I'm thinking of buying an old G3 Powermac so I can learn OS X. Will Panther run on that mac? All help is welcome....
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Panther on Powermac G3 300mhz?
- Thread starter acedickson
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Yeah I'm not going to be doing too much on that machine. I just want to get to know OS X. I'll be buying a PB within the next few months but since I can't afford one now I figure I'll get this for now.
unless you're getting a blue and whte g3 power mac don't bother. The g3 beige powermacs do not have USB they have the old ADB for kbd and mouse. Without USB osx 10.3 will not install.
Sorry to burst your bubble but I just went througha similar thing with a spare g3 beige power mac i had here.
Sorry to burst your bubble but I just went througha similar thing with a spare g3 beige power mac i had here.
I run X.3.8 on my B&W and it chugs along nicely. Actually, in somre respects it seems snappier than my iBook. Granted, i do have some really nice tweeks done to the B&W.
Bonsaichop said:
Actually if you search google for "OSX on pre G3" it'll come up with some program to bypass the checks and stuff so you can install OSX still.
As for a 300mhz system, well it should work to learn on... I got a 333mhz imac rev d with 160mb ram as my main system, it's quite slow when loading programs, but once their up its not all that bad. (Actually using my imac remotely with vnc at the moment)
Thanks for all the input. It is a B&W Powermac, got it for 132.50 shipped. Once I put in all my spare hardware it should be decent.
System is:
B&W Powermac G3 300MHz (can it be overclocked? how?)
320MB RAM (2 128MB & 1 64MB stick, pulling the 64MB stick)
40GB HDD
OS X Panther
I'm going to add:
384MB RAM (1 256MB & 1 128MB stick) - 640MB RAM Total
4x DVD+RW burner
DVD-ROM drive
60GB HDD (100GB total)
As for getting a Mac Mini I don't have the cash ATM plus I'm going to buy a PB by June and I can't throw in all the hardware I already have.
I just need a cheap home machine better than this old Pentium sub 200mhz I'm using now. I won't be doing anything too intensive on the B&W. Web surfing, Email, iTunes, iPhoto, Garageband (limited) and getting to know OS X.
System is:
B&W Powermac G3 300MHz (can it be overclocked? how?)
320MB RAM (2 128MB & 1 64MB stick, pulling the 64MB stick)
40GB HDD
OS X Panther
I'm going to add:
384MB RAM (1 256MB & 1 128MB stick) - 640MB RAM Total
4x DVD+RW burner
DVD-ROM drive
60GB HDD (100GB total)
As for getting a Mac Mini I don't have the cash ATM plus I'm going to buy a PB by June and I can't throw in all the hardware I already have.
I just need a cheap home machine better than this old Pentium sub 200mhz I'm using now. I won't be doing anything too intensive on the B&W. Web surfing, Email, iTunes, iPhoto, Garageband (limited) and getting to know OS X.
You should do fine with that G3. At least it will be snappier than my Beige G3 running 10.2.8, even though i haven't had a problem with mine. It would be a good computer to have as a iTunes music server.
Overclocking the B&W
The early g3 towers are actually really easy to overclock:
http://www.lowendmac.com/macdan/02/0710ek.html
It's just a matter of rearranging jumpers on the motherboard. If I remember correctly, the stock jumpers are molded into one brick, so you'll have to either get new jumpers, or do like I did and cut the brick to get the right configuration.
I had a beige running 266->300 with no cooling modifications, and it ran panther relatively well. The 33mhz bump actually made a huge difference in performance. You should be able to get the B&W running at 350, or even 400+ with better cooling.
The early g3 towers are actually really easy to overclock:
http://www.lowendmac.com/macdan/02/0710ek.html
It's just a matter of rearranging jumpers on the motherboard. If I remember correctly, the stock jumpers are molded into one brick, so you'll have to either get new jumpers, or do like I did and cut the brick to get the right configuration.
I had a beige running 266->300 with no cooling modifications, and it ran panther relatively well. The 33mhz bump actually made a huge difference in performance. You should be able to get the B&W running at 350, or even 400+ with better cooling.
GarageBand can't be used on your machine. It requires a 600 MHz G3 or better, if I'm not mistaken.
You can try to put an investment in a processor upgrade kit, if overclocking isn't your thing. MacSales.com should have some.
G3s do make useable OS X machines. I'm typing from a Bondi Blue iMac running Panther right now
You can try to put an investment in a processor upgrade kit, if overclocking isn't your thing. MacSales.com should have some.
G3s do make useable OS X machines. I'm typing from a Bondi Blue iMac running Panther right now
applekid said:GarageBand can't be used on your machine. It requires a 600 MHz G3 or better, if I'm not mistaken.
You can try to put an investment in a processor upgrade kit, if overclocking isn't your thing. MacSales.com should have some.
G3s do make useable OS X machines. I'm typing from a Bondi Blue iMac running Panther right now
Sure it "requires" more, according to apple... but he can make it run, simple open the package file and delete the "install check". I learned that after searching google for something on the lines of installing final cut pro on pearpc, or a G3... Thats how I run FCP on this little iMac, render takes long but suprisingly enough the timeline is quite snappy.