“We are continuing to work with Apple on a possible next version of Virtual PC,” said Amanda Lefebvre, marketing manager for Microsoft’s Mac Business Unit. “We still don’t have all the answers, but we are trying to understand what changes need to happen in their operating system and what changes we need to make.”

Virtual PC’s future was thrown into flux by Apple’s move to Intel-built processors. While Microsoft has committed to developing an Intel-native version of its Office suite, Virtual PC was notably absent from a five-year technology agreement between Apple and Microsoft that was unveiled at January’s Macworld Expo.

Since Virtual PC emulates the Windows environment, the move away from PowerPC chips requires substantial changes to Virtual PC. “This is like building a brand new version for us,” Lefebvre said. “It’s not just a new operating system, it’s new hardware, too—this is a really big transition. It’s hard to say right now what it will look like or when it will be.”