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downloading an emulator for a PC software

W

wind-dance

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Does anyone know how I can get my iMac OS X, 10.4.11, to read software written for a PC? I bought an astrology program from a site and after checking if it could run on a Mac went ahead a paid good money for it. When I called them they said to download a free emulator. I have no idea how to do this. Could someone walk me through the steps of downloading and PC emulator? Thanks for any info you can give me. 🙄😱
 
The only thing you can really do is install windows, either through parallels, thich runs windows like an app or boot camp which gives you a choice whether to run windows or mac on boot. there isnt any emulator that doesnt rely on you having windows installed. hope that helps

~Wibble~
 
download emulator for PC

Thank you Wibble and flopticalcube,
So the CD I bought will not work unless I've installed Windows on the iMac. So do I still need an emulator and what does it do; read the PC software program? Thx.
 
You could try using Crossover, I think it has a free trial to see if the program would work or not. Crossover does not require Windows as it emulates a Windows environment. VirtualBox/Parallels/VMware Fusion all require Windows as they emulate the underlying hardware.
 
It is not clear whether or not you have an Intel machine or a PowerPC (i.e. G3, G4, G5) based one. If it is a PowerPC then Parallel, VMWare Fusion or any other application that actually runs Windows on your machine will not work. You would then, as advised originally, need an emulator. They used to be much more common as it was, prior to Intel chips being used, impossible to run Windows itself on a Mac. I have no personal experience of using a Windows emulator but a quick Google came up with http://www.iemulator.com/index.php, which looks pretty cheap. I doubt you will find anything legal for free, though I can't say for sure. Emulators in general are a bit unpredictable and do not, by their very nature, make the best use of your hardware.
If you have an Intel-based machine then alternatively you could either get Parallel, Fusion etc. along with a copy of Windows (lets you run Windows in a window alongside your other applications within OSX) or upgrade to Leopard and get a copy of Windows (lets you boot into Windows using the built-in BootCamp functionality).
Hope that helps - let us know what machine you are using and the advice should be a bit clearer.
 
Try reading up on Darwin or Wine, but probably Crossover is the cheapest solution. You only pay for Crossover and don't require an additional Windows license. VMWare/Parallels require not only those softwares (about 75 bucks) plus a valid Windows disk.
 
As was posted above, it all depends on what version of the iMac you have. If it is a PowerPC processor based model (i.e. a G5 model or before) most or all of the suggestions will not work as they are designed to run on an Intel processor based Mac.

The only program that was released for running Windows on PPC based Macs was a program called Virtual PC for Macintosh- which was purchased by Microsoft from the original publisher, developed for awhile and then discontinued. You can still find copies of it at times on Amazon and eBay but not cheap. Also, don't be confused with another Microsoft program called Virtual PC which is a free download from MS- that is a program for running other OS installations on PCs.

I ran Virtual PC for Macintosh for quite a while and it worked pretty well, although certainly far slower than a real Windows installation-- but it allowed the use of most PC software on Macs before Intel chips, so it deserves recognition anyways! 🙂
 
sickmacdoc said:
The only program that was released for running Windows on PPC based Macs was a program called Virtual PC for Macintosh
Click to expand...

That was the product most readily available in shops etc. - there are other emulators around that are designed to do the same job for less (e.g. iEmulator).

Also, further to my original post, I believe CrossOver requires an Intel-based computer. iEmulator runs on PowerPC but see their guidance as to the releases of Windows that they suggest will work best.
 
DSG said:
That was the product most readily available in shops etc. - there are other emulators around that are designed to do the same job for less (e.g. iEmulator).

Also, further to my original post, I believe CrossOver requires an Intel-based computer. iEmulator runs on PowerPC but see their guidance as to the releases of Windows that they suggest will work best.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the clarification-- yes I should have said commercially released solution! Whoops.😱
 
DSG said:
That's Darwine I assume? Is that really a practical route for a non-enthusiast? Much better to stick to properly packaged solutions I'd have thought.
Click to expand...

