Q: install os x 5 on new hard drive

A G5 PowerMac has a PowerPC CPU and can't run anything later than Leopard, 10.5.8. An Intel CPU iis required for Snow Leopard 10.6.x or later.

I don't know where you would have purchased Mavericks on a DVD and flash drive, but I would throw the disk away and format the flash to use for something else. There's no telling what malware may be stuffed in those illegal copies. Lion 10.7.x and later are only available from Apple as a download through the App Store. Besides which, Mavericks is free. So paying for those copies was doubly bad.

You cannot install Mavericks on a PPC machine like you have. That last compatible OS would be Leopard 10.5.8. If you want to run Snow Leopard or later then you must have an Intel powered Mac. There is only one tower-based computer for your interests and that would be a Mac Pro - made from 2006 onward. However, to run Mavericks on a Mac Pro would require the 2008 model year or later. See the following:

Upgrading to Snow Leopard

You can purchase Snow Leopard through the Apple Store: Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard - Apple Store (U.S.). The price is $19.99 plus tax. You will be sent physical media by mail after placing your order.

After you install Snow Leopard you will have to download and install the Mac OS X 10.6.8 Update Combo v1.1 to update Snow Leopard to 10.6.8 and give you access to the App Store. Access to the App Store enables you to download Mavericks if your computer meets the requirements.

     Snow Leopard General Requirements

       1. Mac computer with an Intel processor

       2. 1GB of memory

       3. 5GB of available disk space

       4. DVD drive for installation

       5. Some features require a compatible Internet service provider;

           fees may apply.

       6. Some features require Apple’s iCloud services; fees and

           terms apply.

Upgrading to Mavericks

You can upgrade to Mavericks from Lion or directly from Snow Leopard. Mavericks can be downloaded from the Mac App Store for FREE.

Upgrading to Mavericks

To upgrade to Mavericks you must have Snow Leopard 10.6.8 or Lion installed. Download Mavericks from the App Store. Sign in using your Apple ID. Mavericks is free. The file is quite large, over 5 GBs, so allow some time to download. It would be preferable to use Ethernet because it is nearly four times faster than wireless.

    OS X Mavericks- System Requirements

      Macs that can be upgraded to OS X Mavericks

         1. iMac (Mid 2007 or newer) - Model Identifier 7,1 or later

         2. MacBook (Late 2008 Aluminum, or Early 2009 or newer) - Model Identifier 5,1 or later

         3. MacBook Pro (Mid/Late 2007 or newer) - Model Identifier 3,1 or later

         4. MacBook Air (Late 2008 or newer) - Model Identifier 2,1 or later

         5. Mac mini (Early 2009 or newer) - Model Identifier 3,1 or later

         6. Mac Pro (Early 2008 or newer) - Model Identifier 3,1 or later

         7. Xserve (Early 2009) - Model Identifier 3,1 or later

To find the model identifier open System Profiler in the Utilities folder. It's displayed in the panel on the right.

     Are my applications compatible?

         See App Compatibility Table - RoaringApps.

Upgrading to Lion

If your computer does not meet the requirements to install Mavericks, it may still meet the requirements to install Lion.

You can purchase Lion at the Online Apple Store. The cost is $19.99 (as it was before) plus tax.  It's a download. You will get an email containing a redemption code that you then use at the Mac App Store to download Lion. Save a copy of that installer to your Downloads folder because the installer deletes itself at the end of the installation.

     Lion System Requirements

       1. Mac computer with an Intel Core 2 Duo, Core i3, Core i5, Core i7,

           or Xeon processor

       2. 2GB of memory

       3. OS X v10.6.6 or later (v10.6.8 recommended)

       4. 7GB of available space

       5. Some features require an Apple ID; terms apply.

by the way, these were purchased on eBay

Unfortunately, there's a lot of illegal and/or misrepresented items on eBay.

Now, when it arrives can I just put it in the DVD drive, restart the computer and have the system find the install DVD and begin the install process?

Mostly. A new drive is almost 100% certain to be partitioned as Master Boot Record, and either FAT32 or NTFS as the format. You'll need to change that, first.

Put the DVD (or first CD of a set) in the drive. With nothing on the hard drive, the Mac should automatically start from the only bootable disk it can find. If not, turn the computer off by holding in the power button. Turn it back on and immediately hold down the C key. Keep holding the key until it's clear the Mac is booting to the CD/DVD.

When you get the menu bar at the top, choose the option to run Disk Utility. Click on the physical hard drive name at the far left. Click the Partition tab. Change the choice for Current to 1 Partition, even if it already is one. If you want more than one partition, of course choose your preference and set the sizes you want. Each partition should be Mac OS Extended (Journaled). Now click the Options button below the partition graphic. For a G5, choose the radio button for Apple Partition Map. Click OK. If everything is the way you like, click Apply.

Exit Disk Utility and install OS X.

Thank you very much, and thank you for the courtesy of not treating me like an idiot.

No problem. Been there. I was a long time DOS/Windows user before switching to Mac some years ago. You already have the full concepts of files, folders, installing and using software, saving and opening files, etc., but you still have to learn a completely different OS and how to manage it. Linux would feel like you're starting over, too.

I've never tried Linux, though it seems a lot of folks like it. However, I think much of my business software has no Linux variations, and I'm very happy with the Mac OS, so I'll likely never use Linux. But who knows. Someday in retirement (if it's still around), I'll try it for funsies.

cowboyinvest wrote:

 

…The Leopard OS I purchased is supposed to be the original set of CD's / DVD's put out by Apple, so I think I'm going it right this time…

Make sure those are the RETAIL Apple disks.  The OS X install media that come with a new Mac are highly machine-specific.

Ah! Thank you, Ramón. Forgot to mention that.