WMWare decided not to let Parallels to become the only virtualization solution on MacIntel, and today released a news beta version of its solution, Fusion.
Among the most exciting features is the "Experimental 3D Acceleration" support, which will allow users to play a set of DirectX 8.1 games in Windows XP Service Pack 2 virtual machines:
- Aliens vs. Predator Demo
- Breath of Fire IV
- Grand Theft Auto III (Tip: Set the Display Setup option Trails to OFF.)
- Hitman 2
- Lord of the Realms III
- Max Payne 1
- Max Payne 2
- Need for Speed Porsche Demo
- RalliSport Challenge
- Tony Hawk 3
- X-2 Rolling Demo
Of course, those games are rather "old" in game history, but it also proves that the video found on YouTube and displaying a 3D game running in Fusion was probably not a hoax.
This new version of Fusion while reported to better support Microsoft Vista remains a beta version, and one should not expect an integration level as deep as in Parallels. However, WMWare decided to tackle 3D acceleration from the beginning while Parallels lacks this feature and expect to support DirectX API in a later version. For sure, Mac users will benefit from the competition between both companies aiming to deliver the best virtualization solution for MacIntel.
As we already reported it previously
in January,
www.macworld.com claims to have received confirmation that Apple will hold a "Special Event" on April 15th, during the
NAB (National Association of Broadcasters) that will take place in Las Vegas on April 14-19th.
As indicated by yesterday's update of DVD Studio Pro, Apple will probably take advantage of this worldwide video event to introduce the new HD version of its key video solutions, as well as the revision of both Mac Pro and Apple Cinema display models. The Mac Pro is expected to move to Quad Core Xeon 5355 processors, and as we already demonstrated in a recent
article, video-related multitasking will be already able to take advantage of doubling available cores; while updating Cinema displays to make them HDCP-ready will allow professional to have an "Apple-only" and all-in-one solution for creating/editing/rendering/displaying HD video.
While the last version of Tiger (10.4.9) is still not available yet, Apple posted an updated version for Backup 3. As usual, Backup 3.1.1 is highly recommended for all users of Backup 3, and can be downloaded from the software update panel, or from Apple Support download webpage.
• Backup and restore with external drives,
• Memory management,
• Restore of bundled file types.
For more information about Backup 3, visit the .Mac website at: http://www.mac.com
For Backup 3 support information, visit http://www.apple.com/support/dotmac/backup/
This update is recommended for all DVD Studio Pro 4.1 users and can be downloaded from the software update panel or from Apple Support website. It extends HD-DVD support
DVD Studio Pro 4.1.2 provides important bug fixes and addresses compatibility issues with DVD Studio Pro 4.1 HD DVD projects and Toshiba HD DVD players.
DVD Studio Pro 4.1.2 also updates the Disc Description Protocol (DDP) 2.1 to DDP 3.0 and the Cutting Master Format (CMF) 1.0 to CMF 2.0, which is required for HD DVD replication.
