G3 or new computer for old eyes
Problem: Computer for 75 y.o. mother. She lives 600 miles away from me in a small town / rural area. Local area tech support is iffy.
She has a Mac a friend gave her. A 233 mhz model Imac. This lets her email and surf the web.
She cannot see pictures we send her or pictures on a baby site. Not seeing the baby pic's has convinced her she should get a better computer.
I picked up a used Imac at an estate sale. G3 / 600 mhz / 40 / cdrom / ultra / FW / VGA.
It has 10.1 software.
Looking into upgrades for this I am thinking :
replace hard drive with new one
upgrade software to something current.
Another option, buy a new computer ? Dell, HP - and install Mac software on it. Can the new Mac software do this?
I can do hardware/software installs at my place and deliver a completed package to her.
The computer needs are light, email, surfing, viewing and maybe posting pictures. She wants to view DVD's that she bought on a trip, pictures of the areas.
Your thoughts please.
She has a Mac a friend gave her. A 233 mhz model Imac. This lets her email and surf the web.
She cannot see pictures we send her or pictures on a baby site. Not seeing the baby pic's has convinced her she should get a better computer.
I picked up a used Imac at an estate sale. G3 / 600 mhz / 40 / cdrom / ultra / FW / VGA.
It has 10.1 software.
Looking into upgrades for this I am thinking :
replace hard drive with new one
upgrade software to something current.
Another option, buy a new computer ? Dell, HP - and install Mac software on it. Can the new Mac software do this?
I can do hardware/software installs at my place and deliver a completed package to her.
The computer needs are light, email, surfing, viewing and maybe posting pictures. She wants to view DVD's that she bought on a trip, pictures of the areas.
Your thoughts please.
Comments
I would definitely upgrade the hard drive.
For an OS on the G3 system, I would suggest Panther (Mac OS X 10.3), you can get it cheap on eBay.
Your Mother will be happy
Parker
Thanks for the reply. I will look for 10.3 software.
I thought that the latest Mac software could run on Intel computers?? My idea was cheap, but well supported Dell hardware, and Mac software that she likes. NO can do??
Mac Software works on Intel based "Mac" computers, not Intel based Dell's.
You were close
Parker
On the new Intel based Mac's you can now use Windows XP or Linux as a secondary OS, but to do that you will need either, Parellels, VMware or BootCamp (these are programs you can easily buy online).
But you cannot load any Mac OS on a windows computer, it has to be a Mac made by Apple Inc.
Smee
Thanks for the reply. I will look for 10.3 software.
I thought that the latest Mac software could run on Intel computers?? My idea was cheap, but well supported Dell hardware, and Mac software that she likes. NO can do??
No can do.
The Mac OS needs the Mac specific hardware... it has been run on "generic" machines, but requires much "hacking" of the system ... probably not the right choice for mom
That G3 will run OSX 10.4 fine... but will struggle with flash movies and h.264 movies. Both of which are becoming quite prevalent on the WWW. But for eMail and viewing picture websites, it'll work great.
The advantage to the newer iMacs is a larger screen, which combined with Apple's "Universal Access" (part of the OS) allows screen magnification that workes awesomely when a person learns how to use it.
That G3 will run OSX 10.4 fine... but will struggle with flash movies and h.264 movies. Both of which are becoming quite prevalent on the WWW. But for eMail and viewing picture websites, it'll work great."
King
Thanks for the insite. It sounds like I need to upgrade the G3 and let her use it. If she finds something else she can't see - then we will talk about a new machine. I will look for 10.4 software. Ebay? other sites?
Intel chips for Mac. I wonder if the processor it the same, but the support chipset is different. Anyway, Apple still has a lock on the hardware.
You can only install Apple software on a Mac, and that goes for the OS's as well.
There are thousands of developers writing software for the Mac not just Apple. There are also alternative Operating Systems available for Mac hardware including Ubuntu:
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/HardwareSupp...sDesktopsApple
EDIT: Now I've thought a little more about the context you used this phrase I understand what you mean. Sorry!
King
Thanks for the insite. It sounds like I need to upgrade the G3 and let her use it. If she finds something else she can't see - then we will talk about a new machine. I will look for 10.4 software. Ebay? other sites?
Intel chips for Mac. I wonder if the processor it the same, but the support chipset is different. Anyway, Apple still has a lock on the hardware.
Some pointers on upgrading iMac G3s.
1). You MUST upgrade the firmware before installing OS X 10.3 or higher. Failure to do so will mostly likely resulting a (permeanent) loss of the display. You must be booted into OS 9 to perform the firmware update. If you don't have the original install discs for this Mac this can be a problem.
Firmware: http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=75130
2). The maximum RAM for these iMacs is 1GB. 128MB is the bear minimum for Panther 10.3 and 256MB the bear minimum for Tiger (10.4). Go for as much as you can muster. These iMacs take PC100 168pin DIMMs, some (i.e. good quality) PC133 will work too. I'd always recommend a Mac-friendly supplier as OS X can be fickle about the quality of RAM used.
- Instructions: http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=95144
- Prices: http://www.ramseeker.com/memory/iMac...700mhz)-512mb/
3). The maximum capacity hard disk drive that will usable in an iMac G3 is 120GB. The iMac G3 has an ATA5 bus which has a 48bit addressing limit meaning it can only see 128GB of hard disk. The hard disk is a standard 3.5" ATA/33 drive (ATA66/ATA100/ATA133/IDE will work also but not SATA drives).
Instructions: http://www.macworld.com/2001/10/bc/howtoimac/
4). The maximum OS supported by the iMac G3 600MHz is 10.4.10 (maybe 10.4.11 if that ever turns up). 10.4 Tiger is still available from Apple for about the next five days but comes on DVD-ROM only now. They used to have a scheme to swap it for CD-ROMs but that has gone. Finding copies of Panther is very hit and miss.
EDIT: Tiger seems to have gone from the online Apple Store.
http://www.amazon.com/Apple-Mac-Tige...3019954&sr=8-1
5) The iMac 600MHz has a CD-RW drive unlike some earlier models which had DVD-ROM or CD-ROM drives.
http://www.lowendmac.com/imac/guide.html
You can install a replacement Internal drive but I suspect it won't be cost effective. Have a look at this external drive:
http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Other...g/MRBFWU2D112/
Do check with OWC that it would work with OS X's DVD Player first.
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The Intel Macs are basically PCs but they use the newer EFI technology rather than BIOS. Apple's Boot Camp allows you to install Windows XP or Vista on an Intel-based Mac. The iMac G3 600MHz is PowerPC-based.
Many hackers have got OS X running on beige boxes (Google: OSx86 project) but as already stated not for your Mother ;-)
By the time you factor in all the "upgrades" people are suggesting, you could, for the same price, just get a newer/better G4 iMac from eBay or Craigslist and not have to worry about the issues involved in trying to make an older machine work well.
I agree. Also, the screen is perhaps the most important part of a computer for someone with less than perfect eye sight. By the time she turns up the font in safari to a readable size, the window won't be large enough to display properly without all kinds of line wrapping and broken layout.
Probably not what you want to hear after buying a used one already.
Your point about the screen size and brightness brought me up short. OF COURSE THE SCREEN IS THE MOST IMPORTANT. She has had eye surgury and can see reasonably well - but the bigger & brighter the happier she will be.
I'm afraid I will have to chalk this older Imac up to experence. I will fool with it as my learning gateway to Apple. In the mean time I will explore more current Apples with LCD screens. Maybe if the sister kicks in, a new Imac will be just the ticket.