Running Anzio on a Mac

Introduction

AnzioWin and Anzio Lite are popular terminal emulation programs that support the SSH (Secure Shell), modem (TAPI), telnet and serial protocols necessary for remote, text-based communications with a host system. However both products run only on a Windows-based PC.

However, there are some options available for the Apple Macintosh, depending on your operating system level. There are a number of Windows emulation packages available for various levels of the Mac OS that will support running a Windows program on a Macintosh. We will cover three briefly here for Mac OS X as they are the simplest to set up and understand.

For other operating system levels, search the web and contact vendors to see what they offer.

CrossOver by CodeWeavers

CrossOver comes from a company called CodeWeavers, www.codeweavers.com. The software can be downloaded and activated from their web site, or is found on the shelves at many Apple and CompUSA stores. You can also download a 30-day demo of Crossover to give it a try. List price is around $75.00. CrossOver runs under OS X on Intel-based machines and requires only a small amount of additional disk space and memory.

Download our AnzioWin or Anzio Lite installation program to your Desktop. You can then add a new install package through the CrossOver menu system. Select "unsupported installer" for AnzioWin or Anzio Lite and point to the installer you downloaded. Our installer should run as normal and set up a folder for the Anzio software.

Then from the Finder or from a shortcut, you can simply click on the AnzioWin or Anzio Lite icon. CrossOver will automatically start up and Anzio will be brought up in its own window, just as if it were a Mac program.

While we do not support CrossOver ourselves, you can get technical support from CodeWeavers for most questions. Check out their web site. Here are some hints that may help:

• When installing AnzioWin or Anzio Lite, install in the default location for the simplest and safest install. Anzio products do write files in the executables folder, so stay with the default folders as defined in the install.
   
• If you have printers defined for this Mac, these printers will also be available for printing to from within the Anzio software. However, you may be limited on printer setup options. If you need to do anything fancy with passthrough printing, please check out the CodeWeavers web site for more information on sharing printer drivers.
   
• Connections over wireless and ethernet work just fine. Serial will require additional serial port hardware to function in most cases. Modem access is also supported and should work straightforward. However this has not been tested with all versions of modems.
   
• All fonts for the Mac become available under Anzio, along with a couple additional, standard Windows fonts. Stick to the mono spaced Mac fonts for cleaner screen viewing.
   
• Firewall settings in the Mac OS may block traffic from your Windows application. Check these settings if you have problems with connecting to a remote server.

Parallels Desktop by Nova Development

Parallels Desktop is available from Nova Development. It runs Microsoft Windows inside a window on the Mac OS operating system. This requires an additional Microsoft Windows installation CD set and license. Parallels and the Windows operating system can be purchased at most Apple stores, Frys, CompUSA, etc. for around $79.00.

Since you will be running a full version of Windows, You do need a licensed copy of the CDs and the additional disk and memory, enough to support Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. Additional disk space is also needed for the same reason.

Once Parallels is installed, AnzioWin or Anzio Lite can be downloaded and works just as it would on a Windows machine.

As with all the products mentioned here, we do not provide any support. Please check the Nova Development web site for more information. Here are a few hints:

• Windows printer drivers need to be installed in order for Parallels and Anzio to print.
   
• Shared folders can be set up to share information with the Mac OS.
   
• Parallels can run in full screen and use shortcuts to switch back and forth between Mac OS and Windows.
   
• Firewall's on both the Windows and the Mac OS may need to be set to allow outbound access of Anzio. If you have problems with connecting to a remote server, check BOTH firewall settings.

Apple Boot Camp for Intel Macs

Boot Camp is from Apple and runs only on an Intel-based Macintosh. However, it does allow you to set up a completely, separate partition for the Mac OS versus the Windows OS. By doing this you can boot either into Microsoft Windows or into Apple Mac OS X. In future version, you may be able to actually Ctrl-Tab between each operating system as well.

Boot Camp is still in beta, but due to be released soon. You can download it from the Apple web site, or have it installed at many Apple and computer center stores. It does require minimal disk and memory as necessary for each operating system and will require a licensed copy of Windows XP or Vista.

How They Work

Many of the emulation products for Intel-based Macintoshes are "wine" based. "Wine" is a public domain Windows Emulator that can run either with Intel and Windows emulation libraries or by installing a full, licensed copy of Microsoft Windows.

• CrossOver runs a set of emulation libraries that are "wine" based, hence the small footprint and small memory requirements. The advantage is that Anzio will run in a small window and act more like a Mac OS program for the user. The disadvantage is it also does not provide all the Windows settings that may be necessary for certain functions in Anzio. If you are wanting simple passthrough printing and terminal emulation, CrossOver with Anzio should work fine.
   
• For more advanced needs, such as driving auxiliary devices, file transfers, scripting and advanced passthrough print functionality, you may need to look at Parallels. Parallels runs an entire copy of Microsoft Windows, just as if you were running on a Windows platform.
   
• If you want to take the Mac operating system out of the loop when you are running Windows based applications, then check out Boot Camp. It sets up a completely separate Windows partition on the hard drive where any version of Microsoft Windows can be installed.