[s1mple]

I would appreciate any feedback people could provide re the suitability and performances of running XP (in PW) on a MacBook Pro. I know my USB 2.0 speeds will fall back to 1.0 speeds. Can I use the desktop software to install OS and software programs? As best people can tell, is there a huge performance hit? In short, is this "the answer" for Mac users with a Blackberry?

[Balatron]

I'll install the latest desktop and see how it sync with my BB. If you just want to test app installs and such I'll leave off Outlook (It's a fresh install of XP in Parallels and I wasn't going to put Office on it to save disk space). But I can if you want to give that a test as well.

Update: So far no go. It sees the BlackBerry under USB devices but it tells me some other process is locking it. I tried the other USB devices listed and they give me the same error. I wonder if it's something that's a problem with just me or something common that'll be fixed with a patch?

[scifiscot]

It sounds like an issue. My wife and I just purchased MacBooks and I've tried just about everything to get past that error message, to no avail.

I have send an inquiry off to the Parallels folks. I'll post their reply.

[Seattle18]

Parallels seems like an awesome product, but until they get it "just right," I'm very happy with Boot Camp. Since I use the XP side for only one purpose - Desktop Manager - I don;t mind the extra 45 seconds it takes to switch to XP.

s1mple - have you looked into Boot Camp?

[oldskoolboarder]

have been using it for over a month on my MBP. But yes, I do have the problem that I can't get even the Desktop Manager to recognize when the 8700 is connected. At first I thought it was PocketMac but then I shut it down and still had the same problem.

I just bought Parallels and I'm doing a clean install of the lastest XP SP2. I'll try again, since I want this to work.

Once it works, then I'll try to get it to work as a modem on Cingular.

[alexkingorg]

Everything (sync, install, backup, tether as a modem) works as expected if you use Boot Camp, but pretty much nothing works in Parallels, mainly because the BlackBerry can't get connected to the Windows VM.

[mcalder]

Do the following to get Parallels working:

Hey folks - so, if you're trying to get your Blackberry to connect in the Windows VM and you have PocketMac installed, simply do the following before you start Parallels:

In Terminal: sudo kextunload /System/Library/Extensions/BlackberryUSB.kext

After you exit Parallels do the following in Terminal:
sudo kextload /System/Library/Extensions/BlackberryUSB.kext

You should be good to go with USB Blackberry usage in Parallels and with PocketMac in OS X with these steps.

[makkystyle]

That's awesome mcalder... Maybe a mod can make this a sticky?

[oldskoolboarder]

Originally Posted by mcalder

Do the following to get Parallels working:

Hey folks - so, if you're trying to get your Blackberry to connect in the Windows VM and you have PocketMac installed, simply do the following before you start Parallels:

In Terminal: sudo kextunload /System/Library/Extensions/BlackberryUSB.kext

After you exit Parallels do the following in Terminal:
sudo kextload /System/Library/Extensions/BlackberryUSB.kext

You should be good to go with USB Blackberry usage in Parallels and with PocketMac in OS X with these steps.

Cool. So did YOU try to use the 8700 as a modem w/ Parallels after this?

[cvarrin]

I've tried the terminal commands above, and made sure that nothing else is running that should be grabbing the BlackBerry USB connection, but I still get the same error message from Parallels.

Any suggestions?

[Primetimez28]

With or without PocketMac installed Parallels will not run the Synch software successfully. It freezes in the middle of synching. And I made sure the screen didn't shut off in the middle of the process.

Parallels admits working on a USB issue.

Has Anyone gotten their BB to Synch?

[Primetimez28]

I did the Windows Device Driver Update For BlackBerry Devices.. and now it won't recognize it at all!

I hope this gets fixed soon!

[Primetimez28]

Installed the latest version of the Desktop software, and it recognizes it, but yet again freezes in the middle of a synch!

[Primetimez28]

Re-installed the newest Desktop Software, and it recognizes the Bb again, but still won't synch!.

[tobes01]

Looks like Parallels may have fixed the USB issues - I've downloaded but haven't tested yet, can someone give it a try?

Toby

[stoxx]

I have downloaded the new beta version and installed it. Everything seems to
be working fine. I have tried a couple USB devices so far and it has recognized them. I havent tried it with BlackBerry yet.
Reading the Parallels form, there does seem to be an issue with some USB devices still

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Cheers

[alexkingorg]

I was able to get everything working in Parallels, including tethering:

alexking.org: Blog > You *Can* Tether a BlackBerry as a Modem in Parallels

[Stewie]

VMWare is releasing their virtual machine solution for the Mac. I know on the windows side of things I have never had an issue with USB support in the virtual machine. This could end up being a better solution than Parallels.