Thankful, the PAF barrier has been broken, so now Im on the search for a new computer. I have come up with a short list of computer that I am intereasted in:

-Power Macintosh 9600 MP
-Power Macintosh 9500
-Power Macintosh 9500 MP
-Power Macintosh 8500
-Power Macintosh 7600
-Power Macintosh 7300
-Power Macintosh 4400
-Performa 6400
-Performa 6360

You may notice that this is, the list of compatable macs for BeOS, so no prizes for guessing one of the wanted uses for this system is. Out of that list, which systems would you sugest based on the following duties I am expecting the computer to accomplish:

-Instant messaging using MSN, ICQ, AIM and Yahoo.
-Browse the internet.
-Play games (primarily strategy)
-Use BeOS
-Turn into a TV using the Apple TV Tuner Card and remote
-Play MP3s

Another factor is that this system is going into a corner desk that I am going to get built into my room, so it needs to be neat. I would also appreciate sugestions on which MacOS to install onto the chosen system.

I am willing to spend a bit on this, and when including one of these wireless telephone extenders (http://www.innovations.com.au/cda/product/sku/0,1568,4021-11,00.html), I would be willing to spend around 500 Australian dollars.

Thanks for your help.

Logan

On the other hand, the larger tower of the 8500 is great for its built-in AV I/O features. For example, you can use a regular TV as a monitor (either mirrored or as a second monitor if you have 4 MB VRAM). The 8500 is roomier inside for larger HDs, but adding RAM, VRAM, or cache is a major PITA.

And if a huge machine is no trouble and expansion is top-priority, then the 9600 is the way to go. The MP feature might be cool for some applications (will BeOS us MP in these Macs?), but you could not run OS X on an MP machine. I'd would avoid the 4400, 6400, or 6360 because they have lower performance, limited expandability (only 2 or 3 ram slots), and can't run OS X AFAIK. The only good thing about those machines is that they use IDE drives (drives are cheaper and bigger vs. SCSI).

As of OS, I like 8.6 on my 7300, 7500, and 9500. IMO, 8.6 has great features, good stability, good performance, and is is not a big resource hog like 9 is.

G4From128k

Your notebook is a 68030-33, so a step up to a Q840av would run your old software faster , cost very little, and uses standard 72pin simms so upgrading all the way to 128mb is cheap. It can hold 2 hd's and has superb A/V capture both for sound and video. I have one of these machines and its nice.

If you want a PPC unit I would recommend a 7500 desktop where everything is easy to get to. I have both the 7500 and 8500. the major difference is while both let you capture video using RCA and SVHS input the 8500 has video out while the 7500 doesnt. Upgrading the memory is alot easier in a 7500 then 8500 (same memory just harder to get to.) Also the 7500 is a desktop while the 8500 is a tower so you need more space with the 8500 (monitor fits on top of 7500 easily). I have a g3-400 in the 8500 and its fast for its age. Both machines have ATA/66 IDE cards so storage is fast and cheap on both units. If you do buy the 7500 get an faster processor then the stock 603/100. I put my 604/120 from the 8500 into my 7500 and someday will probably get a g3 which are about $100 or so new these days. If you like more PCI slots and dont care about built in Audio/Video capture then go with the 9500 (same design as the 8500 but streched case, 4 more memory slots and 3 more PCI slots 1 used for video card).

BeOS wil FLY!!!!

Or you could throw a MP card into a 7600, hehe.

~The Penguin

-Power Macintosh 9500
-Power Macintosh 8500
-Power Macintosh 7600
-Power Macintosh 7300

Stay away from the 4400, the Performas aren't bad but I can't get the BeOS to work on mine, I think it's just me though.

The MP machines will probably be overpriced, if you can get one for the same price as an SP go ahead, otherwise it's not worth it.

Now that that's said and done I can make you an offer! A friend and I have 3 PowerMacs to sell an 8600, a 7300 and a PowerTower Pro 225. All include some RAM, an HD a CD a floppy, ethernet. The PowerTowerPro does not have a CPU at the moment or video card but I can probably find both. The PowerTowerPro is probably the best of those machines as it is basically a 9500 so it has 6 PCI slots, it also uses al large ATX case with 4 5.25 bays and 2 3.5 bays and a dedicated floppy bay.

