Yes, you heard right...PARALLELS DESKTOP 3.0 IS ALMOST HERE!

About 3 hours ago we let the world know that for the last few months, we've been quietly building and testing an entirely new version of Parallels Desktop for Mac. Named Desktop for Mac 3.0, this forthcoming major update - due in a few weeks - has over 50 great new features. Since we're still in beta testing I won't go into all of them, but I did want to highlight two of them:

SmartSelect: A wicked cool new feature that lets you assign any OS X or Windows application as the default for any Mac or Windows file type. This means that when you right-click on any file in either OS and selects “open with”, SmartSelect automatically populates the recommended application list with compatible applications from both operating systems.

With SmartSelect, I set Word for Windows to be my default application to work with .doc, .rtf and .txt files, so when I double click a file with that extension in either OS – even if it is an email attachment in Apple Mail – the file instantly opens the file in Word. I've also configure SmartSelect to open all hyperlinks clicked in either OS to open in Firefox for Mac, and for all email to route through Apple Mail. This is total OS integration on a file and application level...put it together with Coherence, and you have the most seamless user experience possible.

3D Graphics: You asked for it, and we delivered. Kick around your favorite Windows-only OpenGL and DirectX games and apps in a virtual machine on your Mac, without shutting down OS X!

Here's Quake 4 running full-speed in my virtual machine on my test Mac. Yes, as shocking as it may be, I took one for the team and played Windows games in my VM for a whole day to make sure that they run well. Aren't I noble?

There's a lot more (as in, more than 50 new features in all) in 3.0. You can learn more about everything that's coming in the final version at the Desktop for Mac 3.0 Upgrade Page.

The new version will be available in just a few weeks at the regular price of $79.99, but current users can upgrade for only $49.99. And, now through the release date (very soon...), you can actually upgrade for only $39.99, which, for those of you who aren't math savvy (like me), is 1/2 the regular retail price. We're doing this as a formal thank-you to everyone who's supported us over the past year. We figured that you'd like this better than just another "thank you" blog post. :)

If you want to buy now and save some dough, hit the Upgrade Page.

Stay tuned for news about the final release of 3.0 in the next few weeks. Oh, and I'll see you all at WWDC, where we'll have more big news for you.

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Linspire & Freespire Linux users get one-click access to Parallels Workstation

Yesterday we made a co-announcement with Linspire, makers of the Linspire and Freespire Linux distributions, that Parallels Workstation 2.2, will be available to users of both OSes via CNR, Linspire's marketplace for leading Linux software. CNR is pretty cool, because its just like as iTunes, but instead of browsing, trying and buying music, you're exploring the best software the Linux world has to offer. Total, there are more than 20,000 apps on CNR, which makes it one of the world's most comprehensive repositories for Linux software.

This partnership means that Linspire and Freespire users can easily download and buy Parallels Workstation directly from their Linux desktop (or via the CNR website) if they need to run Windows, other instances of Linspire/Freespire, or want to check out one of Parallels' dozens of virtual appliances.

More on the announcement is available here.

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Parallels Desktop - #6 on PC World's list of "100 Best Products of 2007"

This morning, PC World, the world's largest consumer tech magazine (4.3 MILLION readers monthly!) released its list of the "100 Best Products of 2007".

Parallels Desktop checked in at #6 on that list, which makes us the best software application of the year! Here's what PC World had to say about us:

"A Mac OS application in PC World's Top 10? You bet. With a simple interface and improving 3D acceleration, Parallels offers the slickest way to run Windows (or any other OS) on Apple's beautifully designed Intel-based hardware."

It's also important to note that it wasn't just the PC World pros who considered us the best software product of the year...we were also the top rated software product of the year by PC World's readers! Out of the top 100, only 9 were picked as truly outstanding by the PC World community, and out of that 9, Parallels Desktop, Firefox 2.0 and ZoneAlarm were the only software products.

I feel like I say this every week, but thank you to everyone who's supported us over the past 18 months as we rolled out Desktop for Mac. Without your support, this product would not be where it is today.

As a final note, its important for me to say that just because we're racking up the awards does NOT mean we're going on vacation. We have some very cool new stuff (for Desktops AND Servers) coming very soon!

• Check out the entire list of PC World's "100 Best Products of 2007".
• See who else made the PC World's Reader's Choice list.
  

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Ask Ben Anything - What's coming at WWDC?

The Apple Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC for short) is just under a month away, and the rumors are already swirling about what the "big news" will be at the conference.

Many of those center on the "super secret" features in Leopard, Apple's forthcoming new version of OS X. Seems that the prevailing rumor (and I stress the "RUMOR" part) is that Leopard will have some sort of virtualization technology in it, similar to what Parallels has been offering for more than a year. This seems very unlikely to me, because unlike creating a "normal" application, virtualization is built on core, proprietary technology, and its not very easy to build that technology from scratch. Our core team worked for years exclusively in the virtualization space for years to get Parallels technology to where it is today, so it would seem that Apple, even with their great track record for innovation and speedy development, and plethora of outstanding developers and resources, would be able to - or even want to - put virtualization technology that really works together in such a short timeframe.

This is purely from a technical standpoint; its a whole different question how tightly Apple wants to support non-OS X operating systems via internal tools. That's a big picture kind of question that only Mr. Jobs can answer. Right now, we know that Apple is a strong partner and we're working very closely together on development, marketing (I'm sure you've all seen us on the "You can even run Windows" page from the "Get a Mac" campaign), and sales, and that both Parallels and Apple are happy with the relationship we've developed over the past 18 months.

