Wishing you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Years!
Comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4 Series – Part 6
October 31, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Parallels Mobile
This is part 6 of my series comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4, and in this article and video I am going show you a significant product feature that is unique to Parallels, which is something called Parallels Mobile. As an optional component, Parallels has created an iOS App for both your iPhone and iPad that allow you to run your virtual machine on the iOS Device and remotely control your Mac desktop!
What makes this new feature neat is that you no longer need to be in front of your Mac to run say Windows applications, and if you want to visit Flash websites on your iPad, Parallels Mobile give you the ability to go to those websites to see that content with sound. This mobile app works both over WiFi and 3G, and even allows you to access your computer remotely from behind secure firewalls. If that were not enough, you can even Cut and Paste content from or to any Windows application to the iOS Clipboard and back!
Also don’t forget to enter to win my FREE IPAD 2 16GB WIFI Giveaway. To enter all you have to do is go to my YouTube channel and SUBSCRIBE! Watch this video below for a more detailed explanation and if you have topics you are interested in please let me know.
Related articles
- Comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4 Series – Part 5 (skeetertalkstech.com)
- Comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4 Series – Part 3 (skeetertalkstech.com)
- Comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4 Series – Part 4 (skeetertalkstech.com)
- Comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4 Series – Part 2 (skeetertalkstech.com)
- Comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4 Series – Part 1 (skeetertalkstech.com)
- Parallels Desktop 7 Hands-on [Video] – run Windows apps on your Mac, run Mac on your iPad (slashgear.com)
- Watch Flash On iPads With Parallels Desktop 7 (socialmediaexplorer.com)
Comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4 Series – Part 5
October 24, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Installing Windows 7 with Parallels Desktop 7
This is part 5 of my series comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4, and in this article and video I am going walk you through installing Windows 7 Home Premium with Parallels Desktop 7. What I run into frequently with new users on the Mac is that when they buy a virtualization solution like either Parallels Desktop or VMware Fusion, Microsoft Windows is not included.
In the latest version of Parallels Desktop 7 for Mac you now have the opportunity to buy Windows 7 and other programs right from within the program! This makes getting Microsoft Windows up and running very easy and convenient, by just using the built-in Parallels Wizard a user can both purchased and install Windows 7 on their mac! The article and video will explain what those items are and the video will guide you through doing this process on your own environment.
Related articles
- Comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4 Series – Part 4 (skeetertalkstech.com)
- Comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4 Series – Part 3 (skeetertalkstech.com)
- Comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4 Series – Part 2 (skeetertalkstech.com)
- Feature: Virtual showdown: Parallels Desktop 7 and VMWare Fusion 4 reviewed (arstechnica.com)
- Daily App Deals: Download Parallels Desktop 7 for Mac for $49.95 in today’s App Deals (lifehacker.com)
- VMware Fusion 4 hands-on: Lion, Windows 7, Windows 8, and more (arstechnica.com)
Comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4 Series – Part 4
October 16, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Migrating from VMware Fusion 3 to Parallels Desktop 7
This is part 4 of my series comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4, and in this article and video I am going walk you through the steps necessary to take your VMware fusion 3 virtual machines and move them over to Parallels Desktop 7. Built into the Parallels Wizard is a migration tool that will walk you through the steps necessary to get that Virtual Machine up and running again but within Parallels Desktop. The process is fairly simple however there are a few things before you start and once you complete you might want to consider. The article and video will explain what those items are and the video will guide you through doing this process on your own environment.
Before I start the migration there are several things you should consider and by checking and following these steps the process ends up being a series of clicks and waiting for the migration process to complete.
Preparing to Migrate
- Check available disk space where the virtual machine files are located to make sure you have at least double the size of the VMware virtual machine to give parallels room to do the migration. Parallels does not destroy or delete the original file as part of this migration, which is something you will manually need to do.
- If you have created Snapshots within the VMware virtual machine, then use the SnapShot manager to delete all of the all snapshots only keeping the current active version.
- Within VMware and the virtual machine running, go into the control panel in Windows, and un-install the VMware Fusion tools from the virtual machine you are about to migrate.
- When prompted to reboot the virtual machine as part of removing the VMware tools, do not restart the environment, but instead shutdown the windows environment.
Clean-up after the migration
Once the migration is complete Parallels Desktop will automatically configure the Windows environment to run in what Parallels calls Coherence mode, meaning the desktop environment disappears and Windows apps run like Mac apps. You can change this back to Single Window mode if you prefer to see the Windows environment running in it’s own self contained window.
