[clue-tech] Shame shame

[Collins Richey]

On 6/17/06, Al Kroeger <owaugly at wildblue.net> wrote:
> Collins Richey wrote:
>
> > All of you who missed the fine presentation by VMware on Tuesday
> > night, shame on you for not turning out. One of the best presentations
> > in a long time. If I understand correctly, we have David Wilson to
> > thank for arranging this presentation.
> >
> > I've just downloaded my copy of VMware workstation, and now I need to
> > figure out how to make it work.
> >
> I couldn't make it to the presentation.  I have had VMware installed
> since March of 2005, and it is really a powerful program.  For those who
> just want/need to run a full-blown Windows installation, and all its
> applications, WinPro, by Win4Lin, does an excellent job for a bit less
> than half the price of VMware.  I've tried both, and settled on WinPro.
> It was easier to install, it is just as portable, and getting my old
> Canon MultiPass C5500 to work with WinPro was a snap.  I never did get
> it to work with VMware.

Interesting. Is there a way to get an existing Windows setup (I have
no installation media) to run with WinPro, or do you have to run an
install?

> Nothing against VMware, mind you.  It is a great program.  But it is not
> the only game in town.  Before I actually put my money down for any
> product, I would shop around and test-drive as many as I could.  Unless
> you really need all the features of VMware, you might do better with one
> of the other, less expensive alternatives.  Maybe even VMware's
> VMPlayer, which is free ..... can't beat that price.
> Just my opinion.

In my case VMware Workstaion is a free gift from the presentation -
total cost $0.0, so cost is not a decision point. OTOH, after reading
the fine print, VMware server only supports a rather limited set of
Linux distros including just for grins an ancient version of Ubuntu
(5.05). Since I'm on 6.06 it doesn't look that attractive for my main
machine.

My mission is as follows. My wife has a WinXP machine (Celeron 512M)
that dies every two years with a virus (no Virus protector known to
mankind seems to prevent it). I've put her up a login on my machine,
and she could use Firefox and Sylpheed quite successfully, but she has
a couple of Windows programs that I can't support - PhotoDeluxe and
Hallmark Card Maker that I can't find a way to support (tried
Crossover Office, but they only support the big bucks programs like
Photo Shop. All the other stuff (CD/DVD writer, Epson printer, Epson
scanner, Camera are well supported on Ubuntu 6.06.

What I need is a way to convert her existing setup to a mostly Linux
operation with the ability to run her favorite programs without a
reboot. VMware has a P2V function that looks promissing, but I want
current level Linux support like Ubuntu 6.06 nstead of older stuff
like CentOS/RHEL4. VMware does support SuSE 10.0, but I've never been
a fan of SuSE.

If I can get her system never again to run internet connections under
Windows (except for the occasional M$ update), the virus problem will
be gone.

Any thoughts?


-- 
Collins Richey
     If you fill your heart with regrets of yesterday and the worries
     of tomorrow, you have no today to be thankful for.