I would think it depends on the system and how
much resources you have - Ram, disk space, etc.

I've recently tried both VMware (well, VirtualBox but the idea is the same) and
Dual-booting.

Here's my honest assessment (pros/cons) of both:

Running Windows as a virtual OS in Linux:
Pros:
1. Real easy to set up, and it works.
2. No need for HD partitioning/resizing, boot loader, or worrying about MBR
3. No need to reboot in order to use Linux

Cons:
1. Seemed to make my system really drag - but again I only have 1 gig of memory
and they say to allocate half of it for good virtualization.
2. May not allow you take full advantage of hardware (in my case, it had no clue
how to use my video card, but that too can be tweaked, configured in the VMware
software - I just didn't figure out how to implement it.) -also you get only the
Ram you allocated and not the full System RAM. This may or may not be
sufficient to your needs.

Dual-booting:
Pros: Can be really simple these days if you're in a position of installing both
OSes from scratch - I had a really tough time trying to resize the windows
partition because there was a "hidden" partition involved . Yes, I defragmented
and all that, but it was a pain in the ass.

Here is what I did for my laptop.
Brand new install of XP Home edition using the Windows Partitioner during the
initial setup to have it live in a small partition (about 1/3rd of the drive).
I then told it to allocate the other (roughly 2/3rds) of the drive as
"unallocated"--
After the XP install, I used a GPARTED liveCD to format the 'unallocated' to
ext3.
When installing the Linux distro (Hardy Heron Xubuntu -alternate desktop ISO),
it turns out the "hidden" partition could easily be used forLinux swap (in fact,
the GPARTED LiveCD identified the hidden partition as "Linux Swap", which worked
without ruining any Dell/Windows data.

Not all distros are the same, and your mileage (below) may vary.
The install of Hardy was done using the "Alternate Install CD" - it had
discovered the NTFS file system that housed XP [this is vital. IF the Linux
distro can "See" your Windows OS disk allocation, it's a good thing.]
Installer then told me that we should be able to install GRUB onto the Master
Boot Record without any errors. In my case, it was correct - and it's been good
fun ever since. I've set Win XP as the default OS to boot to, since my wife
uses the machine for apps that only run under MS Windows.

Summary of Dual Booting-
If you don't mind rebooting to use Linux, and you can install both OSes fresh
(do the install of Windows first is recommended), then go with dual-boot.
Both OSes should then be able to get the most out the present hardware (and also
get all the system RAM as well).

Again, the above is subjective information based on my experiences, and may not
work with every combination of Computer, MS OS, and Linux OS, so please bear
this in mind- I'm just trying to help out.

If you have a dual-core CPU, Windows runs just as well in a virtual machine
as it does natively in dual-boot mode using Win4Lin Pro version 5.

http://win4lin.net/content/

Single core CPU OK as well but does not quite run at native speed!

I have been using Win4Lin products for several years and the Pro series
since the early beta (pre version 1.0) releases. It just keeps getting better!

I have a dual-core 2gigs of ram, and what I did was setup a dual boot, but Linux
is on a External 250 Gig HD. I have XP still on the main HD and can mount it
with Linux if I need to get to something in windows. With external hd's being
fairly cheap now days it might be something to look at.

I wonder how it differs from other virtual desktops.

One thing I did notice was that the Ubuntu version was $29.95 The
Open SUSE 11.0 version was $39.96 (20% off the regular $49.95).
Wonder why the price difference, and is it really keyed into the
different distros of Linux?

I think that the this is primarily a promotional program.

Version 5 has been throughly tested and developed with a target sale of the
growing Ubuntu community.

On my wife's new hp dv6810us (AMD 2Ghz, 3GB ram) laptop, WinXP runs
absolutely perfect in a virtual machine inside Ubuntu 8.04. Even though the
laptop has a 64bit CPU, I installed the 32bit Ubuntu and WinXP Home as the
guest.

Many thanks for your comments and contributions. To some extent
dual-boot would seem the way to go. I read elsewhere that
virtualisation slows a machine down by something like 25% which isn't
surprising when one considers that windows and an app are running. A
lot of people use virtualisation for testing systems and driving
hardware from it isn't likely to work. A newish machine is required
for this - mine is a 2.6 Ghz 700 ish mb (about 4 years old), although
i also use ubuntu running on a compaq P3 512mb and that runs fine.

A spare hard drive is also tempting use! I like to keep all working
files on a remote hard drive and have a system hard drive... had a bad
experience with windows years ago before i backed up critical files
with a CDwriter! This also allows one to just plug a remote drive into
any PC.

So i'm going to put two spare older hard drives in the PC robbing its
large one for remote use. But now i'm unsure of how the dual-boot
works. You're supposed to install windows first... but i can't see how
you ensure ubuntu installs to the other drive or partition.

