Can you run Windows applications directly in MacOS X without installing Windows?

Using Apple's Boot Camp, Parallels Desktop for Mac, VMWare Fusion, or VirtualBox it is possible to first install Windows, and in turn run Windows applications on Intel-based Macs.

However, as first mentioned on April 3, 2006, the Darwine open-source project "intends to port and develop WINE as well as other supporting tools that will allow Darwin and Mac OS X users to run Windows Applications, and to provide a Win32 API compatibility at application source code level." In other words, as the site summarizes, "Windows apps on Mac without Windows." The software is currently for developers or hackers and "users are discouraged from running Darwine because it is still undergoing improvements on Mac OS X, and there is still much to do."

Since that time, development on Darwine has continued. For additional information and progress updates, you may wish to review the project's FAQ.

On August 31, 2006, CodeWeavers, which bills itself as the "leading corporate backer of the WINE project", first released a beta version of CrossOver Mac. Since that time, the company has released multiple final versions of the software each with more compatible applications than the last.

CodeWeavers states that the software program:

Allows you to install many popular Windows applications and games on your Intel OS X Mac. CrossOver includes an easy to use, single click interface, which makes installing Windows software simple and fast. Once installed, your application integrates seamlessly in OS X. Just click and run your application directly from the OS X Finder. Clicking a Windows file or document -- including email attachments -- will launch the appropriate Windows program, allowing you to work on the files. Best of all, you do it all easily and affordably, without needing a Microsoft operating system license.

Adding new Windows software is easy. Just place your install CD in your Intel Mac, and CrossOver will recognize it and offer to begin the installation process. CrossOver then completes the installation and configures your application to run on your Mac. That's all there is to it.

A C|Net interview with CodeWeavers CEO Jeremy White prior to the initial release of the software, provides some additional insight into the program and the development process. The complete interview should be read in its entirety, but in particular, it reveals that because WINE is a "compatibility layer" rather than an emulator it does not work with all applications, and programmers have to work to make each program compatible individually. White is honest about both the potential and the limitations of the CrossOver Mac program and says "in theory, it's the holy grail. . . in practice, it's very promising and great when it works."

For more information about CrossOver Mac, please refer to the CrossOver Mac section of the Windows on Mac Q&A, in particular, you may be interested in reading:

• What is CrossOver Mac? How does CrossOver Mac compare to Parallels Desktop for Mac and VMWare Fusion?
• What applications are officially and unofficially supported by CrossOver Mac?

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