boot camp
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US Navy considering fitness video games for boot camp
Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket effectively scared an entire generation away from boot camp. However, a new tactic being considered by the US Navy may completely change our perception of boot camp: video games. In the latest issue of Navy Times, Navy Surgeon General Vice Admiral Adam Robinson (he does sound important) suggested that games like Wii Fit and Dance Dance Revolution could help "newcomers to the military service build up the endurance they need to get in shape safely." According to the report, today's recruit requires much more work to get into "fighting shape" than in the past. With America's youth becoming increasingly sedentary, the US Navy has observed an increasing number of injuries suffered during boot camp. Recruits are "not used to the amount of standing and running that comes in recruit training," the report indicates. Games would theoretically provide a more approachable, familiar solution for physical activity. However, don't expect games to completely replace current recruit training techniques. The US Navy is simply looking into the possibility of augmenting its current regimen with fitness games. Additionally, there's no timetable in place for when games would be introduced into the military. Still, we're eager to see if the boot camps of the future will look less like the one in Kubrick's war movie and more like ... this. [Thanks Joseph!]
Mac virtualization face-off: VMware Fusion 3 vs. Parallels Desktop 5 (video)
With Steam officially hitting Mac in just a few weeks many Apple gamers have suddenly lost their need to emulate. But, for those who are hoping to get busy in a little Command & Conquer 4 under Snow Leopard this week -- or any of the other myriad of PC-only gaming options -- virtualization is the only way to go -- short of rebooting into Boot Camp, of course. Parallels is the most commonly used solution, but how does VMware's Fusion 3 stack up for gaming? Not too well, as it turns out. MacTech sat the two down together on matching Mac hardware and ran them through a number of benchmarks, including 3DMark. The results of that test fall heavily in the favor of Parallels, offering better framerates and far more consistent visuals, which you can see for yourself in a video below. Most of the many, many other tests run favor that option as well, but we won't spoil all eight pages worth of results just waiting for you on the other end of that source link.
Ask TUAW: Key remapping in Boot Camp, iPad tethering, file-sharing with a media extender, and more
Welcome back to Ask TUAW, our weekly troubleshooting Q&A column. This week we deal with some technical issues on our production Mac before turning to questions about Windows key remapping in Boot Camp, sharing files with a LaCie media extender, downloading images in Safari, recovering from a hard drive failure, and more. As always, your suggestions and questions are welcome. Leave your questions for next week in the comments section at the end of this post. When asking a question, please include which machine you're using and what version of Mac OS X is installed on it (we'll assume you're running Snow Leopard on an Intel Mac if you don't specify), or if it's an iPhone-related question, which iPhone version and OS version you have.
Ask TUAW: Power adapters, Windows 7, iWork refresh, and more
Welcome back to Ask TUAW, our weekly troubleshooting Q&A column. This week we've got questions about MacBook power adapters, Windows 7 in Boot Camp and virtualization in general, resetting the Mac Setup Assistant, the next iWork refresh, and more. As always, your suggestions and questions are welcome. Leave your questions for next week in the comments section at the end of this post. When asking a question, please include which machine you're using and what version of Mac OS X is installed on it (we'll assume you're running Snow Leopard on an Intel Mac if you don't specify), or if it's an iPhone-related question, which iPhone version and OS version you have.
Ask TUAW: Prepping a Mac for transfer, adding words to spell check, updating Boot Camp, and more
Welcome back to Ask TUAW, our weekly troubleshooting Q&A column. This week we've got questions about preparing a Mac that you're transferring to a new owner, updating Boot Camp, adding words to the built-in spell check, dealing with flaky network disks, FTP clients, and more. As always, your suggestions and questions are welcome. Leave your questions for next week in the comments section at the end of this post. When asking a question, please include which machine you're using and what version of Mac OS X is installed on it (we'll assume you're running Snow Leopard on an Intel Mac if you don't specify), or if it's an iPhone-related question, which iPhone version and OS version you have.
