Running Chief Architect on a MAC with VM Fusion

[fdastoor]

I run windows Vista as a virtual machine using VM Fusion.

I am using Home Design Architect Version 10. It runs quite well.
However after I make the simplest design - a room with just 4 walls ANY attempt to use a camera view [doll house view etc] causes the program to crash INSTANTLY.

Is this a known bug? Is there a workaround oe solution?

Will it work if I use Bootcamp to run Windows?

[Tommy Blair]

Bootcamp would probably be a better choice. You should do a search on this. It's been discussed many times.

[lbuttery]

Is this a known bug


Nope, it's not a bug

as Tommy stated try Bootcamp

CA doesn't support Chief on Macs but they have stated that it runs fairly well using Bootcamp

Lew

[Doug Park]

This is a known limitation with VM Fusion. Their implementation of support for OpenGL is flawed. I have heard that Parallels is working better these days, but I have not confirmed that. You need to contact the virtual machine manufacturer for support.

We do not support running Chief on any virtual machine at this time because of issues like this.

Chief should run under Bootcamp just fine, although there is always the chance that the drivers for the video card will cause you some issues. But that is pretty much the same risk you have with any other Windows hardware.

[SusanC]

I am running X3 Premier on a Mac. Bootcamp is set up with Windows 7 and I've had no problems at all. Before I purchased CA, I tried running the trial version with VM and it did not work. Going to Bootcamp is your best choice. Much more stable!

[robishaw]

I have a new MBP 13 and have trial Home Designer Pro installed under bootcamp. The performace is dreadful (in camera view/doll house view or any rotation). What mac do you have (and graphics card) and do you have issues with rotation performance? I am returning the mbp and am considering the 15 mbp instead (with dual graphics). I also have CA 10 but won't load that until I get the correct system to handle it. HDP does not fair well with the mac. You are correct about the VM, it does not work.

thanks. Rick

[lbuttery]

Rick:

HD PRO is a subset of Chief X3 so it should run fine under Bootcamp

Lew

[PTV]

I just wanted to clarify few things about Boot Camp.

Chief nor Windows run under Boot Camp.
Boot Camp is only a utility that assists you in installing MS Windows or Linux operating systems on Intel-based Macintosh computers. Boot Camp Assistant guides you through the re-partitioning of your hard disk drive and the initial installation of Windows drivers.

Once you boot Windows on a Mac you run Windows just like on any other hardware. Windows in full control and the Mac OS is irrelevant at that point. You don't really need Boot Camp, you don't even need OS X at that point.

Once you boot Windows you can install drivers and applications of your choice.

[Rooster2b]

I've run CA10 and now CA X3 on a Mac with VM Fusion for years with minimal problems. Some things I did though;

Partitioned the disk using the Bootcamp utility, Loaded windows on to it, and then loaded CA directly onto it. It is a functioning PC in that fashion, and then I use the VM WARE to bridge the gap. If you don't need the Mac function you can boot it up in just windows, but I like to toggle back to my Mac, and when my girlfriend bought me Fusion it just made my life so much happier - no longer shutting down the Mac to boot up into windows.

But now I've been getting 'error' messages that my video card can't support some of the camera functions. I haven't gotten to the bottom of that yet though.

[Doug Park]

VM Fusion has issues with some of the OpenGL 2 features we are using in X3. Contact them for help.

[Marc Kleinmann]

I've been using X3 on parallels with no major problems.

[aaronaspinall]

Hi Marc

I have a 15" MBP 2.66GHZ i7. I installed windows 7 and X3 in bootcamp. Afterwards, i installed Parallels. When i run Chief through parallels, it is very laggy, the crosshairs on the mouse drag considerably. It's not even a large plan. How have you had success running in parallels? I love the Mac and would like to use it exclusively for X3, and running in bootcamp is frustrating.

[Marc Kleinmann]

I run X3 on 2 Macs - iMac i7 2.8Ghz w 8G Ram and the latest Macbook Air which has a Core2Duo. No problems on the iMac at all even with large models, even though I think it's a bit snappier when I run it in Bootcamp. The Air works fine while the models are small and don;t have a lot of detail. As soon as plans get too detailed, I can tell I have considerable lag with mouse and screen update. Anyway, looking at your config you should not have any issues. One thing to remember: There's a know issue with the mini-display ports and windows on all Macs. I used to have a second monitor plugged in and always had mouses issues - found some threads online in the Autocad forums that pointed me in that direction. Ever since I unplugged the 2nd monitor I have no problems. This bug only appears on windows.

Marc

[wjwbuilder]

I also have been running X2 and X3 on MBP 2009 17 inch and Mac Pro for a couple years with dual monitors on the Mac Pro. No Problems and the graphics are great. Running windows 7 x64 on both and I am able to click away as fast as I can.
Both Machines are run only in the windows mode, apple has great hardware.
Good luck with your choice.

[aaronaspinall]

I just set up parallels, and it's working better now that i shut off Coherence mode. I believe that was the problem with my cross hair lag. Now, the issue is in rendering. When i use the perspective full overview camera, the image loads upside down. Every time. Is this something that you've come in contact with Marc? Have you tweaked the settings at all to ensure proper rendering?