Apple computers & Xara

[Snowbird57]

HI folks I've been thing of switching from a PC to a Mac Computer; I don't want to change unless I can use Xara which I've use since Corel Xara.
Can anyone please advise me on this problem.
Thanks
Snownbird57

[steve.ledger]

You'd need to install Parallels and then install Windows before you could install Xara software.

[Snowbird57]

Thanks Sledger, I went on Parallels site looks very interesting. Does Xara work really well on the MAC?

[pauland]

I don't use my Xara software so much these days and I'm a lightweight user in terms of document complexity - no massive documents.

I run Xara Xtreme 5.1 on a MacBook Pro (an i5 with 8GB) using Parallels 8 and it seems to work fine.

In terms of performance, I can't say much because I'm not a power user that comes anywhere near stretching the software. I can copy and paste into Xara, drag and drop images, etc.

When I first run Xtreme I have to wait for a few seconds for parallels to start up the virtual machine - I don't normally have parallels running.

I think Rik uses a Mac.

[Big Frank]

Check out VirtualBox which is free : https://www.virtualbox.org/

[sunland]

Hi Snowbird,
Xara Designer Pro X9 (as well as earlier Xara releases) works very well on Parallels Desktop for Mac. I ran earlier versions on a Mac Mini with only 2 gigs of ram for a few years with no problems.
The performance will depend on the Mac you choose and its resources, i.e. video subsystem and amount of ram. I would recommend at least 8 gigs of ram if you plan on running Windows 7 or above. Maybe a little less if you plan on sticking with Windows XP. And remember that you must have a valid Windows license key for installation.This is an additional expense but you can find on the web good deals for OEM Windows 7 disks.
Good luck,
Graham

[Rik]

I use Parallels 8 on my MacBook Pro.
Have used Windows 7, and now Windows 8, and Xara.

Everything works without any problems and have been using Xara this way for about two years now.

Just recently, I installed Parallels 9. But, ended up un-installing it, as the up-down page gestures didn't work.
I didn't see any sense in keeping the upgrade and got my refund and went back to Parallels 8.

Everything working beautifully.

[Snowbird57]

Thank you all for the valuable information. I've looked at the Parallel site and I'm impressed. Now all I've got to do is convince myself I really need that new computer. Thanks again we'll close this thread for now. Thomsign57