- Make sure you test the Parallels Virtual Machine for several days along with the migrated applications and data to make sure everything works as expected.
- Use the VMware Fusion uninstall program to completely remove Fusion from your Mac, that is assuming you have no other Fusion virtual mMachines that you need to use or migrate.
- By default, Fusion will store the virtual machine files in your Documents folder, within a folder called Virtual Machines, go ahead and delete these files once you have both tested and confirmed there are no other Fusion VM’s that you need to either keep or migrate.
- Lastly, it is possible that Windows may require re-activation by the Windows servers. If this happens have your product key handy and you should be good to go!
Remember don’t forget to enter to win my FREE IPAD 2 16GB WIFI Giveaway. To enter all you have to do is go to my YouTube channel and SUBSCRIBE! Watch this video below for a more detailed explanation and if you have topics you are interested in please let me know. Enjoy!
Related articles
- Feature: Virtual showdown: Parallels Desktop 7 and VMWare Fusion 4 reviewed (arstechnica.com)
- Comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4 Series – Part 3 (skeetertalkstech.com)
- VMware Fusion 4 Released (vmware.com)
- VMware Releases Fusion 4, Brings Full Lion Support (macstories.net)
Comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4 Series – Part 3
October 10, 2011 By 3 Comments
FaceTime Camera Support
This is part 3 of my series comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4, and in this article and video I am going to look at how the virtual machines work with the FaceTime Web Cameras that come with Macs. On OS X Lion one of the new features is the ability to do video conferencing with other people on Macs or their iPhone or iPad! Video Web Cameras have become very popular to connect with people visually however what happens if I want to use my Web Cam within the PC environment?
Both Parallels and VMware support the use of the FaceTime camera with programs such as Skype or MSN Messenger but they approach the use of the hardware differently. In Vmware Fusion 4 I can use the FaceTime camera in Windows, but the camera becomes locked into that environment. Which means that the camera will only work in the Windows environment until I release the camera from Windows or shut down the virtual machine I can not use that camera with a Mac application such as Photobooth. In Parallels Desktop 7, that same FaceTime camera can work concurrently in both environments. So while I am say in Skype on Windows, I still can still fire up Photobooth on the Mac and use the camera at the same time! This is very cool to see!
It is through these types of enhancements Parallels continues to show its leadership in the virtualization space and maturity of their product in their most recent release. What we are seeing between the two products is that while VMware Fusion is improving, the lead that Parallels has gives them the ability to focus on the little things that make the experience of running Windows on your mac even more seamless. The video below will shows you how the FaceTime camera works in both environments along with how to configure them.
Remember don’t forget to enter to win my FREE IPAD 2 16GB WIFI Giveaway. To enter all you have to do is go to my YouTube channel and SUBSCRIBE! Watch this video below for a more detailed explanation and if you have topics you are interested in please let me know. Enjoy!
Related articles
- Comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4 Series – Part 1 (skeetertalkstech.com)
- Feature: Virtual showdown: Parallels Desktop 7 and VMWare Fusion 4 reviewed (arstechnica.com)
- VMWare Fusion 4 Takes on Parallels 7 (pcworld.com)
Comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4 Series – Part 2
October 2, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Full Screen Application Mode
This is part 2 of my series comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4, and in this article and video I am going to look at Full Screen Application mode. On OS X Lion on of the top 10 features Apple noted was the ability to make any application run in full screen mode so that the user could eliminate all of the distractions that one faces when running multiple applications or have many other windows open at the same time.
For both Parallels and VMware both applications have incorporated the new Full Screen Application mode supported in OSX Lion, however VMware has not implemented this mode of operation fully. When you go into full screen mode in VMware the windows zooms to full screen, however the Apple menu at the top of the screen and the OSX Dock will still be visible. However when running Parallels Desktop 7, they have taken extra steps in the interface so that windows applications truly run in full screen mode like their Mac counterparts.
Through these types of enhancements Parallels continues to show its leadership in the virtualization space and maturity in their most recent release. The video below will show you explicitly how the two operate in OS X Lion Full Screen Application mode.
Remember don’t forget to enter to win my FREE IPAD 2 16GB WIFI Giveaway. To enter all you have to do is go to my YouTube channel and SUBSCRIBE! Watch this video below for a more detailed explanation and if you have topics you are interested in please let me know. Enjoy!
