Which to keep? Pismo or Lombard

[jruschme]

With a little luck, I should be the proud owner of a 12" PowerBook G4 in two weeks. This leaves me with a bit of a quandry.

I currently have a Pismo (500mhz/1gb/40gb) which I use for light duty couch surfing, etc. under Tiger. I also have a Lombard (333mhz/512mb/40gb) which I run as a dedicated Mac OS 9 system for classic games/apps. I'm thinking, though, that it is time to sell/trade/whatever one of them since the 12" will take over the couch surfing and other duties of the Pismo. I figure I have two main choices:

- Keep the Pismo as a dedicated Mac OS 9 machine and dump the Lombard
- Dump the Pismo and keep the Lombard in its current role

It seems like there are advantages and disadvantages to either approach. One one hand, the Pismo has better graphics and is still sought after (particularly the 500mhz CPU). On the other hand, the Lombard has built-in SCSI but, based on what I've seen here, is even hard to give away these days. Either way, I'd keep the better battery and the better optical drive.

So, what advice do the collective brains here have about my quandry?

Thanks...

[CC_333]

Hi,

Well, probably the Pismo I would keep, since it's faster, has FireWire, and has more RAM. And as you pointed out, they're sought after, and therefore still kind of expensive relative to the Lombard.

To solve the SCSI issue, you could always get an adapter to convert SCSI devices to FireWire.

c

[uniserver]

i would keep the lombard, because its a great machine, i think they are more robust then the pismo,(cheap available parts)(if needed) I would sell the pismo because you will get decent money for it, get some windex, shine her up nice and make a decent ad with decent pictures.. and you will get a good solid amount for it.

[pistooli]

I would keep the Pismo, and put OS9 on it, since it has Airport, firewire (and more RAM).

[atariangamer]

Hmm. I'd say it depends on how much you really need or use that SCSI port. I've got my Pismo that every now and then I've wished it had SCSI for hooking to old drives and what not. If you use it or even forsee using it, keep the Lombard. You're going to like the 12" G4 a whole lot more than the Pismo for just everyday activities (at least, I did while I had one), so if you've got a really great OS 9 machine, keep it like it is.

People do seem to be selling Pismos like crazy, for decent prices. You'll have your OS X and everyday computing covered by the G4, and a very decent classic G3 to cover your classic stuff. And the legacy ports on the Lombard might come in handy, you never know...But if you don't use those legacy ports, the Pismo has the advantage of being a little faster, having more memory, being more connected to your other systems via internet, and being able to do all the features OS 9 has to offer.

If I was in your shoes, I'd keep the Lombard. I'm a very retro person, but I like having something newer and faster as well. The Lombard and the 12" would be a good combo to have.

So that's my two cents.

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

I haven't got, and don't really want, a Lombard.

I've got what I think is the best of both worlds, a Wallstreet PDQ with OS9 and a Pismo 500/768 that the craigslister tricked out with a DVD/CD writer that'll play movies automagically when I pop 'em in under 10.4.11 and a MacWireless 802.11g Card that he said was faster than any compatible AirPort Card. Dunno, but it's FAST!!!!

I'd sell the Lombard, Keep the Pismo and look for a deal on a PDQ, that way you'll have SCSI AND ADB.

[jsarchibald]

Why not just keep both? They both have unique features and uses, and both are great machines. They take up minimal space, and unless you need the money, there doesn't seem to be any real reason to sell one. I would sit on it and see what you are using over the next 3 months. If you find there is one machine you don't use any more, and have no particular attachment to it, then that is the one that should go. But I'd just hang onto it if it were me.

[uniserver]

sell them both and use the money to explore other vintage mac's you've always wanted to play with

[mcdermd]

If you keep the Pismo, get a PCMCIA Adaptec SCSI card.

If you keep the Lombard, get a PCMCIA Lucent WaveLAN card.

I'd keep the Pismo, personally (disclaimer: I have a Pismo and a couple of Wallstreets).

[jruschme]

Responding to a bunch of posts...

