Why use vintage Mac computers? What are some of the appeal for choosing an older computer rather than the latest incarnation?
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Using vintage Mac computers?
- Thread starter princealfie
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I guess that should be a FAQ.
There's been plenty of discussion in various threads about it:https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/817328/
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/815604/
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/925274/
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/898894/
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/741253/
I like mine because they're all curious period pieces. They are a snapshot in time of the state of the art of user experience. (And, you can't read an 800k diskette without one.)
Price. I remember drooling over the Tibooks and other wicked fast computers years ago. Now, I can actually afford to buy them and give em a shot. My 12" Powerbook for example is a computer I use every day. Its still plenty new enough to run modern software and costs far less than a 13" Macbook or an Air. For older PPC and 68k systems, its pure nostalgia. Its fun to go back and use older software and OS versions. If you didn't ever use use that stuff back when it was current, then you probably don't see the point.
Recently bought a Powernook G3 Lombard @ loaded it with Mac OS 9.2. It brought back so many college memories of late night essay writing. Luv it!
Because I can, because I don't need to throw money on an Intel, because I like searching for the last compatible versions with the wayback machine...
I hate how disposable our electronics have become. I hate how people feel the need to chunk their old system and buy a brand new, slightly faster one every other year. I hate watching these perfectly functioning computers and gadgets end up sitting in someone's closet or garage for years, until they end up in a landfill. It truly sickens me.
I aim to be different, to make use of what many find unusable, to use what I already have until it no longer physically functions, and recycling them when they reach this point. There's something to be said about living frugally, and making your impact on this planet as little as possible. (in an environmental and consumer/business sense)
Plus, old stuff is wicked cool, and nostalgia is the icing on the cake.
I aim to be different, to make use of what many find unusable, to use what I already have until it no longer physically functions, and recycling them when they reach this point. There's something to be said about living frugally, and making your impact on this planet as little as possible. (in an environmental and consumer/business sense)
Plus, old stuff is wicked cool, and nostalgia is the icing on the cake.
This is my main reason.
Although I'm about to help a friend clean up her circa-1998 PowerBook G3. After 14 years, and 8 years since its last OS upgrade, it's starting to get crufty.
I'm going to upgrade it to Tiger, the latest iTunes that works on it (she got a newish iPod nano, which requires a much newer version of iTunes than she has,) and add TenFourFox. Then I'll up the RAM (I have a spare stick lying around that'll work in it,) and add an AirPort Card (same.) This system hasn't been on the internet in forever, and she doesn't have a home internet connection, but she did express a desire to use her phone as a hotspot occasionally to do things on the computer rather than her phone.
Because they're just really cool and vintage equipment just makes me feel happy. My 512Ke can't do very much by modern standards but it looks great, is fun to mess about with and is a real piece of history. I didn't even have it for years, I just bought it on eBay a month ago, because I can
I'm sure most people have a reasonably modern computer in addition to their vintage Mac(s). It's kinda the same as people who buy vintage cars
I not only love these vintage Macs, but i plan to developing on them. In the good old days, i've made many c64 assembly stuffs, like intros, demos, utilities, later i did the same on Amiga, GameBoy, and GameBoy advance. And now i feel the need of making someting on OS 7, and i will try to port some simple games, but with some graphic effecs never seen on these old mac, like (60/67 fps) smooth scrolling. So for me, these old machines are for fun, to remember the old days...
Using Vintage Mac is like a Russian roulette.Nothing is stable and nothing is perfect. I love this. Risking everything while trying to install an app through 1.44 diskettes.
Our new and perfect computers have limited "toys" to play with.Never amaze me.Its only we need them to work.
The old ones are a whole different kind of thinking because there is this "thinking" factor.A whole different kind of joy that no modern computer can give to me.
Our new and perfect computers have limited "toys" to play with.Never amaze me.Its only we need them to work.
The old ones are a whole different kind of thinking because there is this "thinking" factor.A whole different kind of joy that no modern computer can give to me.