Apple OS X v10.4 DE CD Mac Retail Box M9639D/A Merkblatt

Technology Brief
Windows Compatibility and Mac OS X

Share Digital Devices

Windows PCs and Mac computers share two plug-and-play technologies that have 
become de facto standards for connecting devices to a computer: Universal Serial Bus 
(USB 1.0 and 2.0) and FireWire (IEEE 1394). Because these technologies are open stan-
dards, USB and FireWire devices can be used on either a Mac or Windows computer. 

Mac OS X includes software drivers that support more than a thousand USB and 
FireWire devices, so you can enjoy the very latest and best digital camcorders, digital 
still cameras, printers, scanners, mice, ergonomic keyboards, handheld PDAs, game con-
trollers, Zip drives, external storage devices, floppy disk drives, and flash memory readers 
(CompactFlash, Smart Media, Multi-Media, and Sony Memory Sticks). To learn about the 
compatibility of a particular device, visit the device manufacturer’s website or Apple’s 
site at www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/drivers.

Mac OS X also has built-in support for Bluetooth, a wireless technology that gives you 
cable-free connectivity to digital devices. It enables short-range wireless communication 
(about 30 feet) between Bluetooth-enabled computers, keyboards, mice, personal digital 
assistants (PDAs), and mobile phones. Bluetooth works without cables using a globally 
available radio frequency (2.4GHz). Bluetooth support in Mac OS X makes it easy to use 
the same Bluetooth devices on your Mac as on a Windows PC.

Share a Network

Whether you want to use a traditional wired network or today’s wireless technologies, 
Mac OS X is ready to put your Mac online.

Wireless networking
Mac OS X includes wireless networking technology based on the IEEE 802.11g specifica-
tion. This technology, referred to as AirPort Extreme, is compatible with Wi-Fi Certified 
802.11g- and 802.11b-enabled Windows PCs and wireless products, so you can share 
wireless networks with users of other types of computers.

1

 It delivers speeds of up to 

54 Mbps on Mac systems that have an AirPort Extreme Card (up to 11 Mbps for systems 
with an AirPort Card) and an AirPort Express Base Station, AirPort Extreme Base Station, 
or other Wi-Fi Certified 802.11g access point. AirPort-enabled Mac systems also work with 
wireless networks in schools, offices, and hotels. 

High-speed broadband
Mac OS X includes support for high-speed broadband connections over traditional wired 
Ethernet. Macintosh computers include standard 10/100-Mbps or 10/100/1000-Mbps RJ-45 
Ethernet ports and use the identical network cabling as Windows PCs, so you can connect 
to any standard cable modem or DSL modem. As with wireless networks, the Mac can 
share the same wired networks and services that PCs use.

Local area networks
You can also use Ethernet to connect a Mac to a local area network (LAN) of Windows 
PCs, or you can create one yourself by plugging a Mac and a PC into an Ethernet hub. 
Both systems use the same standard cables (twisted pair with RJ-45 connectors) and 
hubs (10BASE-T, 100BASE-T, and 1000BASE-T). The LAN can be used to exchange files 
between computers, to share network devices (such as file servers and printers), and 
to take advantage of many other network services.

Base station compatibility
Apple’s AirPort Extreme Base Station 
supports not only the AirPort Card and 
AirPort Extreme Card, but all Wi-Fi Certified 
802.11b and 802.11g products—Mac or 
Windows. Mac OS X enables a Macintosh 
to become a wireless base station so that 
Mac and Windows systems can connect to 
each other or to the Internet in a wireless 
peer-to-peer configuration without the 
need for additional equipment.