A press release from Parallels, Inc.:

Following the successful release of Parallels Workstation 2.0, the world’s first hypervisor powered desktop virtualization solution, Parallels, Inc., (www.parallels.com) today announced the availability of Parallels Workstation 2.1 beta.

The new version of Parallels’ powerful, user-friendly, cost-effective desktop virtualization solution boasts a number of important improvements, including:

• Stronger virtual machine performance, stability and isolation.
• USB support enables users to access a wide range of popular USB devices directly in virtual machines.
• “Suspend and Resume” functionality that lets users instantly suspend a virtual machine’s state and resume it at a later time without having to completely shut down and start up a guest operating system.
• Support for Physical Address Extension (PAE) allows Workstation 2.1 to run on PAE-enabled primary OSes with up to 4GB of RAM.
• Wireless networking support in Windows frees users from network cables. Now, users can connect virtual machines to the internet via any WiFi connection.
• Stronger support for Intel VT® technology and a more complex virtual processor significantly improve performance of a wide range of applications running in virtual machines.
• An improved, redesigned Parallels Tools package for Windows that provides useful add-on features that let each user customize their Parallels Workstation experience. New tools include guest/host time synchronization and complete support for normal video modes in Windows 95, 98 and Me.
• Primary and guest OS support for SuSE Linux 10, and guest OS support for Sun Solaris

A complete list of new features, functions, enhancements and fixes is available at http://www.parallels.com/en/products/workstation/21beta/fixes/

“From day one, the entire Parallels team has focused 100% of its efforts on building products of the highest quality, performance, and usability,” said Benjamin Rudolph, Parallels’ Marketing Manger. “Parallels Workstation 2.1’s significantly increased power and stability, wider feature set and more user-friendly interface directly reflects our commitment to building virtualization solutions that anyone, from a seasoned developer to a computer novice, can use to improve their productivity and lower costs.”

New and existing users are welcome to download and evaluate a free, fully functional 45-day trial of Parallels Workstation 2.1 at http://www.parallels.com/en/products/workstation/21/beta/ . Beta testers can submit comments, suggestions and feedback by visiting http://www.parallels.com/en/products/workstation/21/beta/ , or by sending an email to 21beta@parallels.com.

All current Parallels Workstation 2.0 customers will receive a free upgrade to version 2.1 at the conclusion of the beta program.

About Parallels
Parallels is server and workstation virtualization solutions company committed to building powerful, user friendly, cost-effective products that can be used by anyone, from an experienced developer to a computer “newbie” to improve efficiency, lower hardware costs, and reduce operating expenses. The company’s products all feature hypervisor technology for strong, stable virtual machines, and an intuitive web-like interface that facilitates zero-training operation. Additionally, Parallels solutions fully support Intel Virtualization Technology architecture, which is optimized to provide superior virtual machine performance. The company is rapidly growing and employs a global team of experienced technical and business professionals. For more information, please visit http://www.parallels.com.