Related articles
- Parallels Desktop 7 for Mac released (zdnet.com)
- OS X and Windows, working together (zdnet.com)
- VMWare Fusion 4 Takes on Parallels 7 (pcworld.com)
Comparing Parallels Desktop 7 to VMware Fusion 4 Series – Part 1
September 26, 2011 By 2 Comments
There are several options that allow you to run different operating systems on you Mac, however the two primary third party software publishers that offer solutions are Parallels and VMware. Almost like clock work each fall Parallels releases an update to their platform, and this year VMware decided to move their platform forward with a new release as well. Having compared these two virtualization platforms in the past I am often asked which solution is better and how they compare.
Since both platforms have seen revisions and I am going to release a weekly series that compares different key features for each product and at the end of the eight week series I will provide my summary findings and overall recommendations. This series will launches today with Launch Pad, with a new segment to this series posted every Monday.
The topics that I will be covering are:
- LaunchPad
- Full Screen Apps
- FaceTime Camera Support
- How to Migrate from VMware Fusion 3 to Parallels Desktop 7
- How to Install Windows 7 on Parallels Desktop 7
- Mobile Devices
- Gaming
- Overall Assessment
Free iPad 2 – 16gb WIFI Model Giveaway! In conjunction with each blog post is a video that demonstrates and walks you thru the various feature that I am discussing or comparing each week. If you go to my YouTube Channel and SUBSCRIBE you will be automatically entered for an iPad 2 giveaway. This drawing will take place once I reach 1,000 subscribers on my YouTube channel.
Well Enough said and on to Launch Pad!
Both Parallels Desktop 7 and VMware Fusion 4 support Launch Pad which is new in OSX Lion 10.7, however Parallels makes it very easy to add and remove programs into the Launch Pad screen, where Fusion 4 makes the user go thru many steps to add and remove programs into the Mac interface. Watch this video below for a more detailed explanation and if you have topics you are interested in please let me know. Enjoy!
Related articles
- VMware Fusion 4 Released (vmware.com)
- VMWare Fusion 4 Takes on Parallels 7 (pcworld.com)
UPDATE: Facebook Deals Are Not Dead Contrary to Popular Belief!
September 14, 2011 By 1 Comment
There have been several blog posts suggesting that facebook has thrown in the towel on Checkins and Deals, giving up to FourSquare, one that comes to mind recently was Business Insider Article. Announced this morning at Social Crush, in Charlotte, NC. Patricia Lai of Facebook, when asked the question - What is happening with Facebook Check-In and deals stated this:
” Facebook Deals Are Not Dead! We have streamlined the checkin process by allowing users to identifying their location when they post a status update and Deals and location based marketing with deals is very strategic to Facebook and its partners” .
When asked about any changes coming to how deals will be claimed on mobile devices now that the “Places” function on mobile apps was really no longer needed, she could only grin and had no comment. With Facebook’s F8 Conference next week we can only expect to hear changes like this among many others coming to facebook!
We heard it hear first at Social Crush!
Apple could learn from this Calendar enhancement!
June 20, 2011 By Leave a Comment
If you use iCal for tracking your appointments and to dos, you probably hate the interface to create new appointments and the inability to set mutliple reminders or actions for that mater within an appointment. Well fear not, the folks over at Flexbits, Inc have come up with a nifty little add -on app called Fantastical.
The program adds an icon on your menu bar that allows you to easily look up future appointments plus more importantly it allows you to enter new appointments using natural language! What is really great about this program is that it syncs directly with your iCal, Outlook or soon to be release BusyCal database, and you can add and lookup appointments without ever opening up the full blow calendar programs.
So as an example I can create a new appointment by typing something just like this:
“Webcast Meeting with Joe on June 24 at 1:30 until 3:00 at Skype” 
Fantastical will automatically fill in all of the detail entered from the appointment without me touching the mouse in the right fields for the appointment. I hit return, the appointment is saved and since it’s already being stored in my iCal database it lands up in my iPhone in a matter of minutes automatically! Apple could clearly learn from this little application!
So what’s the downside?
Well as of this version 1.01, there is no way to edit an appointment from within Fantastical, basically you double click and it launches your native full calendar program to make the changes. In my case iCal.
The other downside to me is price, when I purchased this app it was $14.99, and recently they have raised the price to $19.99. For the functionality that this program provides it’s just a little steep to me.
Otherwise a nice add-on for your Mac!
