August 5 - 11:30am EDT   Apple is beginning to pave significant paths into the corporate world, says the research firm Yankee Group. Following a recent web survey of 750 global IT administrators and C-level executives, the firm says it has discovered that approximately four out of every five businesses have Macs running on their network. In general, says Yankee analyst Laura DiDio, adoption of Apple computers is said to be growing at a "steady and sustained pace not seen since the late 1980s." [full story]

July 30 - 9:20pm EDT   VMWare on Wednesday released VMware Fusion 2.0 Beta 2, a new free public beta of its software for running Windows (and other operating systems) within Mac OS X. The update brings better utilities and performance, support for multiple screenshots, better gaming, full 1080p HD video acceleration at near-native speeds (with less CPU utilization), and support for Mac OS X Leopard Server. Adding more Windows-integration features, users can now share applications between Windows and Mac, launch Mac files with Windows applications (as well as Windows files with Mac applications) and also set web, email, and other links for to default to either Windows or Mac. In addition, ... [full story]

June 26 - 8:05pm EDT   Apple's exposure in the corporate world is exploding according to a recent survey by Yankee Group Research, finding that Macs reside in one form or another at almost 80-percent of US companies. According to Computerworld, the figure has almost doubled in two years, with 47-percent of corporate IT departments claiming the use of Macs in early 2006. The increase comes mainly from Apple's well-documented reliability, as well as the virtualization capabilities that the Intel migration has opened. [full story]

June 19 - 4:30pm EDT   No matter how much you may love your Mac, there may still be programs that you may need to run on Windows. The simplest solution is to buy a copy of Windows to use on Boot Camp, Parallels, or VMware’s Fusion. Unfortunately, Boot Camp only lets you run either Windows or Mac OS X, but not both at the same time. Parallels and Fusion let you run Windows at the same time as Mac OS X, but all three solutions still force you to buy a separate copy of Windows. To avoid the cost and hassle of buying and using Windows, just get CrossOver Mac 7.0. [full story]

June 17 - 9:40pm EDT   Parellels on Tuesday formally announced the availability of Parallels Server for Mac, software that the company claims to be the first server-level virtualization tool for Intel-based Macs. Parallels Server offers the company's hypervisor-based virtualization techniques for Macs running Mac OS X Leopard Server, and can serve a multitude of Leopard Server-, Windows- and Linux-based virtual machines. Parallels Server is currently available from the company's website for $1000. [full story]

June 12 - 3:35pm EDT   VMware has announced that the next beta version of Fusion 2.0, its Mac virtualization software, will officially introduce support for virtualizing Mac OS X Leopard Server. The company has been working on the project since January, following modifications to Apple licensing which allowed Leopard Server to be run in a virtual machine on a Mac. For end users, this should mainly permit running multiple servers for different networking tasks. [full story]

June 12 - 2:05pm EDT   Parallels Desktop Mac Build 5608, the latest build of the virtualization environment for Mac OS X, has been released. This build adds support for guest Parallels Tools for Linux in the latest Linux distributions (including Ubuntu 8). It also includes added support for running 3D graphics in your Windows VM on Mac OS X Leopard 10.5.3. If you're already using Parallels Desktop 3.0 for Mac, this new build is free download it via the Check for Updates option in the Parallels Desktop Help menu. [full story]

May 9 - 8:15pm EDT   Since switching over to Intel processors, the Mac is now capable of running practically any operating system. The simplest option is to use Boot Camp to create a dual-boot system that can run Mac OS X or Windows XP/Vista. A more flexible solution is to run Mac OS X and one or more additional operating systems at the same time. To run another operating system within Mac OS X, you’ll need a special virtualization program like Fusion. Although the program has been available for over a year, the company has recently released a version 2 beta to give you a glimpse of its upcoming features. [full story]

May 9 - 10:05am EDT   Parallels has released a new update to Desktop, its side-by-side OS virtualization app. The software is now at build 5600, and adds "full support" for the latest editions of Microsoft Windows; Vista is now handled up to Service Pack 1, while XP compatibility extends to Service Pack 3. Parallels has also improved compatibility with the MacBook Air. [full story]

May 6 - 1:00am EDT   VMware today unveiled VMware Fusion 2.0 Beta 1, a free beta preview of the next major update to its OS virtualization software, which introduces many new features, including true multi-display support for virtual machines. In addition to using multiple displays, the beta also introduces experimental support for DirectX 9.0 Shader Model 2, allowing users to run complex 3D software in a virtualized environment. When it ships, VMware Fusion 2.0 will be a free upgrade for all existing v1.x users, while new users can purchase Fusion for $80. [full story]

May 1 - 3:45pm EDT   Parallels has released the fourth beta of its Server for Mac software. The program provides hypervisor-based server virtualization, which helps save costs by supporting multiple platforms through the same hardware. Beta 4 is notable for reintroducing Leopard Server virtualization, which had been temporarily removed. The upgraded beta means that Leopard Server can once again be run under a virtual machine on XServe systems, or any other compatible Apple hardware. [full story]

April 22 - 12:05am EDT  Apple's growing marketshare among end-users is helping push the Mac's acceptance in corporate America. InfoWorld notes the Macs are spilling out of its traditional areas of marketing departments and media companies and into wider array of business environments, thanks to, what it calls, "the confluence of a number of computing trends, not the least among them a rising tide of end-user affinity for the Apple experience." The trends, the column says, are "making it easier for tech departments to say yes to the Mac by facilitating IT's ability to provide enterprise-grade Mac management and support." In particular, the article cites growing browser competition, a move toward universal Web-based computing, ... [full story]

March 25 - 4:15pm EDT   CodeWeavers today unveiled CrossOver Games, a new optimized version to its Windows virtualization software designed to function exclusively with games. The software is already compatible with a number of different Windows game titles, such as World of Warcraft, Guild Wars, Team Fortress 2, Counterstrike, and Civilization 4, among others. CrossOver Games is available for both Mac and Linux platforms for $40, which includes one year of support and updates. [full story]

March 5 - 2:05pm EST   Parallels today announced it is offering Parallels Server beta 2 for public download, after positive feedback based on private testing. Parallels Server takes advantage of hypervisor-based virtualization techniques, and supports over 50 different x86 and x64 operating systems, including Windows Server 2008. The beta also features Parallels' toolsets for enhancing, transferring, and backing up the resident virtual machines. Parallels Server beta 2 is available from download from Parallels' website. [full story]

January 29 - 1:20am EST   VMware today unveiled Fusion 1.1.1, an update to its virtualization client, adding in numerous features and bug fixes. Fusion now remaps hotkeys between the Mac and the virtual machine, equating Command-C with Control-C in the VM, for example. This remapping works for the following keys: Z, C, V, X, P, A, and F. On European keyboards, the Enter key now properly gives the AltGr command, and will not be influenced by NumLock. Fusion 1.1.1 is available for download from VMware's website. [full story]