A Short Cut

This path may not be as short as you hoped, but there is a way to keep a handle on what your site looks like in many different configurations. If you are a web designer, you absolutely have to have Internet Explorer and Firefox already installed on your PC - or at least one you have access to. So that provides you with two of the most popular browsers on the market. However, Internet Explorer comes in 2 popular versions. Internet Explorer 5 and 5.5 are becoming irrelevant - but many people use either Internet Explorer 6 or 7. Unfortunately, Microsoft only allows you to install one version of Internet Explorer on each operating system (and IE 7 only works on Windows XP Service Pack 2 or later).

Your next step could be to buy another computer, which is costly - or you can install a "Virtual Machine". Virtual Machines are programs you can run that create their own separate computer inside yours. So, if I'm running Windows Vista, I can install a virtual machine (VM) that will run an installation of Windows XP in a window on my desktop. Yes, an operating system inside an operating system. The best part about this is that Microsoft has made their Virtual Machine, "Virtual PC 2007" available for free.

Virtual machines are memory hogs (since you are running two computers inside the memory of one), so make sure your computer can handle it - I'd recommend at least 1 GB of RAM unless you're a masochist. Download Virtual PC 2007 first and install it. Now you can "start" a VM and install an operating system on it, just like a regular computer. However, Microsoft has made it even easier.

MS has made many Virtual Hard Drives available for free download. These files contain everything you need to run a VM (once you've installed Virtual PC 2007). You can download a completely free version of Windows XP to run inside your Virtual Machine that is pre-activated and ready to run with either Internet Explorer 6 or Internet Explorer 7 pre-installed. You can download them here.

Run those files you just downloaded and then start Virtual PC 2007. Point to the files that were just created and you will have two versions of Windows XP to run inside your VM. Now you can view your website with Internet Explorer 6 and 7, and you won't even have to leave your desk. On top of that, you can install Flash on one, and not on the other to see what your site looks like with and without Flash. No new computer needed, just the free Virtual PC 2007 from Microsoft and a few files on your hard drive. Then, you can test drive Vista for free.

Virtual PC 2007 has some shortcomings, like no support for Mac OS X. There are other Virtual Machine software offerings available - like VMWare and Parallels. Many Mac users may be familiar with Parallels, which lets them use Windows and Mac on the same computer. Its worth looking into, since the near future of computing will involve much more virtualization - and I mean the Virtual Machine kind, not the Matrix kind.

So enjoy the ability to get the best of all operating systems from your single computer - and gain the understanding of how different visitors see your website. You may discover you are alienating a large part of your audience - who can't chat or listen online like you keep promoting on-air.

As always, AllAccess has my “The Net Untangled Tip of the Day” each weekday and a column on Website Wednesdays. So check back and together we’ll get our internet presence focused on keeping radio strong in this world of increasing competition.

Do you agree with me? Or am I full of hot air? If you have comments or any questions about radio websites – either general questions relating to the industry or the web or even specific (HTML, PHP, .NET, Javascript, etc.) questions, send me an email through http://Preppermint.net/contact . I’ll answer your question quickly and maybe even use it for a future column.