Low End Mac Reader Specials

TypeStyler For Mac OS X is Now Shipping! Download The Free Fully Functional 60 Day Tryout at www.typestyler.com

OWC: Get the Right Memory for Your Mac Top Quality, Competitive Price, Lifetime Backed Free Expert Support + Installation Videos too! MacBook & mini 8GB, iMac 16GB, Mac Pro up to 32GB. Click here

Don't install Parallels to play poker online! Poker Mac will show you how to download and install a native Mac poker application such as Full Tilt Poker Mac.

Laptop Hardware Provided by TechRestore - Overnight Mac & iPod Repairs.

Compare products like desktop computers, apple laptops, apple macs, and LCD Monitors side by side! All the information and reviews to make the best purchasing decision for new mobile phones, sat nav systems, or MP3 players. The Ciao online shopping community makes searching products easy for you.

Stop the Noiz

CrossOver Strikes Out

Frank Fox - 2008.08.27 - Tip Jar

Popularity:

Bookmark in del.icio.us

CrossOver is an awesome idea - it lets you run Windows software without having to buy Windows. That is an offer that beats Parallels, VMWare Fusion, and Boot Camp.

Or at least it would beat them if it worked well.

After backing up a few files, I decided to give it a try on my MacBook. It is a no-brainer to go to their website and download a demo copy. It was almost too easy, and the install isn't difficult - you just drop the program in your Application folder.

CrossOver runs as an independent program. A few popular applications are known to work well with it, but I didn't have any of those. I gave it a try with the programs that I had around the house:

School Tycoon
AutoCAD 2004
Microsoft Office (backup files)
Canon Camera Software

School Tycoon was the first test. Installation was smooth. CrossOver is based on the open source project Wine (Wine Is Not Emulation), so each application is magically stuck in a Wine bottle. It has bottles for Windows 98, 2000, XP, and Vista. (It's kind of a silly metaphor, but whatever - as long as it works.)

After School Tycoon was installed, I called my son over to give it a try. The program ran the opening sequence just fine. But once you were actually in the game, everything was slow. Running slow was only the first problem. Next the video of the game flipped upside down, then instead of inserting the first game piece, the program crashed. Several more test runs all ended with the game crashing.

Next I tried the AutoCAD install. Again the installation went well, but a requirement by AutoCAD to have a text program selected stopped the install. My "bottle" didn't have a text program in it, nor did the install disk. So while my computer has several text programs, none could be used as a reference to finish the install.

I then tried loading Microsoft Office from a backup disk that I'd saved from an old computer. It wasn't an install disk, but all the files needed should have been backed up on the disk. I was faced with immediate trouble. CrossOver was expecting an installer that I don't have. I can't just copy the files to a "bottle" and get it loaded. I pick one of the executable files and hoped for the best. After running the installer for an hour, I gave up.

My final attempt was to install the Windows software that came with my Canon camera. This disk showed a half dozen install files, and every one of them was grayed out. That meant I could only view the Mac files on the dual format CD. I couldn't read the Window files to install them.

Out of four attempts, one application was installed and that one crashed.

Obviously CrossOver has a lot of things going for it, but full compatibility isn't one of them. It does have a list of known applications that work well, but nothing I have was on that list. If what is on their list is what you plan to use, it could be nice software to own. If, like me, you just have a bunch of random programs, then you need a real version of Windows to handle it.

I still have hopes for this software. It seems that every version of Windows has too many glitches and other weirdness. It is hard to make an emulator for it. The few functional applications for CrossOver probably work because things have been tweaked to deal with the quirks. This tweaking is one of the things coming back to haunt Microsoft with Vista. Even the staff at Microsoft has a hard time keeping all the older applications working.

While I may play around with CrossOver some more, if I am going to need compatibility with Windows, I'll just have to bite the bullet and buy a copy. But like the Get a Mac commercial shows in "Choose a Vista", whatever version you pick feels like you lost your turn.

If you want to read a more in depth review of CrossOver, check out CrossOver: Run Windows Apps on Intel Macs without Windows by Alan Zisman. It's from last year, but things haven't changed much.

I went looking for a text editor to use with the AutoCAD install. I found a freeware version called ConTEXT. It appears to work fine with CrossOver. It could even open a Word document. It is worth trying CrossOver before shelling out the money to buy Windows. You may get lucky and have everything working.

Reloading AutoCAD 2004 was not a success. I was somehow able to get the software installed. AutoCAD starts fine, but then there's a fatal error before it finishes loading. So far my luck with finding programs that work isn't too great.

Your results may be different, so give it a try.

