Technology Windows emulator on a Mac

[sunny123]

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For those of you that have a Mac, did you ever need to make use of a Windows emulator? Just curious.

 

[Koko]

😕 😳 😕

 

[sunny123]

^ I'm guessing you don't know what a windows emulator is or you don't know what I'm asking? I've seen several of my grad friends (who were given macs to work with in the lab), that had to use a Windows emulator to run various programs to analyze results (was biochem related). Just wondering if people with macs have had to use a windows emulator, in case certain programs wouldn't work on a mac. I hope I cleared the air there. Thanks in advance. 😀

 

[Koko]

Thanks for the clarification. As you may surmise, I have not used a Windows simulator with my g4. Never had a problem - but, maybe you should mention the program(s) you're concerned about if this isn't a general question since you may be using programs some of us don't typically use.

 

[sunny123]

^ It's an emulator, which is a platform needed to simulate Windows (yes, I'm quite picky about the terminology, sorry ). I don't remember the programs, but my friends needed it because they needed access to DOS based environment.

This is just a general question, because I may be getting an ibook this summer from my med school, and I do watch movies (divx/AC3-coded movies), listen to mp3s, and play games. And I've never used a mac before, so I was wondering if the programs I use (mainly BSplayer/VLC media player (for subtitled movies)) would work on a mac. I know I wouldn't be watching a lot of movies in med school, but I want to know how much use I could get out of the ibook.

My only experience with macs, were the Powermacs about 5 years back. I mainly used it for intensive multimedia/graphics work. So I'm not fully aware of all the nuances of the macs. I know programs had to be specially designed to function well on macs, so that is why I brought up the issue of emulator usage in order to make use of windows/dos-based programs.

Hope I didn't confuse anyone out there.

 

[southerndoc]

The program to which you are referring is called "Virtual PC."

Apple's included software will play mp3's and let you watch movies. (c'mon, you're going to listen to mp3's from the creator of iTunes!)

You'll find that about all you need will be included in the Mac out of the box.

 

[sunny123]

It's not just any type of mpeg movie files. They need filters to be run properly. Sure iTunes is fine, I got no beef with that. And the games that are made nowadays, are they compatible with macs for the most part? Or do you need to use "Virtual PC" to run them?

 

[Koko]

^ It's an emulator, which is a platform needed to simulate Windows (yes, I'm quite picky about the terminology, sorry ).

My bad.

Haven't had any difficulty listening to tunes or watching flicks, for what it's worth.

 

[Iwy Em Hotep]

^ It's an emulator, which is a platform needed to simulate Windows (yes, I'm quite picky about the terminology, sorry ). I don't remember the programs, but my friends needed it because they needed access to DOS based environment.

This is just a general question, because I may be getting an ibook this summer from my med school, and I do watch movies (divx/AC3-coded movies), listen to mp3s, and play games. And I've never used a mac before, so I was wondering if the programs I use (mainly BSplayer/VLC media player (for subtitled movies)) would work on a mac. I know I wouldn't be watching a lot of movies in med school, but I want to know how much use I could get out of the ibook.

For movies that somehow don't run in DVD Player, I can always open them up in VLC, compiled for Mac OS X.

DOS programs that I might be interested in running can be run in DOSBox, an MS-DOS emulator.

I haven't yet needed anything that requires a PC to run, and I would add that running Virtual PC on an iBook will probably be unsatisfying, since you'll end up emulating a 400 MHz PIII at best.

 

[sunny123]

Thank you very much Iwy for the info. Didn't know that the speed of emulation in an iBook would be that low.

 

[palminator2003]

It's not just any type of mpeg movie files. They need filters to be run properly. Sure iTunes is fine, I got no beef with that. And the games that are made nowadays, are they compatible with macs for the most part? Or do you need to use "Virtual PC" to run them?

If you want to run a modern graphics/processor intensive game, then you will have to buy the version ported to the macintosh platform. You should not try and run the latest windows version of Doom 3 under VirtualPC, for example. However, more basic games (solitaire, asteroids, etc) should be OK. I'm not sure about the movies though. I guess it probably depends on a number of factors including the bitrate of the movie, how fast your mac is, and whether a mac version of the codec exists.

 

[sunny123]

The iBook that would be provided to the med students is a 14" G4 book. I just checked out the specs on it, and it seems that it comes with an ATI Radeon 9200, with 32mb??? I would've expected 64/128mb. As for games, yeah, I was looking into games like Doom3/FarCry/MOH Vietnam/HalfLife2/etc.

