Resolved troubled

[huijia]

Hello there, i just gotten a MBP recently and found out that it's not recommended for my course, a little bit upset and unhappy, i will need to install windows. but before that, should i back up my MBP first? i'll most probably be installing windows 7s, which bit should i install, 32bit or 64bit?
lastly i will also be installing legostorm or something... will it harm my MBP? i'm upset please help !

 

[miles01110]

Shouldn't you have checked the system recommendations for your course before you purchased your MBP?

 

[GGJstudios]

To run Windows apps on your Mac, you need to install Windows via Boot Camp or use Parallels or VMware Fusion.

If you don't have a Windows license, you can use CrossOver to run some applications. Not all Windows apps are compatible with CrossOver. Check their site for compatible apps.

Also, you may have better success in attracting responses to your thread, and you'll make your thread easier to find for those searching for the same answers, if you follow this tip.

 

[theSeb]

First world problems. Very upsetting.

 

[hotgrease]

1. You should probably back up your data to be safe, but I didn't and it's not necessary

2. You should probably go with 64-bit as it will be able to take full advantage of the memory and the processor, unless the software you plan on installing is not 64-bit compatible (assuming the processor is 64-bit)

2a. If you're planning on getting Windows 7, look into the education discount. You can use an upgrade license if you qualify (which is pretty much just owning a previous version of Windows) and you can do a full install with that

3. Legostorm should not hurt your computer

 

[huijia]

hotgrease : alright i'll probably back it up first just to be on the safe side.
hmm okay got it i will probably be getting 64bit i guess but not confirm yet. is there an education discount? i'm not so sure about that. maybe it's only available where you are? alright! but do you know what legostorm is about? i only heard my teacher mention it but didn't pay much attention to him. i kinda regret now. thanks!

theSeb : well.... i was pretty frustrated about it since yesterday and it was kinda hard to get off my mind. it's still a problem despite being a minor one

GGJstudios : alright! i noted it! thanks

miles01110 : well it didn't really come across my mind that mac might not be recommended for my course when i was purchasing it... so i figured i'll probably need to try to see if i can fix it anyhow or by installing windows thanks still

 

[theSeb]

You should always keep a back up of all your stuff regardless of whether you're about to install windows or not. I would certainly recommend doing a full back up before you start with bootcamp.

Your computer will run windows perfectly via bootcamp, just like any other windows laptop would.

 

[squeakr]

If you mean the Lego Mindstorm, then there is a Mac version of that, and I found it much better than the Windows version (and it caused no problems or issues with the system).

 

[huijia]

theSeb : alright! thanks thanks


squeakr : o! there is? do you mind providing me the link to download? did you download both versions? 1 for the mac and 1 for the windows? hmm i think the one my teacher wanted me to download is the one for windows.. but if there's one for mac, i don't mind downloading it as well... just so if i'm unable to use windows, i can still use mac's

 

[nippyjun]

What windows programs do you need to run.

 

[153098]

Macbook Pro's are just like any other laptop. They probably don't recommend running OS X. I'd install windows 7 64-bit on bootcamp not on parallels/vmware because virtualization is a little laggy. Use the 64-bit version because the 32-bit version can only utilize about 3GB of RAM. 64-bit can utilize up to 192GB of RAM!! Good luck!

EDIT: No you don't need to back anything up. It won't let you install windows over your OS X partition because it's a different file format. Just DON'T format the mac os x partition when installing windows! Just run bootcamp assistant, it's a breeze. And 64-bit windows can run 32-bit and 64-bit programs so you should have zero issues running programs.

 

[huijia]

nippyjun : i'll need to run programs like alice and legostorm and multisim........

153098 : yup, alright! thanks! i have also already bootcamp my mbp, it was a breeze thanks! however i did back up my mac before i sent it for bootcamping...

 

[squeakr]

Regarding the Lego Mindstorms software, I got both versions from my instructor (I assumed it came with the kits, as they were Lego Branded discs that I installed from, although this was over 3 years ago). I used both versions, as I started the year with a Windows machine and ended the year with a MBP. The OS X version just seemed more polished to me coming from the Windows version but both worked well for their intended purposes. You could email Lego about the software, as maybe it has been discontinued in the last few years? They just may not make it as wide spread, and your instructor doesn't want to be bothered with OSX. I know lots of instructors will tell you they only support Windows and the software doesn't exist, rather than be hassled with the differences between knowing over OS (my instructor was very pro OS X, so he would go the extra for the students to obtain OS versions if they were available, when other instructors would say they flat out didn't exist rather than be bothered).

 

[harcosparky]

Lego Mindstorms Software for Macs.

Different Mindstorms packages use different software, maybe?

Here is a link to DL software for Mac (Mindstorms NXT)

http://mindstorms.lego.com/en-US/News/ReadMore/Default.aspx?id=351333