Mac Review: Virtual PC

It had been 1989 when last I had used a MacIntosh computer, but I had been thinking about adding to our company's PCs. At last the time seemed right to add an iMac to our collection, but I soon found out that was the easy part.

Getting software to run on the iMac would be an expensive proposition, even just to get the basics that we use in our daily business. But soon I found a solution, a $179 solution by the name of Virtual PC.

Virtual PC comes in five flavors, allowing users to choose between running Windows 95, 98 or 2000, Red Hat Linux-PC version, or PC-Dos 2000 on the Mac.

The program comes with Virtual PC and the complete operating system chosen. In our case, having tried Windows 2000, we picked the Windows 98 version with its Ethernet support and combined it with WinRoute Lite, enabling us to network our PCs with the iMac and share one modem for all of them.

Virtual PC operates by providing a Pentium chip in software. The system is pre-installed and pre-configured, so all users need to do is install Virtual PC, answer a few questions about the ISP, and start using the product.

This reasonably inexpensive solution sounded too good to be true, but to my surprise Virtual PC's Windows 98 actually runs better on the Mac than the regular Windows 98 runs on our PCs. Windows 98 isn't bad when it isn't locking up or causing defaults!

Once the user starts Windows 98, it opens on top of the Mac desktop as shown in the picture above. Windows 98 can run in that mode or in full-screen mode.

In the installation procedure - which is pushed along with a Setup Assistant - Virtual PC will ask how much space the user wants to devote to the Windows 98 drives. Those drives then operate like regular Windows 98 drives on a PC.

The advantage is that this offers the best of both worlds, and lets them interact. Most all of the programs users run on the PCs can run on Macs using Virtual PC. For web builders, the one notable exception is HomeSite 4.5.

The screen shot on the left shows Adobe Photoshop in action on Virtual PC. Once a file is saved, it can then be copied from one system and pasted to the other, or it can be dragged and dropped onto the other. HTML, .jpg, and .gif files created in one system will work as normal in the other system.

By comparison, there are far more web building tools available for the PC than for the Mac, making Virtual PC a must have for Mac users wishing to expand their capabilities.

While in Windows 98 mode, the system and peripherals work as they do with the Mac. USB keyboards, mice, printers, and external hard drives all work to perfection either way with the Windows 98, Windows 2000, and Red Hat-Linux versions on Macs using OS9. In the other versions, USB support is limited to mouse, printer, and modem devices.

Users can alter their Windows 98 environment to their liking, just as they would normally do on a PC.

When the user finishes a session, Windows 98 shuts down just as it does when it is the only operating system aboard, in this case taking the user back into Mac mode only.

Other programs, such as browsers and E-Mail, will work on either system, and Mac hardware is supported in either OS.

Virtual PC does require a CD-ROM, Mac OS8 or later, and up to 1.1 Gigabyte of hard disk space, depending on which version is used. That same version choice can alter RAM requirements from 32 MB to 128 MB.

In addition to opening up a world of freeware, shareware, and commercial type programs simply not available to the Mac, Virtual PC maintains the Mac OS stability. Now, if Virtual PC only made a Windows version for the PC, perhaps the rest of our PCs would work as good.

What is it called again? Virtual PC 3.0

Where can I get it? http://www.connectix.com

How much does it cost? $179

What Mac is needed? G3, G4, or iBook

What additional hardware is needed? None

Is it worth it? Its one of the best purchases a Mac user can make.