Think i've found what i need!
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/How_to_dual-boot_Ubuntu_and_XP_after_installin\
g_them_separately_on_two_HDs

I would get Ubuntu 8.4 and then you can choose a duel boot with Win
version of your choice or use the Wabi to install it in a folder in the
root drive C:

Either way you have you Win system and linux in perfect harmony.

I have run virtualbox and vmware both on various ubuntu based ditros.
vmware-player so far on straight ubuntu vmware-player is winning. In
playing with virtualbox and usb devices (blackberry) I lost my usb
functionality and from playing too much I reloaded and restored
(sbackup give you ability to play). Under either you can run any OS
under the sun. Here is the link, its for gusty but works in hardy.
Just change the .tar name in the extract command to match what was
downloaded. It works fine.

here is the link

www.smokinglinux.com/.../install-vmware-player-on-ubuntu-gutsy-710

I purchased a license for Win4Lin when it first came out and it could not hold a
candle to VMWare and have not used it since. To make things even worse it told
you that you could improve
performance by installing qemu, but they did not give the user and easy
way to configure it. In short for a newbie, it would be a nightmare. It was very
fussy about which versions of Windows it would install. It would not install the
Home version, but would install some versions of XP Pro. Sometimes it would
accept a version, but then the installation would not work. When I did get it
installed, it did not allow me to use my sound card or usb devices and it had no
shared folder. It did not have the ability to cut and paste between Windows and
Linux, nor could you drag and drop.

I could do all of these things from VMWare and that was a generation ago. Now
VMware and VirtualBox are even better. To top it off the performance of Win4Lin
sucked big time. To make things even worse they told you that you could improve
performance by installing qemu, but they did not give the user and easy
way to configure it. In short for a newbie, it would be a nightmare. So either
Win4Lin has come a long way or we have different standards. I realize that they
have just come out with a new version, so I may have to give it another shot to
be fair.

I use VirtualBox and recommend it for newbies because it is easier to install
than VMWare and it works well. The only hard thing to do for newbies is to edit
the users and groups so that you belong to the vboxusers group and it is
something the manual steps you through nicely.

I have a Windows VM that I have used for years and I have copied it from one
drive to another and even used it in different distros and it still works like a
charm. You can't do that with regular Windows. I have 3 GBs of RAM and have
given the Windows VM 512 MBs of my RAM and 64 MBs of my 512 video RAM. Windows
performs well and it does not seem to slow Ubuntu down.

A nice thing about VirtualBox is that it allows you to run in seemless mode
which gives you an Ubuntu bar at the top of the screen and a Windows bar at the
bottom. The desktop is the Ubuntu desktop, but Windows apps open on the Linux
desktop and act just like a Linux one. This makes it very usable and way cool to
impress your friends.

If you do not have lots of RAM or a recent processor, then you should stick with
dual booting using Wine if the program works in Wine. You can improve Wine's
compatibility by using Wine Doors (free), Crossover Office (commercial program
by the company behind Wine, Codeweavers) or Cedega (commercial program for
gamers). These programs add more layers of Windows compatibility by including
more APIs, etc and also they make installing Windows programs easy by providing
a menu of installable programs and you do not have to hunt the net to find them.

very fussy about which versions of Windows it would install. It would not
install the Home version, but would install some versions of XP Pro. Sometimes
it would accept a version, but then the installation would not work. When I did
get it installed, it did not allow me to use my sound card or usb devices and it
had no shared folder. It did not have the ability to cut and paste between
Windows and Linux, nor could you drag and drop.

Win4Lin Pro has come a long way since your last use. Version 5 is a mature
product with simple DEB package install and then create your Guest O/S by
installing the Windows O/S media. Any newbie can do it now!

I recommend that you try the latest version which is optimized for Ubuntu.
You may just like it now!

It may be difficult to get the scanner to work. It is rather hit or miss. I have
an expensive HP scanner and a cheap Canon scanner. The cheap one works in Linux
and the expensive one doesn't. The funny thing is that it is the other way
around with Windows. The Canon is Twain and you need to do lots of fiddling to
get it to work in XP, but the HP works as advertised. I don't expect that my HP
will ever work in Linux as it is now a few years old and it still isn't
supported.

I used to think that I had essential Windows programs that I could not do
without when I moved to Linux. After dual booting for awhile, I found that the
hassle made me want to use them less and less and if you boot into Windows
rarely, it can be a frustration due to all the catch up on updates and requisite
re-booting. Now, I just manage to do without and I really don't miss them as
much as I thought.

Give Wine a shot. Install Wine Doors, because it simplifies things. If the
program won't run in Wine, then go with the dual boot or VM option.

That's good news. I'll give it a try................

I know that they work out special pricing with certain distributors in exchange
for helping them to get their product promoted. Ubuntu released Parallels in its
repositories. It was a trial version that expired after I think 15 days with a
special offer to Ubuntu users afterwards and Linspire offers similar discounts
in its CNR library for Linspire members. Codeweavers who make Crossover Office
and Wine often offer discounts for people who buy through a third party just so
that they can get maximum exposure.