Chapter 6. Installing Windows XP in a Virtual Machine

For many Mac users, running Windows via a virtual machine is the preferred option because doing so enables you to access Windows without restarting your Mac, selecting Windows, waiting for it to start, doing what you need to, and then restarting your Mac in Mac OS X. Instead, you can simply open a new Finder window and run Windows inside that window. You can easily switch between the environments as needed. You can also more easily move data between Mac OS X and Windows.

Although there are several virtualization options available, my preference is Parallels Desktop for Mac, which is the focus of this book. This application provides all the features you need to run Windows on a Mac in a virtual machine efficiently and effectively. Running Windows through Parallels Desktop for Mac also provides amazingly good performance.