MaxSea and Win7 . . .

[jimbim]

Has anyone tried Maxsea 10.3.2.1 with Windows 7? Wondering if there any issues a current XP user should know about.

Also, anything you can tell me about using Seaclear II, NavMonPC and Yacht-AIS with Win7 would be much appreciated?

Am toying with the idea of moving to openCPN, which I understand works with Win7, but sitting here in the Philippines I am leary about switching over to something I know nothing about and might be the source of countless headaches.

[lalmic]

Hi, for me it does not work with windows 7. Anaybody as an idea ?

Lalmic

[speciald@ocens.]

upgrade to MaxSea Time Zero for $225 at Defender. Need to send them your dongle #.

[Nauticatarcher]

Get windows 7 Pro and run it in XP vitualization mode

[W32PAMELA]

Originally Posted by Nauticatarcher

Get windows 7 Pro and run it in XP vitualization mode

Make sure your CPU is capable of running Windows Virtual PC. Not all are.

WiKi on Virtualization and AMD and Intel Hardware requirements

[shadow]

That would be my first guess is to run it under XP compatibility mode...

[jimbim]

Thanks for the replies. Wasn't aware of the virtual XP mode. Just looking into a new netbook -- haven't seen one with Pro, and don't know if they are powerful enough to run virtual XP, but will look. Or maybe I will just take the jump into OCPN and not look back.

[W32PAMELA]

I'm not aware of any netbook CPU's that support virtulization. It will be a lot simpler and cheaper to get a netbook and put OCPN on it.

[donradcliffe]

I have had success installing OpenCPN (see under the Navigation forum) on Windows 7 computers, and it supports AIS with CM93 charts.

[basile]

it works without problem
I have succesfully installed Maxsea 10 on Vista and now also on Windows 7
run maxsea as administrator and in compatible XP service pack 2 mode
use Franson's GPSgate to create virtual comports from your usb-gps
NO NEED for virtualisation as for instance VirtualBox (which works as well and could eventually be used as a last option alternative which I tested as well)
I have a complete description on my site (french ...) how to install MS on newer windows versions here : Soniva, discover Bahia - Brazil
greetz
Bas

[s/v Jedi]

For all who have trouble with Vista or Win7: don't you know that the best computers for running XP are Apple Mac's? They all come with a complete set of XP drivers unlike most other computers / laptops.

Both the MacBook Pro 13" and MacMini are perfect for boats.

cheers,
Nick.

[basile]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

For all who have trouble with Vista or Win7: don't you know that the best computers for running XP are Apple Mac's? They all come with a complete set of XP drivers unlike most other computers / laptops.

Nick.

no need to make publicity for mac here Nick, Maxsea was not made for mac en does not work on mac ... pronto

and, let's not forget the tons of software that are downloadable for windows ... only a fraction of that is available for mac

greetz

bas

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by basile

no need to make publicity for mac here Nick, Maxsea was not made for mac en does not work on mac ... pronto

and, let's not forget the tons of software that are downloadable for windows ... only a fraction of that is available for mac

Bas,

You, like so many others, you are too much focused on that Mac vs Windows thing. You should really take a moment, close your eyes, breathe, concentrate and then read this:

An Apple Mac is a piece of computer hardware, just like a Toshiba or Dell. MaxSea was designed to run on computer hardware so we're still okay to run it on a Mac here. I'm sure you agree.

Now, MaxSea was designed to run under Windows. Windows is an operating system, just like MacOS or Linux. You can't run MaxSea under Linux or MacOS without some form of Windows emulation or virtualization. I think we still agree.

Now we come to my point: Mac's come with MacOS pre-installed. But that doesn't mean they can't run a different OS!!! Why would that be a problem? In fact, you can run Windows XP, Windows Vista and even Windows 7 on a Mac, just like you can run Linux on it. This is what you should try to understand: a Mac today is just like most other PC's: it has an Intel dual core CPU and everything else to run Windows. In fact, it comes with a complete set of drivers for Windows XP, something almost every other computer manufacturer has dropped, forcing you to jump on the Vista and now Win7 train.

Especially for this thread and my own drive for knowledge, I have tested the following today:

1. Took my brand new Mac Mini to the operating table and opened the case.
2. Removed the 320 GByte hard disk.
3. Installed a brand new, uninitialized 500 GByte Western Digital hard disk.
4. Put it back together and connected a mouse and keyboard (standard Logitech, not Apple) and the power supply.
5. Turned it on and waited. After some hesitation it showed a graphic of a file folder with a big question mark in it. Apparently it didn't know what to do, which isn't surprising.
6. Took a plain vanilla Windows XP Professional with service-pack 2 installation CD and inserted it into the CD drive. As I was thinking about rebooting, the BIOS of the Mac was quicker and started booting from this CD.
7. Windows installation came up, I initialized the hard disk with a NTFS partition and selected that to install Windows on.
8. After all was done, I had a Windows XP machine that was ridiculously slow with screen movements etc. This is because Windows didn't have the drivers for the hardware yet. There was no LAN, no wifi, bluetooth, audio, nothing.
9. I ejected the Windows CD and rebooted. The system booted quickly into Windows.
10. I inserted the Mac OS-X install DVD. No, I didn't install MacOS. But that same DVD has all the XP drivers. It automatically came up with the Windows Boot Camp install. I let that run to completion which takes some time as it is loading and trying XP drivers for every piece of Hardware in every Mac computer model. After it completed, I ejected the DVD and rebooted.
11. Windows boots et voila the perfect Windows XP computer for a boat. Blazingly fast and believe me, I know what fast is.

