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I have a R31 running from LXi software. Everything works except my dad is switching our computers to MAC's as the Windows units start to die.   my software bought and registered is windows version.  Is there any way to run win software on the Mac. Like a program that allows this. I am looking for the most inexpensive way to way to be able to mate the two.  I also have a PCut and Sign Blaster that might like the same. 

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Yeah Parallels is one option and Bootcamp is right on the mac will do it too and is free. I have not done either one but there are several on the forum who run this way. Pretty sure both apps basically partition off a section of your HD and you will actually boot up the other operating system so you run one or the other but not both at once. That is just from what I have read. I am a mac convert and really have not wanted anything windows based to be on my mac. 

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Mac? Did someone say Mac? Hahaha.

You first need to determine how to you want to run your Windows on the Mac - As a stand alone, Mac or Win; or to just fire up Windows while keeping all the Mac stuff functional. My cutting software of choice is SBE, so that's the environment I cut from. I also run a version of Quicken that Intuit will never release for Mac, Inkscape (because even though it will run on Mac, PC does it way easier), and some other software I use to print on CD/DVDs and PVC ID Cards. So I do get my use out of the Windows side too.

Bootcamp is free, and is already in OSX, just a matter of deciding how to partition to make room for windows. You can choose which environment to boot up when you fire up the computer - Mac or Win. I had someone who absolutely struggled with Mac, so I setup Win via Bootcamp, and then designated that to the primary partition to start up. She was the only one in a government agency that had a Mac laptop running exclusively on Windows

Another option is VMware Fusion or Parallels. It's not free, but well worth the money if you need to run Windows within the Mac environment. I do it often, and it does it very, very well.

I currently run a MacPro Tower, with 2 quad cores, what RAM I could afford when I configured the machine, and 4 HD's. The first is dedicated to OS, the second is dedicated with running my windows via Parallels, and the 3rd and 4th are strictly data storage.

If you have any other questions, ask - hopefully I can help.

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Now my rig is just a glorified email station. Hahaha. I cut over and setup my Mac when my last PC bit the dust. I was tired of replacing the HDs and/or entire box every few years. I bit the dust and forked a lot of dough for the Mac. Then again, at that time I was deeper in web design, and some light video editing - it was easier for me to use Macromedia and Adobe Suites with Mac. I have to say that I do not regret it, and have been running this setup for almost 10-years and it's still going strong. I've done a few upgrades here and there - like when I had to replace the OS HD, I swapped it out with an SSD so not it boots fairly quickly. I love that since convincing a lot of my customers to go Mac, there are less service calls I need to do. Basically I'm putting myself out of business, since I do mostly computer software/hardware, desktop/laptop, PC/Mac stuff. Oh well, more time to read!

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SSD's are freaky fast. I'm no techie but I bought a couple used business laptops for a couple of my kids as they headed off to college and the guy I went through buys them in bulk when large companies swap out and then works them over and resells them at a great price. He offers SSD swap-ins and we fired up two identical laptops side by side one with regular drive and one solid state and the difference was mind blowing.  I went that way on both of the two I bought partly for the boot-up speed but also because college kids might be more prone to dropping the thing and the battery life is supposed to be better as well. 

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Kind of a side question, you always hear about running windows stuff on Macs, does anyone ever run mac stuff on windows? ;)

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5 hours ago, darcshadow said:

Kind of a side question, you always hear about running windows stuff on Macs, does anyone ever run mac stuff on windows? ;)

I've seen it done before. They're called Hackintosh. I have attempted to do it on one of my netbooks, but then reinstalled Win because it was too hard to navigate Mac on such a tiny screen. There are some write-ups on the internet as to which make/model of PCs are compatible and what type of mods you need to make to get them to be a fully functional Mac. A lot of times, it's just adding in an aftermarket WiFi if you're not going to hard wire it to the web.

I swapped out my MacBook Pro to an SSD. Wicked fast! Love it!!

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it is an older  snow leopard  and was not able (no supporting disc) to open and install boot camp. Is there a software for Mac that will recognize or have have drivers for VE R31?  I am using LXi Expert 2.5 currently . not suitable for mac.  only XP, 7 vista  

 

According to what I have read snow leopard to old, MAC has not enough memory 

 

my option is find cutting software for MAC that VE R31 will operatefrom

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14 minutes ago, harddock said:

it is an older  snow leopard  and was not able (no supporting disc) to open and install boot camp. Is there a software for Mac that will recognize or have have drivers for VE R31?  I am using LXi Expert 2.5 currently . not suitable for mac.  only XP, 7 vista  

There are plenty of cheap used xp laptops out there.  $100 and less FREE shipping. Still in great condition... Are you not old enough to make some money and get your own computer?  You have a vinyl cutter, make some money with it...

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3 minutes ago, harddock said:

We are trying to rid ourselves of all that is pc . We are running off the last of the laptops now.

may be time to step up from the redsail plotter too since trying to step up - move to something that is mac compatible along with the software to start with then.

I can appreciate wanting to change your operation but when working with a value cutter it limits your options somewhat unless doing like Haumana sayz  

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56 minutes ago, harddock said:

it is an older  snow leopard  and was not able (no supporting disc) to open and install boot camp. Is there a software for Mac that will recognize or have have drivers for VE R31?  I am using LXi Expert 2.5 currently . not suitable for mac.  only XP, 7 vista  

 

According to what I have read snow leopard to old, MAC has not enough memory 

 

my option is find cutting software for MAC that VE R31 will operatefrom

I run SignCut Pro 1 that is compatible with both windows AND mac. No design capability but a great cutting tool. They have a new version out that has some design tools but I have never worried about it because I am a dedicated AI user. Maybe you can figure out a workflow with a different cutting utility. SignCut Pro likes AI version 8 and I have cut from SVG fine too. 

Here is a list of the supported cutters that I grabbed from their website from the Pro 1 part:

http://pro1.signcutpro.com/files/pdf/driverlist20130410.pdf

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