Mac OS X

[Apostrophe]

Hi everyone,

Hopefully this'll be the last you'll hear about my iMac's problems. I'm getting ready to buy Mac OS X Panther for it. However, before I buy this OS, I was wondering if it will, in any way, cause the iMac to exert more effort to run it than to run OS 9?

 

[Christopher]

It shouldn't. What are the specs of your iMac, just wondering.

 

[The Macster]

What do you mean by "exert more effort" exactly? OS X is of course a heavier system than Classic, but it's only using the resources that the machine has available so it's not over-doing it, just extracting its full potential from it Make sure you have enough Ram (at least 256 MB, preferably more) or it will need to use virtual memory on the hard drive, causing it to be slow.

 

[Apostrophe]

iMac G3 indigo, 128 MB RAM, 10 GB hard drive, and I can't say exactly what the MHz is.

 

[Apostrophe]

Make sure you have enough Ram (at least 256 MB, preferably more) or it will need to use virtual memory on the hard drive, causing it to be slow.

Well, it has 128 MB of RAM. I also read somewhere on Low End Mac that you'll have to 'partition' a hard drive. What I'm going to do is get 9 for now, but once I've updated the RAM I'll get OS X.

 

[bluekatt]

more ram

from the sound of it you either have a 350 mhz or a 500 mhz

doe sit have firewire or usb only ?

 

[Apostrophe]

Unfortunately, I don't know much about this iMac at all.

But here's what I'm going to do: Right now the iMac doesn't have what is necessary to run OS X, so I'll buy 9. Then, once I get a hold of more RAM, I'll sell 9 and buy X. That way, I'll be buying something I know will work until I can get another OS.

 

[bluekatt]

os x wil work just fine just slowly

and all you need to know to figure out what ports it has is to look at the side of it

if it has usb and firewire its 500 mhz

if it only has usb its a 350 mhz

i ran panther on a machine like that with 128 mb ram

it went slowly but it worked

 

[The Macster]

It will run with 128 MB, but it will be slow so you should really get some more. It's a good idea to partition the drive and put X on one partition and 9 on the other - people say you can have both on one but I would never do that personally, though it may be that I come from the Windows world where having two OSes on one partition is never recommended and on a Mac it is not so important. You'll really want more disk space, Tiger will take around 2 GB on a base installation with no extra languages or printer drivers but once you add iLife, Adobe apps etc you'll soon want more than that (especially if you've already partitioned off a couple of gigs for OS 9), so it's probably best to find a 20 GB+ IDE drive to put in there (assuming it's easily accessible in a separate compartment to the iMac's screen - I don't have an iMac so don't know, but you shouldn't open a part where the back of the screen is accessible)

 

[bluekatt]

he said he wanted panther and no its not easy to get to the hd in an imac you need to dissasamble the whole machine to get to it

10 gig wil be snug but fine

 

[The Macster]

Well it really depends what he wants to do with it - 10 GB is fine for OS X and a few apps, but once you start installing iLife or things like that you soon to start to eat it up! Maybe best to stick with the 10 GB if you have to go near the CRT to upgrade it, as it's dangerous unless you now exactly what you're doing and are extremely careful (and brave!).

 

[bluekatt]

im not sure if ilife wil even run in a 350 mhz imac

its not dangerous to swap an hd from an imac the crt is a sperate unit encapsualted in plastic and you are totally insulted from it

its how ever an involved process and you need to strip the machine down to the core to get to the hd and cd drive brackets

and i dont know if apostrophe is up for that

 

[bluekatt]

maybe not that extreme as in the tray loaders but its stil fiddely

http://mrjcd.com/slot-load_iMac_repair/

 

[macintoshme]

The only part that is hard, is not dropping screws from the metal cage into the crt section, i find that either a magnetic screwdriver or a pair of pliers at the ready to grab screws works well.

 

[The Macster]

im not sure if ilife wil even run in a 350 mhz imac

From '06 and '08 only iPhoto and iWeb will, as the rest is compiled for AltiVec only - the rest of the apps you have to get from '05 for G3s (except iDVD, which will never work).

