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Recycled Computing
iBooks on TV, Hard Drive Swaps, and Using an iBook as a Desktop
- 2009.02.23
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I number of alert readers pointed out to me that the 1st generation iPod touch doesn't have a microphone connection through the headphone jack, so the only way to get audio into the iPod is to use a microphone through the dock connector. Fortunately, the Macally iVoice III is available, and it seems to work better with Fring if you wait until after Fring loads before attaching it to the iPod.
I am currently looking for a recording application to see if I can record from, say, another iPod or CD player. (The iVoice III has a stereo input on its base.)
Macs in Media
From the department of "Computers on TV and in the Movies": I was able to buy the first two seasons of Angel (a Buffy the Vampire Slayer spin-off) for peanuts. Right in the middle of watching the second season, I gasped in amazement. Cordelia Chase (Angel's sidekick and office manager) was using a clamshell iBook. Not just any clamshell, a gray one. Which means that it is the "Paris" iBook with FireWire. I would love to have one of those!

Incidentally, this is why my wife loves me. If I see a pretty girl with a computer, I lust after the computer. Of course, thirty years ago . . . they didn't make iBooks.
Hard Drive Swaps
I am still in the planning stages of moving the hard drive out of the Pismo and swapping it with the hard drive in the G4 iBook that my daughter bequeathed to me from college. I figure that the first step will be removing the 60 GB drive from the G4 iBook.
This looks like the messy part of the entire process. After the long removal procedure, the G4 is going to have to sit for a while, in tiny pieces, while I clone the contents of the Pismo onto the 60 GB drive of the G4. I can remove the 160 GB drive from the Pismo (much easier than the removal of the G4's drive) and then install it into the G4. The 60 GB goes into the Pismo, and I can reinstall "Leopard" on the G4 with the 160 GB drive. I also have a 160 GB FireWire drive that I plan to use with Time Machine to back up the G4.
iBook in Desktop Duty
I still like the Pismo as my regular laptop. Since the iBook G4 has a thin stripe of pixel death, I will use it as a laptop hub for my wireless network at my home. At some point I'll pick up a monitor to use with it. I'd rather use a laptop as desktop, since there is always the possibility of disconnecting the laptop and using it as a laptop. (You can't disconnect a desktop and use it as a laptop!)
I also plan to use the iBook G4 to back up the Pismo every once and while by migrating my settings and files from the Pismo to the iBook. "Tiger" for the Pismo and "Leopard" - the nice thing about the two cats is that they play very well together
This weekend I'm going to "test" the iBook by hooking it up to the snake's nest of wires that hooks my accessories to my main computer.
Life is good, but wouldn't it be nice to have a "Paris" clamshell?
Recent Recycled Computing Columns
- Replacing the Hard Drive in a Clamshell iBook, 11.19. Yes, it is one of the most difficult Apple notebooks to disassemble and reassemble, but a 10 GB hard drive just will not do.
- Macintosh Remote Control with Chicken of the VNC, 10.06. Sometimes you want to or need to control another Mac remotely. The free Chicken of the VNC program is a great tool for doing exactly that.
- Upgrading a Pismo PowerBook with a Slot-load Drive Salvaged from an iBook, 10.01. Starting with a spare DVD-ROM module and the SuperDrive from a G4 iBook, the author ended up with a SuperDrive in his Pismo PowerBook.
- Why the 20" iMac Is Perfect for Home or School, 09.29. The aluminum iMac has plenty of power and screen space, yet it's small enough and light enough to tote from place to place.
- More in the Recycled Computing index.
Links for the Day
- Mac of the Day: Mac mini Core Solo, Feb. 2006 - The only Mac to use a Core Solo CPU, this model ran at 1.5 GHz, has integrated graphics, and includes a Combo drive
- Group of the Day: SuperMacs is for those using Umax SuperMac clones.