All of these machines are in good condition, you might want to check the PowerTowerPro for BeOS compatibility but it is essentially a 9500 made during the clone era. You can have the PowerTowerPro for 100 AUD plus postage, + what ever the CPU and video card cost unless you get them from someone else. You could probably get them for under 50 AUD each. I think my friend is look for about 300 for the 8600 with monitor, I'll need to check on that.

email me at

adam (AT) gothikon (d o t) com

I'd be really pleased if you'd take the PTP (so would my girlfriend!!) it needs a good home and I just don't the space for it right now. I'm not sure where you are but I'm 99% certain we are both in Australia so postage would be around 20-40 AUD.

EDIT - Just noticed you were looking at spending 500 AUD! The PTP with CPU and Video would probably come in at around 200.

More detail on the specs (just had a look) Apple 8x CD ROM, 1 gig Apple Quantum HD 64MB of RAM, more available. Clean install of OS 9.0.4 Apple Extended 2 keyboard and mouse.

I just checked and the PowerTower Pro is listed as BeOS compatible.

BeOS can't use it's SubWoofer :( but with OS9 and iTunes, it makes great for everything you had just said. and it has a TVslot...
I won't offer to sell you mine, because shippinbg woiuld be horrific from my part of the USA to Aurstrailia where you live.

I'd go with the 8600, it has the great design of the 9600, some of them can use very fast processors (350MHz or dual 200/250MHz from the MP macs IIRC) and it has audio video in and nout. I'm not sure if it had the 6 PCI slots or not, but either way still cool

Thanks for your help everybody.

I see PTPs and other Power Computing motherboards are ATX. Does taht mean I could get a nice fancy PC ATX case and put the mac in there?

Good ideas usually are created by crazy people, go figure...

and yeah, the 9600's are compatible with BeOS... otherwise the 9600MP wouldn't be compatible

Any 9600 over 300mhz is instantly incompatable. Most 9600s are incompatable under 300mhz as there was 2 revisions of the board. One works, one doesnt. I have spent alot of my computing intereasted life looking at BeOS, I know what Im talking about

quote:

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The Powermac 9600 is not compatable with BeOS

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Catagory1) PowerSurge:
7300,7600, 9500, 8500, 9600 and 8600 (as I recall)
BeOS is compatible with all of these machines.
Catagory2)Gazelle (was this the name?)
6360, 6400, 6500, TAM
Catagory3)"some other dealie"
4400

the 4400 is least likely to be compatible with the BeOS, I hear that there's a "Mach5" revision of the 9600 and 8600, but why would the Mach4 8600 be compatible with BeOS, and the 9600SP not? 8600s are all SP IIRC only difference is three slots and the video subsystems...

I'm not sure if the 9600 and 8600 are different from the PowerSurge machines, and people I'm talking to don't even seem to know what I'm talking about on the whole "PowerSurge" machine... I'll get back to this on that, because I saw it on the XPostFacto website.

The ultimate BeOS machine is the Daystar Genesis quad-processor monster, BTW. Good luck finding one!

,xtG
.tsooJ

It's a German-Made monster, sporting 4-16 200MHz 604e processors, (as I recall anyway) and up to 1.5GB of RAM..

that'd probably be best with a BSD or Yellow Dog Linux or something.

any linux runs on anything, mostly

other than that, get an 8600/300 and run OS9.0 on it.

Man, I want one of those for my 7600 *drools*

~The Penguin

quote:

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Doesnt someone in the MLA have a quad 604 card?

Man, I want one of those for my 7600 *drools*

~The Penguin

**| Want free 68kmla email? Drop me a line |**
| Captain, Intelligence Operations / Space Cowboy |
| "The choice has been made, but now you must understand it" |

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quote:

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the 4400 is least likely to be compatible with the BeOS, I hear that there's a "Mach5" revision of the 9600 and 8600, but why would the Mach4 8600 be compatible with BeOS, and the 9600SP not? 8600s are all SP IIRC only difference is three slots and the video subsystems...

