How to Run Windows on a Mac with Parallels

How to Run Windows on a Mac with Parallels Mike Agerbo: Well a lot of you might be aware that you can run Windows on the latest Mac Computers and Laptops, well how can you run it better. We’ve got Jeremy Spruston with us today he’s our resident Mac expert. Thanks for coming on the show. Jeremy Spruston: Thanks Mike. Mike Agerbo: So people a lot of people should know anyway that you can run Windows, you use a feature called boot cam but you basically have to choose when you’re booting up the system whether you want to run Mac or Windows. Jeremy Spruston: Yeah, that’s right so when you restart your computers start up here your computer, you can select from either side but that doesn’t allow you to a function on the other side at the same time. Mike Agerbo: We’ll we going to look at something called Parallels Desktop Version IV for the Mac and this is kind of a cool program because you can installed it on your Mac and you can run Windows. Of course you have to have a copy of Windows that you’ve installed on to the system but you can run them at the same time. Jeremy Spruston: That’ right yeah, so you can boot up parallels and you can interact between both sides of the Windows side that intergrades very well into the Mac side and so you can operate back and forth. Mike Agerbo: So we’ve got that up here, we’ve got the Mac desktop and then we’ve got the Windows we’re running Windows 7 but you can run pretty well any version of Windows or Linux or anything. Jeremy Spruston: Essentially it creates some partition with a version of Windows on that side of your hard drive and you could run XP or run Vista or you could run both at the same time it’s really up to you. Mike Agerbo: What’s the speed like though working from— Jeremy Spruston: I mean the speed is sufficient its not as strong as tempting like book camp and you probably get about 85% or 90% of what you would normally get but — Mike Agerbo: Just of that. Jeremy Spruston: Yeah and if you’re surfing the web or if you’re doing Word Documents or basic computer functions, it will serve you just fine. Mike Agerbo: Can you configure different amounts of RAM and hard drive space for the two — Jeremy Spruston: Yes so if you go into the configuration Menu, you can bring up your memory options, your CPU options, your video card options, you know you can divide it between the two sides and the side, how much Ram the Window side is getting and how much Ram the Mac side is getting. Mike Agerbo: And so for the hard drive side you have to partition your hard drive basically giving part of your hard drive to the Mac and part of it to Windows. Jeremy Spruston: Yeah but the parallel of desktop install is, it’s really easy to use and when I install it the first time it was so easy it almost tricked me. I went back and I had to do it again because it was so simple, all the partitions that partition can be a scary word. It really takes care of all that stuff for you. And then one of the great features is it will use what’s called an expanding drive and so as you use more space on your hard drive they will increase the amount of hard drive allocated. Mike Agerbo: Automatically. Jeremy Spruston: Automatically. Mike Agerbo: Those kind of cool feature because I part this stuff before and typically when you hit that wall, when you run that space, you run that space you know re partition thing. So that doesn’t automatically. Jeremy Spruston: Yes totally automatically. Mike Agerbo: And so what are some of the other ways you can look at the desk tops here. Jeremy Spruston: So right now we’ve got any Window mode in almost tricky and the thinking you’re running Windows normally. You can’t see your Mac desktop at all in the full screen mode, one of the coolest features I think about Parallels as you can run it and what’s called coherence and it will bring up your Windows taskbar down at the bottom and it’s almost like they’re just one big Operating System. Mike Agerbo: Or is really confused. Jeremy Spruston: Yeah, yeah. Mike Agerbo: So you got the Mac part like your normal and then you go the Windows task bar down here. Jeremy Spruston: Yeah. So you can access your Windows taskbar, your start menu just like you normally would all your applications are there. Mike Agerbo: So what do you use it for? Jeremy Spruston: I do a lot of graphics work and a lot of Video work and there’s some applications that it can only found on the Window side and I can open up an application in Windows almost seamlessly Mike Agerbo: And so you can even put Windows shortcuts to programs right on the Mac Desktop? Jeremy Spruston: That’s right yes, we’ve got the Internet Explorer, shortcut here and if we double click on that— Mike Agerbo: Windows version? Jeremy Spruston: That’s right the Windows Version. Mike Agerbo: And then it just automatically pops up here. Jeremy Spruston: Yeah it will open Internet Explorer, the Windows version. Mike Agerbo: And you could do that with any program. Jeremy Spruston: Any program, any program and any file. Mike Agerbo: What about all the hard ware you know it’s got a web cam built in here, you know you hook and USB devices and stuff like that, do they work fairly well together? Jeremy Spruston: Something like and iPod or a webcam they’re really seamless, on of the new features is it will share that device on both sides. Mike Agerbo: Total install the drivers on both sides? Jeremy Spruston: Yeah that’s right. Mike Agerbo: Well thanks for joining us on the show. Jeremy Spruston: Thanks for having me Mike. Mike Agerbo: Better way to do Windows on the Mac instead of using boot cam, have a look at Parallel’s desktop version 4 for the Mac operating System.