Hello all,
This post is offered as purely informational - in the chance that anyone is seeking information on this *specifically rare topic*: running SolidWorks on a Mac.
I am a SolidWorks (2007-2009) user and an avid Mac advocate (since 1986). SolidWorks isn't and won't ever be Mac-native. Sure, there are other CAD-CAM modelers made just for the Mac, but NONE of them drive the world-wide manufacturing industry as SolidWorks does. What to do?
Run SolidWorks in XP-Pro SP3 via BootCamp. Period, end of story.
I embarked on this experiment with Parallels v1 - and dropped the whole project until Fusion came out of beta. Moving to VMware's Fusion was great - nothing wrong with it as emulation goes - but Fusion (any emulation) insulates the graphics card you'll likely need to run SolidWorks. By ' insulate', I mean the card isn't recognized by XP - XP sees only a generic video card of SVGA). That's an emulation tax folks, sorry...
I still use SolidWorks in Fusion when I've got small, simple parts and quick design jobs, however, if I'm doing top-down assembly or working on some larger, many-parts models and/or I need fully detailed, photo-real rendering (PhotoView360), then it's over to BootCamp I go!
BTW - in Fusion (read: emulation), you won't see ANY RealView graphics OR PhotoView360 previews!
Per Dessault System's recommendations (makers of SolidWorks) the ONLY graphic card which IS Mac-compatible AND 'certified for use with SolidWorks' is the NVIDIA QuadroFX 4500. (note: There may be newer, improved cards since I bought the 4500 almost 2.5 years ago...)
If you want SolidWorks to see ALL of your Mac's core processors (in my case - four of them - critical for rendering models via PhotoView360) AND you want to tap the raw power of the video card you paid dearly for - you've GOT to do this scenario via BootCamp - not Parallels, not Fusion, not any other emulation software.
Note: I'm not at all suggesting emulation is a bad strategy, it just isn't good for use with SolidWorks.
The SolidWorks user experience is much more precise and 'crisp' via BootCamp. Trust me, I've thrown a lot of effort, money and research at this topic. Keyboard short-cuts, mouse tricks, etc. all work more smoothly AND PROPERLY in BootCamp as opposed to an emulation solution. Do these details make a difference you ask? YES!!!!! Trust the flat spots on my head from slamming it against walls... BootCamp = a more natural SolidWorks experience!
As for XP verses Vista - all I can add is that my SolidWorks VAR (value-added reseller) runs ALL of their PCs on XP-Pro 64bit, NOT Vista. That's enough of an XP endorsement for me. Since XP64bit isn't BootCamp-ready, we're stuck with XP-Pro 32bit SP3 - which doesn't see more than 2 GBs of RAM - so don't go hog-wild on buying lots of RAM thinking it will boost your SolidWorks experience.
Additionally, if moving files from MacOS to XP (and back again) is important to you, there are several options: MacDrive7, NTFS-3G with MacFuse to name but two popular options.
SolidWorks CAN INDEED exist in a Mac world! Don't take no for an answer; and don't expect the SolidWorks tech support guys to be 'open-minded' and helpful. They're not. When this topic is presented to them, +SW Tech Supp+ is resolute in their position that this shouldn't be done.
grrrr >:-O Right. And we couldn't get to the moon in under 10 years either.
Write for details. Your mileage may vary. Consult your physician. Member LASWUG and OCSWUG. 🙂
Cheers,
webdrum007
Message was edited by: webdrum007
Message was edited by: webdrum007