Parallels improves Windows Mobile support on Macs
The day that Apple Boot Camp was released I went out and purchased a MacBook Pro and sold my Fujitsu Tablet PC. I have been using Apple computers since 1989, but was forced to use Windows computers for work due to the fact that my ship design and salvage engineering applications only run in the Windows environment. While booting into Windows with Boot Camp works like a champ, it is actually faster than most other Windows computers I have used, having to reboot to get into Windows is a bit of a pain. I then discovered Parallels Workstation back when it was in very early beta mode and purchased a license a couple months ago. I prefer the virtual Windows environment because I can live in Mac OS X and then just jump over into Windows for those occasional moments when I need it. One major reason I have needed Windows is to sync and install applications with my Windows Mobile and Symbian devices.
I actually have been using the latest release of The Missing Sync with my MacBook Pro and Windows Mobile 5 devices and it is a great experience. However, if a developer only lets you download .exe files (instead of also providing .cab files) to install applications you need to install it from within Windows. I was able to trick older version of Parallels Workstation by using a utility that made my USB connection in Windows Mobile 5 appear as a serial connection, but this didn't work on every device either. I just received a newsletter from Parallels that contained their press release announcing the latest beta of Workstation. This beta has lots of improvements, but the important one for mobile enthusiasts is the USB support for Windows Mobile 5 and many other devices. USB support is one of the hottest topics in their discussion forums and one issue that has kept many people from purchasing the product. I am downloading the update now and will be trying it soon with my devices, including my Nokia S60 devices since the Nokia PC Suite provides many more features than the limited native Mac syncing ability in iSync.