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Good ideas usually are created by crazy people, go figure...

the 8600 and 9600 were always released and sold in parallel, so I don't know why it wouldnt work on the 9600.

If you know about BeOS, then you know that for intel, it supports MUCH newer hardware now,and you know that just about ALL the programs for BeOS in ANY form, are available just about ONLY for X86...

that's enough to convince me....

Yes, there is support for quad processors.

Linux and Unix, (not OSX/rhap though) support it, BeOS will support it IIRC, and there are photothop and other programs and plugins for things to support it.

the MaxxBoxx thingy was only from Germany though...

I know very well that BeOS software, is both mostly avaiable for x86 and modern hardware is avaiable for it, I just wanted to do something DIFFERENT!

I did mention the quad cpu under the thought of BeOS though, that sucker would be awesome!

~The Penguin

so basically, your ONLY option is a 7300, 850, 9500. Your original list had 8600 by the way.

What version of BeOS do you have anyway? I believe that the version I have is R5 (intel) R5PE (intel) and R4.1/5 (PowerPC)

If I were you, I'd go with the 7300, I've never tested the video I/O functions of the other macs with BeOS, but then again, I'd also get an 8600/300 and use it as an AV mac, or a 6500/whatever and use it as a jukebox (subwoofer=good)

A 9600/300 (didn't they make a 9600/350 as well?) would make a fantastic OSX machine, maybe you could get a 9600/200MP and work on getting multiple processors to work in OSX... (it'd be uber.)

quote:

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the MaxxBoxx thingy was only from Germany though...

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--
who | grep -i blonde | date
cd ~; unzip; touch; strip; finger
mount; gasp; yes; uptime; umount
sleep

There was some R&D going on, but mostly it came down on Apple, who became unprofitable because of this. That is part of the reason why the clones had to go.

,xtG
.tsooJ

Logan

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Did any of the clones make a machine that wasnt just a mac motherboard in a different case? It looks like they just took the mac designs without doing much engineering at all (designing cases dont count)

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LC 2, LC 3, Q605, Perf 638, Colour Classic (160 603e) 6100, 7200, PTP 225 (Quad 604), PM 9600, G4 Cube

quote:

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quote:

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Did any of the clones make a machine that wasnt just a mac motherboard in a different case? It looks like they just took the mac designs without doing much engineering at all (designing cases dont count)

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And as someone else said I also remember a few Radius clones, I think they had a name simillar to the 8100 and they had nubus and PCI slots.

I would be interested to know what performance was like though when it was using both types of card.

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PowerComputing, UMAX, Radius and (*maybe) Moto basically had the only unique designs, most others were literally direct copies of either PowerComputing or moto.

I dont see 8600 on there, and I havent edited my first post..

OpenBeOS is most likely going to be a PPC Peegaus based system. Yellowtab, however, si the primary x86 developer, and will succeed, unlike OBOS, IMHO.

quote:

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All the clone makers did was cheapen the product and cut margins (which was easy with no r&d needed) and watch apple choke on lower margins and alot of R&d work.

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jt ™.
Trash Hauler: call sign: eight-ball
C.O. AC-130H SpecOps 68kMLAAF

quote:

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Doesnt someone in the MLA have a quad 604 card?

Man, I want one of those for my 7600 *drools*

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LC 2, LC 3, Q605, Perf 638, Colour Classic (160 603e) 6100, 7200, PTP 225 (Quad 604), PM 9600, G4 Cube

If you really want to be unique, become a BeOS developer, make "OpenBeOS" (which is NOT! what I was talking about....) work on the 8600/9600.

If you want to be unique, get a BeBOX... it's got dual 603e or ev (forgot which) processors running at about 160/180 MHz, IIRC, it's pretty much standard hardware in there, but with some really cool twists (well blinkenlights is one of the funnesses.

~The Penguin

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