Boot Camp updated: now supports Windows 7
If you've been waiting with bated breath to dual-boot Windows 7 on your Mac, your time has come. File under "better late than never": Apple has now updated Boot Camp with support for Windows 7. With separate downloads for 64-bit and 32-bit versions of Windows 7, the download also requires an authentic copy of Windows 7 or Windows 7 upgrade, and is only supported on more recent Intel-based Macs; no Macs produced before 2007 will support Windows 7, as outlined in this Apple support page. If you're upgrading your Mac's other side from Windows Vista to Windows 7, you'll first want to download and install the Boot Camp Utility for Windows 7, which "safely unmounts the read-only Macintosh volume on Microsoft Vista." Let us know in the comments if you have any issues with the update. Note: If you are already running Windows 7 on your Mac in Boot Camp, you can simply run Apple Software Update while booted into Windows to get the updated Win7-friendly drivers. [Hat tip to MacRumors and the Apple Support RSS Twitter feed]
Apple finally brings official Windows 7 support to Boot Camp (update: 27-inch iMac fix)
Either Apple isn't operating on the Gregorian calender, or these updates are just straight-up late. Either way, we're pretty stoked to see the suits in Cupertino finally wise up and allow Microsoft's best OS ever to work on its machines, as it has today issued new Boot Camp software (v3.1) for both 32-bit and 64-bit users of Windows 7. The updates add native support for Win7 Home Premium, Professional and Ultimate, and in case that wasn't enough, they also fix "issues" with the Apple trackpad and add support for Apple's wireless keyboard and Magic Mouse. You'll also find model-specific drivers floating around to add even more support, and the Boot Camp Utility for Windows 7 Upgrade is said to "safely unmount the read-only Macintosh volume on Windows Vista" when upgrading from Vista to Windows 7. Hit those links below for all the bits and bytes that you've been so desperately waiting for. Update: we're hearing reports that the 27-inch iMac is responding to Windows 7 with the Black Screen of Death, so make sure you use this tool from Apple before installing Windows 7. Too late? Then you'll have to manually remove the offending default ATI drivers by starting from point 4 on this page (hold down Option key while booting up to select the Windows install disc, by the way), and then try the Boot Camp update again.
Two broken promises from AT&T and Apple as 2009 comes to a close
As I sit by the light of the Christmas tree in my mother's house with the vestiges of presents all around, it occurs to me that no matter how good Santa might have been to you, both Apple and AT&T left us lumps of coal for the end of 2009. You might remember this promise from Apple a few months ago: "Apple will support Microsoft Windows 7 (Home Premium, Professional, and Ultimate) with Boot Camp in Mac OS X Snow Leopard before the end of the year. This support will require a software update to Boot Camp." It is possible to run Windows 7 under Boot Camp, but given the number of months Windows 7 was available as a beta, and now the length of time it has been released officially, it's disappointing not to have it officially supported, especially given Apple's simple and unequivocal promise. Boot Camp runs a distant second, however, to the much larger missed deadline and broken promise from AT&T that tethering would be available for the iPhone in 2009. Despite being available all around the world, and on other smartphones on AT&T's network, tethering remains unavailable for iPhone users in the USA unless you have stayed behind on firmware or have taken the jailbreak route. Rogers / Fido customers in Canada have been enjoying free tethering until 2010, and their deal has been extended until May 3rd. Given the way that I expect most people will use tethering, for occasional connections when traveling or out and about, free is exactly the price that tethering ought to cost. Given AT&T's existing costs for Blackberry tethering, though, I would not be surprised if AT&T expects another $30/month on top of the current $30/month data charges. When will we see Windows 7 Boot Camp support and tethering? I have no idea, but I fully expect Apple to come through before AT&T does. Coal picture courtesy of Wikimedia.
Before there was Boot Camp, there were DOS Compatibility Cards
With our zippy Intel Macs able to eagerly boot up Windows 7 in Boot Camp, VMWare, Parallels, and VirtualBox, it's difficult to fathom that it was ever a problem to run Microsoft operating systems on our Apple boxes. The situation wasn't that good just a scant 15 or so years ago. Back in the bleak days before the triumphant return of Steve Jobs to 1 Infinite Loop, Apple had a broad and confusing product line. Since DOS and Windows 3.1 were already entrenched in business worldwide, Apple knew that they had to have a way for Macs to run Microsoft operating systems in order to gain any sort of traction in the corporate world. Edible Apple ran a wonderful retrospective yesterday that looked at Apple's DOS Compatibility Cards. These were basically PCs on a NuBus or PCI cards that were inserted into a slot in the Mac, using the Mac's power supply, floppy and hard drives, and keyboard and mouse. Sporting such amazing CPUs as the Intel 486SX running at a whopping 25 MHz clock speed, the original cards worked with the Centris 610 and Quadra 610 and were released in 1994. By the next year a second edition was released with an Intel 486DX/66, and was targeted at the PowerMac 6100 and Performa 6100. Further research shows that there were several subsequent cards that included even faster Pentium and Cyrix 6x86 processors, were called "PC Compatibility Cards," and were designed for use in other PowerMac models. I can recall acquiring one of the Pentium-based cards and using it to try to entice our one DOS holdout department to move to Macs (they didn't). Today's Windows compatibility is the best it has ever been on the Mac platform, and usually the only "hardware upgrade" required is to add some inexpensive RAM to the host Mac. Things might sometimes change slowly, but at least in the world of technology, the change is usually for the best.