So, there you have it. Every new Mac can run Windows XP as good as or better than other PC's and it will run every program designed for XP as fast or faster than any other PC with the same CPU.

Instead of replacing the hard disk, you can just erase the disk that is installed and put whatever OS you like on it.

I hope y'all understand this and the implication for cruisers who want to stick with XP for their specialized software. I have a MacBook Pro with 13: screen that does the same.
The difference with other brands is that the Mac is more expensive. I paid $1000.- for the laptop on Amazon and $780.- for the MacMini. But you also get better hardware for that price. They have 802.11n wifi aboard and I have a 130 Mbps connection right now. The laptop housing isn't plastic, it's aluminium, as is part of the housing of the mini. They also have bluetooth on board and support 802.11 a,b,g,n wifi modes so also 5 Ghz! You get it all and the inside is standard PC parts for hard disk, memory etc.

There's another feature: when you insert a bootable CD or DVD, or connect an USB hard disk with an OS on it (like MacOS, Windows or Linux), press ALT and keep pressing it while you turn the computer on. Keep it pressed until you get a graphics screen with choices for which drive to boot from. Make your choice and that's it, you run a different OS on the computer.

Hope this helps,
cheers,
Nick.

[basile]

hi nick

you're fond of mac ? good ! you're ok to pay big dollars for it ? even better !

I've always "been told" a mac "has more user friendly software", "is free from virus", etc ... for the first time now I hear somebody is fond of mac just because one can run ... windows on it ???

now I would just point you at something that is REALLY IMPORTANT for us CRUISERS : consumption of a mac mini =up tot 110w continuous ! (got this from your mac site : Apple - Mac mini - Technical Specifications), on board a ship that's A LOT ! for comparision : asus eeebox eb112 consumes tops 40w
of course if you have a generator running whole day to keep your freezen and washing machine going in the middle of the ocean ...

I rest my case

all this is of course OFF TOPIC for this thread !


ON TOPIC again ...
so far I've been testing Maxsea 10 on Windows 7 32bit, wtih succes, this weekend I installed on another machine with WIndows 7 64bit, also running without any problem

greetz

Bas

[s/v Jedi]

Bas,

It's obvious you're one of those Mac haters who's eyes turn red just by the word "Mac" alone. Hate is a path that never leads to happiness and it's the same with computers.

What I like in a computer is one that allows me to run every OS I can think of. Not one that forces me to Vista or now Win7. I'll run that when I wish to, not because it's the only OS that is supported by that computer. Flexibility & freedom instead of chained by Microsoft.

What you are doing is this: you run Windows XP on a virtual machine under Windows 7. Of course MaxSea is compatible with that because it never even sees Win7. This is exactly the same as running XP in a virtual machine on Linux or MacOS: it'll work with all the operating systems and CPU's that allow virtual machines.

But I wasn't aware that Intel Atom CPU's support that.... I actually think they don't because the CPU can't do virtualization.

You must know that running XP in a virtual machine is both slower and less energy efficient than running it natively without the overhead of the virtual machine and the host OS (win7 in your case).

About energy consumption: The Mac mini is actually the world's most energy efficient PC. You look at maximum power usage and think your PC is 3 times as efficient. You also forgot to mention that the mini's lowest usage is just 14W. When you look at energy efficiency you need to look at how much energy the computer uses to complete a task. For example: to load a chart with MaxSea and show it on the screen. Your computer probably uses 40W while doing that while the mini uses 110W. But your computer will take 3 times as long to complete the task and this not only makes you wait longer, it also consumed more energy to complete the task. In short: it's power usage multiplied by the time it takes to complete the task.
When you're looking at that chart both PC's power consumption will go down... the mini will be at 14 or 15W and your PC will not be much lower, maybe even higher.

I can assure you that we can run our computer and freezer without ever starting the generator. We have solar panels for that. For the washing machine (the hot water it uses) we do run the genset yes... How do you wash your clothes?

So back on topic: a computer (laptop) you buy with Win7 will be able to run MaxSea in compatible XP service-pack 2 mode because you actually run XP in addition to Win7. You must buy the ridiculously expensive Win7 license for that though. That license alone will almost buy you a complete netbook with XP. This will also never be as efficient as running MaxSea under XP alone. You would be better off to buy MaxSea TimeZero.

If you do like your MaxSea v10-v12 but have a computer that can't run XP because there are no XP drivers for it, you are better off buying a computer that does support XP like a netbook (low end) or MacBook (high end). Computers like the eeeBox (low end) and MacMini (high end) are alternatives that come without keyboard, screen and mouse but are built with laptop components so that you get the same low power consumption.

Running MaxSea under win7 64-bit is just silly because MaxSea is 32 bit. Just the fact that you can do something doesn't mean it is the best choice.

cheers,
Nick.