FFXI on Macbook w/ Boot Camp :: Free Realms

#1 Mar 21 2007 at 11:36 PM Rating: Good

Sage

824 posts

Hi all.

I'm looking at getting a 13.3" Macbook in the next few months with the following specs:

-2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
-2GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM - 2x1GB
-120GB Serial ATA drive @ 5400 rpm
-Intel GMA 950 graphics processor with 64MB of DDR2 SDRAM

I was curious about running FFXI on Boot Camp, which will come preinstalled on the new Mac OS X Leopard which is due out in a few months' time. My only concern is about the video card--my gut tells me it will not be able to run FFXI. However, according to the Intel website, FFXI is usable with this card:

http://www.intel.com/support/graphics/intel945gm/sb/CS-021400.htm

With a little digging I found out that the 945GM Express Chipset Family includes the GMA 950. So, my questions are:

1) Are there any Macbook users out there with this card and similar specs that run FFXI on Boot Camp or Parallels? If so, how does it run? Have you encountered any problems?

And if not...

2) Are there any people that own a Macbook with these specifications that would be willing to download the Benchmark from the POL site and let me know if it works?

Thanks in advance for any help I can get.

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#2 Mar 22 2007 at 1:39 AM Rating: Decent

__DEL__1592283547217

Scholar

1,719 posts

I run FFXI on a MacBook Pro however it runs great on my setup;

* 2.33GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
* 1680 x 1050 pixels
* 3GB memory
* 100GB hard drive1 @ 7200RPM
* 8x double-layer SuperDrive
* ATI Mobility Radeon X1600 graphics with 256MB SDRAM

I think with the low video memory you may experience some bottle neck in which the video will be slow or choppy at times.

 
Minimum System Requirements 
 
    * Operating System - Microsoft Windows 98 / 98SE / Me / 2000 / XP. 
    * CPU / Processor - Intel Pentium III 800Mhz or faster processor. 
    * Memory (RAM) - 128 MB RAM. 
    * Graphics Card - NVIDIA GeForce series graphics processing unit with 32MB     
      or ATI RADEON 9000 series graphics card. 
    * Sound Card - DirectX 8.1 compatible sound card. 
    * Hard Disk Space - 6 GB free hard disk space. 
    * CD-ROM Speed - 4x CD-ROM Drive (installation only). 
    * Others - Keyboard, Mouse. 
 
Recommended System Requirements 
 
    * Operating System - Microsoft Windows XP. 
    * CPU / Processor - Intel Pentium 4 processor. 
    * Memory (RAM) - 256 MB RAM. 
    * Graphics Card - NVIDIA GeForceFX series graphics processing unit (AGP) 
      with 64MB of VRAM. 
    * Sound Card - DirectX 8.1 compatible sound card. 
    * Hard Disk Space - 6 GB free hard disk space. 
    * CD-ROM Speed - 32x CD-ROM Drive (installation only). 
    * Internet Connection - Cable / DSL Broadband. 
    * Others - Keyboard w/ 10-key numeric pad, Mouse w/ Wheel.

Will 64 work? sure it will it meets recommended spec so you should be fine, like I said you may experience a few small things that you wouldn't notice with something like a 128 or 256+ card. The Macs run windows and FFXI damn well so no worries, and make sure to enjoy it.

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#3 Mar 29 2007 at 9:56 PM Rating: Decent

__DEL__1592772644265

1 post

i can't seem to get windows xp to load with Boot Camp--is there some trick? i bought parallels, but i don't think ffxi will work with it, correct? thanks for your time--i also have a macbook pro and wanna figure out how to run ffxi on it! :-)

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#4 Mar 29 2007 at 10:18 PM Rating: Decent

__DEL__1592283547217

Scholar

1,719 posts

Quote:

can't seem to get windows xp to load with Boot Camp--is there some trick? i bought parallels, but i don't think ffxi will work with it, correct? thanks for your time--i also have a macbook pro and wanna figure out how to run ffxi on it! :-)

Boot camp and parallels are two separate things. To install Windows XP on a Intel based Mac you should go to the webiste and print off the instructions on the page. Also usually with your Boot Camp.dmg image there is also a read me if I remember correctly which states how to install the software and prep for Windows XP.

Apple Boot Camp

Correct Parallels last I checked still does not support the Direct3D capabilities which is required by Final Fantasy XI and many other 3D games. There will either be a version upgrade which you can download if the company is nice or they will force you to buy a "new" version for an additional fee.

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