I concur. for virtualizing an OS within a desktop, virtualbox works great. its very simple to setup and use, and yet quite flexible
I also suggest using Virtualbox on desktop. You can use non-free edition, the license allows it to be used for non-server configurations.
I agree as well, and you may even be able to import your VMWare images directly into VirtualBox.
Moreover, with KVM I have already experienced the kind of screen size limitations you describe, so you won't probably be satisfied with it.