Windows drivers for Apple's Magic Mouse conjured from the ether
Hey Windows users: what would you risk for a mouse of such mystical persuasions that it has the word "magic" right in the product name? How about $69 for the mouse followed by a few sleepless nights after installing a .exe found in the murky shallows of the internet? That's what it'll take to install some hacked drivers, said to enable Apple's Magic Mouse gestures, on your Windows rig. The drivers were extracted from the latest Bluetooth update targeting Mac owners running Windows under Boot Camp, but now there's nothing stopping you from trying them too. Let us know how this dark elixir works out in the comments below.
Boot Camp Drivers update 2.2 for Windows available
Earlier today, Apple released version 2.2 of Boot Camp drivers for Windows. Installation requires Boot Camp 2.1 to have been previously installed as well as Service Pack 2 for Windows Vista. Boot Camp is included with Leopard and Snow Leopard and lets you install Windows on an Intel-based Mac. Shops or individuals who want to go Mac despite an unavoidable Windows-only application should consider Boot Camp along with virtualization options like VMWare and Parallels. For full information on installing Boot Camp as well as upgrade instructions, manuals, troubleshooting tips and more, look here. Please note that Boot Camp Drivers Update 2.2 is for Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard only.
Ask TUAW: Auto-tagging music, iPhone VoIP apps, replacing a hard drive and more
Welcome back to Ask TUAW, our weekly troubleshooting Q&A column. This week we've got questions about VOIP apps on the iPhone, auto-tagging music, Boot Camp, replacing a hard drive and more. As always, your suggestions and questions are welcome. Leave your questions for next week in the comments section at the end of this post. When asking a question, please include which machine you're using and what version of Mac OS X is installed on it (we'll assume you're running Snow Leopard on an Intel Mac if you don't specify). And now, on to the questions.
Ask TUAW: Arranging icons on the iPhone, installing Windows on a Mac, Airport networks and more
Welcome back to Ask TUAW, our weekly troubleshooting Q&A column. This week we have questions about arranging icons on the iPhone, installing Windows via Boot Camp, AirPort networks, iMac rotation support, replacing the video card in an iMac, and more. As always, your suggestions and questions are welcome. Leave your questions for next week in the comments section at the end of this post. When asking a question, please include which machine you're using and what version of Mac OS X is installed on it (we'll assume you're running Snow Leopard on an Intel Mac if you don't specify). And now, on to the questions. Leah asks: Is there a better way to arrange icons on my iPhone than by trying to drag them around on the phone itself. I can't seem to get it to work very well and usually mess it up. Apple provided a better way of organizing iPhone icons in iTunes 9. In the past, I always tried to arrange my icons on the iPhone the same way you do, by dragging them around on the device itself. This isn't as easy as it sounds, especially if you have larger hands. Now, with iTunes 9 or higher installed and your iPhone connected to your Mac or PC, launch iTunes, click on the Applications tab, and you will not only see the apps you have installed on your iPhone, but the iPhone screens and the placement of the icons as well. Simply drag the icons around in iTunes and put them in the desired order. The next time you sync, the icons are arranged identically on your iPhone as well. It's so much easier.
An illustrated guide to Boot Camp and Windows 7
Ladies and gentlemen, the time has come for TUAW to introduce our illustrated guide to installing Windows 7 with Boot Camp. Windows? On a Mac? Blasphemy! Yes, yes... we hear you, but we could argue the pros and cons to having Windows on a Mac all day. So, let's just get to the installation process. Be warned, it's a lot of pictures and step-by-step information. It's not necessarily a "fun" read, unless you want to make fun of how I click a button...
Warhammer Online, now with 100% more Mac support
There have been some big changes in Warhammer Online of late -- that's undeniable. But the game is pressing steadily onward, making a major change that oddly hasn't altered a single element of the gameplay. No, this change is entirely targeted at the players, as the game has now launched the Macintosh version of its client. They've been hinting at it and talking about it for quite some time, but it has gone live and is available, complete with full support for the game's free trial for any Mac gamers still on the fence regarding whether or not they want to dive in. Certainly there's been some discussion among the game's community about whether or not the Mac client has been necessary or even desirable, with the common statement being "well, everyone can just run Boot Camp for it." But there's no doubt that a native solution is better than a workaround, and it makes the game more appealing to people who would prefer not to fuss around with Boot Camp. Take a look at the official question-and-answer page to see the details about the new client, or if you'd rather be a malcontent, start demanding Warhammer Online for Linux next.
