If you need to test a software on Mac OSX, and it is not justifiable for you to get a new Macbook, a good way is to install the Mac OSX as a virtual machine in your Windows (or Linux) based PC. Both the two popular virtual machine software – Virtualbox and VMware, support Mac OSX installation as a virtual guest, but in this article, we will deal with Virtualbox.
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How to Install Mac OS X Snow Leopard in VirtualBox
By | May 27, 2011 | 9 Comments
Virtualbox: How to Set 32-bit Display In Ubuntu Guest [Quick Tips]
By | May 11, 2011 | 2 Comments
I installed Ubuntu Natty on my Virtualbox (Ubuntu guest on Ubuntu host) and the first problem that greeted me when I boot up is the 16-bit display error message:
The virtual machine window is optimized to work in 32 bit color mode but the virtual display is currently set to 16 bit.
Please open the display properties dialog of the guest OS and select a 32 bit color mode, if it is available, for best possible performance of the virtual video subsystem.
Note. Some operating systems, like OS/2, may actually work in 32 bit mode but report it as 24 bit (16 million colors). You may try to select a different color mode to see if this message disappears or you can simply disable the message now if you are sure the required color mode (32 bit) is not available in the guest OS.
It stated that your system is optimized to work in 32-bit, but the color quality is set to 16-bit. First of all, there is no “display properties” in Ubuntu that allows you to change from 16-bit to 32-bit. Secondly, when you open the monitor option, you can only select 800×600 (or lower) screen resolution.
Here’s what I did to solve the problem.
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VirtualBox 4.0 Review: What to Expect From This Major Release
By | January 4, 2011 |
Out of the many virtualization software, VirtualBox is my personal favorite. It is lightweight, run fast and support a great deal of OSes (including Mac Snow Leopard). The latest release of VirtualBox 4.0 brings even more changes to the already useful software. This is a major release and it added plenty of new features as well as improvement for existing functions. Let’s take a look at what’s new in this release.
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Step by Step Guide To Install Windows XP Mode In Windows 7
By | December 7, 2010 |
Windows 7 came with a very interesting feature called Windows XP mode. This feature allows you to setup a Windows XP virtual machine inside Windows 7 and execute any Windows XP’s program from it.
If you are an advanced user, for sure you know about VirtualBox, which has been covered plenty of times in Make Tech Easier. The most important difference between VirtualBox and Windows XP mode is that you don’t need a Windows XP CD. You can download all files from Microsoft.
If you are having problems porting your programs to Windows 7, this feature is an option you need to review. Following is the step by step guide to install and execute Windows XP mode in your Windows 7 machine.
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How to Install Ubuntu Maverick On Your Mac Virtualbox
By | November 8, 2010 |
Ubuntu is all the rage lately in the tech world. While Linux has been largely an operating system for hobbyists and geeks, its popularity is growing with every new release of Ubuntu. From its simple installation to its touch screen friendliness and built in social networking features, Ubuntu is more viable an option today than ever before. For Mac users, there is no easy way for you to dual boot your Mac and Ubuntu, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get your hands on one. Here, we will show you how you can run Ubuntu in your Mac, via Virtualbox.
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Testdrive Let You Test Ubuntu With A Single Click
By | August 17, 2010 |
If you want to test drive a Linux distro, what will you usually do? Download the ISO file, burn it into a CD/USB drive and boot it up in your PC. Alternatively, you can also run the ISO file in virtual machine such as Virtualbox or VMWare. What if you are not a geek and have no ideas how to carry out the above stuff? What if there is a 1-click solution that allows you to test drive a Linux distro without having to go through the above steps?
Test Drive is a package for Ubuntu that allows you to test drive the daily build of Ubuntu with little effort on the user side. With a single click (Well, to be exact, there are several clicks on the first run), you can get the application to download the ISO from the web and run it in your virtual machine. While it is meant for non-technical Ubuntu users to test and provide feedback on the current Ubuntu release under development, it can also be used for any Linux distro as long as you provide it with the ISO URL.
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Snippet: How to Hide Menu Bar and Status Bar in VirtualBox
By | June 8, 2010 |
For regular users of Virtualbox, you will notice that whenever you run your VM, there will be the menu bar and status bar that prevent you from running at the maximum resolution (other than seamless mode). This can be a frustrating thing, especially when you are running your VM on a netbook, where every inches of screen space are precious.
Well, with a simple hack, you can actually switch off the menu bar and status bar and get your VM to run in the maximum resolution.
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How to Install VirtualBox in Your USB Drive and Run any Operating System
By | January 2, 2010 |
As we walk in the year 2010, Operating systems are not machine specific anymore. Google chrome OS has launched which marks a new era in the beginning of cloud based Operating system. But sometimes the cloud can be a little difficult to maintain, especially when you prefer using a USB stick for doing your day to day tasks with the computer, taking backups, moving files and working in multiple computers like in Office, home or may be some other place.
Thus sometimes you may need an operating system that would be portable, so that you can run it from your removable drive and from any computer. We have covered Mojopack earlier, which lets you carry a “self made system environment” in your USB drive. But Mojopack is not any operating system and it depends upon the host computer where you would be using it.
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How To Run Android on Your Home PC with Virtualbox
By | December 28, 2009 |
Google’s Android OS has been making consistent progress in the smartphone world. If you’re anything like me, you may have been curious about this mobile OS but not willing to spend much on a phone. Fortunately, the LiveAndroid project on Google Code provides a bootable LiveCD image that can be run on your home computer. With the free virtualization program VirtualBox, we can try it out on Windows, Linux or Mac without even burning a CD.
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How to Create Your Own USB Linux Distro with LiLi
By | September 29, 2009 |
Linux Live CDs have long been well known as a handy tool in PC repair. Personally I’ve used Linux CDs dozens of times to repair Windows problems, from virus scans to file retrieval to partition adjustments. As great as Live CDs are, they still have a few drawbacks, like an inability to save any new files or changes. Bootable USB sticks solve most of the problems with Live CDs. You can write to them, change the software or the whole system without burning a new CD, and carry them easily wherever you go.
There’s a new (Windows only, strangely enough) software tool out called LiLi USB Creator. LiLi makes it incredibly easy to create your own customized bootable Linux system on a USB stick, and even run it from within Windows using an portable copy of Virtualbox that’s included on the installation. Impressed? I am.
