Installing Windows XP
by Volker Weber
Microsoft sent me a copy of Office:Mac Professional which includes Windows XP Professional and Microsoft Virtual PC 6.1, the artist formerly known as Connectix Virtual PC.
Installing Virtual PC is a breeze. Then you have the option to also install XP. It comes in a huge 500++ meg ZIP file, so you can skip most steps required to get it up and running. However you have to go through the usual activation process. Since the online activation failed I had to go through the telephone process. Next stop: Windows Update. Despite the fact that my copy already included service pack 1, it still lists 27 fixes, 11 of them critical. Although it can list them it still fails to download and install. Oh dear.
This has taken much longer already than all the other applications on Snoopy.
Comments
I also have VPC 6.1 on my machine - with a manually installed Win XP Pro, though. I could not even download SP1 via Windows Update. Tricked the system by downloading the updater on my office PC and copying it to VPC.
I have no idea why Windows Update fails, but also do not really care. It's so slow that i hardly use it except in cases of emergency.
Regards, Thomas
Just out of curiosity: What exactly would you consider a "case of emergency"? Some special application not available on the Mac or something else?
Cheers,
Well, only 11 critical patches, you must be lucky ...... except for the rest of the story.
When I start the installation of Windows XP it wants to use an initial hard drive partition that is the same size as the free space on my physical drive. Should I specify a smaller size at this point, or is the software smart enough to only grow my dynamic drive as needed?
Thanks
Do you know if I can I use the vpc 6.1 install cd to install windows xp onto a real pc?
