installing xp on an imac w/ leopard

[ninaforrest]

Can I use a licensed version of XP previousely installed on a Windows machine and install in on my new IMAC or do I have to use newly purchased XP OS?

TIA, Nina

[zarmanto]

I know that this is one of the most despised answers... but it depends. As I understand it: if your license for Windows actually came with the computer on which it is currently installed, then it is classified as an "OEM license" and is not legally transferable to another machine. If on the other hand your Windows license was purchased separately from the computer, then you probably have a "retail copy" of Windows XP, which you can indeed legally transfer from one computer to another -- as long as you remove it from the original computer.

(Of course, I'm pretty sure that Microsoft has changed all the rules for Vista...)