 

[Franklinstein]

Before you put OS X on there, make sure you're running firmware v. 4.1.9. If you try and install OS X on an iMac without the latest firmware, you'll lose video or some other function - sometimes permanently. There are ways to get it back, but you either a. need a DV model with video-out (if you're lucky and only have the no-video problem), or b. need some time and some mad skillz to rig up a temporary solution to attempt to get video back. There's a website or two out there that you'll need to try the function-restoring hack if you don't have the proper firmware loaded during the OS X install. I had to do it on a slot-load 350MHz iMac because I didn't know about the firmware thing.

 

[MacJunky]

to swap an hd from an imac the crt is a sperate unit encapsualted in plastic and you are totally insulted from itits how ever an involved process and you need to strip the machine down to the core to get to the hd and cd drive brackets

Remove external bottom plastic(4 screws)remove EMI shield (6-8 screws, can't remember)

disconnect ATA and power connectors attached to HD

carefully unscrew HD(4 screws)

extremely carefully slide HD out and slide new HD in it's place

carefully insert and screw in HD screws(4 screws)

connect ATA and power connectors

screw in EMI shield (6-8 screws, can't remember)

attach bottom plastic piece (4 screws)

Not very hard. It may not be the official way but it works well, is faster and you just have to watch that you don't drop the HD or screws.

 

[equill]

Unfortunately, I don't know much about this iMac at all.
But here's what I'm going to do: Right now the iMac doesn't have what is necessary to run OS X, so I'll buy 9. Then, once I get a hold of more RAM, I'll sell 9 and buy X. That way, I'll be buying something I know will work until I can get another OS.

Some things that you do not know are easily ascertained. For starters, look at the model designation on the underside. For continuers, look at this. There is a confusing variety of stock Indigo CRT iMacs:

350MHz/7GB/64MB

400MHz/10GB/64MB, 'DV' (Digital Video), 'Summer 2000'

500MHz/20GB/64MB, 'DV+', 'Summer 2000'

400MHz/10GB/64MB, 'Early 2001' reissue of 'Summer 2000'

500MHz/20GB/128 or 64MB, 'Summer 2001'

with other (video) variants according to country of manufacture. The Summer 2001 was downgraded in RAM complement part-way through its currency.

You have been advised about the firmware 4.1.9f update, but you need also to be aware that it must be applied while the iMac is booted (locally) into OS 9. Therefore, you must have OS 9 installed before OS X if the update is not already present. (The iMac will tell you so if the update is already present.) You can partition the drive (from the OS 9 install CD) with, say, 2GB for OS 9 and leave the remainder of the HDD for OS X. A 20GB HDD will not be too much if you intend to replace a smaller drive. MacJunky has encapsulated the replacement process, but I suggest that you forget the pliers and be sure to use a magnetized-point Phillips screwdriver for all screws. Because you are working with the iMac standing on its top surface for this replacement, dropping a screw down into the case will land you in deep doo-doo.

You will not, during the operation, be within biting distance of the CRT (which is on the other side of the logic board), so that is not a risk. RAM replacement or augmentation is done through the port (the one with the coin-operated release screw) provided at the rear, or while the case bottom is off. Battery replacement should be made, while the case is open, after replacement of the HDD, and then you should reset the PMU (Power Management Unit) with the press-switch on the logic board as the last operation before you close the case. The PMU is particularly static-sensitive, so keep your c-pf grounded frequently on the iMac's RFI shield. While-ever you have the iMac's case open you should have the power cable attached to the iMac and to a switched-off 3-pin power outlet (wall or power-board). All of this hoo-ha has been gone through several times in detail in these forums, so do your homework before you start.

de

 

[bluekatt]

to swap an hd from an imac the crt is a sperate unit encapsualted in plastic and you are totally insulted from itits how ever an involved process and you need to strip the machine down to the core to get to the hd and cd drive brackets

Remove external bottom plastic(4 screws)remove EMI shield (6-8 screws, can't remember)

disconnect ATA and power connectors attached to HD

carefully unscrew HD(4 screws)

extremely carefully slide HD out and slide new HD in it's place

carefully insert and screw in HD screws(4 screws)

connect ATA and power connectors

screw in EMI shield (6-8 screws, can't remember)

attach bottom plastic piece (4 screws)

Not very hard. It may not be the official way but it works well, is faster and you just have to watch that you don't drop the HD or screws.

you do know i posted a link to a take apart guide right under that post right right ?