On to the next rumor: Is there anything coming from Parallels at WWDC? Well, I'm happy to say that the the answer is...

I'm not telling.

You'll have to find me in my bright orange Parallels shirt at the conference or keep an eye on the blog for the answer to that question. :)
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Macs pre-loaded with Parallels and Windows pick up steam

Our recent announcement that Tech Data is selling Macs pre-loaded with Parallels and Windows XP is being heralded as a very significant (read: positive) event for the personal computing market, specifically for those users who are currently taking part in the "Do I buy a new Mac, or a new PC?" debate.

Take a look at these two recent articles and you'll see what I mean:

• "Hell Freezes Over: Windows Now Pre-loaded on Macintosh Hardware" by Joe Panettieri, "The VAR Guy"
• "Interesting News on the Parallels Front", by Arik Hassedahl of BusinessWeek.
  

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"Intro to Parallels" by ScreenCastsOnline

My buddy Don at ScreenCastsOnline just posted a very cool, very comprehensive video review of Parallels Desktop for Mac at his website. If you're new to Parallels, or just upgraded to our most recent version with Transporter, Coherence and USB 2.0, this is definitely something that you want to check out.

• Watch the entire video (in QuickTime format) here.

For those of you not familiar with ScreenCastsOnline, Don and his crew produce an ever-increasing library of video tutorials and how-tos on a wide variety of OS X software and hardware topics. ScreenCastsOnline is great reference if you're looking to expand your Mac knowledge.


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Macs pre-loaded with Parallels Desktop and Windows XP are now available from Tech Data!

Starting today, our exclusive US distributor Tech Data Corporation will be selling a selection of 13 pre-configured packages that include an Apple Mac Mini, iMac, MacBook, MacBook Pro or Mac Pro, pre-loaded with Parallels Desktop for Mac, with Windows XP Pro pre-installed in a Parallels virtual machine.

This is true "one stop shopping", because when you buy one of these packages, you won't need to manually configure a thing; each machine is ready to run Windows XP and OS X side-by-side right out of the box!

Our partners & their customers agree that this is the way to go...take a look at what Garrett Cleversly, President of MacSolutions Plus, had to say about why Tech Data's new Mac+Parallels+Windows packages makes so much sense:

"We've found that each pre-loaded, pre-configured Mac that we sell saves us upwards of 1.5 hours of internal setup time, which means that we can substantially reduce the turn-around time it takes to get our solutions into our customers' hands. Now when a customer places an order, they know that they'll spend less time waiting for a shipment to arrive - and less time configuring it upon its arrival - and more time being productive with their new Mac."

Interested? Contact our sales team to get hooked up with a reseller who's offering Macs pre-loaded with Parallels and Windows, and start using the best of both worlds faster than ever before.

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Parallels at Software 2007 in Santa Clara

Should have posted this earlier, but better late than never, right?


If you're in the Cupertino/San Jose/Santa Clara area, come by the Software 2007 Conference & Expo and say hello to Parallels. Today and tomorrow, we'll be sharing a booth with Apple so we'll be easy to spot, and as usual, we'll be wearing our bright orange shirts.

Our team will be running demonstrations of Parallels Desktop for Mac and will be available to answer questions on enterprise deployment and virtual machine image management so this is a good opportunity to talk about how to roll virtualization our organization-wide with a Parallels expert.



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Ask Ben Anything - Why use Virtual Appliances?

So this last week kind of got away from me and I wasn't able to post this over the weekend like I had originally hoped, but that gave me more time to think about the question that I got in light of our recent Parallels Technology Network announcement..."Why would I want to use virtual appliances?" Here's what I've come up with during my travels to New York and Chicago:

1. Save big bucks. Almost every virtual appliance is free, and those that do have fees associated with them are very, very reasonable....way cheaper than most proprietary solutions. A great example of this is the "Mail Server" VA that's built on ASP Linux. If you're a small business and looking to internalize some of your IT work, this is a great way to get your feet wet without having to drop several thousand dollars.
2. Spare the aspirin. My favorite thing about VAs? They're pre-configured and ready to use the second you download them. This means no installers, no complicated system configuration, no unintelligible documentation, and no massive, throbbing headaches that result from the first three items on that list. Just launch and go. VAs are hands-down the easiest way to get software up and running on your computer.
   
3. Make the Internet a safe place. If you're a home user, this is probably the #1 value of the variety of "safe internet" VAs. Download a VA that's configured to handle web traffic (some even have email clients installed), and you can browse the internet in a completely isolated, safe environment. Since these are built in Linux, VAs are immune to almost every virus and spyware out there. Great for the paranoid, type-A, OCD crew (ie, me).
   
4. Embrace the wonderful world of open source. There's a world of open source, community built software out there (OpenOffice is one of the best examples). More and more, these community projects are turning to VAs to get their software out to computer users worldwide, so if there's something new on the 'net, chances are you'll find it first on the PTN VA directory.
   
5. Find a home. I'm a computer dork. I know this and I'm ok with it. I also know that there are lots of fellow computer dorks out there who I have a lot in common with, but haven't yet had a chance to meet. That's where the PTN comes in. Join it and network with your geeky bretheren, and with computer users from all walks of life. It's a casual, focused place to discuss technology, best practices for working with virtualization, and how to get the most out of your machine.

This is just scratching the surface, which leads me to this question...what value do you see in virtual appliances?


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