upgrading a iMac g3 333mhz...

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upgrading a iMac g3 333mhz...

Hey all...

I just purchased a iMac G3 333mhz for 40 bucks from a pawn shop. I was going to upgrade it with more ram...bigger hdd...and a newer osx version. I heard you need sodimm pc133 256 in the top, and 128 in the bottom. What hdd sizes should i choose on. And also what version of os x should i put on. Thanks Guys!

iBook g4 1.2ghz, iMac g3 333mhz, Mac OS X (10.4.3)

Posted on Dec 27, 2005 6:43 PM

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Answer 1

Strider

Level 6

14,600 points

Dec 27, 2005 8:06 PM in response to Vilem

the ram must be PC66 or PC100 SoDimm's. You can have up to 512 megs, with two 256 meg modules. The lower ram slot has to take low profile ram, but msot sold nowadays is all low profile anyway. Buy from a reputable dealer. crucial.com has a great reputation around here, and you can check ramseeker.com for other prices and vendors.

G3 iMacs can take a hard drive up to 127 gigs in formatted size. it uses a standard IDe desktop hard drive. going to 7200 rpm drives will give you a bit of a boost in a few areas.

If you insist on putting OS X on there, put panther on. its the latest supported release for that machine.

check out djonmac.com for instructions and more details on various upgrades.

Edit: Don't forget to use firmware update 1.2 if it hasn't already been installed.

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Answer 2

Dec 28, 2005 12:41 PM in response to Vilem

Vilem, one other point, you will need to partition your new HD and install OSX on the first partition. This cannot be any larger than 7.9gb in size, otherwise your iMac may not boot.
hope this helps
Andrew Platt

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Answer 3

GeekyBoy

Level 1

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Dec 28, 2005 11:08 PM in response to andrew platt

Vilem, one other point, you will need to partition
your new HD and install OSX on the first partition.
This cannot be any larger than 7.9gb in size,
otherwise your iMac may not boot.
hope this helps
Andrew Platt

I was just about to make a post questioning the issue of the 7.9GB limitation.

I was wondering if the newer 10.4.x of OS X eliminats the problem?

Also I am wondering if I format and install a drive in another Mac then put it in the iMac would it run.

Also what about testing a friend's restore disk of what would happen then?

Thanks

Geeky Boy

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Answer 4

Strider

Level 6

14,600 points

Dec 29, 2005 9:47 AM in response to GeekyBoy

10.4 is not supported on tray loading iMAcs anyway, so its not going to solve that issue.

If you format and install OS X on another drive, but don't partition it as needed, it won't run when put in an iMac. Its an issue with the firmware on that machine. its not the formatting itself that causes the problem.

But its not really that big a deal. YOu make the partition, isntall OS X, and just go. The rest of the disk is still available to you.

Testing a friends restore disk? What would that entail? Using any OS from another machine is a violation of the license agreement, and its a bad idea anyway as OS disks are often model specific.

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Answer 5

GeekyBoy

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Dec 29, 2005 1:54 PM in response to Strider

10.4 is not supported on tray loading iMAcs anyway,
so its not going to solve that issue.

If you format and install OS X on another drive, but
don't partition it as needed, it won't run when put
in an iMac. Its an issue with the firmware on that
machine. its not the formatting itself that causes
the problem.

But its not really that big a deal. YOu make the
partition, isntall OS X, and just go. The rest of
the disk is still available to you.

Testing a friends restore disk? What would that
entail? Using any OS from another machine is a
violation of the license agreement, and its a bad
idea anyway as OS disks are often model specific.

The problem is that 8 GB is not big enough since many apple applications (eg. Final Cut, iLife, etc) are required to be installed on that primary 8GB partition.

I don't see testing a backp install is violating anything

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Answer 6

Vilem Author

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Dec 29, 2005 2:00 PM in response to Vilem

Hi again...Thanks for all your guys help. I also wanted to know if i could possible switch out the tray-loading cd drive with a dvd drive...or if that is even possible with the tray-loading iMac. Thanks again.

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Answer 7

Strider

Level 6

14,600 points

Dec 29, 2005 2:49 PM in response to GeekyBoy

whether you see it or not, using someone elses OS, especially an OEM disk, is a violation. Do what you want, I'm just letting you know the legalities of it. If you decide to keep the OS, you should go and buy it though.

Applications and what not do not have to reside in the first 8 gigs, only the OS does. You can move applications to folders on the other partition, or move the entire applications folder there (requires some use of the terminal, whcih I'm not familiar with, but people in the OS X forums can probably help with that). If you move the applications folder, the programs should still work (I think, could be some quirks in the ones you mentioned I suppose).

