Switching to mac, info on bootcamp and parallels

Hi,
Well lightning struck and instead of replacing my pc I am going to switch to a mac! Really close to diving into a mbp 17 or a imac 27 still trying to figure out which to get (first at least lol), but my main question comes to windows 7 on the mac.

I understand bootcamp will allow me to load windows as a reboot and run full option, and from reading around I am understanding I can run windows in a virtual window while in the mac os by buying and using parallels, this seems handy for quick simple things in windows and then pulling them into mac side.

I would guess the bootcamp full reboot mode would be best for stuff like gaming which i will do now and then but most of what I do in windows that I might want to bring over are a few programs i love in windows swf creator and some audio and video editing stuff I am just used to in windows. I will investigate mac options of course too but just to be safe its a big jump so knowing i can still do windows makes me less scared hehe.

The question comes in with what windows to buy and use to do this with? I am currently using xp pro on the pc that got zapped so either way time to upgrade to windows 7, can I buy an oem windows 7 pro disc and stick it on the mac via bootcamp? If i do this how does it work with parallels? Would I need to install that again and if so would the oem work or would it consider it two installations thus needing 2 copies of oem windows 7 pro?

Sorry for such a simple question but apple store employees looked at me blank stare and apple chat didn't answer me either saying just use bootcamp vs parallels vs cost of parallels (not quite what i asked)....

Bill

Hi

I am using both Parallels and Bootcamp. THe only reason I am using either of them is my work. I am using Windows 7 Ultimate 64 bit on both installs. Yes, TWO different serial numbers! Be sure to buy full versions, not upgrades. I tried an upgrade in Parallels and it did not work.

On both installs I am running Office and Autocad 2004. Parallels works great with both Office and Autocad. I also use SolidWorks 2011. Solidworks is a PIG and needs everything it can get it's hands on. I first tried it using Parallels and the performance was unacceptable. (I have 8 GB of RAM) When I use Solidworks in Bootcamp the performance is much better.

I hope this helps

Monty

Don't need two serial numbers. I've used both XP Pro and Win 7 Ultimate installed in a Boot Camp partition. I use VMWare Fusion instead of Parallels, but both of them do the same and will use the Boot Camp installation to run Windows without requiring you to install another copy.

why switch and then run windows on it?

Could never figure that out............

Anyway, Win 7 has been reported as running a lot better on a Mac than on it's own platform.... just hearsay but let others chime in.

MACyMouse said:

why switch and then run windows on it?

Could never figure that out............

Anyway, Win 7 has been reported as running a lot better on a Mac than on it's own platform.... just hearsay but let others chime in.

Click to expand...

I switched because I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. Once I had my Mac I never looked back. I am a fanboy!

But..... One month ago I crashed on my bicycle. I broke my femur. I have not been at work since. My employer is sending me work for me to do at home. Autocad and SolidWorks. Both Windows programs. That is the ONLY reason I have Windows on my Mac and it is the only thing I use Windows for.

I am completely sold on Macs.

Monty

True that.....

wow! Sorry about your femur! Mother! that musta hurt!!

Sorry to hear about your femur. For the record, AutoCad is available for the Mac, but I'm not saying this by way of suggesting you go out and buy it, just that it's available for others who might be reading.

As for FTLOSM, congrats on the forthcoming Mac, but as I often tell people -- why not wait a bit on installing that Windows crutch and see if you actually need it? Give yourself a chance to get immersed in the Mac mindset -- you can always install it later if you find that you genuinely need it (and unless you're a gamer or 3D modeller, you might not!).

I couldn't agree with chas_m more! GIve the Mac a chance. I have found everything I needed in the Mac environment. Well, except the two programs I've listed (Autocad and SolidWorks)

Yep I knew that Autocad is available for the Mac, but I am not going to buy it and the company I work for is still using Acad 2004 THey would not spring for a new copy for me.

My femur? Yes it hurt! THey first 7 hours were the worst, but when I saw that mask come down over my face in the O.R. everything got better. I was treated in an excellent hospital, UW Hospital of Madison. 1st rate!

