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I'm thinking to buy Mac Book Pro with i5 or i7 Intel CPU. The question is would I be able to install Windows 7 parallel to OS X? Any instructions on that so I can estimate the success?

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Yes you can, you use an application called Boot Camp and the official Apple manual for it is here.

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If you want to be able to run OS X and Windows 7 at the same time you'll need to run Windows 7 as a virtual machine. A free option for that is "Virtual Box" from Sun (now part of Oracle). For commercial versions there are Parallels and Vmware. If you're OK with running Mac OS X or Windows 7, then Apple's boot camp will allow you to do that. My guess is that Parallels ( http://www.parallels.com/products/desktop/ ) will probably suit you best if you need to run the OSes simultaneously and you're willing to pay ~$60-$80. Parallels is fairly friendly and easy to use.

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Why the downvotes? He clearly states both options, just because the question was about dual booting doesn't make his answer wrong. – Mk12 Jul 6 '10 at 2:15
@MK12 - Probably because people don't have the patience to read through an entire answer before voting, unfortunately. – MDMarra Jul 6 '10 at 19:33
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Most probably after getting familiar with Mac OS X, you won't want to install any other operation system.

On the other hand, Apple ensures an application (Boot Camp Assistant) to install other operating systems.

You can find frequently asked questions about installing Windows 7 on Macs http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3986

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I'd stick to answering the question and skip the OS X is better than Windows deal. He prob has a good reason like wanting to play games or needing to use Visual Studio, or any of the many other programs that are Windows only. (I own a Mac, a Windows PC, and work with Unix at work all day, not a fanboy just illustrating a fact) – MDMarra Jul 6 '10 at 0:31
@MarkM - He does not give any detail about that. That's why I said "most probably". But, you're right anyway. If he want to play games (except Blizzard's games), or any other Windows only product, he need to install Windows. – woofeR Jul 6 '10 at 1:16
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I think you will find that your answers here might be more well received if you assume that the users have reasons for asking their questions. – MDMarra Jul 6 '10 at 1:19
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