Recent Stop the Noiz Columns

Apple's Tablet an End Run Beyond Netbooks, 11.20. Whatever Apple has planned will leverage existing technologies while going beyond what its competitors can offer.
Psystar Joins Ranks of Dumb Criminals, 11.16. The judge has ruled, and Psystar has been found guilty of illegally using Mac OS X on its computers.
My Windows 7 Launch Party, 10.23. "The final surprise was that things started to slow down during my demo. I had XP Mode running, several open windows, and a half dozen other apps running."
Windows 7: Bait for Windows XP and Vista Users, 10.19. While Win 7 is competing with OS X in features, it's target audience is Windows users, not Mac users.
More in the Stop the Noiz index.

Links for the Day

Mac of the Day: 15" MacBook Pro Core Duo, Jan. 2006 - The first Intel-based MacBook launched at 1.83-2.0 GHz, had several teething problems.
Group of the Day: System 6 is the email list for those who choose System 6.
November 22 in LEM history: 99: Gradebooks - 00: Leveraging Apple design - Quadra 630 to Power Mac 5200 - 02: Laptop or desktop? - 04: SuperDuper: Quick, easy, efficient backup - Cross-platform programming for the rest of us - 05: Mac video surveillance on the cheap - Which OS is best for my vintage Mac? - No 'best browser' for the Mac - Sorry state of browsers for classic Macs - 06: Core 2 means cooler running 'Books - 2.0 GHz G4 upgrade
Support Low End Mac

Recent Deals

Best eMac Deals, 11.18. Used 1 GHz Combo, $100; SuperDrive, $269; 1.25 GHz Combo, $119; SD, $319; 1.42 GHz Combo, $289; SD, $498.
Best Mac OS X 10.6 and Mac Box Set Deals, 11.18. "Snow Leopard", single user, $25; 5 users, $45; Mac Box Set, single user, $139; 5 users, $180; Server, $414. Shipping included.
Best Xserve Deals, 11.18. Used 1 GHz dual G4, $649; 2.3 dual G5, $795; 3.0 4-core Xeon, $1,899; refurb 2.26 4-core, $2,499; new, $2,888; refurb 8-core, $2,999; new, $3,449; more.
Best 15" MacBook Pro Deals, 11.17. Used 1.83 GHz, $750; 2.16, $800; 2.33, $900; refurb 2.4, $1,299; 2.53, $1,449; 2.66, $1,699; 2.8, $1,899; new 2.53, $1,579; 2.66, $1,799; more.
Best Power Mac G4 and AGP Video Card Deals, 11.17. Used 400 MHz, $50; 933 MHz, $80; 500 dual, $60; 867 dual, $90; 1 GHz dual, $150; 1.25 GHz dual, $225; 1.42 GHz, $499.
Best Mac OS X 10.5 Deals, 11.17. "Leopard" upgrade, $80; single user license, $135; 5 users, $173; Mac Box Set, 5 users, $230; Server, 10 users, $340; unlimited, $850. Shipping included.
Best Mac mini Deals, 11.16. Used 1.42 GHz G4 mini, $379; 1.66 GHz Core Solo, $419; 2.0 Core 2, $450; new 2.26 GHz nVidia, $580; 2.53 GHz, $769; Server, $990.
Best iBook G4 Deals, 11.16. Used 12" 1.07 GHz Combo, $210; 1.33 GHz, $298; 14" 1.33 GHz, $398; 1.42 GHz, $479; SuperDrive, $498.
Best iPod shuffle Deals, 11.16. Used 1 GB, $35; 4 GB, $65; refurb 1 GB, $39; 2 GB, $59; new 2 GB, $55, 4 GB, $75. New and refurb prices include shipping.
More deals in our archive.

About LEM | Support | Usage | Privacy | Contacts

Entire Low End Mac website copyright ©1997-2009 by Cobweb Publishing, Inc., unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Advice presented in good faith, but what works for one may not work for all. Please report errors to .
LINKS: We allow and encourage links to any public page as long as the linked page does not appear within a frame that prevents bookmarking it.
Access our RSS news feed at http://lowendmac.com/feed.xml.
Email may be published at our discretion; email addresses will not be published without permission, and we will encrypt them in hopes of avoiding spammers. If you prefer your message not be published, mark it "not for publication." Letters may be edited for length, context, and to match house style.
PRIVACY: We don't collect personal information unless you explicitly provide it. For more details, see our Terms of Use.
Low End Mac is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple Inc. Apple, the Apple logo, Macintosh, iBook, iMac, eMac, iPod, iPhone, PowerBook, MacBook, MagSafe, Mac Pro, Apple TV, and AirPort are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. Additional company and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks and are hereby acknowledged.