Monty

I wish I could get rid of my PC side. I use Parallels only for Quicken. I thoroughly dislike the Mac version and I have not found anything else that I like in a Mac version. I used to need the Win 7 side for my corporate computer but have since just moved another computer into my office for access to the corporate system and actually use my Win 7 computer at home if I need to get on the corporate system from home. Everything else is done on my Mac. I wish I could find a suitable substitute for Quicken. I have tried the others for Mac but none of them really live up to the Quicken model. Bummer.

PatM said:

I wish I could get rid of my PC side. I use Parallels only for Quicken. I thoroughly dislike the Mac version and I have not found anything else that I like in a Mac version. I used to need the Win 7 side for my corporate computer but have since just moved another computer into my office for access to the corporate system and actually use my Win 7 computer at home if I need to get on the corporate system from home. Everything else is done on my Mac. I wish I could find a suitable substitute for Quicken. I have tried the others for Mac but none of them really live up to the Quicken model. Bummer.

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Very jealous of your list of TOYS! and your wife!

FTLOSM I think you can dl a demo of Parallels or some other software but you may prefer bootcamp. Read this first tho Mac OSX Lion and CAD software | ArchDaily

2 things:

I hear rumours that Boot Camp doesn't work with machines running LION OSX - is this true?

Also, and bearing the above in mind, how slow is parallels? In my head it's slow and delayed reactions. Or is this not the case (only on processor heavy apps?)

newby said:

2 things:

I hear rumours that Boot Camp doesn't work with machines running LION OSX - is this true?

Also, and bearing the above in mind, how slow is parallels? In my head it's slow and delayed reactions. Or is this not the case (only on processor heavy apps?)

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I am running Bootcamp with Lion, no problem. Parallels is very snappy and fast, but you will will need enough RAM. You are correct, processer heavy apps may be slow with parallels. As I said in an earlier post, for Solidworks I use Bootcamp.

newby said:

2 things:

I hear rumours that Boot Camp doesn't work with machines running LION OSX - is this true?

Click to expand...

Not true, it works fine. Keep in mind, however, that a late model Mac can only run Windows 7. XP and Vista are not supported - no drivers.

newby said:

Also, and bearing the above in mind, how slow is parallels? In my head it's slow and delayed reactions. Or is this not the case (only on processor heavy apps?)

Click to expand...

I do not use or recommend Parallels primarily because of their poor support and sometimes buggy performance. VMWare Fusion is rock steady, has better support, and generally just runs better. That's my opinion, others may disagree.

VMWare seems to be more widely used, on various platforms - which probably helps the stability (more eyes finding bugs). I still run Parallels as it feels faster than VMWare. Conversely - something in Parallels went south on me back when running snow leopard, so I did a clean install of everything. I am still running Parallels on Lion with no current problems.

RAM usage on Lion seems higher in general. I used to be able to run 2 VMs comfortably (Linux and Windows) - in Lion I run 2 VMs and get into swap pretty quickly.

I've found the same - unless I am really doing something processor/graphics intensive a Virtual Machine works fine.

In a prior life I had a MBP 17 for awhile. At that time I used VMWare as well. This time around (I think it will stick this time.) I am using Parallels with zero problems. In fact now that I think about it I may still have that software laying around somewhere. VMWare worked fine on that machine. Parallels works just great for me. Not one issue thus far and I'm happy for that. It seems quick enough. I only use Quicken and AV software and as such have minimum ram assigned and I just do my thing and then close it down. Hopefully if Quicken ever gets a GOOD product for Mac I can get rid of it. (I'm not holding my breath.) Too much time has passed to really rate the two programs against one another. I bet either would work good. I can't speak to tech support issues since I have had no need for them.

Regards,

PatM.

Thanks guys

Can I run Windows 7 on Mac Mini (early) 2009 model running Lion?

Thanks

If you want to, yes.

From what I read using an oem full win 7 pro version like i will be that i can't load in parallels and then again in bootcamp, so ill have to decide which to do then just do it vs having 2 copies since each asks for a serial number... For me in windows there are programs I use a lot (flash slideshow creator, and nero) but I will certainly try to find some alternatives to those on the mac side, but can't quite let windows go fully (yet)...

Check the Parallels site in case there are any work arounds. I have a Win XP partition Bootcamped. I used the Bootcamp partition as the source for the Parallels virtual machine.

Initially Parallels would ask for the license number each time I launched. After doing some reading on their site, and re-reading the suggestions carefully, I found the solution. If there is a solution for Win 7 I am sure it has been posted there.