Parallels Desktop help

[Immanueldk]

Hello, I want to install Win XP on my macbook, If i Get Parallels desktop, do I so need Bootcamp?

How to use parallels desktop?
should I install Parallels desktop before installing XP?

is there a guide for Parallels desktop and installing XP without bootcamp?
Im lost!

Immanueldk

[Lt Major Burns]

Bootcamp allows one to create a partition on which to install windows, a bootable version of windows xp SP2.

Parallels is a program that runs within mac os X and creates a 'virtual computer', an environment to run any operating system in, pretty much, it fools it into thinking it's a normal pc. from this virtual computer, you can isntall windows xp, and it will then run in a window, at the same time as mac os x.

with BootCamp and a fully bootable windows xp, windows has access to the whole computer, including all the graphics and sound hardware etc.

parallels can't use the complex graphics card capabilities, but doesn't envolve rebooting the computer to use it.

games etc : Boot Camp

general usage/testing : Parallels.

oh and whereas boot camp is free, parallels is $79

[Immanueldk]

What is the best? I have a macbook, so I dont think anyway I can play any games in XP!?
If i Install Parallel is it possible for me to install all xp apps I need?

[chevy]

Parallels should let you install Windows XP (first) and then install Microsoft Office.

[MisterMe]

Immanueldk, because Parallels Workstation is just a MacOS X application, you can install it use it and also use Boot Camp to allow your computer to boot natively into Windows XP SP2. Whereas Boot Camp allows you to run Windows XP (or Vista), PW will allow you to setup as many virtual machines as you want--each of which running a different Intel-compatible OS.

[Immanueldk]

Okay so after I have installed Paralels workstation and WinXP, I can install bootcamp, so I can boot to XP?

[MisterMe]

BC and PW are independent of each other. With BC, you may boot into Windows from a Windows partittion and have it behave pretty much like any other Windows computer. With PW, you run an Intel-compatible OS (such as Windows) within a MacOS X-hosted virtual machine at near-native speeds. If you do both, it doesn't matter which one you do first.

[nixgeek]

Think of Parallels Desktop being like Microsoft Virtual PC or VMWare on the PC side. The software acts like a virtual computer where you can install an operating system, usually used if you can't install another OS on the hardware (as used to be the case with PowerPC Macs and Windows). The nice thing about Parallels (and also VMWare and I guess Virtual PC) is that since the Intel Macs use Intel processors, the virtual machine runs the operating system much faster since the computer's processor is running native code that it understands. This is why running Virtual PC on a PowerPC Macintosh was so slow since the CPU had to be emulated as opposed to the scenario on the Intel Macs (which use the actual hardware CPU for the processing while video and other hardware peripherals are emulated).

Boot Camp is different. It's basically a boot loader (kind of like GRUB or LILO with Linux) that allows you to install Windows on a separate hard drive partition so that you could boot natively into Windows. The upside to this is that Windows XP sees the Mac as another PC, so you should even be able to run games with full acceleration (provided that you have the proper drivers for the Intel, ATI, or NVIDIA video card/chipset). Boot Camp will also create a Windows driver CD that has the necessary drivers for some of the Mac components that Windows doesn't already support (they're basically third-party Windows drivers but made by Apple for Windows on the Intel Macs).

Hope this clarifies things a bit.