A large number of Mac users install Windows on Mac to run apps and games that are exclusively available for Windows. While it’s possible to install Windows on Mac using virtual software such as VirtualBox and Parallels Desktop, users who don’t like to compromise on performance prefer using the official Boot Camp assistant software to run Windows on Mac.
Users who have installed Windows on Mac using Boot Camp probably know that Boot Camp software lets you quickly reboot into Mac OS X from Windows. One can do a click or right-click on the Boot Camp icon running in the notification area of the taskbar and then click Restart in OS X option to restart the machine and boot into OS X.
This option works great even if you have set Macintosh or even Windows as default OS in the startup disk. However, Boot Camp doesn’t let you quickly reboot into Windows from Mac OS X. That is, if you want to reboot into Windows while using Mac OS X, you need to either open system preferences and select your Windows drive or manually restart, hold down the Alt (Option) key and then select Windows Boot Camp drive to start using Windows.
While it’s possible to set Windows as default OS in Boot Camp and boot into Windows without pressing the Alt (Option) key, users who use OS X as their primary operating system might not like the idea.
Users who often boot into Windows and looking for a better way to boot into Windows should try out a small program named BootChamp. BootChamp for Mac OS X 10.6.8 or later helps you quickly boot into Windows without having to manually restart and hold the Option(Alt) key.
Once installed, BootChamp sits in the menu bar and provides an easy way to restart into Windows. The first time you use BootChamp to restart into Windows, you’ll be asked enter your admin password. After this, however, you don’ t need to type the password.
The only downside is that BootChamp doesn’t ask you confirm the action when you click Restart into Windows. That is, if you accidently click Restart into Windows option, BootChamp will boot take you into Windows.
Please note that BootChamp doesn’t alter the settings of startup disk. Also note that with default settings, BootChamp launches at OS X startup and appears in the menu bar. If it’s not starting at startup, run the software, click on the Boot Champ icon in the menu bar, click Preferences, and then click Launch at startup.
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