reddirt14

Interesting. I don't know much more than what a virtual machine is. So I'm assuming with Parallels (or VMWARE) I could run windows and the applications, simultaniously with Mac software. They seem to work flawlessly? I can see where there are no issues in a dual book environment, unless I have to partition the harddrive out for each operating system.

nmenaker

yes, the run in parallel and they run VERY well indeed. I have been using one or the other about four years now on the Mac OS. I THINK one can have the VM smaller than doing the whole partition thing, install the win os, etc. Also, it allows one to run MANY VM's say Vista, XP, Linux, Win7 etc, if one wants. All the apps run native and pretty much as fast or SOMETIMES faster than on the dual boot (or a win machine for that matter)

losta

4GB is important. I have used Photoshop CS5 and Lightroom on both the new MacBook Airs and it's really not bad. I also use a current MacBook Pro and MacPro so I know what the performance on those are like. The flash memory makes these little machines very agile. The biggest issue is the screen on the 11.6 is a bit cramped when on a multi windowed environment but you can't beat the form factor.

MacWorld and Anandtech have done very favorable reviews as well as Walt Mossberg.

GadgetFreak

I am running VM ware on the 13 inch with the 4 gb of RAM and it works well. I think given the price of RAM is pretty low it is a good thing to add. I didn't bother with the faster processor but got the extra RAM as well as the larger amount of storage.

njxbean

You are definitely going to want to use VMware or Parallels vs doing a dual boot. On my MBP i always have some sort of a VM open at all times. Very easy to switch and transfer files between the two. You also don't need to partition or anything like that. Just make sure you have at least 4GB of RAM. with 2GB my VMs were a bit slow at times. 4GB is perfect. And you cant go wrong with Parallels or VMware.

nmenaker

parallels is basically free at the moment. FAR that is, checkout this link over at SD. TODAY only, (it has been running a while)

http://www.amazon.com/Parallels-Desk...1141205&sr=8-2

You get the old version for 16$ FAR, there is also a competitive rebate for 20$ more if you have anything, or a copy of the CD for VMWARE, etc. Then, you get a free upgrade to 6.0. Emailed in about day.

One would have to order today though. More deals like this will be around shortly though, they always are.

chichow

My opinion on the 11" vs the 13"

The additional of the SSD really helps system performance for both the 11" and 13" Macbook Airs. I think that the 11" would be fine if the OP just went for the old adage of pick 2 of 3....

#1 Word Processing / Web Surfing etc.
#2 Parallels Virtual machine with Windows
#3 Light Photo and super-light movie work

But the 11" really can only have 128Gb of HD, so that really crimps #3 esp. if you need to set aside disk space for the Virtual Machine.

So in this case I have to recommend the 13" with 4Gb of RAM and the 256Gb hard drive for the OP.

and FWIW
I have run Parallels 4 and 5 on the following laptop hardware:

Aluminum Macbook Core 2 Duo 2ghz with 4Gb RAM - runs just fine
Macbook Air 1.6Gz Rev 2 with 2Gb RAM - runs horribly
Macbook Air 2.13Ghz with 4Gb of RAM (latest) - runs great

Its really a no brainer to order the MBA with 4Gb RAM. The only time I would recommend just 2Gb is if it is truly your grandmother who is never going to do more than web surfing and light word processing, etc.

Efrem

Of course, you still need a copy of Windows. Not free, at least through legal channels.

nmenaker

uh, nobody said windows from free. Just the VM software. But, if one has ANY windows machine not being used, one could just use that license. Any one of us must have older XP/VISTA or even win7 licenses.

that being said, here is EB's Seven perfectly legal ways to get win 7 for nearly free.

http://www.zdnet.com/blog/bott/seven...e_skin;content

reddirt14

I'm leaning towards the 13" again after thinking I was settled on the 11.6". There is a dramatic difference in screens and for the way I have become accustomed to working, the 11.6" is a little annoying. I spent 30 minutes on both machines today.

But now I'm a little concerned about only going with 128 gb. I intend to keep most archive type files off the machine and only retail active work or entertainment files. I'm not a heavy iTunes user nore do I have much video sitting around. I could conceivably drop two movies on it for a long flight, but would erase them whem I'm done. But I will likely partition space for Windows7 and I will install Office professional for Access., along with Mac Office. So my question is, howh much memory am I upto. Who here uses a similar configuration and knows their memory usage.

And next week I'll be back on the 11.6" kick! Oh if Apple releases a faster processor for the 11.6" this decision is going to get harder. But remember this is my first Mac, so I'm looking for a good experience both for travel (that's a given based on the design) and for the uniquely Mac experience. I'm a little afraid that the 11.6" is might degrade the Mac experience, if that's all I use. If I had another Mac at home, well then it's starts slanting towards the 11.6" for pure portability (not that the 13" is big, by any means.)

boberonicus

Wrong. Unless you picked up that machine in Germany, where an OEM license is a full Windows license, you can't legally validate an OEM license that came with, say, a Dell machine, and use it for your Parallels install. That is, you'll be able to install Windows, but you won't get past the cheerfully sinister "Let's Activate Windows!" screen.

And Efrem's point is a solid one; many people are surprised to find out that they have to purchase a Windows license after they "already bought the Parallels software."

reddirt14

For the most part, core software isn't an issue for me it's practically free (legally). I believe Windows7 cost me under $30, if I'm not mistaken. I purchased Office Professional 2010 for $10.00 a few months ago. I suspect if most people look around they can find a way to purchase the software at an affordable price these days. Check with your company first - there are a lot of great offers out there. Then again, I need 4 copies of it for all of my machines, so I guess it adds up. I'm just worried about how much space it takes, at the moment.

From what I can tell from Wiki is that I will need 21.5 gb minimum. But a Mac Techie told me to partition off 50 gb. I understand I may need some overhead for things I don't understand. Virtual memory? If I'm running Windows in Parallels, I would assume I can get by with a smaller partition, or maybe don't require a partition? I just want to get an idea of how much memory I will need for Windows7, Office Pro, Mac OS, and Mac Office to runn affectively. The remainder I can use for additional programs and working files.

losta

I just got Windows 7 home premium 64 bit and parallels 6 from Newegg.com for $135 one of my clients needs to use some dental software on her MBAIR.

Big_Dutch

One advantage that Parallels has over VM is that you can actually setup the dual boot system with Boot camp like you were talking about, and then also run that partition as a virtual machine in parallels in your mac os x environment.

Also... parallels lets you virtualize an actual running windows environment (think your locked down corp computer) and then move it to your mac and run it as a virtual machine.

I did this with my corp machine, so that I wouldn't have to travel with my corp laptop and my personal mbp. This way everything i needed was on my mbp.

Since the virtual machine mimics everything (down to the mac address of your network cards and your processor ids, if so equiped) your corp wouldn't have any idea if you were working on your corp issued laptop, or a virtualized version of it.

nmenaker

I have to say, if someone buys the VM software thinking it INCLUDES windows OS that's just their own fault. Clearly on the marketing box and online it says, "does NOT include windows"

As for the OEM vs. Retail key situation, I have always used keys from my IBM and LENOVO computers for my VM machines, since I am sunsetting one of those machines at the time anyway. They all run just fine, no activation problems, update problems, nothing. I don't know about Dell per se, but it would appear that at least some keys are going to work fine. Or, one can upgrade to win 7 through the various paths I posted above.