Need some questions answered about Boot Camp and running Windows on a MacBook

[sportsfrk214]

I am looking to buy a new laptop, and after doing much research, I have decided that the MacBook suits my needs perfectly, with one small exception: It operates on Mac OS X. Now, don't get me wrong, Mac seems like a great OS and I plan on learning to use it. However, I have come to be very familiar with Windows XP and I do a lot on there, and would like to continue to do so.

So I heard about this program called Boot Camp that allows you to partition the MacBook's hard drive so that I could run both Windows and Mac. This would allow me to use Windows for the many things I like to do on it, while at the same time allow me to learn Mac and use it for things that can't be done with Windows (for ex, using certain programs). So I have a few questions about this.

1. Does running 2 OS' on a MacBook hinder its performance at all? Does it cause it to operate slower or does it cause any problems?

2. How do I choose which one to operate? When I turn on the computer, does it ask me which one I want to boot? If not, does it automatically boot Mac if I don't tell it to boot Windows?

3. Would I experience any problems operating Windows on a computer designed for Mac, such as keyboard controls and things of the such? Basically, as a person whose always used a computer whose design had Windows in mind, would I find any problems or differences in using Windows on a Mac?

Thanks for any replies, they would be very helpful

 

[zyuzin4]

I notice no performance hit but you have to choose how much hard drive space to allocate to each, which became a problem for me as my Mac partition was far too small for Leopard and everything else I did on the computer. When you turn on the computer, holding down the option key will get you into a boot menu where you can choose. Boot Camp installs a Startup Disk program on windows that will let you pick which OS you want default. So you could have it boot into Windows on startup if you would like.

The only problems i've had with keyboard issues is that there the function commands don't work and there is no print screen button

 

[flopticalcube]

1. No, since under Boot Camp, only one OS is operating at any one time.

2. You can press the Option key at boot time to be presented with a choice or it will boot into the one that you have chosen to be the preferred OS. To choose a preferered OS under OSX go to the Startup disk panel in System Preferences. Under Windows go to the Bootcamp tray item.

3. Macs are simply PCs these days. The only difference is Macs have EFI whereas most PCs use BIOS. Since BIOS is actually a subset of EFI, they work just well.

 

[Jabberwocky246]

I find it ludicrous that you are considering buying a Macbook just to run Windows. Huge waste of money, IMHO. Tons of Dells, HPs, etc., that are way cheaper and have similar hardware specs.

That being said, I switched my laptop to a Mac about 6 months ago. I installed Boot Camp and XP, intending to boot Bill Gates when the need arose. Guess what? I haven't used XP on my laptop yet! I have found cheap or free programs for every single utility/application that I used to use in Windows.

I suggest that if you buy a Mac, you try using OSX for a while. It definitely takes some getting used to. Apple does things VERY differently than Microsoft.

The biggest problem you will have running Windows on a Mac is trying to right-click, unless you use an external mouse.

 

[JNB]

Apple Microsoft does things VERY differently than Microsoft Apple.

Fixed that for you.

 

[jeremy.king]

I find it ludicrous that you are considering buying a Macbook just to run Windows.

This would allow me to use Windows for the many things I like to do on it, while at the same time allow me to learn Mac and use it for things that can't be done with Windows (for ex, using certain programs).

(S)He is running both...get used to it and save your ludicrousness for another day...

The biggest problem you will have running Windows on a Mac is trying to right-click, unless you use an external mouse.

Two finger click works for me

 

[sportsfrk214]

Well, as I said in my first post, I'm not buying it just to run Windows, I want to use it for both. And I choose the MacBook because not only does it allow me to use two OS', but it has a huge hard drive, great battery life, and it's a pretty good looking laptop lol

But now this thing about not being able to right click could be a problem, I use the right click function often on my files to get that list of options. Is there anyway to work around the lack of right click button without using a mouse?

 

[Avenger23]

You can still right click using a MacBook or MacBook Pro. Just hold two fingers down on the trackpad and click, which will execute a right click on Windows. You can also use a two button mouse on it, and it works just like it always does with a PC.

 

[QCassidy352]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU like Mac OS X; en) AppleWebKit/420.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.0 Mobile/4A102 Safari/419.3)

you can also right click by holding option and clicking.

 

[CWallace]

I find it ludicrous that (people) are considering buying a Macbook just to run Windows. Huge waste of money, IMHO. Tons of Dells, HPs, etc., that are way cheaper and have similar hardware specs.

By that argument, we should all buy the Dell or HP and peruse OSX86 forums to run OS X on it and save the "Apple hardware design surcharge".

Some people prefer Apple's styling, but not Apple's OS. My friend runs Windows exclusively on his MacBook because he likes the form-factor and design, but prefers Windows as his OS. Apple still made ~$1500 from him, so I figure it's a win-win.

 

[thaYAY]

Question about duel booting

So, since you divide up hard drive space for each system (windows and mac), when you install something in windows per say, it will never show up if you boot up on mac correct?

thanks in advance

 

[applgeek]

So, since you divide up hard drive space for each system (windows and mac), when you install something in windows per say, it will never show up if you boot up on mac correct?

thanks in advance

correct. Its like having two different hard drives.

 

[ziggyonice]

So, since you divide up hard drive space for each system (windows and mac), when you install something in windows per say, it will never show up if you boot up on mac correct?

thanks in advance

When you install Windows on your Mac using Boot Camp, your hard drive is divided between the Mac side and the Windows side (and you can dedicate more or less space to either OS). When doing this, the Mac side will see this as being two hard disks -- your main one for Mac, and another for Windows. Whatever you add to the drive while on Windows will stay on the Windows drive. And whatever you add to the drive while on Mac will stay on the Mac drive. At the same time though, you will still be able to access the Windows drive from the Mac side -- your Mac will see it as another hard disk that's just on the Desktop.

However, Windows uses two types of formatting options: FAT32 and NTFC. FAT32 is more compatible, and allows you to read and write data to the Windows hard disk from the Mac side. It has a limit of being only 32GB in side though. NTFC, on the other hand, only allows you to read data from the Mac side -- you can't write to it.

So if you want ease of transferring files back and forth from the Mac side to the Windows side, FAT32 is your best choice. And on the Windows side, you might want to look into getting MacDrive, which makes it easy to read the Mac hard disk while in Windows.