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Intro
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With the new version of Parallels being released I've been playing around more with Virtual Machines and I thought it was time for me to discuss the advantages and how I use them.
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What is a Virtual Machine
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A way to create a completely isolated operating system installation within your normal operating system.
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Differs from emulation which would emulate the hardware, say letting you run an OS written for Intel processors on a Power PC (Virtual PC)
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In a Virtual machine the host OS simply passes the execution of the guest virtual machine directly to the native hardware.
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Basically uses disk images to create a separate environment for a guest OS
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Some uses
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Running a server
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ISPs use virtual servers, since many server applications don't maximize a computers resources
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Some environments require specific servings, security, and configurations that may conflict with another server or application
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Testing items in other OSes
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More secure since environments is sandboxed.
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Running apps not supported by your native operating system
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Why not just use Boot Camp
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Boot Camp is ideal if you need native access to the full resources of the machine
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Also not all apps will work in virtualized environments, especially some that need access to external hardware.
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Main advantage of Virtualization is you can run concurrently
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Why i use Parallels
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Performance
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For a while a switched back and forth between Parallels and VM Ware
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Parallels 6 just seemed faster and I like the UI
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Ease of use
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Installing "appliances" is super easy in Parallels 7
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Support for OS X Lion, Chrome, Ubuntu, Windows built-in
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Windows, you can buy, install, or migrate
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Also download "appliance" images directly from Parallels
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Other virtualization options:
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VMWare Fusion
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Oracle Virtualbox
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Using the virtual Machines
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Control the number of CPUs and the amount of RAM
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View modes
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Windowed
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Full Screen - good option to place it in it's own Desktop
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Coherence - Desktop is hidden. My favorite mode
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Modality - transparent, always on top. Good for monitoring.
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Sharing
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You can map folders and define volumes that are visible to the virtual machine
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copy and paste between OSes
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Suspending instead of shutting down.
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Playing with Windows 8
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Share first impressions of Windows 8
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Metro vs. traditional desktop
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Metro has active tiles and apps
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Metro seems built for touch, but exists in desktop too
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Traditional Desktop is still there, but seems to play a reduced or supplemental role.
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Use traditional "Desktop" for file browsing and navigation.
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Windows Explorer integrates the ribbon.
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Experience seemed schizophrenic to me.
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Internet Explorer has 2 different experiences depending on where you launch it from
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Desktop seems to have a "Start" bar, but it just returns you to Metro "Start" screen
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I think the idea from Microsoft's point of view is to have one experience across tablets, notebooks, and desktops
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An interesting idea, but I'm not sure it works. Apple took the two tier approach and is now merging some elements, but I think they see that some rings are right for touch and other for a more traditional mouse and keyboard.
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Navigating the "Metro" interface with a mouse works, but there was something "unnatural" about it.
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