iMac and eMac Index

The Original iMac (Rev. A)

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Hello (again).

Do you remember the first Mac, the one that didn't even have a model number? The amazing 8 MHz 68000 CPU, crystal clear 9" b&w screen, huge 400 KB floppy drive, and radical mouse?

Bondi iMac

Fast forward from 1984 to 1998. Using up-to-date technology, Apple created a worthy successor to the original Macintosh as a fully integrated computer. No separate monitor, no rat's nest of cables, and no external drives necessary.

With a 233 MHz PowerPC 750 (the same G3 CPU used in the beige Power Mac G3), 32 MB of RAM, a 4 GB hard drive, a 24x CD-ROM, ethernet, stereo speakers, and an integral 15" multiscan monitor, there's not much you'll need to add.

Steve Jobs introduces the iMac

Beyond recapturing a vision and providing the same usability other Macs do, the iMac breaks new ground for an Apple desktop with its Bondi (pronounced bon-die) blue color, two USB (universal serial bus) ports and an infrared port - and no floppy drive, SCSI connector, serial ports, or plugs for ADB devices.

The iMac's firmware is stored on the same card that holds the CPU and memory chips. If firmware hasn't been updated and your iMac is acting up, swapping the CPU card from a known working iMac will usually fix things. Then update the firmware in the other iMac.

  • iMac speed tip: if you have Virtual Memory on and only 32 MB RAM, set VM to 64 MB for faster performance
  • If you are using Mac OS 8.1, be sure to download iMac Update 1.1 (Update 1.0 no longer seems to be available) or later from Apple if you use any non-Apple USB devices. This update is only for Mac OS 8.1; 8.5 and later eliminate the need for this update.
  • Apple recommends iMac Update 1.1 for use with Mac OS 8.5 and 8.5.1. Note that OS 8.5.x and Update 1.0 must be installed before the 1.1 update is installed.
  • According to Apple, iMac Update 1.2 should be installed on all iMac computers used in NetBoot client environments.
  • If you are running Mac OS 8.6, Mac OS ROM Update 1.0 should be installed. You must have 8.6 installed before running this update.
  • For more information on firmware updates, see iMac: When to Install Available Updaters.

If you have a hard drive larger than 8 GB, you should partition it so that the first partition is under 8 GB in size (for simplicity, we suggest 7 GB). Failure to do this could eventually result in an unbootable computer, as all System files must be within the first 8 GB of drive space. These Macs can work successfully with larger drives for some time, but once a System files goes outside of the first 8 GB of space, you'll have nothing but problems.

Mac OS X

If you have a hard drive over 8 GB in size, you must partition it or you will not be able to install Mac OS X. If you are creating the partition within OS X, it must be smaller than 7.4 GB as reported by Disk Utility (because sometimes a GB is billion bytes and sometimes it's 1,073,741,824 bytes); we suggest simply setting it at 7 GB to avoid having to redo the whole installation if the partition ends up bigger than specified (it happens). Mac OS X must be completely within the first 8 GB of space on your hard drive or you will not be able to run OS X.

Tray-loading iMacs cannot boot from USB drives (see Apple Knowledge Base Article #58430, USB Info and Benefits of Dual-Channel USB).

Non-Apple upgrades and peripherals (such as unsupported USB devices, replacement drives, and third-party memory) may cause problems when installing or booting into Mac OS X.

Be sure that your iMac's firmware is up to date before you install Mac OS X, and read and follow all of Apple's "Read Before You Install" instructions to increase the likelihood of getting OS X installed and running on the first try.

The classic Mac OS identifies some 64 MB memory cards as only 32 MB, however OS X will correctly identify them and use all of their memory.

NOTE: The Sonnet HARMONi upgrade card, which includes a faster CPU and FireWire, was incompatible with early versions of Mac OS X 10.4. The FireWire port would tie up 100% of CPU resources. This problem was fixed in version 10.4.7 (if not earlier). If you have a HARMONi card that's had this issue, be aware that updating to 10.4.7 or newer should fix it.

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