I think this question could be fairly quickly answered. I have a 7100/80, OS9, about 150MB RAM, and a processor upgrade. Is there a single option for getting USB support on this machine? It will be my main work machine for maybe only a month or so, but it would be nice. It's a NUBUS type, and there doesn't seem to be any such NUBUS card made.
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PPC 7100/80 and USB
- Thread starter Beksuki
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No, there is no option for putting USB on that machine. For VERY little money, you could get a PCI-based powermac (7300 for example) and get a USB PCI card. But really you should just get a Mac with USB built in, even if it is a really old one (like a Blue and White G3).
A 7200 would be the next step up, which includes PCI slots.
Although, to be fair, there are tons and tons of ADB, SCSI, and Serial peripherals that you can choose from. Anything in particular that has to be USB? I would imagine this would probably be a secondary work machine of some sort, correct? In that case, you might be pleasantly surprised with what it can do as-is.
Also, you might want to take a look at this site to see what others have done with older Macs, including the NuBus ones, using Mac OS 7 instead of 8 or 9. There is probably more than you think.
Although, to be fair, there are tons and tons of ADB, SCSI, and Serial peripherals that you can choose from. Anything in particular that has to be USB? I would imagine this would probably be a secondary work machine of some sort, correct? In that case, you might be pleasantly surprised with what it can do as-is.
Also, you might want to take a look at this site to see what others have done with older Macs, including the NuBus ones, using Mac OS 7 instead of 8 or 9. There is probably more than you think.
I got it free from my school (throwaway); the other choice WAS the 7200, I don't remember why I didn't choose it, but I think it was because the RAM was harder to get at 
Anyway, I see your point about the other peripherals. In fact as I think about it, the only reason was so that I could use my flashdisk with it, but the most important stuff (old papers and stuff) I could transfer to floppy. Yes, it will be for an indefinate amount of time my machine for schoolwork.
Wow, I am quite impressed by that site! There are certainly things there that I thought would never run on OS 7. I suppose it was rather the specs on the machines themselves that limited it then...
Anyway, I see your point about the other peripherals. In fact as I think about it, the only reason was so that I could use my flashdisk with it, but the most important stuff (old papers and stuff) I could transfer to floppy. Yes, it will be for an indefinate amount of time my machine for schoolwork.
Wow, I am quite impressed by that site!
There are certainly things there that I thought would never run on OS 7. I suppose it was rather the specs on the machines themselves that limited it then...