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i *LOVE* the iMac G3

I'm actually typing this on my Snow iMac right now! I wanted one ever since I was a kid, but my dad wouldn't let me get a Mac (it was my own money! :mad:) so I wound up building a PC. Anyways, the PC died about 2 years after I built it. I finally realized my dreams and got a Snow iMac on eBay after seeing Wall-E, and I named it EVE for obvious reasons.

I replaced the hard drive with an 80gb laptop unit so it's much quieter, and upped the RAM to 1gb. It works flawlessly, and I'm always shocked at how fast it boots. From a cold start, it takes 20 seconds to reach a usable desktop in Tiger--it's incredible, even compared to my SSD Windows 7 Vaio.

Anyways, I'm using it to access WebCT and view PowerPoint slideshows right now to get ready for final exams. It's also loaded up with Matlab 2007, Photoshop CS, Office 2004, OmniOutliner, WriteRoom, iWork '04, and lots of other productivity apps that I use on a regular basis. It's not fast, but it's ridiculously reliable considering its specs and age.

I actually wrote an essay about the iMac G3 for one of my medical school applications, basically going on about how it represents to me that engineering (I'm a biomedical engineering student) doesn't have to be about compromises, and how it's important to strive for perfection and elegance. Anyone want to read it? :)
 
I found one stuck in the back of a starage room at a production company I worked for. Grahpite, slotloading, airport card even. I took it home and it now serves as a DVD player/TV and computer in my 4 year olds room
 
Yeesh, reading this in retrospect, it sounds pretty cheesy! Here it is:

2. Describe a hobby or activity other than something in medicine, in which you have a keen interest. Why?
(Do not exceed 250 words)

Although I am mainly a PC user, one of my biggest hobbies is refurbishing vintage Macintosh computers. Many people, including my girlfriend and my mom, don’t understand why I collect these slow, functionally limited machines.

However, as an engineering student and a perfectionist, I find much to appreciate in them. For instance, the iMac G3 is an industrial design masterpiece. The case splits apart elegantly, and the perfectly fitted motherboard tray slides into place effortlessly. When I press the power button, there is no cacophony of fans and clicks, but total silence, because the entire case was designed to be convection cooled by natural airflow. One might question why eschewing a couple of screws, an off-the-shelf case, or a few fans is worth all of the extra trouble, but that misses the point. A team of engineers went to great lengths to express their skills and vision, even where it is invisible to most users. My machine is nine years old, but it still boots to modern OSX in less than thirty seconds.

Vintage Macs reject pragmatism. Some machines, like the gorgeous but expensive G4 Cube and the Lisa, which introduced the first graphical interface, were utter failures. And yet, even the failed designs were spectacular, and the risk-taking pushed technology forward. Simply put, this hobby reminds me that engineering does not always have to involve compromises, but can also be idealistic, perfectionistic and elegant.
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coupdetat said:
I named it EVE for obvious reasons.
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Excellent idea! for some reason EVE doesnt really match the iMac G4, or eMac. If I ever get a Snow iMac G3, i'l be sure to name it that.

coupdetat said:
I replaced the hard drive with an 80gb laptop unit so it's much quieter, and upped the RAM to 1gb. It works flawlessly, and I'm always shocked at how fast it boots. From a cold start, it takes 20 seconds to reach a usable desktop in Tiger--it's incredible
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I just did the exact same yesterday with my Indigo 500Mhz iMac G3, except I used a full size drive rather than a laptop one. Only mine boots in 2 minutes, 1 second.

But then again, yours is probably 600 or 700Mhz, mine is 500Mhz
 
At my high school (I am an IT major) me and my friend have started to move the teacher towards Macs :D. We have a PowerMac 6500, PowerMac G3 450MHz, PowerMac G4 Quicksilver, an iBook G4, iBook G3, and most importantly, two iMac G3's. One is a 400MHz and the other is 500MHz. Both are indigo, have varying amounts of RAM, slot-loading optical drives, and run Mac OS X 10.4.11.
 
the imac g3`s design is often reffered as half egg shape , and as i have the snow one i called mine calimero
 
jakebrake3202 said:
What if you "saved" an iMac from going to the junkyard to make an iMacquarium. That's what I do. Similar to getting a pet from the humane society before it is put to sleep. I buy iMacs from recyclers and turn them into aquariums. More pics and info on my website www.jakeharms.com
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very cool! I would love to find some kind of mac case someone was throwing away and turn it into an aquarium. BUT I would definitely have a hard time gutting a working classic and making one.
 
update just bought my second iMac g3
a graphite 700mhz model with 512 mb ram the fastest iMac g3 ever produced and last of the G3's:)
 
My iMac G3 took a turn for the worse this morning, i put it on a stand beside my bed ontop of an Apple studio display and during the night I moved my arms out to the side and woke up to a large *THUD*. I looked and the iMac landed face down on the floor, it took a good 1/2 meter drop and I quickly plugged it back in to find that it still boots fine (thank god).

