Home || Mac Articles and Links
Most work places have Windows(tm) computers as corporations feel it necessary to standardize on one platform. If you use a Mac at home or are surviving as a Mac bastion at work and you need to work with Windows hardware or you are on either operating system and need to test or troubleshoot in another computing environs, here are some resources.
By the way, the MacOS X software and hardware platform will begin a transition this year, completing in 2007. The PowerPC chip has been the processor of choice but Apple is beginning to migrate to Intel chips. For more information, you can watch the Quicktime movie of Steve Jobs' keynote speech at WWDC 2005.
This section is not for the casual user but for those who do computer support or want to test or use software in other computing environments but don't have needed hardware. Emulation or dual-booting may be an option.
- VirtualPC from Microsoft (formerly from Connectix) is the source for software emulation of Windows(tm) on Macs (and for other versions of Windows on Windows).
- PearPC - PowerPC Architecture Emulator - an architecture-independent PowerPC platform emulator capable of running most PowerPC operating systems. Runs under the GPL license.
- Maconlinux.Org - Mac-on-Linux is a linux/ppc program which makes it possible to run Mac OS in parallel with Linux.
- Darwin Open Source Project - Darwin is the core of Mac OS X. The Darwin kernel is based on FreeBSD and Mach 3.0 technologies and provides protected memory and pre-emptive multitasking. Darwin runs on PowerPC-based Macintosh computers and a version is also available for x86-compatible computers.
- Citrix Corp. Thin Client/Server Computing - an enterprise level tool that uses its WinFrame technology to serve applications to a variety of clients, including Mac and UNIX.
Return to top of page
Remote access and control applications are screen sharing programs. You connect to a computer and run or observe it remotely. Great for accessing a home base computer when traveling. It could also be a network solution for collaborative work.
- Timbuktu Pro - I used TB2 from Netopia (Farallon) to access NT workstation and Mac work desktop computers remotely. (See my "Working with Timbuktu Pro" article for the basics.)
- PCAnywhere from Symantec is the world's leading remote control solution. Now it can manage both Windows and Linux systems. It also features powerful file-transfer capabilities.
- GoToMyPC from Citrix Corporation is for individuals needing remote access to 1-20 PCs. It's an easy and secure remote-access solution that enables you to conveniently access email, files, programs and network resources from home or the road. Get unlimited access to your PCs from any Web browser anywhere.
- RealVNC - developers of software that enables you to control another, remote computer. Maintained by the original AT&T VNC development team.
Return to top of page
- MacWindows.Com - described as "The Web Site for Macintosh-Windows integration Solutions" including lots of information (products and tutorials), tips and news archives.
- PowerPrint from Strydent allows Mac users to use a host of PC-compatible printers with a software and cable package. Handy for mobile users, special print needs users, or single Mac users in a PC environment.
- Dave - from Thursby Software allows Mac users to connect to Windows networks as a client for file and print sharing.
- Sharity - Connects You to Windows File Servers
as a client for the CIFS (Common Internet File System) protocol, formerly known as SMB (Server Message Block). You can open files directly from the server with any application you like, as if they were on a local disk or via an ftp-like interface to copy files to and from the share where you cannot open them directly on the server.
- PC MacLAN - runs on a Windows computer to provide access to Mac networks and printers.
- Working with Macintosh and Windows Computers - This page of article links is geared toward users of both Macintosh and Windows95/98/NT computers or for support staff that work with both platforms. Includes comparative task chart, screen captures of each OS
- Operating System Technical Comparison - From the site: "This web site compares and contrasts operating systems. It originally started out on a small server in the engineering department of Ohio State University to answer a single question: 'On technical considerations only, how does Rhapsody (also known as Mac OS X Server) stack up as a server operating system (especially in comparison to Windows NT)?' The web site now compares and contrasts server operating systems and will in the near future expand to compare other kinds of operating systems."
- MacOS X Apps Emulation Page Includes news and full indices (with short descriptions) of many emulators. Miss the Atari 800?
- Citrix Corp. Thin Client/Server Computing - uses its WinFrame technology to serve applications to a variety of clients, including Mac and UNIX.
Return to top of page
While there is MacOS X from Apple, there are also several other options for running UNIX on the Mac.
While the PC World has various flavors of LINUX, there is the Yellow Dog Linux project. MkLinux is a project to port Linux to a variety of Power Macintosh platforms running on top of the Mach microkernel. There are also options for the Mac using NetBSD. Tenon Systems has MachTen which allows you to run UNIX as a Mac program which includes X-Windows and all of the UNIX bells-and-whistles. I use it to prototype an Apache Web server running perl scripts. I can use Netscape Navigator on the "Mac side" or LYNX on the "UNIX side" to connect to the MachTen UNIX server using the 'localhost' address (http://127.0.0.1/)
X: I addition you can get X servers for your Macintosh to run the X Window system, enabling you to connect to Unix or other X client programs on remote machines. MI/X from MicroImages is a free X server and Exodus from PowerLAN is a commercial offering. Tenon Microsystems also has XTen. MachTen, described above, has X windows capability built-in.
Another interesting option for using X windows to connect to other computers is Virtual Network Computing, described as "to get started with VNC you need to run a server, and then connect to it with a viewer. Get the packages for the platforms you use from the download page, if you haven't already, and install them. The current VNC software requires a TCP/IP connection between the server and the viewer"
Return to top of page
Last Modified: 28-Aug-06
Paul Corr, ©
| My Mac Support Page |
| My Homepage |