parallels help??

how do i set parallels up to switch to xp without opening it everytime? thanks for help

What do you mean, "without opening it everytime"? How will Parallels know when to switch if you don't tell it? Please explain your question in more detail.

kaidomac said:

What do you mean, "without opening it everytime"? How will Parallels know when to switch if you don't tell it? Please explain your question in more detail.

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i mean when everyone else switches they just push 2 buttons no matter what's open. i have to go to the dock. open parallels. click inside the box. and then push 2 bottons. and when i switch back i have to minimize parallels. from the vids i seen, i've never seen anyone do any of that. just two buttons and they're done..

does anyone know how to do this?

Yes, I know how. It's obvious you haven't read the manual After you install XP, you need to install the drivers from Parallels. While XP is running, go into the "VM" menu at the top of the screen in OS X and select "Install Parallels Tools". An installation box will appear in windows, just let it do it's thing from there.

I hate to sound like a forum nazi, but in the future, please (1) do a search, (2) read the manual, and (3) post a clearer question. Thank you!

kaidomac said:

Yes, I know how. It's obvious you haven't read the manual After you install XP, you need to install the drivers from Parallels. While XP is running, go into the "VM" menu at the top of the screen in OS X and select "Install Parallels Tools". An installation box will appear in windows, just let it do it's thing from there.

I hate to sound like a forum nazi, but in the future, please (1) do a search, (2) read the manual, and (3) post a clearer question. Thank you!

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but here's the thing. i did that. and it still wont work. i did a forum search and still cant find the answer. i dont think i explain my problems good enough

L0GiC said:

but here's the thing. i did that. and it still wont work. i did a forum search and still cant find the answer. i dont think i explain my problems good enough

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Its a longshot, but still plausible, that the installation media is corrupt. Send Parallels Tech Support an email and see if they will let you redownload it from them or send you a new disc.

http://www.parallels.com/en/support/

I am presuming that the two keys people press are Command-Tab, which is possible once you've got the Parallels tools installed within the VM. From wherever you are, just use press Command-Tab to switch to the running Parallels VM and it should drop you right into it.

cazabam said:

I am presuming that the two keys people press are Command-Tab, which is possible once you've got the Parallels tools installed within the VM. From wherever you are, just use press Command-Tab to switch to the running Parallels VM and it should drop you right into it.

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that's my problem. the only time the hot keys work is when i bring parallels to front, hover my mouse over it. and then hit the hotkeys.

Which hot keys are you referring to? command-tab is a Mac OS X feature and is nothing to do with parallels, so if they're not working then the problem is not parallels related. You keep referring to 'two buttons', but without knowing which two buttons you are trying to use we can't really help.

edit: just had a thought - if you just press 'command-tab' once, then all it does is bring the current application to the front. You have to hold down command and press tab multiple times until the application you want (in this case parallels) is highlighted, then let go of command. With Parallels tools installed in the VM this will allow you to switch in and out of parallels this way.

ill give an example. this is how it looks when i switch with parallels
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gQmGwkLWNE
and this is how i want it to look
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9IdvUPyQy0

The difference there is that in the 'how you want it to look' video, Parallels was already running in the background. It wasn't started from scratch. In your video, you turned on the virtual machine and then switched it to full screen.

can you tell me how to get mine to act like his. and also why does mine mess up everytime i switch to windows as shown in the video.

I bet the guy who can switch back and forth uses Desktop Manager to get virtual desktops, and uses that to switch back and forth. Leave Windows running full screen all the time on a virtual desktop, and use the desktop manager keyboard shortcuts to switch to it. Worth a try, anyway.

where can i get desktop manager?

http://desktopmanager.berlios.de/

Just install it like any other app - it will put itself into the menu bar. Default hot keys are:

command-alt-left : switch to workspace on the left
command-alt-right: switch to workspace in the right
command-alt-[number] : switch to workspace [number] directly (1-4)

but how does this get parallels to run like the vid. is that possible. do i have the wrong version of parallels or something?

By using Desktop Manager you are providing multiple virtual desktops. If you run all your mac stuff on one virtual desktop, and Windows in full-screen mode on another, you can switch back and forth between them. It'd be Desktop Manager handling the cube rotation, not Parallels. Parallels would think that it is just always running full screen, when in fact Desktop Manager would hide it when you're not using it.

Step by step:

1) Install Desktop Manager
2) Change Desktop Manager preferences to use Cube rotation
3) Press command-alt-right to switch desktop
4) Start Parallels and put it in full screen mode
5) Press command-alt-left to switch back to your Mac desktop

You should then be able to use command-alt-left and command-alt-right to switch in and out of parallels.

this is exactly how i wanted it. thanks a lot man.

No problem