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Could my G3 iBook 128Mb run Tiger (if I put more RAM in?)

C

carl201167

macrumors regular
Original poster
If so, is it easy to put additional memory in?

I'm a newcomer to Macs and appreciate any help. Thanks
 
Maybe.
More Specs?

My PB G3 500 Pismo 384MB RAM 8MB VRAM 12GB HD runs it ok-good, last night had a barney, but ok with a quick re-start.
 
And mine is pretty good too.

Putting memory in is easy. There are guides on Apple's site, but basically you just unlock and lift up the keyboard, undo 2 screws, pop up the RAM shield and click in the chip. Takes a few minutes.

As James said, you need to tell us a bit more about your iBook though. Click on the blue apple at top left and then on 'About This Mac' and tell us the processor speed.
 
I'm running panther on the iBook in my sig and I have no problems. I would put Tiger on it but the lappy has no DVD-ROM to install it. With more ram I would imagine you would be just fine as long as it is 500MHz model or faster.
 
I put tiger on my brothers G3 Powermac, it is a 400MHZ and has 640megs of RAM and it runs it just fine.

trout
 
I put Tiger on my Mom's 233 MHz iMac G3 with 256MB of RAM and it runs pretty good. A little slow on startup, but it runs the basics just fine. She can run Safari, Mail, MS Word, iPhoto, etc without any problems at all.

My brothers 333 MHz iMac with 256MB is also running Tiger without any problems.

I had to use an external FW Case to install Tiger from my iMac G5 because neither has a DVD ROM drive. That would be another thing to consider as well unless you want to send in your Tiger installation DVD for CDs and pay AGAIN! I think thats a little rediculuous that Apple makes you pay twice for the CD version of Tiger. They have just make Tiger with CDs and a DVD in the box like they do iLife IMO.
 
I've done the "About this Mac" thing and it says:

version 10.1
memory 128Mb
Processor PowerPC G3

I don't know how to find the clock speed if that's important?

Thanks again
 
carl201167 said:
I've done the "About this Mac" thing and it says:

version 10.1
memory 128Mb
Processor PowerPC G3

I don't know how to find the clock speed if that's important?

Thanks again
Click to expand...

Well, we could use deductive reasoning to find your cpu speed!

Tell us, is it a combo drive (CDRW/DVD) or CDROM?

And, being that the OS is 10.1, that would mean it was an early iBook. My first iBook purchased was in May 2001, and it was a 500 mhz/96 mb ram/10 gig hdd. What size is the hard drive? Im going to say your iBook has either 500 or 600 mhz.
 
Thanks again for your help everyone.

It's definitely got a DVD drive. I'll check drive size tonight when I get home.

So is the thinking that, if it's 500MHz I should be fine? Is there no way of telling processor speed in 10.1?
 
it's got a 20 Gb hard drive

So... and sorry for the multiple postings, what processor speed do you think I have (or how do I find out?)

Thanks
 
apple menu... about this mac... doesn't show processor speed in 10.1

so if it's likely I've at least a 500MHz machine, I should be ok to buy more memory and install tiger?

would srill appreciate a way to confirm processor speed

cheers
 
carl201167 said:
apple menu... about this mac... doesn't show processor speed in 10.1

so if it's likely I've at least a 500MHz machine, I should be ok to buy more memory and install tiger?

would srill appreciate a way to confirm processor speed

cheers
Click to expand...
Carl,

You've got a 500 or 600 iBook. Go to "About this Mac", then click on the button that says "more info" or something. It'll run System Profile, which should tell you everything you need to know.

Now, back to the original question.

A 500mhz iBook will handle Tiger with no problems, as long as you have RAM. Get a 512 stick to bring it up to 640MB (or 576MB if you have a base iBook). Going from 10.1 to 10.4 will bring speed improvements.

I went from 10.2.8 to 10.4 and noticed that everything goes faster. How refreshing for an OS to actually get faster with age.
 
Thanks ftaok

In 10.1, there isn't an option to click "more info" so I still don't know how to confirm processor speed

But - given it appears I have a 500 or 600MHz machine, I'll just order the memory and be done with it! Thanks
 
carl201167 said:
Thanks ftaok

In 10.1, there isn't an option to click "more info" so I still don't know how to confirm processor speed

But - given it appears I have a 500 or 600MHz machine, I'll just order the memory and be done with it! Thanks
Click to expand...
Then try digging into the Utilities folder for an app called System Profiler or something like that. It'll take a few minutes for the app to scan the system, but you'll get all sorts of info about your system that you may not have known otherwise.
 
Doesn't matter what the proc is. An assumption of 500MHz G3 is pretty good as we know its an iBook with 10.1.

While we also know he will need more RAM, the important thing to know about his system, IMO, is that 20GB Hard-drive. He'll need a lot of free space on that HD if he's going to install Tiger and have 4 GB of extra space.

How much hard-drive space do you have remaining on your hard-drive?

Go into the Utilities folder in Finder and try to find any application that might tell us about your system's profile or hardware configuration. I honestly can't remember that far back to be able to help you.
 
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