I was thinking about buying my own laptop (a Dell 15/17" 9200/9300 or a Toshiba Satellite) if I wasn't able to run the games or watch the movies (which are pretty intense graphics wise).

 

[Sessamoid]

Forget about modern first person shooters on a G4 with 32MB of video RAM. Some older ones should work fine though (Quake 3 and earlier). Most FPS games don't get released for Mac anyway. The iBook was never meant for heavy duty FPS play.

As someone noted before, VLC isn't just ported to OSX. It's designed as a multi-platform application, and has been a native OS X application since way back. Windows Media Player has a version for OS X. MPlayer has been ported to OS X from Unix, and it plays most weird video files.

As far as being a stickler for correct terms, what your weird video files need isn't really the right "filters" but the right "codecs". "Filter" in this context usually refers to a post-processing effect that's applied to video AFTER it's already been decoded.

 

[sunny123]

^ Actually I've had to download an AC3 filter to run certain movies, as well as divx codec packs.

 

[mustangsally65]

Your iBook can have add-ons ordered with it, if it comes from Apple. You can add more memory, to better handle the graphics-intense applications.

Also, iMovie is supposed to be a great movie production and editing package. I haven't ever used it, as I don't have a camcorder or anything. But it might be able to handle what you're looking for.

Have you considered going for a PowerBook instead of an iBook? The main difference is that the PowerBooks are higher-end iBooks. They have faster processers, more hard drive space and memory, and are usually built for more advanced applications. I would think that your school would offer this option if they are offering iBooks.

I don't know a lot about the games you mentioned, but have you looked online for Mac versions of the games you are interested in? They might be available in places other than apple.com.

Hope this helps!

 

[sunny123]

^ If I end up going to RCSI in Ireland, they provide students with the 14" iBook. I would like to upgrade to something more powerful, and I'll probably ask the school what my options are.

 

[palminator2003]

The iBook that would be provided to the med students is a 14" G4 book. I just checked out the specs on it, and it seems that it comes with an ATI Radeon 9200, with 32mb??? I would've expected 64/128mb. As for games, yeah, I was looking into games like Doom3/FarCry/MOH Vietnam/HalfLife2/etc.

I was thinking about buying my own laptop (a Dell 15/17" 9200/9300 or a Toshiba Satellite) if I wasn't able to run the games or watch the movies (which are pretty intense graphics wise).

I would check a few mac gaming sites to see if the iBook is fast enough to run the games. Try Mac Gamer or Inside Mac Games for some benchmarks/reviews. I think Barefeats has some benchmarks too. As fare as games released for mac, I know Doom3 is coming. Some MOH series games are here. Half-Life will never be ported. Check the above websites for confirmation of which games are being ported and which are not coming to mac. All I will say about the movies is that it's easier to buy a DVD.... 😉

 

[sunny123]

All I will say about the movies is that it's easier to buy a DVD.... 😉

Riiiight 😉 , I hear ya! Thanks for the links, I'll check'em out.

 

[Koko]

As fare as games released for mac, I know Doom3 is coming.

sweet

 

[Koko]

^ If I end up going to RCSI in Ireland, they provide students with the 14" iBook.

RCSI has to be the coolest name for a med school hands down.

 

[rpames]

Virtual PC is pretty crappy. It will emulate a PC at about half the speed of you Mac. But even at that I think it is running slower than it says it is. I have the program and I use it as little as possible. I will go to school and uses thier PCs before I boot up the emulator.

As far as high end gaming...not a chance.

 

[Sessamoid]

This is true. I ran V. PC in my iBook G3 for a path program my prof wrote, and it takes a million years to get enything done. I now have a G4 but have yet to try it out, b/c I inherited a Compaq. So I just use it whenever I need the PC.

Virtual PC seems pretty snappy on my desktop, but that may be because it's a dual 2.5 GHz G5. 🙂

 

[dtreese]

I think putting a windows emulator on a mac is like buying a lexus and putting a kia engine in it.

 

[Pyroclast]

I think putting a windows emulator on a mac is like buying a lexus and putting a kia engine in it.

Yeah, as opposed to leaving in the Lexus engine and driving your car on the single road available to Lexus drivers.

BTW, Treese, did you see this thread about chemicals in plastics emulating sex hormones? It looks like anyone microwaving their Tupperware is at as much risk of gynecomastia as us tofu-eating vegetarians. 🙄

http://forums.drslounge.com/showthread.php?t=193656