Wrangle Windows on a Mac with New Take Control Ebook
Now that running Windows on an Intel-based Mac has become commonplace, you might think that it has also become easy. Alas, the technology gods have yet to make it so, and making Windows run smoothly can still be a Herculean task. This fact also keeps Mac writers like Joe Kissell busy, and, thanks to Joe’s unstoppable curiosity, we’ve just released the helpful and comprehensive “Take Control of Running Windows on a Mac, Fifth Edition.” The 178-page ebook is available for $15.
“Take Control of Running Windows on a Mac, Fifth Edition” kicks off by helping you figure out which version of Windows you should run (XP, Vista, or 7) and which virtualization software makes sense for you (Parallels Desktop 6, VMware Fusion 3, or VirtualBox 4) or whether you should dual-boot with Apple’s Boot Camp. Next up, Joe helps you round up the necessary hardware and software, and make any obligatory preparations. Mid-way through the ebook, you’ll be making it all work right with hardware drivers installed, printers printing, anti-virus software patrolling the perimeter, and so forth. Before you finish, you’ll know how to share files between Mac and Windows installations, enjoy the snazzy new features in the latest
versions of Parallels Desktop and VMware Fusion, create functional backups of your Windows installation, and generally get on with your life while using Windows.
Questions answered in the ebook include:
- What are 13 things that you can do in Windows, but not on the Mac?
- How can I get a copy of Windows that will work on a Mac?
- How can I set things up so that Windows won’t bog down my Mac’s backups?
- How should I handle partitioning for my Windows installation?
- How can I avoid or handle activation hassles?
- What’s the best way to right-click in Windows?
- How do I make my Bluetooth devices work in Windows?
- What is FAT32, and why might it matter to me?
- What are the coolest new features in Parallels Desktop 6?
- Is VirtualBox 4 a serious contender in the world of virtualization?
I know the Bootcamp software will NOT partition a volume that is a 2 drive RAID array, but CAN I manually create the partition, then install Win 7 THEN apply the drivers that allow both OSes to coexist?
You can only use Boot Camp when Boot Camp Assistant creates the Windows partition. It's not just a matter of installing the right drivers, so that can't be done after the fact. For all I know, there could be some clever hack that would enable you to get the result you're looking for, but I don't know what it is, and wouldn't recommend it, in any case. In the vast majority of cases, the best way to get two OSes to coexist is to use virtualization.