Hi William Windels, Windows is rather snappy on vmware fusion. I have xp and I'm running it without any trouble. It is true that you need to manage your usb devices when connecting them to the vm, but is workable really. In fusion, when windows is minimized and running, you have a bunch of options to manage your devices. Say you have a braille display connected, then you will find an option like: connect alva bc640 braille display. If you click that, then you will hear your familiar xp device is connected dong ding sound, and the fusion button in turn wil change to: disconnect alva bc640 braille display. If you hit it again, you will hear your familiar windows device is disconnected ding dong, sound, and the display is available to os10 again. Same goes for other devices like external drives. First time you hook it up, fusion will ask where to connect it. As usual to the mac, or right into windows. If you choose connect to windows, then os10 won't even see the device until you shutdown windows.
This bit of knowledge is useful if you want to avoid all kinds of hidden mac files appear on your external fat32 drives. Just make sure that os10 never gets to see your usb disks, by connecting them straight to windows when it is running, and safely remove hardware before you shut windows back down. If you need more help just ask here. Hth, Paul. On Sep 6, 2011, at 12:51 AM, William Windels wrote: > Hello all, > I had not that good experiences wit xp with vmware > because xp is so slow on a macbook with 4gb of ram and each os has 2 gb of > ram. It's also difficult to use usb devices on virtual windows after i have > used them on the mac like a braille display. > You have to release the device in osx before you can use it on windows. Or > revers. > Also, after setting windows in suspend mode, the screenreader and other > usb-devices like described above, are doing so strange. > With version 2.5 of vmware , I discovered more times that the scripts to > restart the virtual machine where broken so that I couldn't shutdown or > restart windows properly. > > I discovered also that windows on a virtual machine was much mor slower than > a native boot on a slower laptop. > Again , what's the good memory management between vmware and mac? > > Because of all that litle frustrations, I was discouraged to use windows in a > virtual machine but perhaps no, it's better and I should give it a try again. > > > Mvg > william Windels > > Verstuurd vanaf mijn iPhone > > Op 5-sep.-2011 om 20:08 heeft "Bill Holton" <bill32...@gmail.com> het > volgende geschreven: > >> Hi. >> I read and replied to your other message before this, so thanks for already >> sending a description on how to swap those keys. >> Bill >> >> >> -----Original Message----- >> From: macvisionaries@googlegroups.com >> [mailto:macvisionaries@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Paul Erkens >> Sent: Monday, September 05, 2011 10:01 AM >> To: macvisionaries@googlegroups.com >> Subject: Re: Running a Mac with Windows on >> >> Hi Eric Caron, >> >> Your first question, what to do about a non-existent insert key inside a >> virtual machine, is quite a story if you want to know the ins and outs. >> Along the way, we will get there. Here you go. >> >> First off, it is true that you have no insert key on the mac, while you >> often do need one in windows. You can create a key mapping for yourself in 1 >> of 2 ways. Either using fusion itself, and there is no real down side as far >> as I'm aware, but it is a little trickey to set up because of an interface >> issue in fusion. The other way to get an insert key is to use the sharp keys >> program. Sharp keys lets you remap a few more keys than fusion will allow. >> For example, using sharp keys, you can even remap your right command, or >> your right option key, to the windows insert. >> >> If you do it via fusion, then all your virtual machines willl get an insert >> key. If you have windows 7 and xp like I do, creating the insert key using >> the fusion keyboard remapper creates it for all virtual machines because >> fusion only allows you to do it inside its global preferences, command >> comma, and not on a per machine basis, command e. >> >> If you create your insert key using sharp keys, then it is going to be a >> local setting for that windows installation only, because sharp keys >> modifies the windows registry to do the trick. Both methods will give you >> the same result: an insert key that is not just insert, but that can be held >> down as if it were a modifier key for other keys. >> >> This answers your other issue, where capslock cannot be used inside the >> virtual machine as a modifier. It works as a caps lock, but you can't hold >> it down and press a letter inside the virtual machine, in order to give >> commands to your screen reader. Sharp keys and fusion itself though, will >> give you an insert key like the one on a normal windows computer. This lets >> you use insert rather than caps lock for your screen reader's commands, so >> let's concentrate on insert, and I will leave caps lock for someone else. >> >> Now, let's look at the way you can do it inside fusion. I'm using fusion >> 3.1.3, which is the latest version as of today. To update, go to the menu >> bar in fusion, vo m, then once right, then down to check for updates, and >> then follow the instructions. >> >> First, fire up fusion and, just to be certain, have your virtual machines >> shut down. Then press command comma to open fusion's global preferences. >> >> At the top of this window is a toolbar. Interact with it and click keyboard >> and mouse. A new window will appear. >> >> The first thing you will encounter is a pop up button where you choose your >> keyboard and mouse profile. The window itself consists of 4 tab sheets, and >> all those settings together are stored in a keyboard and mouse profile. I >> don't think we will ever need a second profile, but that's what the button >> allows. Leave it at its default. >> >> The first tab sheet of this dialog, named, key mappings, is where you can >> swap your windows logo and alt keys. By