An Apple a Day...

What kind of news shall I talk about first? How about the iPhone and Apple’s hard lean into the ubiquitous communications market? I’m no MacHead, believe me. I’ve been using computers for almost 30 years, but I spent most of them using just about everything Microsoft.

OK, some people are hard-headed. I actually hate Microsoft and have for quite some time. Don’t get me wrong...they are certainly masterful at business. Yet, there has been such an attitude at Microsoft that permeates the market with great arrogance and lack of respect. Just about every time I bought a Windows-based product, I felt as if I just left the car dealer, wondering if I made the right decision.

Now that I have a Mac, I’m less concerned, as I can run most of my old and new apps, with relative ease. I use VMWare Fusion and/or Boot Camp to do what I need to. Granted the wonderful and ever-present activation loop that using a Microsoft operating system with Fusion and Boot Camp lays before each user is still a huge obstacle. I’m not even sure who to blame for such folly, VMWare or Microsoft.

All I know is that I’ve been in a very similar endless loop with Microsoft support, for the past few days. I finally stumbled on qualified help, so I thought I would share it. If you are going through this now or plan to have a Windows install on an Intel-based Mac, then please save yourself a lot of pain:

Use Boot Camp Assistant to partition your drive for the Windows install (I recommend more than the default 20Gb, as this may not leave enough room for your other Windows apps).

1. Use Boot Camp Assistant to partition your drive for the Windows install (I recommend more than the default 20Gb, as this may not leave enough room for your other Windows apps).
   
   
2. After the computer restarts, install Windows (I used XP Home Edition).
   
   NOTE: You need a full-install version (otherwise you cannot eject the disc for upgrade installs). There is a way to work around the upgrade using an external CD/DVD player attached and both discs on the same system at the same time, but I recommend against this.
   
   
3. Once installed, you won’t have internet access, etc., to activate. Insert the Apple Leopard disc and it should auto-install the proper drivers for pretty much everything you need.
   
   
4. At this point, PLEASE DON’T ACTIVATE! Restart the system, but after the initial boot sound, press and hold the option key, until you see the option to boot either into Mac or Windows OS. Choose Mac using the arrow keys and hit ‘Enter.’
   
   
5. Once the Mac OS has loaded, load Fusion and you’ll see the Boot Camp partition listed in the virtual machines list. Load it and STILL DO NOT ACTIVATE WINDOWS.
   
   
6. Once loaded, install the VMWare Tools by going into ‘Virtual Machine’ option on the menu at the top of your desktop and select ‘Install VMWare Tools.’
   
   
7. Upon completion, reboot the computer again, but this time let it boot into the Boot Camp partition. Activate Windows by phone and be honest, but understand that when it asks you how many computers you have Windows installed on, you state “one.”
   
   NOTE: This is legal, as I called Microsoft myself and found out that running one instance of the OS at a time on the same physical machine is OK (the software is just not smart enough to realized the virtual machine and the Boot Camp partition are the same). Keep in mind that if you do anything to alter the configuration of the virtual machine, Windows sees this as a different machine altogether and, thus, you’ll get the activation loop.
   
   
8. Once activated, reboot back into the Mac OS. Load Fusion and the windows VM and then activate one more time. You may also have to activate MS Office, if you installed it also. At this point, it is my understanding that you’ll be fine.
   
   NOTE: I have tested this and it works. If you run into activation problems for some odd reason, start again and ensure that you paid attention at each step. It worked for me.
   

OK, so like I said, I’m not a MacHead. I don’t think that Mac’s are the best product out there, but certainly for the few faults I’ve run into, I’m loving having one over my PC by leaps and bounds. Owning and using an Apple is like using your game console after troubleshooting your PC for the last few days. It just works. ‘Nuf said.

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