On Wednesday, virtualization softare maker VMWare released version 1.1.3 of its Fusion software for the Mac.

Similar to other virtualization software packages, VMWare allows users to run alternate operating systems such as Windows and Linux distributions on Intel-based Macs at native speeds. Other features, such as Unity, allow users to run and minimize Windows applications from the Mac OS X Dock.

The new version, a 171 megabyte download, adds the following features and bug fixes:
-Corrects a problem in which VMware Fusion encountered reactivation problems in the native Boot Camp partition and the Boot Camp virtual machine when installing Windows Vista SP1.

-Fixes a problem in VMware Fusion 1.1.2 that caused HGFS mounting failures in Linux guest operating systems.

-Fixes a problem where VMware Fusion did not distinguish between Traditional and Simplified Chinese so that if your system language preference was set to either Chinese version, Fusion would present the Simplified Chinese interface. In verison 1.1.3, Fusion differentiates between the two Chinese systems and enables the user to specify another language as a preference if Traditional Chinese is not available.

-Updates the Simplified Chinese on-line help.

-Corrects a problem in which a virtual machine originally created with a product other than Fusion got the error "Cannot connect virtual device sound" when it tried to play a sound.

-VMware Fusion 1.1.1 incorporated a workaround for Apple bug 5679432 (Mac OS X hang under heavy disk load when unbuffered I/O is in use). That version of Fusion disabled unbuffered disk I/O on Mac OS X 10.5 hosts, even if the user selected Optimize for Mac OS application performance in VMware Fusion preferences. Apple fixed this bug in Mac OS X 10.5.3, so VMware Fusion 1.1.3 removes the workaround when the guest operating system is Mac OS X 10.5.3 or higher.

VMWare Fusion for Mac retails for US$79.99 and requires Mac OS X 10.4 or later to run.

If you've tried the new version of VMWare Fusion or have any thoughts on the new build, let us know in the comments or forums.