But the case is unfortunately messed up, a big crack down the bezel and part of the inside plastic is shattered.

I might just set it up in the corner with Fliqlo running.
 
coupdetat said:
Awesome! eBay? How much was it, if you don't mind me asking?
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i payed £24.99 for my 600mhz one which has some little niggles and £59 for the 700mhz one , both came without keyboard mouse so i had to buy these too so both together about £120 plus a upgrade of the ram +512 in the 700mhz one
 
Archon Gold said:
My iMac G3 took a turn for the worse this morning, i put it on a stand beside my bed ontop of an Apple studio display and during the night I moved my arms out to the side and woke up to a large *THUD*. I looked and the iMac landed face down on the floor, it took a good 1/2 meter drop and I quickly plugged it back in to find that it still boots fine (thank god).

But the case is unfortunately messed up, a big crack down the bezel and part of the inside plastic is shattered.

I might just set it up in the corner with Fliqlo running.
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ooooooh:eek: poor little iMac :(
 
MacHamster68 said:
i payed £24.99 for my 600mhz one which has some little niggles and £59 for the 700mhz one , both came without keyboard mouse so i had to buy these too so both together about £120 plus a upgrade of the ram +512 in the 700mhz one
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Awesome prices! I paid $100 USD for my 600mhz Snow iMac two summers ago. It's running strong and I still use it every time I go home from school. Just last weekend I was running a whole bunch of stuff on it while I was studying for an exam, mostly Matlab and Safari. The iMac handled it like a champ :cool: And because my university blocks torrents, I have my iMac torrent from home and I just periodically SSH into it to check the status and transfer files to my school computer via SCP. Gotta love built-in Unix functions!

I've only recently started learning Linux, so I'm sure I'll come up with lots more duties for my little iMac as I learn more. I'm thinking of using it as a dedicated Bittorrent/media server since I have several FireWire drives.
 
technician kid said:
I was wondering if a g3 is very a old computer?
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That depends on your definition of "old".

The first iMac G3 was announced in May 1998, and came out in August. The last one was discontinued in March 2003.

So the newest iMac G3 is nearly seven years old, the oldest eleven and a half years old. (I have one of each.)
 
I still have my iMac G3 400mhz that I bought new in 1999. It's my first ever :apple: purchase. It has never let me down. While it is the slowest of my 4 Macs I still use it with OS 9 on my LAN for some classic gaming. It's strawberry BTW. I don't think I am ever going to get rid of it. If it ever dies completely I might do a fish tank if I can't repair. It's also the quietest desktop I have ever used.
 
thats realy amazing with these iMac g3
they just work and keep on doing so , and they are pretty fast for computers of their time and amazingly they are still fully usable if you do not expect the performance of a i7 iMac ,
ok some have a handicap with flashplayer(never install flashplayer 10) , but my two do both play most youtube videos (with flashplayer 9)
and sooooo quiet i can hardly hear the harddrive spinning

you just have to love these little buggers :)
 
A true classic design. Significantly improved over its tray-loading predecessors, and the "lampshade" iMac G4 never really did it for me. And the eMac was just an abomination by comparison.
 
looking for iMac G3 or apple studio monitor

ha ha, I just joined and I am trying to find a iMac G3 for my hamster and I came across yours and of course when I signed up, I put my name as hamstermac, and I see you have something similar, I am looking for a G3, in purple, pink, orange, and sourapple green, If you know of an easy way to find broken G3 macs for little to free, I would appreciate it, I live in MO and my hamster needs a unigue home that will match my Mac Book Pro. haha:eek::D
 

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Anyone have an iMac G3 they are wanting to donate or some iMac G3 parts? I am working on an iMac G3 project to make and run it Windows NT 4.0 but am looking for some upgrades, I am only 16 and my parents don't think it's worth it.
 
I replaced my 233MHz with a 2.4GHz iMac and gave the old one to Goodwill, I couldn't find any use for the old machine. Couldn't run OS X and couldn't surf the web comfortably, the old Mac was just taking up space. I do love the industrial design of the model, though, I think they look great, but they are just so non-functional with the web demands of today's computing needs.
 
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