Windows Vista on Parallels Desktop review
This review is not a review of Microsoft's Windows Vista OS, nor is it necessarily a review of Parallels Desktop. It is a review of the combination of the two software.
Review Rig
- Macbook Pro / Intel Core Duo 2 ghz / 2gb Ram
- Parallels Desktop for Mac 3038 Beta
- Windows Vista Ultimate RTM
When I started a contest to run Windows XP on the Mac, I was looking for the optimal way to operate in a world where you cant stand to work in Windows but cant afford to work without it.
I purchased Parallels Desktop for Mac when it first was released and have used it as my primary way to run Windows on my Macbook Pro. There have been a multitude of improvements since the first release, and the new features in the current betas are quite exciting.
Download updates and software from Microsoft even without the Windows Genuine Advantage check
Have you been trying to figure out how to keep your Windows up to date so you dont spread viruses, but are concerned that if you update, Windows will stop working?
muBlinder is a piece of software that allows you to bypass Microsoft's Genuine Advantage check and download their software - such as Windows Desktop Search 3.0, Windows Defender, Internet Explorer 7.0 (which breaks Outlook 2003). It's available and update from the p2plife forums (unfortunately you need to register to download it), but the solution works, and is relatively easy to update. Another solution that doesnt allow you to download the extras is WindizUpdate, a plugin for firefox that replicates the way Windows Update works.
installing google desktop under different credentials than the active user is currently not supported
I was recently trying to uninstall Google Desktop from my Windows XP install that I had running in Parallels Desktop for Mac. Every time I would boot up, it would tell me that it could not upgrade the database and begin reindexing all my emails and files from 0%. Thats no good! So, I decided to uninstall it and give Windows Desktop Search 3.0 a try.
Well, when I tried to uninstall google desktop, I would get the error message: "installing google desktop under different credentials than the active user is currently not supported". After some research, and frustration, I found someones recommendation. If you get this error, the steps are as follows.
- Run the google desktop uninstall
- Click OK on the first error message, but leave the second one up
- Start the google desktop uninstaller again
- Click yes to all of the questions!
- Restart.
That should enable you to remove Google Desktop, when Google Desktop doesnt want to be removed!
Windows XP 64 is crap and things break and printers dont work and quickbooks doesnt work the list goes on
So, I thought I would do a review of my experience with Windows XP 64. I guess the place to start is:
Why I bought Windows XP 64.
I was shopping online for a new computer for one of our employees and saw that Dell was selling these workstations with Intel Core 2 Duo processors (64 bit chips!) with cheap upgrades ($10 + shipping) to Windows Vista. Well, if you bought Windows XP, you only got an upgrade to 32 bit Windows Vista. At this point, I had a lot of faith in Microsoft Windows Vista, and thought that for sure, within 1 year, no one would be buying and installing the 32 bit Vista... that technology is for the dinosaurs. So, the option I had (for no additional cost) was to buy the 64 bit Windows XP and get the upgrade to 64 bit Windows Vista Business. I didn't think / have time to research potential problems with that decision and thought that I was making a smart choice.
The computer arrived and I booted in to Windows XP 64 and noticed one thing that immediately concerned me... two versions of Internet Explorer. *Gulp*. If they've got two versions of Internet Explorer, then that means that some things don't work correctly on the 64 bit version and you need to use the 32 bit version. This was a sign of problems to come.
Installation and Set up
Well, the next step was to set up office which was pre-installed. Im pretty sure there isn't a 64 bit compiled Office 2003 so there was probably no benefit with running that on a 64 bit system. So, after a few hiccups and some concerns I got the machine up to spec and was ready to send it to our other office. The morning I am going to send it, I had to finish one install before it left. As I am using the computer, I get a BSOD. Uh oh. The computer shouldn't BSOD when it is brand new. Those unfamiliar with BSODs or Blue Screen of Death might want to note that these are usually caused by poorly coded device drivers.
Well, I dismissed that first BSOD to dumb luck, packed the computer up and sent it on its merry way. The next thing to do when it is on site, is to install all the printer drivers... no problem! Well, it wouldn't be a problem on regular windows... but 64 bit, better Windows doesn't have the same support for printers that its weaker smaller brother does. HP attempted to address this by having a unified driver for all of its printers for XP 64. What HP probably didnt do was test it on all their printers. I wasn't able to get it to work on the HP Color Laserjet 2500.
So, I said I would try and fix it later and would look for a solution online. Well, the next step was installing Quickbooks. I was a little nervous by this time, so did a search and found the following disappointing information about compatibility of Quickbooks in Windows XP 64.
Daily Use
Well, as it happens, the computer has started crashing and showing BSODs multiple times per day. Looks like we are going to have to send it back to Dell and get the 32 bit Windows XP.
Morale of the story is - if you are using Microsoft products, stay away from the cutting edge - it sucks pretty bad.
IE7 Breaks Outlook 2003
How ridiculous does that statement look! If you were wondering why your headers stopped printing when you print your outlook email, that is the answer. By installing Internet Explorer 7, you are foregoing your right to consistently print header information in Outlook. Several people in my office were reporting that some of their emails were printing without the header info. Upon doing a search in google for the phrase "email only prints text of the message", I found the following discussion @ lockergnome
I believe this problem started when IE7 was installed as I haven't seen it on machines that still have IE6.
and then another frustrated user:
ts definitely IE7 there are so many people (not just in these forums but also in others across the net) having the same problem - me too.
Microsoft are exceptionally quiet on this front. the only known solution i've seen is to uninstall IE7 & go back to IE6. i hae tried other fixes ie re-editing HTML back into plain & then putting back to HTML - this works sometimes - but sometimes not & is very time consuming.
So, what did I do? I removed IE 7 from all of my users computers and faster than you can say "microsoft needs help", they were all printing Outlook emails with headers again.
Im in the process of reviewing Office 2007 and Windows Vista, and it wont be much different than this review.
Marc James – virus or hoax?
Here is a stupid forward I got on Yahoo! Messenger about a supposed virus. Can anyone confirm this is actually a virus and not a hoax? Even if it was, use Gaim on windows or linux and AdiumX on the Mac and you wont be getting any viruses.
If a Marc James wants to add you to their list dont accept it. Its a virus. Tell everyone on your list because if somebody on your list adds them you will get it too. It is a hard drive killer and a very horrible virus. Please pass this on to everyone on your list. We need to find out who is using this accounts. Sorry for the inconvenience. Right click on your group name of your buddy list and click Send Message to all. Copy and paste this message
