MacOS 8.5 and USB Stick

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Level 5

4,548 points

MacOS 8.5 and USB Stick

Hi there,

I got an iMac G3 rev. B (the wonderful Bondi Blue): this was my first "personal" Mac and I'm so happy to have it again 🙂

My question is: I need to move some content into the computer but a normal USB Stick is not recognized by the computer and it asks for a driver for the stick, so ... it is possible to use a USB Stick with this device?

Thanks

gennaro

iMac, Mac OS 8.6 or Earlier, iMac G3 233Mhz

Posted on Dec 16, 2017 7:27 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

Jan Hedlund

Level 7

23,527 points

Dec 17, 2017 9:33 AM in response to getangar

Normally, you would have to begin by installing a Mac OS 8.6 Update (which, earlier, was available free from Apple), and then the USB Mass Storage Support version 1.3.5 (USB Mass Storage Support 1.3.5: Document and Software).

An alternative solution could be to use a CD-R disc (not CD-RW) for the transfer. Burn at a low speed on a more modern computer. If you want to download and transfer Macintosh applications, keep the files unaltered in a .bin or .hqx format. Do not decode until on the iMac G3 (use an appropriate version of StuffIt Expander for this).

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Answer 2

Jan Hedlund

Level 7

23,527 points

Dec 20, 2017 6:16 AM in response to Don Archibald

Also, the Mac OS 8.6 Update seems to be still available via Apple - Support - Downloads by selecting Mac OS under "Browse Downloads by Product" and clicking the "Load more results" button many, many times until results from 1999 appear:

Mac OS 8.6 Update: Document and Software

(several language versions, as single or multi-part downloads, at the end of the document)

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Answer 3

Jeff

Level 6

12,220 points

Dec 20, 2017 8:36 PM in response to getangar

I found that the database of supported USB devices - especially flash drives - was more extensive with OS 9.1. The specific drivers are compatible with OS 8.6 as well. If your flash drive isn't recognized with USB Support 1.3.5, you could do what I did with my slot-loading iMac DV that was running OS 8.6 (at the time). You need to download "TomeViewer" (a utility comparable to WinZip) and the Mac OS 9.1 Update. Using TomeViewer, extract the USB Support drivers (version 1.4.6) from the OS 9.1 Update tome and place them in your OS 8.6 Extensions Folder, replacing the older versions. Your flash drive should be recognized. Keep in mind that when I was running OS 8.6 on a few G3s, the largest flash drive available was about 1 GB. I don't know how well a 64 GB or 128 GB flash drive would be recognized under OS 8.6 and USB Support 1.4.6.

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