Would AmigaOS 4.1 theoretically run on this?

[commodorejohn]

I rather doubt you'd ever get OS4 to run on that, as it doesn't appear to have any video hardware.

[commodorejohn]

PowerPC is only the CPU architecture; it has nothing to do with the rest of the hardware. Seems like OS4 runs on anything from a PowerPC 603e on up, but only if it knows how to deal with all the rest of the hardware in the computer.

[commodorejohn]

So, is that to say, unlike the x86(-64) architecture, there is no native hardware ports on PowerPC? O_O If so, that would definitely rank side-by-side with the stupid x86 Real/Protected/Virtual 8086 mode system. xD

I'm not sure I understand the question. Are you referring to "ports" as in the x86 I/O bus? PowerPC doesn't have that, no, but that's because it uses memory-mapped I/O like the 68000 does. Just two different solutions for the same task, really.

Or if you mean that there's no common hardware standard like the IBM PC-compatible platform, yeah, that's more or less true, but that's not a design decision, it's just a case a of a bunch of people using PPC CPUs in their many different projects (SAM boards, the Pegasos, the Efika, Power Macs, etc.) And anyway even a fixed hardware standard only gets you so far - even a PC is stuck with VGA, no sound, and limited CD access without appropriate drivers.

[commodorejohn]

OS4 probably won't. If they couldn't even be bothered to support PPC Macs I seriously doubt they'd put the effort in to port it to a whole other architecture. MorphOS probably won't either, as their primary goal seems to be taking advantage of all the hardware OS4 doesn't. AROS already does.

[commodorejohn]

Common Hardware Reference Platform CHRP was an attempt until........Jobs came back.

As I recall it was that and that everybody else failed to bite for one reason or another...according to Wikipedia the only actual CHRP hardware produced is some of IBM's RS/6000 series.