Welcome to the MacNN Forums.

Buck_W · Jul 25, 2010, 07:55 AM

I have a new iMac still in the box. I want to install 10.6 and Windows 7 on it. Should I use the Mac install disk to partition the HD before installing anything? Or should I simply install OS X and then use Boot Camp to install Windows? This is my first attempt at running both OS's on a new Mac, so any tips, insights and suggestions would be greatly appreciated - thank you!

Waragainstsleep · Jul 25, 2010, 08:42 AM

You should use the Boot Camp Assistant to partition the drive.

ghporter · Jul 25, 2010, 10:02 AM

I moved this thread to the Alternative OS forum because it fits better.

Waragainstsleep is right-the Boot Camp Assistant is specifically designed to do the appropriate partitioning and then run the Windows installer in one smooth operation. No need to do anything else before you install Win7.

And unlike a Windows-only machine, there's no reason to do a lot of the "preparation" stuff on a Mac. No "register your copy" warnings, no "your computer is unprotected!!!" issues. It just runs.

Buck_W · Jul 25, 2010, 01:13 PM

Thanks to you both! A couple of follow-up questions. . . After both operating systems are installed, how does the Mac boot up? Is there an option for a default boot disk? How do you switch back and forth between Mac OS and Windows?

Cold Warrior · Jul 25, 2010, 02:53 PM

option key held at the startup chime will provide a selection of windows or OS X. Otherwise both windows and OS X have startup disk utilities/preferences if you want to change the default or select one to boot in advance of a restart. I tend to keep os x as the default and just use the option key to select win7 if needed.

Buck_W · Jul 25, 2010, 03:30 PM

I'm in the middle of the installation and have run into a snag. Is there a way of getting the Windows installation disk out of my Mac upon restart? I've tried holding down the mouse key during set-up, but the computer keeps booting up on the install disk.

ghporter · Jul 25, 2010, 03:41 PM

What is the snag? That may be something that needs addressing...

Anyway, when the Mac startup chime sounds, hold the ALT key-just hold it down. After a bit you'll get a screen that shows the bootable volumes that are available, which will include the install CD. Just select the Mac drive and the computer will boot from that.

seanc · Jul 25, 2010, 04:16 PM

Originally Posted by ghporter

And unlike a Windows-only machine, there's no reason to do a lot of the "preparation" stuff on a Mac. No "register your copy" warnings, no "your computer is unprotected!!!" issues. It just runs.

I can only think that in the above paragraph, you are referring to Mac OS X only.

It should be noted that you need to make sure Windows is activated successfully and has anti-malware utilities installed.

Firefox or most other alternative web browsers (that aren't based upon Internet Explorer) are a good step towards making sure malware does not infect your Windows installation.

ghporter · Jul 25, 2010, 06:34 PM

Originally Posted by seanc

I can only think that in the above paragraph, you are referring to Mac OS X only.

It should be noted that you need to make sure Windows is activated successfully and has anti-malware utilities installed.

Firefox or most other alternative web browsers (that aren't based upon Internet Explorer) are a good step towards making sure malware does not infect your Windows installation.

Yes, of course I was referring to Mac OS only. ANY Windows installation NEEDS anti-malware. And one big benefit you get from something like Firefox is that it not only doesn't use Active-X, it doesn't allow Active-X. Much safer.