Binding: CD-ROM
Brand: Connectix
EAN: 0751359011536
Format: CD-ROM
Label: Connectix
Manufacturer: Connectix
Model: P011536
Packaged Height: 210 hundredths-inches
Packaged Length: 960 hundredths-inches
Packaged Weight: 130 hundredths-pounds
Packaged Width: 780 hundredths-inches
Platform: Macintosh
Publisher: Connectix
Studio: Connectix
Product Description:
Once you get over the creepy experience of seeing a Windows desktop on the face of your lovely Mac (and hearing the Windows start-up chimes reverberating from your speakers), you might start to appreciate the benefits that a program like Virtual PC 4.0 has to offer. For those Mac users who need to occasionally access Windows 98, Virtual PC 4.0 supplies just the solution without making you invest in a new machine.Virtual PC doesn't profess to offer lightning-fast speeds. Remember, you're running a second operating system, so don't expect even the mightiest G4 to keep up at its usual pace. However, we did note improvements in speed in most applications over the 3.0 version. Enough of a difference, in fact, to consider an upgrade if you're one of the many who've been frustrated by the sluggishness in the past. However, as before, Virtual PC is still not a good solution for playing PC games. Additionally, we tried watching two QuickTime movies over the Internet on both our Mac and in Virtual PC. While on our T1 line the Mac version was flawlessly gorgeous and buffered instantly while watching, trying to watch the QuickTime movie in Virtual PC was stuttered and clunky. And even when watching QuickTime movies that had been fully buffered first, the player still resorted to a slide show instead of smooth, streaming video. One major change in this latest version is in memory allocation. Whereas in the 3.0 version you had to allocate memory to the Virtual PC application itself, in this version you allocate memory to each virtual "machine," which can be expanded and changed even while you're in the midst of using that machine. Additionally, drive images are now only as large as they need to be. That means that even if you create a drive image of 8 GB for your virtual machine, but the application is only using 2 GB, then the image will only be 2 GB--a great disk space saving feature. The two most notable benefits of Virtual PC are the ability for Windows to use your Mac's existing Internet connection (there's no need to go through any further setup), and the outstanding USB support in this new version (you can access USB printers, scanners, and other peripherals easily). However, you should have OS 9.0.1 or later in order to take advantage of its enhanced USB support. Another neat addition in this version is the ability to add even more operating systems to Virtual PC. That means that if you have a copy of, say, SuSE Linux lying around, you can install that on another drive image, and access it from Virtual PC. The only caveats are that you must supply the OS and that you're still limited by the amount of RAM you have. But how cool is that? Though it might make you feel a little dirty having to visit the dark side every so often, the benefits of being able to switch back and forth between your Mac and Windows are quite substantial, and warrant a look at Virtual PC 4.0 with Windows 98. --Ara Jane Olufson
Customer Reviews:
16 of 16 customers found the following review helpful:
 One great Program!, 2001-07-10
Virtual PC 4.0 with Windows 98 is one helpful program. It allows you to access different programs that are only available for Windows machines. It doesn't emulate Windows, it emulates a Pentium processor on your computer, so if you want to upgrade to a different version of Windows at a later date, you will be able to. I really got this program for use with my Handspring Visor, since no one out there makes software to sync your address book and calendar over the internet for the Mac. I have used 2 different services thus far (Yahoo and MyPalm) and both of them have worked without a hitch. One thing everyone wants to know about Virtual PC though, is what about the games! I haven't really invested all too much money in that, but the ones that I have tried, have worked well enough (Grim Fandango and Close Combat series). If you decide to get this and want to run some games on it, let me caution you... first make sure the game does not require hardware acceleration as Virtual PC 4 will not access any 3D cards on your Mac. Secondly, check out the processor requirements. If a game requires a 500mhz Pentium, you are going to have one frustrating gaming session. The common rule of thumb is to take your Mac's processor speed and divide it by three (i.e. 466mhz mac = 155mhz Pentium). By following those simple hints, your gaming should be a good time! Overall, I wholeheartily recommend Virtual PC if your have no desire to get a full desktop PC and want to run a few Windows programs.
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