Virtual Software

Can someone explain to me in plain english what virtual software is and what it does? I am a computer science student and i am finding that i am gonna ned to use virtual studio. Can someone recommend a good virtual software? Is virtual box ok? Parallels is $80 and virtual box is open source.

Virtualization software create a "fake" machine for you to install another OS on. So using VirtualBox, Parllels or VMWare Fusion you could create a virutal machine that is consistent of a number of processors and some amount of memory (taking away from the host machine) and then you install Windows, Linux or any other OS in that VM. Once installed, the OS in the VM behaves like a regular installation and you can install applications, have network, sound, USB access and so on..

If you need to be developing Windows-specific applications, then a VM running Windows with Visual Studio would be the way to go.

You have 4GB of RAM right now and you'll find that isn't enough to run a VM of Windows and OS X happily at the same time, you really should first upgrade to at least 8 (more if your Mac supports it and you have the money)..

That way, you can give 4GB to OS X and 4GB to the Windows VM. OS X will then continue to function like it is right now and the Windows VM will also be happy..

As far as software needed, you can indeed start with VirutalBox which is available for free. You will also need a copy of Windows 7 to install and then you can install Visual Studio and off you go..

Although the VS system requirements only list 1GB as the minimum for memory (here), you might want to allocate more than you normally would for a Windows VM. I think Raz0r's right especially in this context - the more memory you can throw at a Windows VM running VS, the better.

Thanks for the info guys. The concept of Virtual Software is kinda new to me. I am actually thinking about adding the Virtual Software to my Macbook Pro also. So am I right in thinking that if I do not have any apps running in OSX, I wont have any memory problems? Or do they not separate like that? Can I uninstall the virtuality....? VirtualBox sounds pretty popular. Is Parallels better? Is VirtualBox better?

I was able to interview one of the IT managers at work (for a class) and he was telling me that when he interviews people, he expects them to be able to use Visual Studio so it sounds like if I want to make a transition to IT, I need to be able to do more than Xcode.

andy.millard said:

So am I right in thinking that if I do not have any apps running in OSX, I wont have any memory problems?

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Probably not but it all comes down to how much RAM is allocated to the VM and how much OS X still has.

andy.millard said:

VirtualBox sounds pretty popular. Is Parallels better? Is VirtualBox better?

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That's like asking which colour is best.

I started on VB and moved to Parallels. Both do the job but Parallels is considerably more elegant. My advice - try VB since it's free and try the Parallels demo to see if it's better and/or worth the cost.

Doesn't hurt to try VB first and then upgrade to the more pricier stuff. After all who can argue with Free? XD

CrimsonRequiem said:

Doesn't hurt to try VB first and then upgrade to the more pricier stuff. After all who can argue with Free? XD

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That's what I'm thinking too

And keep your eyes open for a Parallels sale or bundle deal. I got Parallels 7.0 for $29.95 and a free upgrade to Parallels 8.0. The Parallels sale at the time was from a MacWorld Magazine special.