default, fusion will map your >> command key to the windows logo key, and your option key to the windows alt >> key. This is not very intuitive for those of us who are used to windows and >> its keyboard layout, but it's easy to swap them. See below. In this window, >> you will also be able to create your insert key inside fusion, and if you >> want, give yourself a num lock toggle as well. >> >> If you look at this table, then many mac keys are mapped to some windows >> counterparts. Personally, I don't think that is necessary at all. For >> example, in windows, you use control plus c to copy an item to the >> clipboard. On the mac, we're used to pressing command plus c to copy. In >> fusion, there is a default key mapping that makes command c the equivalent >> of control c. In other words, pressing control c or command c in windows >> will do the same thing. This is non-standard windows tweaking I don't like, >> so what I did to begin with, is clear this entire list. To the right of this >> table, you have 2 unlabeled buttons. The left one is add, and the right one >> is delete and entry in this table. Just focus on the right button of the 2, >> and hit vo space until the list is empty. You will also delete the undesired >> alt and windows logo key mappings this way. >> >> Now, you must create your own mappings, so that your mac command key will >> become the alt key in windows, and so that your option key can become your >> windows logo key inside windows. Here's how to do it. >> >> First, click add, to add a new mapping to the table. This is the left >> unlabeled button, to the right of the table. A new window appears, that you >> will later close with an ok button to return here. >> >> In the new window, you see your mac modifier keys with checkboxes, and a >> combo box for an additional key. For example, you will hear shift unchecked >> checkbox, and command, unchecked checkbox. In this case, where we want to >> map our option key to the windows logo key, we don't need the combo boxes in >> this dialog, so ignore them for now. Focus on the from, and the to, parts. >> >> We are mapping our option key to the windows logo key. In the from, area, >> tick the checkbox for the option key. Leave the rest in the from for what it >> is. Next, find the text that says, to. Here, you will find checkboxes for >> the windows counterparts of the mac key you are mapping. Now take care. One >> of those checkboxes will only say, checkbox, without a description like alt, >> or control. It is this unlabeled checkbox that we need to map our option key >> to. On the screen, this checkbox, in the to, field, is an icon with the >> windows logo key. So tick that box. Finally, proceed to the okay button and >> press it. You will return to the command comma, toolbar item keyboard and >> mouse screen, where you pressed the unlabeled add button. your first key >> mapping, is in place. Option is now windows logo as soon as the virtual >> windows machine is active. >> >> Now, repeat the same procedure for your alt key. So, click add, then in the >> from, field, tick command, then in the to, field, click alt, and press okay. >> >> >> Now that you know how to remap keys, you can do the same thing for your >> insert key. However, this is where it is a little tricky and you will soon >> understand why. >> >> As above, again click the add button in this dialog. Reminder: we came here >> by starting fusion, then command comma, then keyboard and mouse from the >> toolbar, then the first tab sheet named key mappings. >> >> After the remapper dialog with the from, and to, field, appears again, do >> the following to create your insert key. >> >> In the from, field, you need to choose which key on your keyboard is going >> to loose its function for windows, and act as your new insert key. Leave all >> the checkboxes for the modifier keys like shift, option etc alone, and focus >> on the combo box with voiceover. Once focus is on this field, assuming you >> have keyboard focus track your voiceover cursor, as is the voiceover >> default, then you can now input the key you wish. I use the accent key, just >> below escape on the mac keyboard. Press it, or press your own choice, and >> you will hear it spoken by voiceover. >> >> Of course, because this is a combo box, it does have a few presets, and you >> can reach them with vo space. However, once you do this, you cannot get out >> of the box anymore with vo right or anything, because that keystroke too, >> will be interpreted as the key combination you are going to map. So, my >> advice is not to go through the 13 presets of this combo. Instead, never >> open it and just type your desired insert key replacement, once the >> voiceover cursor and keyboard focus is on the combo box in the from, field. >> Don't open the combo, just type your key when the box is focused. >> >> Now, focus on the combo box of the to, field. This second combo box, you do >> need to open with vo space, because you need to select the item named >> insert. However, you should only walk to it with the voiceover cursor, and >> you should not press vo space. This is the oddity you need to be aware of. >> This is because if you press vo space on the insert item in the combo box, >> then vo space, as well as all subsequent keys, will be interpreted as the >> key you want to execute when you press accent, and you don't have a way to >> close the combo box to get to the okay button. >> >> So, after walking to the insert item with voiceover, and the to, combo box >> is still open, you must command tab away from fusion, to have os10 focus >> move out of the combo box. Depending on what you had open, you may land in >> the finder. Command tabbing away from fusion is the only keystroke I have >> found, to get you away from the combo box. Then, simply command tab back >> into fusion, and you will find that the combo box is now closed, and it is >> set to insert. >> >> Now, all you do is go to ok and click it. You will be returned to the key >> mapping dialog, where the list of keystrokes can be found. Now, you should >> have 3 mappings. One for command