Fencing Time on a Mac

Many people are interested in seeing Fencing Time brought to the Mac. Eventually, this will happen, but in the short term, Fencing Time will remain a PC-only product. However, this does not mean that Mac users are completely left out in the cold.

Several people have been running Fencing Time on their Macs for some time now. To do this, you need to have the "VirtualPC" software running. This program allows you to run a simulated PC environment on your Mac, which enables you to run PC software.

Information on VirtualPC can be found here:
http://www.microsoft.com/mac/products/virtualpc/virtualpc.aspx?pid=virtualpc

Note that VirtualPC is only for non-Intel based Macs.

If you have an Intel-based Mac, there are several options available to you. The most widely recommended option is to use the Parallels Desktop program, which emulates a PC on the Mac. Another option, which is complex and requires a lot of computer savvy, is to set up your Intel Mac to dual-boot to Windows.

Information on Parallels Desktop for Mac can be found here:
http://www.parallels.com/

Some general information on running Windows applications on Intel Macs can be found at http://www.macwindows.com/winintelmac.html. The information at this site is moderately technical and appears geared towards the expert user.

Tips for Running Fencing Time on a Mac

Once you have configured your Mac to run PC applications, all you need to do is install Fencing Time in the identical way you would do it on a PC. Once installed, here are a few tips on how to speed up Fencing Time on your Mac:

• Set the printing options for your printer (in OS X) to print using the "Fast" or "Draft" printing mode.
• Disable color printing if possible. Printing is much faster in black-and-white.
• In Fencing Time, turn of the printing of logos on your printouts (via the Tools->Preferences menu.)