Reprinted from TidBITS by permission; reuse governed by Creative Commons license BY-NC-ND 3.0. TidBITS has offered years of thoughtful commentary on Apple and Internet topics. For free email subscriptions and access to the entire TidBITS archive, visit http://www.tidbits.com/ Parallels Desktop 9 Agen G. N. Schmitz Enhanced for both the upcoming OS releases from Apple and Microsoft, [1]Parallels Desktop has been updated to version 9. In addition to adding support for OS X 10.9 Mavericks and Windows 8.1 (with the return of the Windows Start menu), Parallels Desktop 9 optimizes support for such cloud-based services as iCloud, Dropbox, Google Drive, SkyDrive so that files aren't duplicated locally on your Mac and on your Windows virtual machine. It improves support for Full Screen mode and connecting an external monitor, with Parallels Desktop remembering the settings and shifting Windows to full screen on the connected monitor. The virtualization application also adds Power Nap capabilities to Windows and Windows apps (for those running a MacBook Air or MacBook Pro with Retina display), support for accessing Thunderbolt and Firewire storage devices in Windows, gesture-based access to OS X's Dictionary (via a three-finger tap) within Windows applications, and a PDF printer that enables you to save PDFs to the Mac desktop. Purchase of Parallels Desktop 9 also brings a free six-month subscription to the recently announced [2]Parallels Access service (normally priced as a $79.99 annual subscription), which provides remote access to any Mac or Windows application running on your desktop computer and frames it in an iPad-friendly user interface. The [3]Parallels Access iOS app is available for free, and it's compatible with the iPad 2 and later, as well as the iPad mini. Parallels Desktop 9 runs $79.99, and owners of versions 7 or 8 can upgrade to the new version for $49.99. Additionally, for those with academic credentials, a student edition is available for $39.99. ($79.99 new, 356 MB) References 1. http://www.parallels.com/products/desktop/ 2. http://www.parallels.com/products/access/ 3. https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/parallels-access/id655527928?mt=8&&at=10l5PW .