system 7.1.2 is the first version of the macintosh system software to support apple's new powerpc-based computers. 68k applications which had not yet been updated to run natively on these systems were emulated transparently (without the user having to intervene) by a built-in 68k processor emulator. fat binaries, which contained the code necessary to run natively on both powerpc and 68k systems, became common during this time. this process was similar to the distribution of universal binaries during apple's transition to intel processors in 2006.