Great applications only for Windows?

S

studiogeek

Bit poster
Hi,
I have a MBP C2D 2.16. I have installed Parallels and XP on it. I now have no idea what I will do with Windows. What great applications have people in this forum found that add functionality that wasn't available with Mac software?
I'm looking for cool Windows apps basically?
SG
 
I can't think of any. All the really great apps eventually find their way to Mac OS (i.e. Google Earth, Slingbox, GPS software) so I would say wait for the future cool apps to arrive, enjoy them first in Windows before they eventually show up for OS X.
 
Xara Xtreme

My nomination for a Windows killer app would be Xara Xtreme - a vector drawing app (with bitmap/photo capability). Doesn't have quite the feature list of, say, Illustrator or Freehand but is pretty powerful, very responsive and MUCH cheaper. OK, its partly familiarity but I find using Freehand etc. like kicking a dead whale along a beach in comparison.

The windows version is payforware - there's a (not quite complete yet, but usable) open source version for Linux here and the prospect of an OSX version sometime. Personally, I think they shoud invest in a commercial Mac version instead of waiting for the FOSS community to port it.

Personally, I also prefer the PC version of MS Office, but that's only a beheading vs. hanging choice.
 
A few that come to mind immediately...

AutoCad

VirtualDub, AviSynth, VobSub

SoundForge, Vegas

Microsoft Office (The windows rev is far superior to the mac os rev.), Visual Studio.
 
1. NewsBin Pro - the best newgroup reader, in my opinion. Far faster than any Mac alternative.
2. DVD Shrink - I love the way this one app does it all.
3. Quick Par - much faster Mac alternativesand seems to be able to fix things that Mac alternatives can't.
4. WinRAR - again, much faster than Mac alternatives.
 
1. AnyDVD
2. VideoReDo - I haven't found any comparable mpeg-2 FAE (Frame Accurate Editing) tools for the Mac which are low-cost. SimpleMovieX isn't nearly as nice.
 
All of these are Windows-only. I'm running them on a Parallels VM.

ACT (by Sage Software) sales contact management

Garmin iQue 3600 software

Outlook 2003 with Microsoft Exchange server (over a VPN)...Entourage does not provide calendar details when booking a meeting with somone who has time blocked out. If I can find a work-around in Entrourage, I'll dump Outlook.
 
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Microsoft Access -- best of breed desktop database -- blows EVERYTHING else away.
Maintaining many thousand of lines of code in it, so even if I find something better, I have to keep using it.

BTW, "cool" is only one reason for using an app. There are Windows apps I HAVE to run because my job requires them. Parallels allows me to do that, and is saving me lots of time and effort involved in carrying two machines around. Between Parallels and bootcamp, I'm down to one laptop.

I'm even using one app where there is a Mac version because the file formats for the Win and Mac versions are different and I need compatibility.

And lastly, to studiogeek, why on earth would you install Parallels and Windows if you don't have a use for them? I can't imagine taking the time to install such a complex package as an emulator and OS without a need -- there are so many other things to do that DO have a purpose.
 
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studiogeek,

Just because another can't see any reason to tinker, you should still do it. If that's what YOU want.
.
 
- MatLab 7 (since it's not released for Intel yet... I thought you just had to "check a box" in XCode to make something Intel-compatible!? so much for that...)
- Origin is an amazing prog. for graphing, makes really great, presentable data plots.

- AutoCAD (as perviously mentioned) is great, I haven't found anything like it on a Mac (though I haven't looked in a few years)

Tons of Engineering programs, BeamProp is the one I use. ADS for high speed circuits. MultiSIM is a very cool, simple to use circuit/logic design program.

A GREAT videogame, not found anywhere else in the same form:
- Worms 2
- Worms Armageddon

I run PD on a MiniMac, solely 'cuz I needed to run MS Visual Studio for some visual C++ programming for work, so there's that as well.
 
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My favs are, in no particular order:

Adware,
Spyware,
Viruses,
Trojans,
Backdoors,
Randomware from random sites,
Rootkit-ware, esp. Sony's or any big company's

I load up TCPView, Ethereal and/or PortReporter and watch all the holiday lights as my VM connects to exciting destinations in China, Korea, Brazil, Ukraine, Moldovia, Phillippines, Russia, Poland, you name it! At least places I'll probably never visit.
 
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rcardona2k said:
My favs are, in no particular order:

Adware,
Spyware,
Viruses,
Trojans,
Backdoors,
Randomware from random sites,
Rootkit-ware, esp. Sony's or any big company's

I load up TCPView, Ethereal and/or PortReporter and watch all the holiday lights as my VM connects to exciting destinations in China, Korea, Brazil, Ukraine, Moldovia, Phillippines, Russia, Poland, you name it! At least places I'll probably never visit.
Click to expand...

Sounds like you need some antivirus software...I have been running windows for years and have never had a problem.
 
I think you missed my point the "application" here is a honeypot to watch the malware of the world run in the confines of a VM. Anti-anything just spoils the party.
 
The only reason some one would want Windows on a Mac would be to run applications that don't run on the Mac. There are number of vertical market applications that I use in my work that don't have Mac equivalents. They run great under Parallels. I wouldn't use Windows at all but for these circumstances. (OK. One other circumstance. I write financial analysis software under contract. It is nice to develop on Mac and then port easily to Windows and Linux while still running the primary development machine. My software doesn't use GUI so cross platform compatibility is still pretty easy).
 
veggiedude said:
I can't think of any. All the really great apps eventually find their way to Mac OS (i.e. Google Earth, Slingbox, GPS software) so I would say wait for the future cool apps to arrive, enjoy them first in Windows before they eventually show up for OS X.
Click to expand...

definitely not true
it goes the other way from Mac to Windows :-)
eg Photoshop

on start up I use
Windows Live Messenger 8.1 beta

MS IE 7 is essential for checking my own web sites to see them as the majority will soon view them

I also use it for Internet banking because of some fussy security software installed by a leasing danish bank only works on a unique computer

my killer app
is Family tree maker 16
i tested two competiong mac products and they were a waste of money

I do intend to take Omnipage Pro OCR on to the virtual PC
and I want to know if Dragon NaturallySpeaking 9 has been tested

>> Send e-mails and instant messages, surf the web, create documents - all by simply speaking. With Dragon NaturallySpeaking 9, you'll be faster than ever ...
www.nuance.com/naturallyspeaking/ <<

it canbe fussy about PC sound cards I am told

AOL 9 on WinXP is very slightly better than AOL 10 on Max OS 10.4.8
but that is part of my social life


and Irfan View and the freebie windows text editors have their uses

If I used Excel daily i would use MS Office native on Win Xp on parallels
the MS Mac Office has slipped behind

Gmail is OK on the Mac with Firefox
beta.blogger.com too

but i find the imap mailers I use now om teh MacBook pro
slower than the old MS OE i used to use on my old machine and with less keyboard shortcuts



Hugh W
 
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