Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Best pre-X Mac OS

5300cs

5300cs

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Nov 24, 2002
1,862
0
japan
Howdy folks,

I just got my hands on a PB G3 Kanga :cool: ..and I was wondering what the best classic Mac OS was, in peoples opinion.

I'm not going to try and put OS X on it (I don't think.) I've had mixed results with 9.2.2 and 9.1. Any recommendations? What's the best, most stable classic Mac OS you've used after 8.0 (don't think the Kanga supports 7.5 :( )
 
Definatly 8.6. USB support, tons of software if you look enough (even iTunes version 1) and a Mozilla 1.4 variant are available. 9.x is buggy and the PowerPC version of 7.x is just too old...

I still have a computer with 8.6. That is my favorite non-X computer. :D
 
Mac OS 8.6 was good and stable. Some G3s work better with 9.x but you have to have the RAM to support it well.
 
Personally I loved Mac OS 8.1... I ran it on a Performa 6400/200, 200 Mhz and it was actually enjoyable - Fast, simple, and very stable for a pre-X Mac OS. I'd suggest that. If you really need app compatiblity, put 8.6 on it.
 
I skipped over OS 8, so I don't know how well it did. I can tell you to stay away from System 7 though, unless you like pulling out your hair, and possibly throwing your Mac out the window. I used OS 9 for awhile on my iMac, and I thought it was very stable. Though it didn't have true protected memory, application crashes were certainly more graceful and didn't always bring the whole system down. Plus you can find many more, recent programs for OS 9.
 
Thanks for the replies, guys :)

I wonder if different language versions make a difference. I've had trouble with OS 9.1 & 9.2 J, but the English versions have been fine :confused:

I think I'll stick with 8.6 then when my Kanga arrives. I read on LEM (Low End Mac) some guy was using a Kanga with a USB adapter, but I could've sworn the pre-Wallstreet machines didn't support CardBus ?? :confused: ??

Anyone?

p.s. I love OS 7.5.3. Despite all the horrible things I've read about it, I never had any problems. It's also the first real exposure to Mac OS I had.
 
Obviously I'd vote for 9.2.2, because of all of the goodies, though the perfect blend of vintage OS and stability would go to 8.6. Gotta love USB support, and the older GUI look at the same time.
 
i agree with everyone above. I upgraded my performa to 8.6 and it ran a million times better, despite being on the lower end of the minimum requirements.
 
Echo!

Yes, 8.6...

Ran far better on my old clone than any flavour of 9 no matter how many surplus extensions & control panels I turned off...
 
OS 8.6 was much better to me than previous ones I've worked with... currently, I have 9.2 which is good, but I have had a few more issues than previously... though that could have been the different machines I was running the OS's on
 
i really liked OS 7.6.1, for its size and speed

I'm really a System/MacOS 7 kind of guy
 
anyone got any pictures of these old os's? i've actually only seen os 9 and 10
 
My first Mac was an SE running System 6. After that was a mac II (w/13" color display!) running System 7.1. I never used 7.5 until I got a PowerMac and an internet connection but let me just say stability tanked after that. Probably due more to the internet connection than anything else but nevertheless System 7.1 still has the image of perfection in my eye.

I remember not liking OS 8 when it came out. That was the start of the MacOS getting really bloated. I had a dual boot with 8.1 and 7.6 and 8.1 took twice the memory and more than twice the boot time. 7.6 was incredibly fast to boot on a PPC. I remember starting my computer in front of my windows using friend and hearing him say "that's it?"

On a side note, was anyone else disappointed when 7.6 debuted and they started calling it MacOS 7.6 instead of System 7? One of the dark effects of the clones in my opinion. (although I did own a clone)
 
pianojoe said:
8.6
Click to expand...


Umm, what are you trying to say here? You're being too subtle... :D


Mc68k I like the way you think. I'm an old 7 person too: 7.5.3 :)
 
Well, my Kanga came today :)
This baby is purring along nice and smooth. I can't believe it's a G3 processor inside, though it speeds along OS 9 real nice. It came with OS 9.1J installed by the previous owner, and it's running great now so I'm not going to cause any problems :D

The box for this bad-boy is really cool :cool:
 
Box front
box_front.jpg


Box back
box_back.jpg
 
Oooooh. Pretty. I never had much experience with OS 9, but from what I heard and from my limited use I really didn't like it.
benbondu said:
remember not liking OS 8 when it came out. That was the start of the MacOS getting really bloated. I had a dual boot with 8.1 and 7.6 and 8.1 took twice the memory and more than twice the boot time. 7.6 was incredibly fast to boot on a PPC. I remember starting my computer in front of my windows using friend and hearing him say "that's it?"
Click to expand...
Funny, as I remember starting my computer and my friend saying "Wow, that is really fast..." OS 8 is the only OS where I never had a speed problem. Even when I stopped using it, it still felt fast. And if I use it today, windows pop up quickly, programs start up pretty fast, and the only delays I have are due to the low memory amount.
 
:rolleyes: Mechcozmo.... You note that 8.6 can run mozilla 1.4. Could you LMK where ya found it cause I'm using 1.2.1 and like it alot, If 1.4 resolves some worthwhile issues I want it.. Thanks in advance...
 
8.6 was a great OS. Plus, I believe it was the first to offer Carbon app support.
When it came out, it was superior to Windows 98.

OS 9 was created only to help people move to OS X (and support new machines), and I don't think Apple put the time/resources into it to make it great. A lot of people stuck with 8.6.

*Make sure you install the OS 8.6 Font Manager Update*
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=60444

You can also update your QuickTime.




System 7.1 was also excellent, but it only runs on vintage 68k machines.
 
racepres said:
:rolleyes: Mechcozmo.... You note that 8.6 can run mozilla 1.4. Could you LMK where ya found it cause I'm using 1.2.1 and like it alot, If 1.4 resolves some worthwhile issues I want it.. Thanks in advance...
Click to expand...

On the mozilla website there are some links to other version of mozilla. It is actually 1.4 modified to run on 8.6, but it works really good. I was able to instal shock-wave and everything-- it is recognized as Mozilla and even has the splash screen. I'll find the link...

Mozilla
 
5300cs said:
I wonder if different language versions make a difference. I've had trouble with OS 9.1 & 9.2 J, but the English versions have been fine :confused:
Click to expand...
I have had various problems with the Japanese versions of OS 8.1, 8.5, 8.6, 9.1, and 9.2 that did not occur with identical computers using the US English versions of the same operating systems. Most problems seemed to be the result of application conflicts. Removing the extensions used by the offending application would often cure the instability but could of course make the application unusable. Kotoeri, the Japanese input utility, is one of the players in most of these conflicts. There are various applications can cause a conflict with Kotoeri. Microsoft applications seem to create conflicts most often but software from other companies are to blame as well.

Similar conflicts were present in OS 9.1 and 9.2 less often but seemed actually easier to fix in 8.6. This is probably due to the attempt to eliminate extension conflicts in OS 9 that wasn't entirely successful.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back