How fast is the Virtual PC for Mac version 7.0 ??

[igmolinav]

Hi,

I have a 1.33 GHz. ibook G4 with 512 Mb. of RAM. I must use for my work some dictionaries
that come in a CD format and that can only be used with Windows.

Do I need to use the Virtual PC from Microsoft version 7.0 in order to use
these dictionaries
- or is there another option
- I'll be using seven or eight different dictionaries (not at the same
time but they'll be saved to the virtual PC. I don't know if the
Virtual PC can bear to work with seven or eight programs) ??

Is the Virtual PC 7.0 relatively fast - I saw once a previous version
that was not really that fast ??

Does the Virtual PC 7.0 function "seamlessly" or are there problems with the Mac Platform.
For example, long pauses that often "invite you" and lead you to use the force quit
function, or even to reinitiate the computer ??

If you were in my place, would you buy one more GB of RAM for
the "weak" ibook. Would the Virtual PC work more
efficiently with that extra
GB of RAM ??

Thank you very much,

igmolinav.

 

[swiftaw]

Slow as Molasses, and that's probably being generous

 

[bousozoku]

When I used the DirectX diagnostic tool (dxdiags) in Win98 running through Virtual PC 5.04 on my dual G4/800, I got an approximate 533 MHz Pentium MMX as the processor, if that tells you anything.

It could have been faster, a lot faster.

 

[Nermal]

It's very slow, but if you need it then you need it. I recommend using Windows 2000, not XP.

 

[igmolinav]

Hi,

Thanks for your message. Please tell me more. Do you mean that with extra RAM it will help to run the virtual PC faster or not really.

Thank you,

igmolinav

 

[bousozoku]

Hi,

Thanks for your message. Please tell me more. Do you mean that with extra RAM it will help to run the virtual PC faster or not really.

Thank you,

igmolinav

VPC only allows you to allocate 512 MB maximum, if I remember correctly. If you don't allocate the maximum, it's even worse.

 

[hogmog]

I use VPC on a 1.67 PB G4 with 1.5 gig of ram. Usually to run SPSS (a statistics package which does have a Mac version but it is always 2 to 3 versions behind the Windows one making data file exchange difficult) and a couple of specialist numerical data analysis and modeling apps. Whilst the results of running these apps on datasets of 100+ is not instantaneous it is more than adequate - you can pause for breath but little else. Therefore I don't see a problem in using VPC. I would suggest getting some more memory if at all possible - I tend to have Mac apps such as Word, PowerPoint and EndNote running at the same time so even if VPC can't make use of the extra memory OS X can.

 

[AdeFowler]

I use VPC 7 on my dual 2.5 G5 with 8gb of ram and it's very slow in my opinion. Launching is the worst bit (go and make a coffee), screen redraw is slow and choppy. I personally wouldn't recommend it on an iBook. I'd put the cost of VPC towards a MacBook and Parallels.

 

[MisterMe]

When I used the DirectX diagnostic tool (dxdiags) in Win98 running through Virtual PC 5.04 on my dual G4/800, I got an approximate 533 MHz Pentium MMX as the processor, if that tells you anything. ...

The OP asked about VPC 7, not VPC 5. This is important because VPC 7 uses a different emulation engine. FWIW, VPC 5 running Windows 98 on a 266 MHz beige G3 was not that bad. VPC 7 run Windows XP SP2 on my 2.0 GHz dual G5 may be faster, but it certainly doesn't feel that way. On my 2.5 GHz dual G5, it is noticeably faster. However, it is not really that snappy even on the faster machine.

 

[bousozoku]

The OP asked about VPC 7, not VPC 5. This is important because VPC 7 uses a different emulation engine. FWIW, VPC 5 running Windows 98 on a 266 MHz beige G3 was not that bad. VPC 7 run Windows XP SP2 on my 2.0 GHz dual G5 may be faster, but it certainly doesn't feel that way. On my 2.5 GHz dual G5, it is noticeably faster. However, it is not really that snappy even on the faster machine.

I noticed, thank you very much for pointing it out over and over and over.

It doesn't really matter because it was either slow or slower.

 

[CanadaRAM]

The extra RAM will help some, because VPC's RAM requirements are over top of the Mac OS requirements and the software running in the Mac OS

We don't say 'fast' and VPC in the same breath. Especially on an iBook, it is going to be slow however you cut it.

Ideally; get a MacBook and Parallels to run Windows. (not Bootcamp, because implied with your use of dictionaries is to go back and forth with other Mac applications)

 

[igmolinav]

Thank you very much to all for all your help. I really appreciate it !!!

Just as a last question. Nermal suggests Windows 2000. That is a better option than Windows XP, isn´t ?? (I have Windows XP, I´ll try to get Windows 2000 as soon as possible. What is the major difference between these two versions when running them in the Virtual PC ??)

 

[BornAgainMac]

Disable all networking, don't install virus software or Norton Utilities. Keep it down to the bare minimum and it will run better. By the way, I have Windows 95 stripped on Virtual PC and it runs better than the PCs that were running Windows 95 natively back in those days.

What is the major difference between these two versions when running them in the Virtual PC ??)

XP has additional eye candy that slows down the emulation more and the disk footprint is larger. It also uses more memory.

 

[igmolinav]

Hi,

Thank you very much again for all your help. I'll look for an older version from Windows !!!

igmolinav

 

[colorspace]

It's painful for pretty much everything but fairly simple 2D apps. I would go even further than previous posts and recommend W98 as the OS. Then add as much mem as possible.

G'Luck