I do have a Lucent card, so wireless for the Lombard isn't an issue. (I could also pull the Airport out of my Sawtoth and put that in the Pismo.) PCMCIA SCSI for the Mac always seemed like a pricey affair, though I do have both the Adaptec and Xircom USB SCSI adapters already.

I do have to agree with jt and mcdermd on the OldWorld charm of a Wallstreet. I used to have a nice PDQ that I had rebuilt, but ended up giving to someone who desparately needed a laptop.

I think my desire to get rid of one of the laptops comes from a desire to minimize the number of "idle" computers that I have. One for Classic, I can justify, the other I can't.

Judging from the ranges of responses, I'm glad to know that I am not the only one who is conflicted on this issue. Oddly, one thing that is making me lean toward keeping the Pismo is FireWire TDM since I could use that transfer files from a newer Mac whereas the Lombard would probably be Zip 250 all the way.

Thanks for the thoughts; feel free to keep them coming in.

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

There's something about using a PDQ with a teardrop mouse that just feels right. That's the one I've loaded up with GraphicConverter & Illustrator 8 for light graphic, AppleWorks and Quicken as the fourth in my series of BookKeeping 'Books.

The Pismo is head and shoulders the "better machine" and I even have a BookEndz Dock for it, but Illustrator 9 is the only 9+X Application I own, but AI8 screams already under OS9 and the PDQ/OS9 just fits.

Funny you mention ZIPs, my NIB ZIP for the Pismo arrived yesterday. I've got ZIP100s from the IIfx up through the NetBooks . . . just need one for the 1400s . . .
. . . for almost two years I've been network free. Now I'm setting one up just to test some NICs.

[jruschme]

my NIB ZIP for the Pismo arrived yesterday. I've got ZIP100s from the IIfx up through the NetBooks

Same here... I've got enough disks to last the apocalypse and have installed internal drives in any system that would take one. (Except the MDD as the Zip faceplate is pure unobtainium, so that one has a Firewire Zip250.) I even have a Zip750 and a SuperDisk drive on the system at work; the latter serving mostly as a USB floppy drive.

BTW, in case you didn't know... the mechanism in the Pismo expansion bay Zip is common across expansion bay disks and electrically and physically compatible between Zip100 and Zip250. I actually "upgraded" mine from a Zip100 to a Zip250 by using the actual drive mechanism from a Dell C-series Zip250.

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

Thanks for that TidBit, JR, I've now got a couple of SCSI Zip100s from back in the day, a FW Zip 250 (many thanks tmtomh) a USB Zip250, 3 USB Zip100s, PB5300, PDQ & Pismo.

SneakerNet.Zip is just awesome . . . I friggin' loathe setting up networks, I'm walking away from total failure of a setup session ATM!!! ARRRGGGGHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!

Time to build some more freakin' cables!

[Bunsen]

Is it practicality or passion that is driving your choices here? Do you have older Macs as well, such that a bridge machine between Old and New World would be useful? If so, I would suggest selling them both, and getting a fast Wallstreet PDQ with a floppy drive, max it out with RAM, and add a Firewire/USB Cardbus card, and a WiFi card. The new 12" Powerbook G4 sounds perfect for light couch surfing, and the Wallstreet can sit quietly in the background, connected up to all manner of drives and networks.

On the other hand, if it's a matter of passion - keep them both ... and get a Wallstreet as well

If it was a question of keeping just one, I would personally trade the Lombard in on a good Wallstreet, and keep the Pismo as the sine qua non of old-school Powerbooks.

[Arthegall]

Bunsen is absolutely right. A Wallstreet PDQ is the perfect machine for vintage Mac enthusiasts. It's the last machine Apple made that can read/write the old 800k floppies (since it was the last Old-world machine), and the floppy modules can be had for $20 to $30 on eBay if your current one dies. No fuss. No mess. Just swamp them out.

Get yourself a third-party USB card, format yourself a transport thumb drive using the Wallstreet and 9.2.2, and you can use your Wallstreet as an extremely simply and efficient bridge between your modern, Internet-capable Mac and your 1980s compact Macs.

If it were me, I'd trade both the Lombard and the Pismo for a Wallstreet and the necessary accessories.