FFXI on Mac: Working in Parallels 4.0

[Raineer]

Lol, this made me tickle inside.

This is a setting inside Bootcamp's tools (and I bet Parallels, but I don't need to set it as the bootcamp partition has it defaulteD) that allows you to deactivate all function keys so that that you have to hold down FN to use the shortcuts (like volume, etc). It occasonically glitches, but usually not bad.

The trick is to get that setting you speak of to work inside FFXI inside Bootcamp inside Parallels while in OS X.

It doesn't work the same on my iMac as it's supposed to

[fussel]

1. I'm using a separate Windows install with an image file instead of the bootcamp partition, because Parallels 3.0 once messed up my bootcamp install, so I don't let Parallels touch the native Partition again.

2. Shortcut for copying a Final Fantasy XI installation over from one PC to another without needing to install:

- copy over PlayOnline-Folder
- use regedit to export HKLM\Software\PlayOnlineUS on source installation
- fix install path in .reg file
- if you're moving from a 64 bit windows to 32 bit windows, remove the Wow64to32 part from the path of the registry keys
- import registry to target system
- run cmd:

cd \to\playonline\folder\blah\final fantasy xi
regsvr32 ffxi.dll
regsvr32 ffximain.dll
cd \to\playonline\folder\blah\playonline viewer\viewer\com
regsvr32 app.dll
regsvr32 polcore.dll

- run ffxiconfig.exe from ToolsUS in the FFXI directory to set screen resolution and create an FFXI shortcut on the desktop

The game should work now. If an error "DLL not registered" pops up, poke around in the POL directories for other DLLs and run regsvr32 on them. Not all DLLs can be registered, but I might have missed one.

(credits for this method go to Taj, he told me that stuff on irc quite a while ago)

[nitsuj]

Fresh install/image of Win XP with Parallels 4.0 and using windower 3.41 I only get a black screen.

POL works without it, but does not work when windower is used.

My experience with VMWare Fusion is that it DOES work windower, and he pretty good at that.

I'm going to do a fresh install with VMWare (rather than working with my boot camp partition) and see how performance is, but for now, if you want windower inside OSX, looks like VMWare is your best bet.

[Rowe]

wow, I got parallels at 1.0 I even had the beta but then when VMware came out it was a but less resource hungry. So I have both and stopped using Parallels. Guess I'll have to upgrade to 4.

[Raineer]

Fresh install/image of Win XP with Parallels 4.0 and using windower 3.41 I only get a black screen.

POL works without it, but does not work when windower is used.

My experience with VMWare Fusion is that it DOES work windower, and he pretty good at that.

I'm going to do a fresh install with VMWare (rather than working with my boot camp partition) and see how performance is, but for now, if you want windower inside OSX, looks like VMWare is your best bet.

Works fine for me.

Edit: To the post above mine, yeah... virtual machines have come a loooong way and 4.0 is substantially better than even 3.0

[nitsuj]

Works fine for me.

Edit: To the post above mine, yeah... virtual machines have come a loooong way and 4.0 is substantially better than even 3.0

This is the 2nd time I've tried. First was Parallels 4.0 using my boot camp partition, gave black screen. 2nd was using a fresh install, upgraded to SP3 and fresh install of FFXI (in a virtual disk) and I still just get black screen when using windower.

Care to share how you did it?

[Raineer]

I really didn't do anything special... I mention above in the thread that I use a stripped-down version of SP3. I do install in Bootcamp partition and just tell Parallels to have at it. My iMac does have the 512mb card, and that could have something to do with it but I sorta doubt it.

I'm not sure what would cause it to black box... It still sounds like an issue with video memory somehow. I will say that PlayOnline has always been wierd (to those trying this, if you see 3fps in POL just try to run the game anyways, it will be dramatically better once you see the blue accept/decline screen), but your experience is the opposite of what I have seen.

[Kaisha]

I only had crap performance in VMWare Fusion 2.0 here based off the same bootcamp partition I had better luck with in Parallels 4.0, perhaps it would be faster on a clean run, but 'eh, can't be arsed right now to test.

