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User profile for user: gr8ad4u
gr8ad4u Author
User level: Level 1
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Upgrading my G3 400mhz iMac

I have a G3 400MHz iMac with OS 9.1. It still works fine but I am wondering about upgrading it instead of buying new. I need some opinions from you experts. Let me start off by saying I am a 100% disabled Vet on a fixed income. Performance is great and if I can get it by upgrading my present system wouldn't it be less expensive?

So here's 3 Questions

1. What happens to all my installed software if I upgrade my OS to X.???
The reason I ask is because my other system is an IBM and had nightmares when I upgraded Windows98 to XP Pro.
2. What are the advantages of upgrading all the way up in OSX? Is there that much difference that makes saving $100+ on Older OSX than Newer versions.
3. Is it possible to install Higher MHz Processors in my G3 iMac? My external drives are working quite well so I wonder if just buying a new up to date system is really worth the $2,500.00??


imac Mac OS 9.1.x xternal zip, jazz, cd burner

iMac, Mac OS 9.1.x, xternal, zip, jazz, cd-burner

Posted on Aug 10, 2006 3:26 PM

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User profile for user: Kappy
Kappy
User level: Level 10
361,741 points

Posted on Aug 10, 2006 4:05 PM

First, you need to install the firmware update required for your model. The update must be installed while booted directly into OS 9.1 or higher.

Second, your hardware must meet the minimum requirements for OS X which are:
Panther:

128 MBs of installed RAM
3-6 GBs of free space on hard drive
Hard drive must be formatted HFS+ (Mac OS Extended)

Tiger:

256 MBs of installed RAM
6-8 GBs of free space on hard drive
Hard drive must be formatted HFS+ (Mac OS Extended)


For your specific questions:

1. None of your OS 9 software will run under OS X. However, OS X includes an emulator called Classic that enables you to run OS 9 and OS 9 applications while running OS X. However, your OS 9 applications will not run nearly as fast in the emulation mode as they would booted directly into OS 9. Fortunately, it is possible to boot either OS X or OS 9 as well as use Classic mode. However, in the long run you would need to upgrade your OS 9 applications to OS X versions (or replace them with similar OS X applications, as the case may be.)

2. The best versions of OS X for your model would be Panther or Tiger. Which you choose would mostly depend on whether you felt you wanted the additional features of Tiger. However, the video capabilities of your computer are not designed for OS X, so video performance will be noticeably slower in OS X than OS 9. Because you cannot upgrade the video hardware in your computer there is no solution to this deficiency.

3. There are no processor upgrades for you model.

OS X will not run nearly as fast on your iMac as does OS 9. Partly because it doesn't have the video horsepower and partly because the slow CPU and bus. The cost of new Macs is much less than $2,500.00 unless you buy the new top of the line Mac Pro (retails at $2,499.00.) New iMacs are available for as little as $1,299.00. The Mac Mini is available for as little as $599.00 (you need a monitor, keyboard, and mouse.) These new models use the latest Intel Core Duo CPU and come with Tiger installed and a useful software bundle (except for the low-end Mini which comes with the Core Solo CPU.)

Obviously used computers are less expensive.

QS 1.33 GHz & 867 MHz; TiPB 1Ghz & 1GB RAM; Orig. G3 PB; 20 GB & 5 G Mac OS X (10.4.7) 30 GB iPod Video (Black); MacBook Pro 2 Ghz
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User profile for user: Kappy
Kappy
User level: Level 10
361,741 points

Aug 10, 2006 4:05 PM in response to gr8ad4u

First, you need to install the firmware update required for your model. The update must be installed while booted directly into OS 9.1 or higher.

Second, your hardware must meet the minimum requirements for OS X which are:
Panther:

128 MBs of installed RAM
3-6 GBs of free space on hard drive
Hard drive must be formatted HFS+ (Mac OS Extended)

Tiger:

256 MBs of installed RAM
6-8 GBs of free space on hard drive
Hard drive must be formatted HFS+ (Mac OS Extended)


For your specific questions:

1. None of your OS 9 software will run under OS X. However, OS X includes an emulator called Classic that enables you to run OS 9 and OS 9 applications while running OS X. However, your OS 9 applications will not run nearly as fast in the emulation mode as they would booted directly into OS 9. Fortunately, it is possible to boot either OS X or OS 9 as well as use Classic mode. However, in the long run you would need to upgrade your OS 9 applications to OS X versions (or replace them with similar OS X applications, as the case may be.)

2. The best versions of OS X for your model would be Panther or Tiger. Which you choose would mostly depend on whether you felt you wanted the additional features of Tiger. However, the video capabilities of your computer are not designed for OS X, so video performance will be noticeably slower in OS X than OS 9. Because you cannot upgrade the video hardware in your computer there is no solution to this deficiency.

3. There are no processor upgrades for you model.

OS X will not run nearly as fast on your iMac as does OS 9. Partly because it doesn't have the video horsepower and partly because the slow CPU and bus. The cost of new Macs is much less than $2,500.00 unless you buy the new top of the line Mac Pro (retails at $2,499.00.) New iMacs are available for as little as $1,299.00. The Mac Mini is available for as little as $599.00 (you need a monitor, keyboard, and mouse.) These new models use the latest Intel Core Duo CPU and come with Tiger installed and a useful software bundle (except for the low-end Mini which comes with the Core Solo CPU.)

Obviously used computers are less expensive.

QS 1.33 GHz & 867 MHz; TiPB 1Ghz & 1GB RAM; Orig. G3 PB; 20 GB & 5 G Mac OS X (10.4.7) 30 GB iPod Video (Black); MacBook Pro 2 Ghz
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Upgrading my G3 400mhz iMac

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