back on topic- you could even take this one step further as I did, and stuff a PC board into a Mac Pro (or in my case, a G5) case. I ran a version of OS X 10.4 that I hacked using the OSX86 tools, and in effect, had an early MacIntel machine. The legalities of this aren't exactly kosher (yeah, it violated Apple's license for OS X), but it was fun anyway. The OSX86 machine was sold a few years ago and is now happily running Windows 7. I just retired my IBM Thinkcentre and Powermac G4 DA (1.8Ghz upgraded) since I picked up a 13" Macbook Pro and can run Windows as well on it.

P.S. A few years ago, I also took an old Dell Inspiron laptop from 2000 (400Mhz Pentium 2) and did the software steps above using Windows XP, Windowblinds, and an old program called FlyAKiteOSX that did most of the work for you. To the typical eye, you couldn't tell the difference between XP and OS X. More fun...

Are you oldnewby on bit-tech? Did you build the CygnusX1? That is a really really impressive build. I go by d_stilgar there and on thebestcasescenario.com too.

I agree that there is no way to change an opinion on the platform. I just think that a site that is somewhat journalistic should try to keep things a little even.

I'm using rocket dock and object dock simultaneously. One is for games, the other for office programs.

Hi guys,

I'm glad the tutorial brought up so much interest! Unfortunately, I too cannot change the opinions of many on platform love here, but as both a PC and Mac user by heart, and this tutorial was only meant to be a helpful guide for those interested - not to say that any platform is better than another. So have fun, share resources with each other, and try to keep the bashing to a minimum, ya?

-Anthony

@CygnusX1 I've also tried doing the "stuff a PC in a Mac Pro case" trick as well a few years back. It was probably one of the funnest projects I did over a summer's time. :)

@adventrising- no that's not me. I just like the Rush song, hence my nickname :)

@anthonyn- It's a real pain to realign the mounting standoffs, but once you finish the build, it's definitely something to be proud of :)

This post amuses me because I once slapped an Apple sticker on my old Dell laptop. (I had a sticker from buying an ipod, the dell logo was really ugly, and I just thought it was silly.)

You wouldn't believe how many people came up to me to ask what kind of Apple I was using! :D So note to article author - forget the hard work and just slap an Apple sticker on whatever you have and you'll still fool people. ;)

Anyway if I wanted pretty Mac hardware with Windows insides, I would probably just get an intel-powered Mac and use Boot Camp.

Kaete - I once did the exact same thing! sticker from my iPod --> old Dell laptop.

Well, I've had 5 PC computers/laptops in the time my husband has had one Mac, and his is still running, and all of ours are in landfills someplace. So that's where I stand. It's not about aesthetics, for us it's just been about longevity/reliability. Like buying Hondas instead of Kias. But everyone has different experiences.

my question is why. its whats under the hood that counts!
if you want a make buy a mac.

@Kaete- I did the same to the old Dell laptop that underwent the OS facelift as described above. My girlfriend used it for a while until I got her a Pismo Powerbook. People would ask her all the time what kind of Mac she had. She called it her "Fako-Mac" hee hee!

@adventrising- Most PC modding IS that tacky though. Since anything of measurable quality or design takes some talent the vast majority of the results are the PC equivalent of a poorly bondo'd body kit with some neon ground effects. I am, to this day, surprised at the design atrocities spawned by the birth of the case window. Even a lot of very skilled and well crafted stuff still ends up being really tacky. It doesn't have to be, but it often is.

I also agree with the comment about if your going to blow that much money trying to make your PC look like a mac why not just BUY the mac. I mean, it is one thing if you wanted to spend that money to just make your PC look good, but the former is like dropping 60k to make your VW look lime a BMW.

Thats like putting a remote control car engine in a ferrari!! ha. Once you have mac you never go back!!