Yesterday, a Florida PC company called Psystar began selling a generic PC with Apple's Leopard preinstalled, in violation of Apple's end-user license agreement for Mac OS X. The company defended its action by claiming that Apple violates US anti-trust law, according to InformationWeek.

Psystar's Open Computer is a basic PC tower with software that emulates the EFI firmware that Apple uses in Macs instead the BIOS firmware used in most PCs. Prices for Open Computer start at US $399, or $555 with Mac OS X Leopard preinstalled, less than the price of an Apple Mac mini and with bigger hard drive, more RAM, and beefier graphics hardware.

Apple's end-user license agreement for Mac OS X forbids users from running the operating system on non-Apple hardware, and prevents resellers from installing it on third-party computers. Commentators across the web expect Apple to issue a cease-and-desist order shortly. But it's not clear whether an end-user license agreement is legally enforceable, as it hasn't been tested in court.

"We're not breaking any laws," said a Psystar spokesperson, according to Information Week.

At its website, Psystar said "We call it the Open Computer to reflect the opening of what has previously been a hardware monopoly."

The invoking of US anti-trust laws and challenges to end-user license agreements sounds like battles of Microsoft and the European Union, but whether Psystar is willing or able to take on Apple Computer is questionable.

Today, Guardian UK writer Charles Arthur reported on his quick investigation into who Psystar is. His report turned up evidence the company is brand new, small, and unknown to the Miami business community. Arthur found no hits on Google before this week and had difficulty contacting the company by phone. Yet, the company web site claims that Psystar has "over 30 years of combined experience in Enterprise-level systems."