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VMware Fusion

A

apthai

macrumors member
Original poster
I've done a search and did not find the answer to what I'm looking for.

I'm thinking about purchasing VMware Fusion but have a quick question before I do. I've used VMware software at work before so I understand how things work. But this is my first Mac and don't know if it'll be any different than Windows.

Do I need to create any partition when installing an o/s? or will the VMware Fusion app create a large file/folder with the o/s self contained?

Reason for me getting fusion is I already have Office 2007 and don't want to buy Office 2008 for Mac. After installing Fusion I would just need to start the Fusion app and I'll beable to run Office 2007 like it was running in OSX natively?

Thanks.
 
Wouldn't buying Fusion and a license of Windows still be more expensive than Office 2008 for OS X?

In any event, Fusion will help you create a sparseimage into which you'll install Windows and then Office. You don't need another partition unless you want to boot Windows natively (Boot Camp). But remember, you're not just installing Fusion—you have to have a copy of Windows XP or Vista to install into it.
 
I'm still in college so I can get the software pretty cheap. However the school doesn't have any discount for MS Office 2008. I can get Fusion for $40 and I already have WinXP.
 
Just another questions... if I install WinXP in BootCamp, can Fusion run the BootCamp partition or would I have to install WinXP in Fusion? Thanks
 
Running Office 2007 for Windows through VMware Fushion takes a lot of energi from your battery.

You should also considder that mate 🙂
 
I'm guessing he means that it'll be more resource intensive, switching back and forth using Office on XP etc. More resources = quicker battery drainage.
 
After installing Fusion I would just need to start the Fusion app and I'll beable to run Office 2007 like it was running in OSX natively?
Click to expand...

In my experience, running Windows (both in VMWare and Boot Camp) significantly reduces my battery life such that it's impractical to use Word under Windows to take notes in class while away from an outlet (e.g. my battery life is effectively halved under Boot Camp). Also, it's quite a pain to boot up VMWare/Boot Camp just to use Office (in both cases you have to wait for Windows to boot up)... theoretically it might work, but practically it's pretty onerous, especially when you're in a hurry to get some docs open!

If you don't want to buy Mac Office, why not try the free NeoOffice? Alternatively, you might be able to find the older Mac Office 2004 for cheaper. I have Mac Office 2008 and I think it might be worth the investment if you need a good productivity suite for school. Just my 2 cents.
 
You can get office 08 very cheap if you are a student with websites like
http://www.studentdiscounts.com/
they give you the same discount that other students get on all software. or ask a friend at a different school to get you a discount on office 08.

I have VMware fusion on my macbook and I find that it eats up battery much faster than just running word or excel 08 would. Also the 'unity' mode which allows you to run apps as if they were in OS X isn't nearly as good as native OS X apps. Unity is a cool feature but its just easier to buy office 08 then go through the VMware route.
 
If you're worried about battery life...

You could just take notes in Text Edit while you're in class and then clean them up or reformat them in Office for Windows when you're connected to an outlet at a later time.
 
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