Apple will officially support Windows 7 in Boot Camp before end of year
Of course plenty of folks have Windows 7 running in Boot Camp just fine, but if you're one of those crazies that goes in for Apple's seal of approval you'll have to wait a little bit. The official support is coming "before the end of the year" to Snow Leopard and will obviously require an update to the Boot Camp software. Unfortunately, Apple's excluded a lot of its 2006 Intel-based computers from this forthcoming update, and we're getting the vibe that this is a Snow Leopard-only affair. Basically, par for the Apple course. [Via Mac Rumors]
Windows 7 on Mac OS X Snow Leopard at no additional cost
Anil Dash has described how to run Windows 7 on a Mac running OS 10.6 -- as a virtual machine -- for free (after you buy Windows 7, of course). It's not very tricky and, according to Anil, works well. Start by installing Windows 7 in Boot Camp and wait while it grabs the necessary drivers (the duration of this process will vary). Next, eject the Boot Camp disk and enter a few simple Terminal commands. You'll also need VirtualBox, which is free and open source virtualization software. Once you're done in Terminal, launch VirtualBox and browse to the file you made with Terminal. Read Anil's article for the details. As today is Windows 7 launch day, we're interested in hearing from anyone who has installed it on their Mac, either via Boot Camp or virtualization. For more, read Christina's post on installing Windows 7 on a Mac (at Download Squad), or Steve's take here. You can get your absolute fill of Win7 coverage all day today at DLS.
Bioshock for Mac on October 7th
I can personally attest to Bioshock being a terrific game, but the problem is that probably, many of you can as well. Let's be honest -- it actually came out for PC and consoles a full two years ago. At this point, a Mac port is probably useless, but it's coming out anyway. Feral Interactive has announced that they'll be releasing the port on October 7th of this year, so those of you Mac diehards who refuse to play games on any other platforms can finally get your fix. The game will be released for $49.95 in the US, and can be preordered on Feral's store right now. Or, you know, you can run out to Best Buy, pick up a copy for $20 and run it in Boot Camp, it's up to you. If you are going for the Mac version, however, you should know that the game doesn't support the Intel GMA integrated video cards, so you'll need a dedicated video card in your Mac to play it. Bioshock is a great game, as I've said, and if you really stretch it out, it might give you a good six months of free time entertainment -- just in time for you to pick up the Mac port of Hellgate: London, a game released in December of 2007. Oh wait.
Ask TUAW: Backing up photos, remove Boot Camp partitions, Snow Leopard and Windows 7 and more
Welcome back to Ask TUAW, our weekly Mac troubleshooting Q&A column. This week we've got questions about backing up photos, removing a Boot Camp partition, Snow Leopard and Windows 7, Bluetooth menus, iPhone search results and more. As always, your suggestions and questions are welcome. Questions for next week should be left in the comments. When asking a question please include which machine you're running and which version of Mac OS X (we'll assume you're running Leopard on an Intel Mac if you don't specify). And now, on to the questions.Han asks:What is the best way to archive photos without using iPhoto? I have about 100 GB of original photos and I have been saving them on my NetGear ReadyNAS Duo. Sometimes I leave the photos in the folder and just copy it to the NAS or sometimes zip them before I put it in the NAS. What I am worried about is if I zip the folder and somehow the zip file itself gets corrupted, is it harder to recover them? Is it better to just not zip and leave it as a folder then copy it to the NAS?Because photos are pretty important and almost impossible to recreate I take my photo workflow and backup seriously. First, I never import photos directly into iPhoto and instead, using a card reader, copy the files to a folder I have labeled specifically for these photos which resides in my main "Photography" folder.
Warhammer Online coming to the Mac
More good news for MMO players on the Mac: Warhammer Online has joined the ranks of EVE and of course World of Warcraft by announcing the release of a Mac-compatible client. Most of you already interested were probably playing with Boot Camp, but that hasn't stopped Mythic from working on a Mac client. It's in beta now (and free to current players, with a free trial available for those who haven't stepped inside the MMO yet), and they're aiming for a release in the Fall. And how nice is this: Mac players will get two titles of their own, as well as an exclusive in-game trophy. Unfortunately, the client doesn't run truly natively -- Mythic is owned by EA, so, you guessed it, Transgaming's Cider is behind this port, too. Cider isn't always the best way to run games (native would be the way we'd like to see it), but many of the problems we've seen with the technology are a few years old now, so hopefully it's gotten better (and that's likely what this beta is all about) -- hopefully they can work out all the kinks before the official release in the Fall. Warhammer Online is an excellent MMO, especially notable for its heavy PvP elements and its innovative Public Quests and Tome of Knowledge feature (kind of like achivements, but even more in-depth). It's a little late coming to our platform, but it's good to finally see another big game take on Mac support.
