Machine Identification

Because the NewWorld architecture uses the same Universal and ProductInfo tables for all computer models that it runs on, those computers all have the same Box Flag. All those computers use the same enablers, and no patches are made to the Mac OS ROM Image, so sharing the same box flag is not an issue for those areas.

In the past, applications could find out which machine they are running on by using the gestaltMachineType value returned from a call to the Gestalt Manager. The 1999 PowerBook G3 Series computer and all other computers that use the NewWorld architecture return the same gestaltMachineType value: 406 ($196 ).

IMPORTANT

Programs such as control panels and installers that use Box Flag to verify that this is a valid CPU on which to execute need to be changed to verify the existence of the hardware they require. Developers should look for the features they need, rather than reading the box flag and then making assumptions about the computer's features.

Asset management software that reports the kind of machine it is run on can obtain the value of the property at Devices:device-tree:compatible in the name registry. The model string is the first program-useable string in the array of C strings in the compatible field. For the 1999 PowerBook G3 Series computer, the value of the compatible property is PowerBook1,1 .

The string obtained from the compatible property cannot be displayed to the computer user. A better method, if it is available, is to use the result from calling Gestalt ('mnam', &result) where result is a string pointer. This call returns a Pascal style string that can be displayed to the user.

Applications should not use either of these results to infer the presence of certain features; instead, applications should use Gestalt calls to test for the features they requires.