Hey all,

I figure this is the best forum to post this in. I'm looking to start developing an iOS app. I don't own an iPhone or iPad so I'm 99% going to buy a Macbook Pro so I can get access to Xcode and the iPhone/iPad emulator. Thing is, I hate OSX and would only consider using it if I were absolutely forced to. What I'm thinking about doing is installing Linux as my main OS on the Macbook then running OSX through something like VMWare so I can use Xcode. Running Xcode would be my sole use of OSX, everything else I would do in Linux. I found a thread, although it's directed at non-Macbooks, that indicates I could probably do this at ~80% speed which seems fine to me for just 1 program: https://www.reddit.com/r/hackintosh/...hine_on_linux/

Does anyone have any experience with doing this type of thing or foresee any problems? Thanks in advance!

I could be wrong, but I don't believe OSX will run through emulation. It requires the chip that identifies the mobo as a mac (or software emulation of it) in order to run. It's possible to dual boot with OSX, and you could definitely run Linux as the guest inside a VM, but to my knowledge (which is admittedly less than incredible on Macs), you can't run OSX inside a VM.

There are certainly people around who say that they have successfully run OSX on a VirtualBox VM using some pretty nifty work-arounds (as a web search will indicate), but equally there are a great number of people who just can't seem to get it to work. It might prove time-consuming to try it out.

I agree with you - I would run the Mac in dual boot, iOS app development on the OSX side, general-purpose work on the Linux side. It's not as convenient having to boot between the two, but potentially less problematic.

I would do it in reverse, actually. I'd get the MacBook, and run Linux on VMware or VirtualBox. The only time I'd use OS X is when I booted up the machine and when I'd be working on my iOS development. That way you'd be able to run Mac OS X at full speed, while still being able to run Linux in the VM with virtually no lag.

Yes, both experience with it, and I forsee problems.

First, it's VERY possible, and there are already pre-built VDI images of Mac OSX (including El Capitan and Sierra) you can find online. Since you already purchased a license with your Mac, you're good to go. Instructions for VirtualBox (the way I've done it) are trivial:
https://techsviewer.com/how-to-insta...on-virtualbox/

That said...getting Linux to run on a Mac *CAN* be a chore, albeit easier now than it used to be. The kicker for me was I tried to install Linux, the UEFI stuff didn't work correctly. The system wouldn't boot from hard drive, but would happily boot from the USB stick, and allow me to 'continue' booting from SSD, and work fine. So if you want to go that route, I PERSONALLY would suggest openSUSE Tumbleweed, but that's just my $0.02. They even have a guide:
https://en.opensuse.org/SDB:Installation_on_a_Mac

..so it's your call. Since you say you don't like OSX as a 'daily driver', running it as a VirtualBox image may work for you.

What you ignores what the OP said. The OP posted "[/B]Thing is, I hate OSX and would only consider using it if I were absolutely forced to. [/B]"...indicating they do not WANT OSX as their primary OS.

If the machine BOOTS OSX, then the OP would be using OSX for EVERYTHING, basically, and having the OS you WANT as your main system virtual, only is going to make things harder for attaching peripherals/devices/networking/etc.