Depends on the software you want to run, at least in my opinion. I've been using Parallels for some time, but decided a year ago or so to uninstall it (because of the large disc image). Since then, I have used Darwine (on the rare occasions I needed to), and it worked pretty well.

My guess is that it's the more unlikely it will run your application the more "sophisticated" it is, especially regarding graphics.
 
buying emulator for PC software

Thanks everyone for responding. I have an iMac OS X, 10.4.11, processor 1.83 GHz Intel Core Duo, Memory 512 MB 667 MHzRam.
I guess I'm buying Parallel and will also check out Crossover.
When I install either Parallel or Crossover does the computer automatically open the PC software in the right window? Thx.😕
 
wind-dance said:
Thanks everyone for responding. I have an iMac OS X, 10.4.11, processor 1.83 GHz Intel Core Duo, Memory 512 MB 667 MHzRam.
I guess I'm buying Parallel and will also check out Crossover.
When I install either Parallel or Crossover does the computer automatically open the PC software in the right window? Thx.😕
Click to expand...

Don't forget that if you use Parallels or Fusion (or BootCamp for that matter) that you will still need to purchase a Windows disk to use with them! OEM (or System Builder) disks work fine and can be found at places like newegg.com for approximately half the price of retail boxed versions. They are full legal versions produced by Microsoft as opposed to some the of the pirated disks sold by all the "cheap software" places that you probably get spam email from.
 
wind-dance said:
Thanks everyone for responding. I have an iMac OS X, 10.4.11, processor 1.83 GHz Intel Core Duo, Memory 512 MB 667 MHzRam.
I guess I'm buying Parallel and will also check out Crossover.
When I install either Parallel or Crossover does the computer automatically open the PC software in the right window? Thx.😕
Click to expand...

You will definitely need more RAM.

Try Crossover first. Its free for 30 days so you can see if it works for your program. Its only $40 if you are happy with the results. The alternatives all require a legit copy of Windows as well as the emulator program so the final cost will be much higher.

Once installed, Crossover should recognize your program. Good luck.
 
Virtual Machines

Hi Wind-Dance,

posters are telling you about virtual machines or "emulators" is an old fashioned name for them. They are programs that simulate a typical PC on your intel based mac. They typically require large amounts of RAM. 1 or 2 gigabytes if you can manage it.

Once you install the VM software (two I recommend are Fusion from VM Ware or Parallels Desktop from Parallels). Then you need to start your emulator and install the Guest Operating System. In your case, that would be Windows XP, I am guessing. You can Install Windows 98 or Windows 2000, or Windows Vista.... Which one to choose depends on your astrology program.

Then! Once you have the VM software installed and the Guest Operating System (windows xp) installed, you can install your astrology program.

You will be able to install any windows program at that point.

The VM software uses the various peripherals on your mac in the Virtual Machine (windows xp, for example) - In the case of the Internet, the PC in your virtual machine appears to be connected to the network your mac is connected to. The keyboard and mouse are used by the guest machine. The DVD drive is used by the virtual machine, the usb ports pass through to the VM and the hard drive of the VM is a file located on the Mac.

Both VM Ware and Parallels have free try-before-you-buy versions you can download. VM Ware is at vmware.com and parallels is at parallels.com
 
download emulator for PC

Thanks a bunch you guys. I am so relieved to now know what to do. Killerwack you should teach. You knew exactly what info I needed from reading my question. I really was in the dark about what was to be installed first and how the programs worked off of it. Thanks everyone who contributed to this thread. I'm on my way to the Apple Store, have a booking to get more Ram installed and they'll do the rest with Windows program. We'll most likely hear from one another in the future and I'm totally sold on Macs.
PS My username was actually typed in as Wind Dancer but the spacing only took wind-dance. I guess I could change it somewhere. Thx.
 
WAIT = SAVE SOME $$$$

Buy your RAM somewhere else.
Apple charges way too much for the RAM.
It's really easy to install it on your own.
 
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