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- Article Ref
- 7867-DFLV-9955
- Written By
- frhelp
- Date Created
- Thu, 18th Mar 2010
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How to run FROL on a Mac
Prompt
How to run FROL on a Mac
Details
Short answer - with Parallels.
Long Answer -
Although we are interested in FROL, this discussion applies to virtually any Windows application.
FROL runs only on Internet Explorer, a web browser that currently is available only for the Windows operating system. Fortunately, there are two ways to run Internet Explorer, and thus FROL, on a Mac. Each method requires you to have a fully licensed stand-alone copy of Windows (not an upgrade) that can be installed on the Mac. The copy of Windows that comes pre-installed on any PC that one purchases does not qualify. It is licensed only for the PC on which it came. A stand-alone version of Windows costs around $200.
Both methods I will discuss work on Apple’s Mac operating system 10.5.x (Leopard) and 10.6.x (Snow Leopard).
Boot Camp
If you have a Mac running Leopard or Snow Leopard, you already have Boot Camp. It comes with the operating system. Boot Camp allows the user to boot (start up) into the Mac operating system or to boot into Windows. When the user starts in Windows, it’s just like running Windows on a PC. Once Windows is installed, any other Windows applications can be installed and run. The applications will run just as fast as they would run on a PC with a comparable amount of memory installed.
The down side to using Windows through Boot Camp is that only one operating system is used at a time. The computer must be restarted each time the user switches between Windows and Mac operating systems. In my opinion, restarting one’s computer in order to use an application is too inconvenient. I just don’t have the patience. Thus, the preferred method is…
Virtual Machine
A virtual machine is a software version of a physical computer that allows more than one operating system to run on a Mac computer at the same time, i.e., Windows and Leopard or Snow Leopard. You can have your cake and eat it too. Two widely used virtual machine products are Parallels and Fusion.
http://www.parallels.com
http://www.vmware.com/products/fusion/
Both Parallels and Fusion cost around $70. I highly recommend Parallels. It works very well, and their telephone technical support is terrific. Walt Mossberg recently wrote an excellent comparison/review of these products in the Wall Street Journal. Rather than furnish my own description, I’ll just refer you to Walt’s article:
http://ptech.allthingsd.com/20100210/parallels-fusion-windows-on-macs/
The only problem I have found that users should be aware of with Parallels or Fusion is that it is important to shut down Windows before closing Parallels or Fusion. Closing a virtual machine with Windows still running is like turning off a PC with Windows still running - not a good routine, as it will eventually create problems with any operating system.
In conclusion, FROL runs beautifully on a Mac utilizing Parallels or Fusion virtual machine software as a platform for Windows and Internet Explore.
P.S.
Some customers may get confused because they can run Microsoft Office natively on the Mac, and therefore conclude that FROL will work too. They will say that Microsoft runs fine on their Mac and can’t figure out why FROL doesn’t work properly. They do not realize that Microsoft makes a separate version of Office just for the Mac, and confuse the software publisher (Microsoft) with the operating system.
Long Answer -
Although we are interested in FROL, this discussion applies to virtually any Windows application.
FROL runs only on Internet Explorer, a web browser that currently is available only for the Windows operating system. Fortunately, there are two ways to run Internet Explorer, and thus FROL, on a Mac. Each method requires you to have a fully licensed stand-alone copy of Windows (not an upgrade) that can be installed on the Mac. The copy of Windows that comes pre-installed on any PC that one purchases does not qualify. It is licensed only for the PC on which it came. A stand-alone version of Windows costs around $200.
Both methods I will discuss work on Apple’s Mac operating system 10.5.x (Leopard) and 10.6.x (Snow Leopard).
Boot Camp
If you have a Mac running Leopard or Snow Leopard, you already have Boot Camp. It comes with the operating system. Boot Camp allows the user to boot (start up) into the Mac operating system or to boot into Windows. When the user starts in Windows, it’s just like running Windows on a PC. Once Windows is installed, any other Windows applications can be installed and run. The applications will run just as fast as they would run on a PC with a comparable amount of memory installed.
The down side to using Windows through Boot Camp is that only one operating system is used at a time. The computer must be restarted each time the user switches between Windows and Mac operating systems. In my opinion, restarting one’s computer in order to use an application is too inconvenient. I just don’t have the patience. Thus, the preferred method is…
Virtual Machine
A virtual machine is a software version of a physical computer that allows more than one operating system to run on a Mac computer at the same time, i.e., Windows and Leopard or Snow Leopard. You can have your cake and eat it too. Two widely used virtual machine products are Parallels and Fusion.
http://www.parallels.com
http://www.vmware.com/products/fusion/
Both Parallels and Fusion cost around $70. I highly recommend Parallels. It works very well, and their telephone technical support is terrific. Walt Mossberg recently wrote an excellent comparison/review of these products in the Wall Street Journal. Rather than furnish my own description, I’ll just refer you to Walt’s article:
http://ptech.allthingsd.com/20100210/parallels-fusion-windows-on-macs/
The only problem I have found that users should be aware of with Parallels or Fusion is that it is important to shut down Windows before closing Parallels or Fusion. Closing a virtual machine with Windows still running is like turning off a PC with Windows still running - not a good routine, as it will eventually create problems with any operating system.
In conclusion, FROL runs beautifully on a Mac utilizing Parallels or Fusion virtual machine software as a platform for Windows and Internet Explore.
P.S.
Some customers may get confused because they can run Microsoft Office natively on the Mac, and therefore conclude that FROL will work too. They will say that Microsoft runs fine on their Mac and can’t figure out why FROL doesn’t work properly. They do not realize that Microsoft makes a separate version of Office just for the Mac, and confuse the software publisher (Microsoft) with the operating system.




