Q: I have an older emac with 10.3.9. How can I upgrade my OS so I can use the internet?

You'll first have to find Install Disc(s) that'll work, then see if you meet the requirements for 10.4 or 10.5.

So we know more about it...

At the Apple Icon at top left>About this Mac, then click on More Info, then click on Hardware> and report this upto but not including the Serial#...

Hardware Overview:

Model Name: eMac

Model Identifier: PowerMac6,4

Processor Name: PowerPC G4 (1.2)

Processor Speed: 1.42 GHz

Number Of CPUs: 1

L2 Cache (per CPU): 512 KB

Memory: 2 GB

Bus Speed: 167 MHz

Boot ROM Version: 4.9.2f1

Tiger Requirements...

To use Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger, your Macintosh needs:

    * A PowerPC G3, G4, or G5 processor

    * Built-in FireWire

    * At least 256 MB of RAM (I recommend 1GB minimum)

    * DVD drive (DVD-ROM), Combo (CD-RW/DVD-ROM) or SuperDrive (DVD-R) for installation

    * At least 3 GB of free disk space; 4 GB if you install the XCode 2 Developer Tools  (I recommend 20GB minimum)

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1514

See Tom's, (Texas Mac Man), great info on where/how to find/get Tiger...

https://discussions.apple.com/message/15305521#15305521

Or Ali Brown's great info on where/how to find/get Tiger...

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=10381710#10381710

Leopard requirements/10.5.x...

    *  Mac computer with an Intel, PowerPC G5, or PowerPC G4 (867MHz or faster) processor

minimum system requirements

    * 512MB of memory (I say 1.5GB for PPC at least, 2-3GB minimum for IntelMacs)

    * DVD drive for installation

    * 9GB of available disk space (I say 30GB at least)

There are workarounds if the 867MHz is the only hangup...

http://sourceforge.net/projects/leopardassist/

With OS 10.3.9 you should be able to access the internet. However, the browser versions for Panther may have problems accessing some sites. Once on the internet, what do you want to do?

 Cheers, Tom

10.3.9 can access the internet by all methods in terms of connectivity.   Browser support is the biggest hurdle, as only older versions of some browsers work, and some websites only develop for the newest browsers*:

http://www.macmaps.com/browser.html

Note if your eMac only supports the original Airport card, the more secure 802.11g standard can only be connected to if you have an ethernet/wireless bridge connected to the LAN port of the bridge from your eMac's ethernet port.

Hence the age of the eMac is essential to determine what your Mac is capable of.