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[For New Users]The Starter Thread

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The first post of this thread is a WikiPost and can be edited by anyone with the appropiate permissions. Your edits will be public.
iModFrenzy

iModFrenzy

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jan 15, 2015
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Kamino
Welcome,

In my experience with wiping my PPC's and starting fresh, I've usually found myself struggling to get it optimized due to the lagginess of software. I wanted to create this thread as a go-to for getting your PPC off the ground then optimizing. Hopefully this could get pinned at the top so new users can click and get started fast.

Now, let's get started! :)

Get a Web Browser
You'll need it if you're going to browse this thread or any other threads

Here are a few of the best web browser choices. However, this thread has the complete list and tells the OS compatibility.
TenFourFox
HomePage: http://www.floodgap.com/software/tenfourfox/
NOTE: Browsers on PPC may throw a TLS error, TenFourFox has a downloader on the page specifically to mitigate this issue.

For quickly getting TenFourFox going, I recommend the addons Decentraleyes & uMatrix and then installing foxPEP for ultra optimization.

Roccat
HomePage: http://runecats.com/roccat-browser-for-mac/
-Download

Leopard WebKit
Homepage: https://sourceforge.net/projects/leopard-webkit/
-Download(SourceForge, 5 second download)

Camino (Outdated, should be used for very light / unharmful browsing e.g. databases)
Homepage: http://caminobrowser.org
-Download Page

I listed the homepages so you could check them out after, I hate linking Roccat's direct download link, but I don't see Safari rendering that page nicely. Camino's page is lightweight so I listed that as well.


1. Choose an OS
The last released Mac OS X supporting PowerPC natively is 10.5.8 Leopard. Snow Leopard 10.6.8 will NOT run, that is Intel only. There is a developer build of 10.6 which can be installed on PowerPC (see this thread).
You can also run OpenBSD, NetBSD, FreeBSD or Linux distros, which you can find more information about over on The PowerPC Linux Wiki.

You can check your Mac's version by clicking the :apple: in the top left and clicking "About This Mac", you're Mac's specifications(Ghz,Ram,version) will be listed, if troubleshooting a problem you'll likely need your specifications in a thread for users to help out.

Here are your OS X choices:

-10.5.8 - Better for software support and features as it's newer. Official requirement is 867 MHz G4 or faster, and 512MB of RAM. HOWEVER, it can be hacked to run on a slower Mac as long as it's a G4 and not a G3... but don't expect great performance!

-10.4.11 - Faster and is the latest version for older Macs and all G3s. Official requirement is 300MHz G3 or faster with 256 MB of RAM and FireWire. LIKE LEOPARD, you can hack it to run on slightly slower machines, but, again, the performance won't be very good!

-10.3.9 - Fast on G3s, but doesn't support a lot of software! This thread will tell you everything you need to know about Panther, including some good software that supports it. There won't be anything about Panther on this post, so go there if that's your choice.

There is a wiki thread as follows containing useful information for each Mac OS X release that supports PowerPC:

Leopard (10.5.8): https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/the-leopard-thread.2120703
Tiger (10.4.11): https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/the-tiger-thread-mac-os-x-10-4.2134451
Panther (10.3.9): https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/the-panther-thread.2046542
Jaguar (10.2.8): https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/the-jaguar-thread-mac-os-x-10-2.2134354
Puma (10.1.5): https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/the-puma-thread-mac-os-x-10-1.2119073
Cheetah (10.0.4): https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/the-cheetah-thread-mac-os-x-10-0.2134207
Kodiak (Public Beta): https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/the-kodiak-thread-mac-os-x-public-beta.2135717
Mac OS X Server 1.x (Rhapsody): https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/the-rhapsody-thread-mac-os-x-server-1-x.2135981

2. Optimize Your OS
THIS THREAD HAS EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT MAKING YOUR MAC FASTER. BUT HERE ARE SOME QUICK TIPS.
LEOPARD:
Here are some quick links/tips for optimizing your Leopard install quickly!
TIGER:
Tiger will mostly run fine on any hardware, but of course there are some systems that need optimizing
3. Optimize Hardware
Quick links for optimizing your hardware!

4. Get Some Software
These websites have big collections of old versions of software for PowerPC!

5. Get YouTube Working
Here are some methods to get YouTube working on PowerPC!
  • YouTube can run fine in WebKit if you use ClickToPlugin and/or ClickToFlash.
  • Here are some scripts put together by @Dronecatcher that let you watch YouTube on 10.4 or 10.5, and even works on G3s to give you decent YouTube!
  • SMtube, compiled for PowerPC by @Lastic, is an app where you can find videos and play them instantly. It requires some steps to get it working, but the guide by @Lastic is easy to follow! :)
  • PPC Media Center is an easy app to watch many online videos. An easy guide to setup and use is included in the dmg!
6. Install the Xcode Developer Tools (if needed)
So some apps may require Xcode developer tools such as Onyx for its processor features. Or if you just need to develop an app for 10.5/10.4 or even use the iOS SDK (iOS 4.3 max according to the wiki)

To get Xcode, sign into Apple's developer site, accept/agree to terms, copy this link: https://developer.apple.com/download/more/



This will take you to the developer download center, type Xcode 3.2.6/5(Apple states 3.2.6 as "For Snow Leopard" but the wiki says otherwise, 3.2.5 should work fine)


