Recycled Computing

Bringing Back the Pismo

- 2010.09.23

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Short link: http://bit.ly/actFju

It's all because I really couldn't get my iSub to work with Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard. So I decided that I would use my Pismo to play music, since the iSub worked fine with it.

Out of Storage

So I dragged it out of storage and discovered that I had forgotten to register OS X 10.4 Tiger when I did my last reinstall (after I updated to Leopard and the 12" PowerBook G4). Time had passed. So I got out my Tiger Install DVD and proceeded to put in my DVD burner module into the Pismo.

Pismo with two batteries Let's stop and reconsider the modular approach to laptops. Back in the day, every manufacturer had a laptop that allowed users to reconfigure their hardware to meet different needs. For instance, you could install two batteries - or one battery and an optical drive or floppy drive or hard drive module. The Pismo uses this modular approach to laptop design and construction, and that's one of the reasons I am fond of it.

Back to the reinstall.

After the Tiger disc finished installing, it rebooted the Pismo and prompted me to select a computer to download my "old" information from (user accounts, applications, data, etc.). Out came my DVD module, and in went my hard drive module with a duplicate of my Pismo's startup disk. In no time flat, I had reinstalled Tiger and all my account information.

This time, of course, I remembered to register Tiger with the Apple mothership.

The fly in the ointment was updated Safari and iTunes. Due to Apple's move away from PowerPC processors, I could only update Safari to version 4, not the current 5.

No iTunes 10, but 9 Works

As for iTunes, version 10 was out of the picture. Apple had a link for G3 processors to iTunes 8.2.1. The problem is that this version of Safari does not have Home Sharing, a feature that I cannot live without. With my old sage iMac DV G3 repurposed as a digital jukebox and attached to my home stereo, I have to have a way to update it from the iTunes library on my PowerBook G4. And, of course, update the Pismo from the PowerBook.

Apple be darned. I updated to iTunes 9.1.1 (the last version that doesn't require a G4 or newer) and started importing songs. So far, so good. Another victory for "left behind" technology. I am listening to Marvin Gaye right now. All you have to do is search the Apple site for iTunes 9 and download it from there. I suppose if you don't mind losing the Home Sharing feature, you could follow Apple's link to iTunes 8.2.1, but I cannot live without Home Sharing.

Besides, I always want to see if I can get the latest and greatest on the old Pismo.

Moving Files from Your iPod to Your Mac

Occasionally you might find the need to transfer your library from your iPod back to your computer. This happened to me not long ago. Senuti used to be free, but times have changed, and my search of the Internet for a free app to move songs from my iPod touch to my PowerBook was long and exhausting. I needed to have something that would work with the Pismo's G3 processor and my (relatively new) first generation iPod touch.

Did I mention it had to be free?

I noticed that Windows users have all sorts of options, but I finally found Expod. (Expod has been replaced by DeTune, but DeTune requires Leopard.) I found Expod a little clunky to use, but it did move my songs from the iPod to my Pismo.

I know Apple doesn't support this type of move, but my iTunes library consists of non-DRM material from my own collection of CDs, record albums, and cassette tapes, so I don't feel guilty about moving my iTunes Library around.

Additional Links

iTunes 9: Understanding Home Sharing
iTunes 9.2.1 download (requires G4 or newer)

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