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ApplCmptrDood · Jun 17, 2006, 08:44 PM

Direct Link: http://www.apple.com/getamac/windows.html

Digg Article: http://digg.com/apple/Apple_s_Window...d_of_Boot_Camp

What do you think? Disscuss.

sknapp351 · Jun 17, 2006, 08:48 PM

Parallel software is officialy released. Boot Camp is still Beta. I would imagine that would be a major reason.
SAm

darth-vader000 · Jun 17, 2006, 09:36 PM

Seems to me that showing OSX and windows XP inside it may make OSX more marketable. There of course is no mention of any perofrmance hit,

Also now that parallels is out at version 1 it is ready for prime time and should be able to handle production environments. Boot camp is in beta is strongly recommended that it not be used in mission critical situations,

Kerrigan · Jun 17, 2006, 10:14 PM

Parallels and XP will add $250 to the price of the computer. Apple should offer a better solution than this.

sknapp351 · Jun 17, 2006, 11:10 PM

In what way would Apple make this better? If Xp Pro is $199 then that is what it is. If you are referring to the price of Parallels, then there are plenty of rumors floating about what Boot Camp will be when it is actually released with Leopard.
SAm

torsoboy · Jun 18, 2006, 01:13 AM

Originally Posted by sknapp351

Parallel software is officialy released. Boot Camp is still Beta. I would imagine that would be a major reason.
SAm

I don't think that is it... I think it is because Parallel runs in OS X without the need for a reboot. It is a big advantage compared to boot camp (if you have the hardware for it).

Angus_D · Jun 18, 2006, 06:08 AM

Originally Posted by Kerrigan

Parallels and XP will add $250 to the price of the computer. Apple should offer a better solution than this.

Boot Camp is free, OEM XP is way cheaper than that.

darth-vader000 · Jun 18, 2006, 06:40 AM

Originally Posted by Kerrigan

Parallels and XP will add $250 to the price of the computer. Apple should offer a better solution than this.

250 now, tack on another 30 in a month when parallels jacks the price up to 80 bucks

ink · Jun 18, 2006, 10:12 AM

Originally Posted by darth-vader000

250 now, tack on another 30 in a month when parallels jacks the price up to 80 bucks

You can get an OSX version of Solitaire; no need to go to such extremes.

stevesnj · Jun 18, 2006, 10:52 AM

Is Parallel Apple made software or MS Software? Is this Virtual PC replacement or Boot camp final version?

production_coordinator · Jun 18, 2006, 11:13 AM

Originally Posted by stevesnj

Is Parallel Apple made software or MS Software? Is this Virtual PC replacement or Boot camp final version?

Parallels is made by Parallels, Inc. http://www.parallels.com/

The cool thing about Parallels is... you don't need Windows XP. You can run Windows 98 if you wanted (or OS2/Warp, Linux, etc.). You can find versions of Windows 2000 floating around on the cheap if you just need Windows to check for compatibility or the odd application from time to time.

Bootcamp is from Apple... but requires a reboot to use... and doesn't run the two operating systems at the same time. This is good if you plan to run Windows as your primary OS on your new Mac.

Cadaver · Jun 18, 2006, 11:17 AM

Originally Posted by stevesnj

Is Parallel Apple made software or MS Software? Is this Virtual PC replacement or Boot camp final version?

Neither.

"Parallels Desktop for Mac" is made by a company called Parallels, Inc. They produce virtualization software for x86 systems, much like the company VMWare. Parallels Desktop for Mac will run just about any x86 operating system in a virtualized environment (including Windows and various flavors of Linux, Unix, OS/2, etc.). Parallels, Inc. has no relationship with Microsoft. If you buy Parallels, you'll need a (legal) copy of Windows (or whatever OS you want) to install on it.

Boot Camp is produced by Apple, and allows you to completely reboot your machine in to Windows (again, provided you own a legal copy to install), instead of running MacOS X. Windows doesn't know its not on a generic beige-box PC.

Virtual PC is an application, now produced by Microsoft (formerly Connectix), that emulates PC hardware, allowing you to run Windows. It can be purchased with or without a bundled copy of Windows. Virtual PC is (at least for now) a PowerPC-only application.

Parallels and Virtual PC function, at least from a user-perspective, quite similarly, though the underlying technology is very different, and thus Parallels is orders of magnitude faster.

Which one is right for you (Parallels or Boot Camp) depends on what you need to do with Windows on your Mac. If you just need access to a few desktop apps not available in a Mac version, Parallels is easiest (runs like any other application). Boot Camp gives Windows direct control of the hardware, so its best for games or high-end apps, but you must exit out of MacOS and reboot in to Windows.

Edit: production_coordinator beat me to it.

Chuckit · Jun 18, 2006, 02:08 PM

Originally Posted by Kerrigan

Parallels and XP will add $250 to the price of the computer. Apple should offer a better solution than this.

Apple is responsible for what MS charges for Windows?

CharlesS · Jun 18, 2006, 02:18 PM

^ Exactly. Plus, Virtual PC always cost around $250 anyway. No idea why some people expect that to be different now.

Jun 18, 2006, 03:35 PM

Originally Posted by Kerrigan

Parallels and XP will add $250 to the price of the computer. Apple should offer a better solution than this.

Uhm... no they shouldn't. We buy Macs because we don't want to use Windows. If some people need to, then fine - they should pay for it. Running Windows on a Mac is a niche task at best. It's not something that needs to be free for every Mac user.

nerd · Jun 27, 2006, 04:45 PM

I just noticed on the Touche commercial that just aired they changed the fine print to include Parallels. It says "Purchase of Windows and Parallels software required."

Here's a screen shot of it. Touche

goMac · Jun 27, 2006, 05:20 PM

Originally Posted by production_coordinator

The cool thing about Parallels is... you don't need Windows XP. You can run Windows 98 if you wanted (or OS2/Warp, Linux, etc.). You can find versions of Windows 2000 floating around on the cheap if you just need Windows to check for compatibility or the odd application from time to time.

Bootcamp is from Apple... but requires a reboot to use... and doesn't run the two operating systems at the same time. This is good if you plan to run Windows as your primary OS on your new Mac.

Actually, Boot Camp doesn't need XP either. The only reasons SP2 is the required version of XP is because the install cd is missing keyboard drivers, so you can't actually control the installer. Aside from that, you can install any OS you want under Boot Camp, assuming you have driver support. Most Linux distributions don't have any trouble installing.