Parallels v 3.0 Released

[deltrotter]

Hi everyone

Can someone give me some instructions on how best to backup my current VM (Win XP) on Parallels 2.5. Going to upgrade...

Cheers

Del

 

[adiosk8]

Has anyone gotten half life 2 to work at playable speeds? or the same as it works in boot camp? It is one of their supported games, but its playing terrible and I have tried a lot of different settings.

 

[chicagdan]

I agree, I'm going to wait and see what Leopard brings before purchasing Parallels.

I decided to test drive Parallels 3.0 (I already own 2.5) and have to admit that while the upgrade pricing is annoying (the $40 offer has disappeared, now it's $50) and I fully expect to keep running games in BootCamp, this is a pretty strong upgrade -- it boots up and runs a helluva lot faster and drag-and-drop is a huge addition.

I like VMWare Fusion, but I've never been able to figure out how to migrate a Parallels VM to Fusion, so I just use my Vista Boot Camp installation with it ... and, unfortunately, Fusion Unity doesn't work in Vista yet, so I'm missing out. I'm also nervous about what EMC will charge for Fusion when it goes retail.

So I'm leaning toward biting the bullet and buying the Parallels upgrade. I use Parallels a lot and even if you don't consider DirectX, 3.0 is a much better product.

 

[Lyle]

Well, this sounds disappointing so far. I'm reasonably happy with Parallels 2.x but it doesn't sound like I need to upgrade to 3.0 if the 3-D performance is as bad as folks are reporting.

 

[meagain]

Does anyone know any good websites to learn about this stuff? Besides the Parallels forum which I can't post on.

 

[macinfojunkie]

Hi everyone

Can someone give me some instructions on how best to backup my current VM (Win XP) on Parallels 2.5. Going to upgrade...

Cheers

Del

I just did a copy/paste to an external drive of the entire parallels folder containing all my VMs. I'm guessing to role back to 2.x from 3.0 I'd have to delete the main directory and uninstall/reinstall before copying back. I've not had to do this with 3.0 (yet) but I've used that method when going from a 2.x to 2.y version (can't recall which versions specifically, I think it was at the time Coherence was first introduced) when the newer version was too unstable to work until a fix was released and had to go back to an older version. The process worked then - I can;t see why it would not work tis time.

Hope that helps you.

 

[SiliconAddict]

Sounds great to me. Could I buy ONE copy of Vista and use the same thumbdrive for both native Windows booting (on my Intel iMac) AND for VMWare? Or would I have to buy a second copy of Windows and use Boot Camp in order to boot native? (Sometimes I would want to for 3D speed.)

I think one image is considered one license so all you need is that single VHDD. Keep in mind though that USB's bandwidth, even USB 2, is still meh. Plus flash drives seem to only go to about 8GB of space right now. Finally gaming on a flash drive seems.....suboptimal. But for having MS Outlook. MS Office et al. Etc at your fingertips where ever it seems like a good solution.

 

[deltrotter]

I just did a copy/paste to an external drive of the entire parallels folder containing all my VMs. I'm guessing to role back to 2.x from 3.0 I'd have to delete the main directory and uninstall/reinstall before copying back. I've not had to do this with 3.0 (yet) but I've used that method when going from a 2.x to 2.y version (can't recall which versions specifically, I think it was at the time Coherence was first introduced) when the newer version was too unstable to work until a fix was released and had to go back to an older version. The process worked then - I can;t see why it would not work tis time.

Hope that helps you.

Thanks Junkie!

 

[CyberPrey]

Has anyone tried EvE Online or Supreme Commander?

I run a Mac Pro 2.66/2gbRAM/ATI1900XT...
Wondering how well these two will run on it in the new 3.0...

 

[Lyle]

Does anyone know any good websites to learn about this stuff?

Learn about which stuff? Could you be more specific?

 

[Maccus Aurelius]

I was sick of getting bad trial keys and glitches from Parallels so I stopped caring about it. I'd rather use VMware Fusion than Parallels just for the fact that it's free. I don't really care about virtualization anymore so Bootcamp is the best method for me.

 

[3nm]

updated and no problem here.

i like the fact that now drv c is now shown as a network drv under os x.

 

[legacyb4]

Are you sure you aren't mistaking that UI for the Windows session running in Parallels?

I am looking forward to VMWare's final release. Every day I use Parallels, I am reminded how bad its UI is.