to become alt, one for option and windows >> logo, and a third for accent, that is now remapped to insert inside any >> fusion virtual machine. >> >> If you want to give yourself a num lock toggle, that can be achieved the >> same way you created your insert key. Let's say you want to toggled your num >> lock with control shift f12. So, first click add, then in the from, field, >> click, for example, the control and the shift box, go to the first combo, >> select f12, move to the second combo in the to, field, and select numlock >> from there. Again, don't forget to open the box, walk to numlock, command >> tab away and then back into fusion, and hit okay. >> This is what you need to do in the first tab sheet of the fusion keyboard >> and mouse dialog, and as I said, it was quite a story. >> >> We're not done yet. In the second tab sheet, named mouse shortcuts, you can >> tell fusion how you want to do a right click in windows. The mac only has a >> normal mouse click, and not a separate left and a right one, so by default, >> holding the control key and then pressing the mouse pad, a control click, >> will perform a right mouse click in windows, as if you pressed the secondary >> button. Nothing need to be changed here. Of course, you have your windows >> shift f10 key combination as the keyboard equivalent of the right mouse >> click. Furthermore, you can also create your own windows applications key, >> normally near your arrows on a windows keyboard, the same way you created >> your alt and windows keys above. >> >> The third tab sheet, named fusion shortcuts, can make life a lot easier for >> us, screenless folks. By default, if you're inside the virtual machine and >> you happen to hit f12, f11 or another magic mac key that does something >> under os10, then even if you are inside the vm, you will fly out of it, and >> land somewhere where you will need to turn on voiceover, command tab back >> into fusion, minimize windows with command control enter, move the voiceover >> cursor to where it says progress bar because that's where windows shows up >> minimized, turn off voice over with command f5, and finally enlarge windows >> back to normal with command control enter, the same keystroke used to >> minimize windows. A lot of work, and not funny if you discover that windows >> no longer talks and you don't know which key you hit by accident. >> >> So, what you do is, turn the checkbox off here that says: enable mac os >> keyboard shortcuts. Now, if you accidentally hit f12 or f11, it won't mess >> up things any longer. These keystrokes will instead be passed to windows, >> and no longer to os10 disturbing your windows experience. >> >> In the fourth tab sheet of this dialog, named fusion shortcuts, you can >> enable and disable a number of key combinations that you can press when the >> virtual windows machine is running, that affect fusion itself. You can mess >> with these because there is a friendly restore to defaults button as well. >> You will find a table here that you can interact with. On each line, a key >> combination is listed, along with a checkbox to enable it. Here's a few >> explained. >> >> Full screen. You need this keystroke, to make windows full screen when it is >> minimized. It is the control command enter to minimize and maximize windows, >> as already mentioned. Make sure you have this checked. >> There are nine others, and some of them I have turned off, for reasons >> explained below. >> >> Unity: this makes one space out of the windows desktop and the mac side. So >> far, I have never used it in daily work, because I can't figure out how it >> works. If you play with it and find out some benefits, please let us know. I >> have this off, to avoid accidentally dropping into unity. >> >> Also off are cycle through windows, and cycle through windows reverse. This >> is because we can easily do this with voiceover, and I don't want to loose >> keystrokes that may otherwise be used for jaws or NVDA commands. >> >> Next is hide application. I have this off as well, because if you're in the >> middle of a windows program and you want help, it is likely that you begin >> by pressing alt h to open the help menu. But watch out for this one, because >> if you don't turn off command h for the virtual machine, and remember that >> alt and command are now the same key, then instead of opening the help menu >> inside your windows program, you will instead hide fusion completely, and be >> dropped into os10 where you don't have speech for the moment unless you turn >> it on. I fell into this pit some 5 times until I realized what might be >> going on here. Turning this key combination off resolved the issue. Now, >> pressing alt h will nicely open the help menu in windows, and you will no >> longer be kicked out. >> >> Next, there is hide others. I have this off, because it does something to >> os10 where I have no speech as long as I'm inside windows, and you want to >> let windows get your keystrokes as much as possible. >> >> The same goes for settings, the next key to turn off, which in fusion is >> command e. I hear you thinking. Usually command comma is for settings. >> Correct. However, command comma in fusion opens the general preferences for >> all virtual machines and fusion, while command e, as in echo, opens the >> settings for your specific virtual machine. How many processor cores to >> allocate it, how much ram etc. So, if windows wants you to press alt e, then >> you don't want to speechlessly land into fusion settings. Rather, you want >> the alt e command to run in windows. Turn this off. >> >> The last key to turn of is command q for quit. Again, we don't have speech >> outside fusion so we can safely turn this off, so that command q, or alt q >> for windows, is available to windows and not to fusion or os10. >> >> If you want to use sharp keys instead, let me know. >> >> Hth, >> Paul. >> On Sep 5, 2011, at 9:47 AM, Hypnotic Consulting wrote: >> >>> Ditto, very much appreciated Paul. >>> Is anyone interested in doing a audio walk through? 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