General Hardware Notes:
  • PowerMac G4 models to look for are "AGP Graphics," "Gigabit Ethernet," or "Mirrored Drive Door." Those models take up to 2 GB of RAM and that makes a huge difference under OS X usage.
  • If you can't find those for a G4, find a Digital Audio model. They tend to be cheaper and look like the Gigabit or AGP models.
  • Unless you know what you're doing, DO NOT GET a liquid cooled G5. You can get any other PowerMac G5 without asking the forum's permission, so long as it is not liquid cooled in any way, shape, or form.
  • iMac G3's and eMacs of all kinds look like old televisions. iMac G3's are underpowered for all but the most basic tasks. If you're looking for an eMac, make sure to grab a model with USB 2.0.
  • iMac G4's look...well, they are distinct with a round thing at the bottom and a flat screen on top. The round thing has all the innards. The gem to look for is one with USB 2.0.
  • iMac G5's have very weird capacitor issues and look like a flat screen TV. Unless you like to solder, these are best left alone.
  • Mac mini G4's look similar to today's mini, but a bit bigger and with a huge power brick! These machines make good word processors, servers, or music machines, but are too underpowered to do good on the web!
An FAQ in case your question isn't answered here:

FAQ for PowerPC Macs


Note: If you are adding to this thread, please keep in mind that user's that are new or just getting started will be using old software(most likely) to get to these pages. Links only! This is a database. Unless the information is needed like mentioning the TFF addons.
 
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MysticCow said:
I've used it. You just have to fiddle with it. Some settings freeze everything up. Some work just fine. If it freezes, a restart will fix it. But you can squeak out a hair more powerful from those iBooks.
Click to expand...


While you're trying to squeeze more out of an old iBook, there was also a GPU overclocking tool for ATI cards called ATIcellerator II.

I found this worked well at speeding up the Mobility 7500, 9700 and 9800 GPU performance quite well.

Of course, overclocking brings added stress to a very old component. So beware, you might fry your old PowerPC.
 
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AphoticD said:
While you're trying to squeeze more out of an old iBook, there was also a GPU overclocking tool for ATI cards called ATIcellerator II.

I found this worked well at speeding up the Mobility 7500, 9700 and 9800 GPU performance quite well.

Of course, overclocking brings added stress to a very old component. So beware, you might fry your old PowerPC.
Click to expand...

Added it to the Tiger list, I'll add a warning too
 
If this is for new users, do you think we should remove the Xcode section? It may confuse people who use the newest version; Xcode 3 is very different.

EDIT: Saw that the reason you added is was for software support, never mind!
[doublepost=1501897134][/doublepost]Made an organization edit and moved some things around
 
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AmazingHenry said:
If this is for new users, do you think we should remove the Xcode section? It may confuse people who use the newest version; Xcode 3 is very different.

EDIT: Saw that the reason you added is was for software support, never mind!
[doublepost=1501897134][/doublepost]Made an organization edit and moved some things around
Click to expand...

Xcode details for OP to edit;

Xcode 3.2.x is Intel only and requires Snow Leopard. This was the final version of Xcode which was capable of building both Intel and PowerPC Apps (Universal Binaries) as standard. Xcode 4.x (Lion) can be modified for PPC builds, but ppc/ppc64 support was intentionally removed by Apple.


Xcode PowerPC Version Compatibility:

Leopard 10.5.8 uses Xcode 3.1.4
Tiger 10.4.11 uses Xcode 2.5
Panther 10.3.9 uses Xcode 1.5

(These versions are still available direct from developer.apple.com)

Jaguar 10.2.8 uses Mac OS X Developer Tools December 2002
Puma 10.1.5 uses Mac OS X Developer Tools December 2001

I have installed and tested all of these versions to confirm compatibility.

I found the Developer Tools Dec 2001 disc (as well as a standard/retail installer CD for Puma) in a set of eMac installation discs. I can upload it if anyone is chasing a copy as Apple no longer offer these versions from their developer site.


iOS/iPhone SDK for PowerPC

There were never any official iOS/iPhone SDK releases for the PowerPC platform. However, various attempts were made to hack the iPhone v2.2 SDK to run the iPhone Simulator on PPC and to contort Xcode's into compiling for iPhone. However, these hacks didn't apply to iPhone v3.x SDK as the PPC code was removed from the binaries.

I have not been able to find the v2.2 (or v2.2.1) iPhone SDK to download and test this, but it would be cool to see an old iPhone 3G simulator running on a PowerBook G4. I even have an old iPhone 3G tucked away for testing any new PowerPC developed iApps!
 
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I apologize for responding to this thread, but the ShadowKiller, and OnyX downloads do not work. The websites are alive, but the downloads are broken. I managed to find a copy of them online, and have created a working download page for a few helpful PowerPC applications on my web page. It is very light weight, and I have no trouble browsing it on my iMac G3.

Misc. Mac OS Applications & Utilities:
www.snipr.me/files.php
 
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You guys should add a sticky of where ppl can sell or trade their vintage macs to people who want them. Ebay is out of control with ignorant ppl
 
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ssvegeta96 said:
You guys should add a sticky of where ppl can sell or trade their vintage macs to people who want them. Ebay is out of control with ignorant ppl
Click to expand...
There is a section of this forum that is precisely for what you describe.

However, you need to have a certain amount of posts before the forum software grants you access to that forum.

Within this particular section of the forum you can freely offer items you may wish to give away (for the cost of shipping if you wish) but items offered for sale outside of the marketplace forum usually bring down the wrath of the mods.
 
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