Upgrading iMac Blueberry

I have the install DVDs from my iMac G5, but I cannot find a way to load it.

Those disks are incompatible with the iMac G3 and cannot be used to install Mac OS X onto it. Find and purchase a retail Mac OS X 10.3 package, which comes on CDs, and use it.

Is the 6Gb hard drive capable of handling 10.3.9

Yes.

How do I load it without a DVD reader?

See above.

(34882)

If you still have that iMac G5 and it is no longer using that license for Mac OS X 10.3 (because you purchased a retail copy of Tiger or Leopard for it), you can use the iMac G5 to perform the installation.

However, since your iMac G3 does not have a FireWire port (so you cannot use FireWire Target Disk Mode), the only way to install it on the drive is to remove the drive from the G3. Mount it in an external FireWire case. Connect it to the G5. Start up the G5 using the 10.3 installation disc. Run the Installer and target the iMac's drive in the external case. Then put the drive back into the iMac and restart. I've done it from a Power Mac G5 to an iMac G3's drive, and it works.

The iMac G3 either had a CDROM, CDRW, or DVDROM drive. There were no combo drives or super drives. There were some third-party drives, but I don't see them being offered anymore. And they were expensive. Just as well... you should not drop too much money into that old machine. You can probably get a used but working DVDROM drive (that came from a slot-loader iMac) on eBay for a reasonable cost. But even if you upgrade the optical drive to be DVD-capable, it will not be able to directly use the Mac OS X installation disc that came with an iMac G5.

One more question: can the USB 1.1 ports handle a 2.0 external device, like an additional HD, or optical drive?

Yes, but the drive will be slow sending and receiving data.

(34906)

if the imac has firewire, boot it into target disk mode and install from the g5.

im not sure but im about 90% sure all slot-loading imacs have firewire. its the tray loaders that dont.

The 350 MHz (low-end) slot-loader did not have FireWire.