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Answer 8

GeekyBoy

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Dec 30, 2005 10:17 PM in response to Strider

Well I solved the problem

All the Apple Apps did respond to say that I had to install the apps on the OS partition and would not allow me to install on others.

I went out and bought 10.4 retail from someone.

After I got the "unsupported error,"
I used Xpostfacto and made a partition the size of the drive.
OS 10.4 is currently installing on my Tray loading iMac using a friend's miniMac DVD as the target drive.

Woohoo!

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Answer 9

sborror

Level 1

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Jan 2, 2006 1:32 PM in response to Vilem

I am in a similar situation. Just inherited a G3 (Summer 2000) and I am wondering if it is worth upgrading for my kids general use. The CD rom has power and accecpts the cd but the machine doesn't even recognize the drive. And of course I don't have the original software. Some of the utilities I try to run are missing files and won't work. Where can I get some software for this thing? And what do I need to fix the issue of missing files????

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Answer 10

Jan 2, 2006 1:51 PM in response to sborror

borror,

Welcome to Apple Discussions,

Post back with your processor speed, hard disk size, amount of RAM etc (and which country you're in) so we can advise better. (to find this info go Apple Menu > Apple System Profiler.

Depending on your answer will affect whether you can technically go to certain versions of OS, what the replacement options for your optical drive are etc etc.

A copy of OS 9 will be a good start, dodgy as ebay is it's a good resource for recovering from this kind of situation cheaply.

regards

mrtotes

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Answer 11

sborror

Level 1

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Jan 2, 2006 2:07 PM in response to Adam Coates

mrtotes,

The nomenclature indicates 350mhz/512k L2/64MB/6gb hard drive/24 cd/8 MB video memory.

I am not a APPLE person so I am still learning exactly what all this means and how it affects operation.

I am in the United States.

If I get a OS 9 disk can I do a full load from just that?

Thanks for a quick response!

Borror

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Answer 12

Jan 2, 2006 2:44 PM in response to sborror

Hi,

You need to get OS 9 to start with. The link I provided above for OS 9 is for a cheap iMac install disk that should be good for your iMac. Being an iMac install disk rather than a retail one it will only work on the iMac G3 but it will include the bonus software that was supplied with your iMac (Appleworks, some games etc.).

I recommend when you get the disk(s) that you boot from them (insert them when you turn the machine on and hold the 'C' key down (C for CD get it!)) then do an 'Erase and Install' this will clear everything off the Hard Disk and restore you to how the machine was sold.

Once you are there you are good to go. You won't be getting a very modern Mac experience as OS 9 is the equivalent of Win98 so hardly cutting edge.

You can, however, upgrade to OS X at a later stage. There are loads of guides on these pages on how to do this - roughly:

Upgrade your RAM - your iMac will have a PC100 64Mb 168pin DIMM in one slot. There is another identical slot - just stick a 512Mb in that.
Upgrade your firmware. (You must be booted in OS9.1 or higher to do this)
Consider upgrading your HDD - any standard IDE drive up to 127Gb will do OS X takes about 2Gb for a base install.
Obtain a copy of OS X (Panther (10.3.9) is the highest you can technically go to).

Post back if you need any further guidance.

regards,p>mrtotes

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Answer 13

sborror

Level 1

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Jan 2, 2006 3:08 PM in response to Adam Coates

Sounds great and relatively basic for a PC guy. I am still having an issue with getting my slot drive to be recognized by the machine. It has power and will push and pull a cd but it doesn't recognize it. Any ideas?

Thanks for the help with the software issue!

Borror

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Answer 14

sborror

Level 1

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Jan 2, 2006 3:17 PM in response to sborror

Does this look what I need?

Apple iMac DV OS9 CD Software bundle

SOFTWARE:

iMac Software Installation CD - SSW version 9.0.4, CD version 2.1
iMac Software Restore - SSW version 9.0.4, CD version 2.2
iMovie2 - version 2.0.1
Apple Hardware Test - for diagnosing hardware problems
CABLES:

1 firewire cable
1 USB cable
1 modem cable

Thanks again!

Borror

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Answer 15

Jan 2, 2006 3:37 PM in response to sborror

The iMac DV came out the same time as the 350MHz slot loading iMac (The iMac DV had a two firewire ports for Digital Video (hence DV!), a 400MHz processor, 10Gb HDD and a DVD-ROM), but was essentially the same machine. I'd be reasonably confident that that the discs you describe would work okay.

It's a free download from the Apple Web site to take you to 9.2.2 from 9.0.4.

Of course we need to get your CD-ROM working before you can install this though!

Go to the Apple Menu and choose Apple System Profiler - can it see the CD-ROM drive in ATAPI section?

mrtotes

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