BibleWorks on MAC

[truedog]

Hello: Am considering the purchase BibleWorks for our MAC, but am concerned about its functionality on that platform. Have any of you BW installed and running on a MAC? Does it run well?
I read a post regarding Parallels and VM-Ware Fusion, but know nothing about those programs. We are also somewhat new to the world of MAC as well, so your inout is greatly appreciated.

Regards, and thank you.

[ccozier]

Truedog,

I'm running BW 8 on a 4meg MacBook Pro notebook. I use Fusion 3 and it runs as fast as my last experience on a native XP machine with the exception of load times. I've had no problems including copy / paste of both Greek and Hebrew. My one comment (if your purchasing a laptop) is to spring for the faster 7200 rpm drive (better yet an SSD). HD access times make a huge difference in Fusion (and I'd bet in Parallels as well). 4 meg of RAM is really required to get satisfactory preformance.

I've used BW on both a Mac and Linux using Virtual Box, which again was very functional.

You'll love a Mac!

[brethicks]

I have been running BW7 and now 8 under Parallels (with Windows XP) on a MacBook Pro for a couple of years. Overall, it works really well. There are a few glitches (the shift key does not freeze the windows) but there are usually simple work arounds (the alt key does the same thing until you click the mouse again). If you search the forum this topic has been discussed quite a bit in the past, and in my experience nothing has really changed. BW works fast, all unctions work, and exporting over to Mac applications (PAges, Word, Keynote, PowerPoint, etc.) works well. I am happy with the performance, and certainly prefer the Mac platform. The biggest complaint I have is the memory that Windows needs to run well, so as has already been stated, 4 GB of memory is the bare minimum you will need to run BW under Windows.

In Christ,

Bret Hicks

[truedog]

Thanks for the replies. We have an existing IMAC running latest software w/4G RAM. Looks like we'll be purchasing the BibleWorks 8 - now just need to decide between Parallels and VM-Ware Fusion.

Thanks again...

ken

[ccozier]

Wow...that's interesting. I'm using Fusion 3 and the shift key works as advertised. With all the variables involved, I'm beginning to think that every installation is a distinct environment.

I have been running BW7 and now 8 under Parallels (with Windows XP) on a MacBook Pro for a couple of years. Overall, it works really well. There are a few glitches (the shift key does not freeze the windows) but there are usually simple work arounds (the alt key does the same thing until you click the mouse again). If you search the forum this topic has been discussed quite a bit in the past, and in my experience nothing has really changed. BW works fast, all unctions work, and exporting over to Mac applications (PAges, Word, Keynote, PowerPoint, etc.) works well. I am happy with the performance, and certainly prefer the Mac platform. The biggest complaint I have is the memory that Windows needs to run well, so as has already been stated, 4 GB of memory is the bare minimum you will need to run BW under Windows.

In Christ,

Bret Hicks

[brethicks]

Actually, the shift key problem is a known Parallels problem. It is not only under BibleWorks. It is weird, because the shift key works to do capitalization and such. but programs that use it for extra functionality have problems. However, the work around is easy enough so it is not worth dumping Parallels....

In Christ,

Bret

[vr8ce]

For me, it was worth exactly that. That bug, plus a few other (mostly minor) keyboard problems convinced me to move to Fusion on my laptop. The fact that the bug still exists three versions later tells me my decision was correct.

But, for my iMac, I'm running VirtualBox, which has the advantage of being free, and the further advantage of working perfectly. I would strongly suggest you try it before spending money on either Fusion or Parallels; if BW is your only reason for needing Windows, it is more than enough, and installs and runs with little to no hassle. And it doesn't have the keyboard bug, either. If you don't like it or have problems (can't imagine that you would, but as others have noted, every installation is different), then you can spend money on one of the others.

[Kristin Swenson]

I'm new to Mac and nearly ready to bring it back on this BW issue, alone. Can you tell me more about the Virtual Box thing? Can I simply download it and then load BW and expect it to run as I've experienced with my PC? Are there any security issues that you know of, and can you tell me how much memory the whole matter (Virtual Box + BW) will take? I deeply appreciate any and all help! am feeling a bit discouraged...

[richardsugg]

I'm new to Mac and nearly ready to bring it back on this BW issue, alone. Can you tell me more about the Virtual Box thing? Can I simply download it and then load BW and expect it to run as I've experienced with my PC? Are there any security issues that you know of, and can you tell me how much memory the whole matter (Virtual Box + BW) will take? I deeply appreciate any and all help! am feeling a bit discouraged...

Kristin - the earlier comments echo my own. I run a Mid-2011 MBA 13" and BW8 under VirtualBox. I had Parallels, and as they described it below, it's not only a known issue, but a long-standing one as well. Do not expect either BW or Parallels (who is the real culprit) to address the issue anytime soon. I've not used Fusion at all, so I can't speak to that. I can say that BW8 on VB works great...as long as you don't mind firing up VB.

BTW - for the sake of performance, I run Windows XP on VB rather than Windows 7.

[lamonte]

Hi

I have a new Macbook Pro with Lion on it. I installed Parallel 7 with Windows 7, Bibleworks runs find on it. On my older iMac intel base I run Parallel 6 with Windows XP
Bibleworks find on it.