Parallels Desktop 3.0 is LIVE!

Just a week after announcing the Release Candidate of Parallels Desktop 3.0 for Mac, I'm very happy to let you know that we've wrapped up testing and that the final release version of 3.0 is live and ready for sale!

In my post on the RC, I mentioned 3 of Parallels Desktop 3.0's key features:

• OpenGL and DirectX 3D graphics, to play games like Half-Life 2 and Quake, and use important productivity software like ESRI and AutoCAD directly in virtual machines
• Snapshots, which "bulletproof" your VM by allowing you to save your VMs state and instantly revert back to that state at any time. It's literally like an eraser for mishaps and mistakes!
• SmartSelect, a cool new feature that lets you assign any Windows or OS X application to open up any class of file from either OS. For example, set Word for Windows to handle .doc, .rtf and .txt files from both OSes, and work with email in Apple Mail, even if you click a "mailto:" in Windows. We're talking total file and application integration across both OSes.
  

In the final release version, there's a lot more to get excited about. Check out the other top-tier features we included in 3.0:

• Security Manager: A built in management tool that helps users customize the level of interaction between Windows and OS X, including how and when files can be shared between OSes, if “drag and drop” is enabled or disabled, and when hard disks and devices are mounted and accessible.
• Parallels Explorer: View and modify the contents of your Windows virtual hard drive even when your VM is OFF! Drag files to and from the virtual hard drive, move or re-name existing files and create new folders on the fly. Great if you need to diagnose a problem, or get something into or out of your VM on short notice.
  
• Vista Boot Camp Support: Yep, its here! Use your Windows Vista Boot Camp or Windows XP Boot Camp partition in a Parallels virtual machine. Switch between running Windows in Parallels Desktop and Boot Camp as often as you want!

More info on Parallels Desktop 3.0’s new features - as well as some pretty slick demo videos and screenshots , is available at the Parallels Desktop for Mac main page.

SRP (ie, regular price) of Parallels Desktop 3.0 is $79.99, but if you're a current Parallels customer, you can get it as an upgrade for only $49.99. And if you have maintenance (also known as "upgrade protection") you'll get an upgrade FREE! Get the full version and the upgrade at the Parallels Online Store. And, as always, if you want to try before you buy, you can get a free 15-day fully-functional trial and give it a go.

IMPORTANT!!! IMPORTANT!!! IMPORTANT!!!
Got your attention? Good.

If you're going to try out the trial of Parallels Desktop 3.0, make sure to back up your virtual machine BEFORE installing the trial. Why? To add Snapshot functionality, Parallels has to change the way your virtual hard drive is set up. This process is fast (it takes about 5 seconds) and won't make you lose any apps or data, but it is NOT REVERSIBLE. Chances are you'll love 3.0 and want to stick with it, but if for any reason you want to go back to build 3188, you'll need to use that backed-up copy, because the 3.0-ready VM won't work with it.


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