Believe it or not, the big seller for 3.0 for me was less the 3D support and more the snapshot/rollback feature that is now allows for better Windows protection when testing out software (yes, I know VMware has had this but it is new in Parallels).

Well, this sounds disappointing so far. I'm reasonably happy with Parallels 2.x but it doesn't sound like I need to upgrade to 3.0 if the 3-D performance is as bad as folks are reporting.

 

[chicagdan]

Believe it or not, the big seller for 3.0 for me was less the 3D support and more the snapshot/rollback feature that is now allows for better Windows protection when testing out software (yes, I know VMware has had this but it is new in Parallels).

Yeah, they shouldn't have overhyped the 3-D. Most current parallels users need it for something other than high-graphics games and for everything else it does, this version is a big improvement. VMWare calls its 3-D support experimental and Parallels should have too. I bet it continues to get better, but it's never going to be good enough for the fanboys.

 

[failsafe1]

Upgraded and tried to run some games with no luck. I got an error message saying some DLL's were missing. Then another messages tells me an unknown error occurred. Reminded me why I made the switch in the first place. Hopefully things will iron out and I can play the occasional game without rebooting. I have yet to try the major titles that are listed like Half Life 2 and such. I was trying to run some demos of other titles.

 

[chicagdan]

I'd rather use VMware Fusion than Parallels just for the fact that it's free.

Ugh ... drives me nuts when people say that. VMWare Fusion is free FOR NOW. Once it leaves beta, it's going to cost something, probably more than what Parallels costs. So for you, okay, that's fine, you can walk away. This is precisely why I wish the virtualization companies wouldn't chase after gamers, Boot Camp was made for you. Some of us have to use a virtualization program for our work (many of us were in the Virtual PC universe with PPC machines) and the pricing issue is grating to me. Is Parallels going to keep throwing $50 upgrades at me ad nauseum? This time we REALLY got 3-D right ... pay us again? Will VMWare become a safe haven for people sick of the non-existent customer service for Parallels, then turn around and charge $200 for a release edition? I've tossed $120 into Parallels so far and I fear that I'm going to have to double down by the time the year is up.

 

[azizane]

list of games that are CLAIMED to be working with parallels 3.0:
http://insidemacgames.com/news/story.php?ID=15233

 

[boing]

Parallels 3.0 user review

I have been using Parallels 3.0 release since it came out and it is not as bad as everyone is going on about. Here is my opinion so far:

#1: Coherence works, but is not as good as Unity. But Parallels is going to get this soon, everyone should read this post about this "http://forums.parallels.com/post62925-26.html". It gives you some good information on comparsion of features.

#2: I had no license issues. I am sure some people might be having issues, but I had none.

#3: Parallels support of Direct3d and OpenGL works but can be slow. I am sure this will only improve over time (and the 3.x releases). VMware fusion does not support OpenGL (as far as I see), and the Parallels shows that it even has some Direct X 9 support (from dxdiag.exe). I am sure soon you will see a lot of reports about the 3d performance of Parallels.

#4: I don't use bootcamp so I can't say about this. All I know is if they can get the virtualization (and 3d) close to native speed, why would I want to reboot into Windows, and only have Windows available, when I could use Parallels and Coherence. Only thing I see Bootcamp being good for, for now, is games (full 3d support). I hope the Direct X support gets close to native as it improves over releases.

#5: After 7 pages of posts I can't believe there is almost NO TALK of probably the best new feature in 3.0 if you run Windows. SmartSelect is great, and the file sharing ability is so well done. It is nice how I can double click a text file in Windows, and it opens in BBEdit. I change the text, hit save, and it actually saves the file on the Windows side. And this can happen the opposite way also. SmartSelect alone would sell Parallels over Fusion for me. I wouldn't be suprised if VMware takes note and puts something like this in Fusion before it is released.

So anyone thinking about Parallels 3.0, it is good. Fusion is free now, but the release will cost. Even if they put the cost at the same price, Parallels has everything fusion has and it works well (and other things it doesn't like SmartSelect), plus things missing like the Unity stuff will soon be in the 3.x releases.

If you want to see some of the features in action, check out "http://www.parallels.com/products/desktop/screens&demos/". I suggest watching the SmartSelect one. Also as stated above read "http://forums.parallels.com/post62925-26.html" to see some comparsions of the two products.