[nitsuj]

I only had crap performance in VMWare Fusion 2.0 here based off the same bootcamp partition I had better luck with in Parallels 4.0, perhaps it would be faster on a clean run, but 'eh, can't be arsed right now to test.

Wow. VMWare FUsion works crazy good for me on my MBP. Strange how we all have insanely different experiences with the two..

[Kaisha]

I called it with VM Fusion2 when I got 3fps in TF2 on low settings, vs. 40fps with medium/high in Parallels 4.0, perhaps I buggered a setting or two up, but I'm not willing to try again since last time I used VM on my bootcamp it buggered up my XP activation on my bootcamp partition itself.
(which is annoying since my legit key is out of activations)

[fussel]

This is the 2nd time I've tried. First was Parallels 4.0 using my boot camp partition, gave black screen. 2nd was using a fresh install, upgraded to SP3 and fresh install of FFXI (in a virtual disk) and I still just get black screen when using windower.

Without windower, I got a black screen when POL was running in a Window. Try running POL itself full screen and ffxi windowed. POL itself was also being the troublemaker with Parallels 3.0 (i.e. slow as hell).

[Shadowrunner]

The only reason I haven't used VMFusion is because I've always had a free copy of Parallels near me (my dad went kinda gung-ho on Mac last year, and as such shares all of his fun toys). If I get a chance I'll try installing VMFusion to give it a shot. Less resource hungry is what i hear.. how about speed/play on XI? Is it decent? Good? Great? I'm not one to be picky, so I guess i'll try to see if there's a difference.

What's the lastest version of fusion? 2.0?

[nitsuj]

The only reason I haven't used VMFusion is because I've always had a free copy of Parallels near me (my dad went kinda gung-ho on Mac last year, and as such shares all of his fun toys). If I get a chance I'll try installing VMFusion to give it a shot. Less resource hungry is what i hear.. how about speed/play on XI? Is it decent? Good? Great? I'm not one to be picky, so I guess i'll try to see if there's a difference.

What's the lastest version of fusion? 2.0?

2.01 I believe, and I've done Einherjar inside VMware, although I wouldn't 100% recommend it for high lag events like that.

So far I'm having bad luck with my parallels experiement, so I think I'll revert back to VMWare by tomorrow.

[Jayhawk]

I have the 2.5 GHz Macbook Pro with 512MB vid card (the first version with the Penryn processor). I got FFXI working with Parallels yesterday using the Boot Camp build of Windows XP I already had set up to run FFXI. I'm using Parallels to run Windower in True FullScreen mode in 1024*768 while being in a Window in Parallels. Today, I'll test out its performance in Einherjar.

[nitsuj]

I have the 2.5 GHz Macbook Pro with 512MB vid card (the first version with the Penryn processor). I got FFXI working with Parallels yesterday using the Boot Camp build of Windows XP I already had set up to run FFXI. I'm using Parallels to run Windower in True FullScreen mode in 1024*768 while being in a Window in Parallels. Today, I'll test out its performance in Einherjar.

haha wtf. I'm running a very similar MBP (*slightly* older) and Parallels is nothing but bad luck for me.

I wish I knew why... ATI or Nvidia in your machine?

[Jayhawk]

haha wtf. I'm running a very similar MBP (*slightly* older) and Parallels is nothing but bad luck for me.

I wish I knew why... ATI or Nvidia in your machine?

nVidia 8600 I believe.

[nitsuj]

nVidia 8600 I believe.

That could be it. Mine has an ATI card in it, unfortunately.

[Raineer]

That could be it. Mine has an ATI card in it, unfortunately.

imo, that would do it. The nvidia chips they are using outperform the ATI's by quite a bit, unfortunately.

[Jayhawk]

36-person Einherjar was barely playable at 1024*768 with single-digit fps. It was a lot better at 800*600. I still have to get used to holding down the "fn" key when playing in Parallels.

[CelinaAlexander]

36-person Einherjar was barely playable at 1024*768 with single-digit fps. It was a lot better at 800*600. I still have to get used to holding down the "fn" key when playing in Parallels.

Go to your Settings and into keyboard, and hit the button that says "use f keys as regular keys" and then you just hold fn to increase/lower brightness/volume etc.

Incidentally, has anyone fixed the black PoL issue?