iBook G3 "Snow" firmware updates?

[juancarlosonetti]

Hi!

I want to install Linux on my iBook, and I would like to know if my firmware version is up to date. But I haven't found any information on Google -or Apple's website- about this.

The Open Firmware welcome message says: "Apple PowerBook4,3 4.5.2f2 BootROM built on 10/17/02 at 14:33:26". So it seems that my firmware version is 4.5.2f2.

Is there any firmware version for my machine newer than this? And, if so, where could I find it?

Thank you very much!

 

[Raging Dufus]

It would be nice if there was a definitive list somewhere of all firmware updates ever issued for a given Mac; I've searched for such a list before, and have never been able to come up with one.

Searching around a bit, I could not find any firmware updates for your iBook. That doesn't mean there aren't any, and you should try such a search yourself... but I would say chances are good that you're already running the latest firmware. Firmware updates generally for Macs of that vintage were to enable them to work with OS X; but according to specs for the model you gave, your iBook shipped with OS X 10.1.4 "Puma" installed as the default OS.

The only thing I could suggest is to install Mac OS X "Tiger" on it so that you can run Software Update. If any firmware updates are out there for your model, Software Update should pick them up from Tiger (unfortunately this no longer works with earlier versions).

 

[Project Alice]

It would be nice if there was a definitive list somewhere of all firmware updates ever issued for a given Mac; I've searched for such a list before, and have never been able to come up with one.

Searching around a bit, I could not find any firmware updates for your iBook. That doesn't mean there aren't any, and you should try such a search yourself... but I would say chances are good that you're already running the latest firmware. Firmware updates generally for Macs of that vintage were to enable them to work with OS X; but according to specs for the model you gave, your iBook shipped with OS X 10.1.4 "Puma" installed as the default OS.

The only thing I could suggest is to install Mac OS X "Tiger" on it so that you can run Software Update. If any firmware updates are out there for your model, Software Update should pick them up from Tiger (unfortunately this no longer works with earlier versions).

I have owned (still currently have it) a 500Mhz Snow "dual USB" since I was 14 (So around 10 years). I am positive there are no firmware updates for these models. I can't speak for the newer ones with the radeon GPUs, but I can't imagine they'd be any different firmware wise.
I have searched for firmware updates for my iBook years before apple butchered their website of all the old useful material and never found any.

 

[z970]

I have searched for firmware updates for my iBook years before apple butchered their website of all the old useful material and never found any.

Liked just for that.

 

[juancarlosonetti]

Thank you very much for the useful responses.

 

[skinniezinho]

I have owned (still currently have it) a 500Mhz Snow "dual USB" since I was 14 (So around 10 years). I am positive there are no firmware updates for these models. I can't speak for the newer ones with the radeon GPUs, but I can't imagine they'd be any different firmware wise.
I have searched for firmware updates for my iBook years before apple butchered their website of all the old useful material and never found any.

Can also confirm that, from what I remember most firmware updates were only possible with OS9 installed. I guess there were some for the airport but those came with software update.

 

[Project Alice]

Can also confirm that, from what I remember most firmware updates were only possible with OS9 installed. I guess there were some for the airport but those came with software update.

The airport card update came in Mac OS X 10.3. I have it somewhere. But yes all firmware updates for the Macs had to be installed under OS 9.