Lastly, I am not anti-Vmware (use VMware Server and ESX), but everyone makes VMware seem the greatest. We just pruchased VMware ESX here at work, and trust me at the 3.0.1 there are plenty of bugs I am finding and some serious. Most should be fixed in 3.0.2, but trust me when I say no software is perfect. I am sure Parallels has issues (like some users here have said), but so does VMware etc. Heck read the gothcas about Fusion, there are still some major bugs that need to be worked out before release.

Well I just wanted to give my opinion since there was so much negative talk about Parallels and people going on about Fusion, and users questioning Parallels. Hope this helps.

 

[72930]

Ok...I have both...so here is my quickie review:

I will NEVER use SmartSelect, and probably never use the 3D, so I want speed speed and more speed. They are about equal now, and Unity wins it for me, so VMWare wins in the end, EXCEPT for when I have a lot of apps open...oddly Parallels is faster then. My uncle will use Parallels because of the file sharing goodness, but Fusion is a winner for me (at this point in time)

 

[Maccus Aurelius]

Ugh ... drives me nuts when people say that. VMWare Fusion is free FOR NOW. Once it leaves beta, it's going to cost something, probably more than what Parallels costs. So for you, okay, that's fine, you can walk away. This is precisely why I wish the virtualization companies wouldn't chase after gamers, Boot Camp was made for you. Some of us have to use a virtualization program for our work (many of us were in the Virtual PC universe with PPC machines) and the pricing issue is grating to me. Is Parallels going to keep throwing $50 upgrades at me ad nauseum? This time we REALLY got 3-D right ... pay us again? Will VMWare become a safe haven for people sick of the non-existent customer service for Parallels, then turn around and charge $200 for a release edition? I've tossed $120 into Parallels so far and I fear that I'm going to have to double down by the time the year is up.

Makes you wish that Apple developed a Boot Camp-like virtual machine don't it? They can call it Symbiote.

I don't think that 3D support is really just for gaming, but this also means that people who do 3D work on Windows apps like AutoCAD should be able to now use virtualization completely.

For myself personally, Parallels is not valuable enough [to me] to warrant the $80 or so asking price, then to have to pay $50 for every upgrade.

 

[petvas]

I have been using the latest version of Parallels since yesterday and I am very happy with it. I didn't have any issues with the activation key.
I find the performance much better in comparison to version 2.x and the new features are also nice to have, especially 3d support (although I don't play any games).
VMWare will also be a great program when it will be released, for me what makes is attractive is the fact that I already have many VMs from VMWare on Windows that I would like to use on both platforms. What I would like to see from VMWare is a conversion tool for all my Parallels VMs. I hate to install Windows from scratch again...

 

[chicagdan]

What I would like to see from VMWare is a conversion tool for all my Parallels VMs. I hate to install Windows from scratch again...

There is a conversion tool, but if your Parallels VM is in FAT-32 and not NTFS, then it gets very complicated. If you can figure out what they are saying at the end of this thread, let me know ...

http://www.vmware.com/community/thread.jspa?threadID=72654&start=0&tstart=0

 

[Llywelyn]

Eve-Online launches. There are a few render issues with things that are rendered offscreen (e.g., images of ships). The cursor location was not where it showed up on screen, so I didn't get a chance to see how she looks in space.

Exiting was... a bit painful. I couldn't close the window due to the cursor, so I had to force quit. That worked well enough though.

I did manage to change skills, so some plusses ^_^

 

[artifex]

Yes, and no. If you call their line, there's a voice recording that gives you a website to go to if you bought it in stores. Yes, you get a free upgrade, but you have to go there first.

Swell. They sent me to Nova Development's website, which had me fill out a form. When I submitted it, it wanted me to print something out and mail it with proof of purchase and wait 30 days.

Oh, it also said current boxes in the store are eligible. But hey, if you buy in the store, you'll have to wait 30 days after you jump through hoops, too.

Yeah... I don't know if I'm gonna bother mailing this in. For one thing, I'd have to go re-enter when I'm somewhere I can print stuff out. And 30 days? Really sucky customer service. They should be able to tell right away from the database which keys were in the boxes, and whether they were activated before May 1st.

Not to mention in another 6 months they'll want an upgrade fee, or something.

 

[midtoad]

pause button

I wish there was a "suspended mode" where you can suspend one of the OSes so the other can use most if not all the resources.

Parallels does have a Pause button for the VM. It dims the window for the VM, and I notice my MacBook's fan speed lowers after that, so I presume that means that fewer resources are being consumed. I notice that my OS X apps run faster as well after pausing Windows.