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im trying to upgrade my imac g3

F

ferrari486

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Feb 6, 2010
21
0
ok so im trying to upgrade my imac g3 and i found a disc on ebay

it says the condition is used

does that mean it wont boot again if it has already been used
 
ferrari486 said:
ok so im trying to upgrade my imac g3 and i found a disc on ebay

it says the condition is used

does that mean it wont boot again if it has already been used
Click to expand...

I can quickly find out for you, but I'll need your name, social security number, credit card details, life insurancy policy details, details on what you had for lunch today and what you're wearing.
 
I'm not sure what you want to do. Explain more...

Are you trying to install OS 9 on the G3 iMac? The OS disks that shipped with Macs would only work for the particular model of Mac they shipped with. There were also retail OS disks that would work with any Mac of the time. So you need to know what kind of CD it is and the model of your iMac to know whether or not it will be useful to you.

I guess another way to go is to look into hacking an OS disk that shipped with one model to work with your model. I have no idea if this is feasible or not. Probably easier just to get the right CD in the first place.
 
i am trying to upgrade to osx but the firmware has not been updated so i need os9 to update the firmware
 
depends on which G3 iMac it is and which version of OS 9 the install disk has. Some of the G3 iMacs require OS 9.0.4 and some require 9.1. And as was previously pointed out, be careful about buying restore disk that shipped with a computer as opposed to a retail disk since some restore disks are set up to only install on certain types of machines....like a powerbook or a tower instead of an imac
 
Macky-Mac said:
depends on which G3 iMac it is and which version of OS 9 the install disk has. Some of the G3 iMacs require OS 9.0.4 and some require 9.1. And as was previously pointed out, be careful about buying restore disk that shipped with a computer as opposed to a retail disk since some restore disks are set up to only install on certain types of machines....like a powerbook or a tower instead of an imac
Click to expand...

ok so could you tell me where to find an imac disc

imac is green tray loading 233mhz model
 
as apple does not sell retail disc's of OS9 any longer your best bet is craiglist or ebay , but make sure its a "" retail disc "" and NOT a upgrade or system disc ,
as for use of a upgrade you would need OS8 which your iMac shipped originally with , and that explains why you cant use the OS9 system discs as they never had been for your iMac
so you need a RETAIL OS9 DISC
 
I would just buy an iMac G3 already with OS X on it. You know, thats the "original" G3 you are trying to upgrade, 12 years old in May.

try ebay or CL.

You should be able to find something in the G3 600 mhz range for $75.

Or even better, an eMac. Larger 17" screen, G4 chips and about the same size. Also under $100 and should already have OS X on it.

like this: http://cgi.ebay.com/Apple-eMac-G4-1...ewItemQQptZApple_Desktops?hash=item3ca5fcdab3
 
Badger^2 said:
I would just buy an iMac G3 already with OS X on it. You know, thats the "original" G3 you are trying to upgrade, 12 years old in May.

try ebay or CL.

You should be able to find something in the G3 600 mhz range for $75.

Or even better, an eMac. Larger 17" screen, G4 chips and about the same size. Also under $100 and should already have OS X on it.

like this: http://cgi.ebay.com/Apple-eMac-G4-1...ewItemQQptZApple_Desktops?hash=item3ca5fcdab3
Click to expand...

hm what has age to do with it ...my powermac 5500 /275 is about the same age and still great for what i use it for
and for the iMac 233 there was a upgrade board available with 400mhz G4 processor , so if you could get your hands on one then fine , but i would realy keep it like it is with OS 9 and OSX panther
 
ok if i want to get serious i will upgrade the prossessor but i realy need a disc
 
ferrari486 said:
ok if i want to get serious i will upgrade the prossessor but i realy need a disc
Click to expand...

I guess you missed the point of my post.

Spending $50 on an iMac thats worth $10 doesnt make any sense?

And then getting OS X on it will also need a retail OS X installer disc as well. Not some disc you have from another mac.

If you had all the parts already sitting around, sure, give it a go.

But spending money on it is just kinda foolish?

Whats the ultimate goal?
 
ferrari486 said:
ok so could you tell me where to find an imac disc

imac is green tray loading 233mhz model
Click to expand...

lowendmac.com is a good site for info about older macs....here's a link to the page where they list sellers of older versions of Mac OS link

another possible source link

And ebay would be another potential source since people do sell off their older software (a "used" disk doesn't imply that it wont work for you, but it would need to be the right disk that would work on your imac in the first place)

alas, an older OS disk might cost more than that old iMac is worth
 
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