- November 24 in LEM history: 98: Microsoft's heavy hand - 00: Looking at the iMac - 04: The best Mac for the holidays - Picking the right replacement for a dead mouse - Better battery for 15" AlBook
- Support Low End Mac
Recent Content on Low End Mac
- Why Spaces is My Favorite Leopard (and Snow Leopard) Feature, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 11.23. Spaces, a feature introduced with OS X 10.5, is like having several monitors on your Mac without the cost and space of using multiple displays.
- i5 iMac Benchmarked, Mac mini 'Shouldn't Be Overlooked', Twitter Client for Classic Mac OS, and More, Mac News Review, 11.20. Also why Apple leaves the low end to others, 10.6.2 fixes video playback problem in 27" iMac, 3D Leopard and Snow Leopard performance, and more.
- Apple's Tablet an End Run Beyond Netbooks, Frank Fox, Stop the Noiz, 11.20. Whatever Apple has planned will leverage existing technologies while going beyond what its competitors can offer.
- Apple #4 in Reliability, Apple Tablet a Gadget for All?, HP's i7 Notebook Outdoes Mac Rivals, and More, The 'Book Review, 11.20. Also Flash 10.1 improves video on Hackintosh netbooks, thin-and-light notebooks impress, Windows XP finally on the way out, and more.
- NASA Chemical Sensor for iPhone, Smartphone Death Match, iPhone Earrings, and More, Ian R Campbell, 11.20. Also mobile phone dangers, new apps, GPS solution for iPod touch, new iPod and iPhone cases, and more.
- IBM Model F: A Great Old Keyboard with an Outdated Layout, Tommy Thomas, Welcome to Macintosh, 11.19. Although it used a different technology than the revered IBM Model M keyboard, the Model F was a great keyboard in its own right.
- More links in our archive.
Recent Deals
- Best G4 iMac Deals, 11.24. Used 15" 700 MHz CD-RW, $150; 800 MHz Combo, $229; 1 GHz, $289; 17" 1.25 GHz, $200; 20" 1.25 GHz, $509.
- Best MacBook Air Deals, 11.24. Used from $899; refurb from $1,099; new 1.6 GHz/120 HD, $1,150 after rebate; 1.8/64 SSD, $1,150 a/r; 1.86/128 SSD, $1,350 a/r; 2.13/128 SSD, $1,694 a/r.
- Best PowerBook G3 Deals, 11.24. Used 233 MHz WallStreet, $75; 266 MHz, $160; 400 MHz Lombard, $199; 400 MHz Pismo, $289; 500 MHz, $350.
- Best 12" PowerBook G4 Deals, 11.23. Used 867 MHz SuperDrive, $348; 1 GHz Combo, $379; SD, $519; 1.33 GHz, $529; 1.5 GHz Combo, $549; SuperDrive, $609.
- Best Mac Pro Deals, 11.23. Used 2.66 GHz 4-core, $1,300; 3.0 4-core. $1,919; refurb 2.66 4-core Nehalem, $2,149; 2.93, $2,549; 2.93 8-core, $4,999; new 2.26 8-core, $2,290.
- Best Time Capsule and AirPort Deals, 11.23. Used 802.11g AirPort Extreme, $49; 500 GB Time Capsule, $150; new, $190; 1 TB dual-band, $280; 2 TB, $469; 802.11n AirPort Extreme, $170.
- Best eMac Deals, 11.18. Used 1 GHz Combo, $100; SuperDrive, $269; 1.25 GHz Combo, $119; SD, $319; 1.42 GHz Combo, $289; SD, $498.
- Best Mac OS X 10.6 and Mac Box Set Deals, 11.18. "Snow Leopard", single user, $25; 5 users, $45; Mac Box Set, single user, $139; 5 users, $180; Server, $414. Shipping included.
- Best Xserve Deals, 11.18. Used 1 GHz dual G4, $649; 2.3 dual G5, $795; 3.0 4-core Xeon, $1,899; refurb 2.26 4-core, $2,499; new, $2,888; refurb 8-core, $2,999; new, $3,449; more.
- More deals in our archive.
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