Should I Wait For OS X?
Low End Mac Reader Specials
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Mac users can finally play Party Poker for Mac. Not only that, they can also learn how to play PokerStars for Mac.
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New iMac 800Mhz Memory 4GB $98, 2GB $50. Click to Maximize your Macs...
Dan Knight - 1999.11.29
Q. I enjoyed your article, Time to Buy an iMac? Personally, I'm still using my 6-1/2 year old Quadra 800 quite successfully. I know that $5,500 was a lot of money back in Spring '93, and I'm squeezing every last bit of power out of it. For most tasks, it seems about as fast as the pre-G3 Power PC machines. But on another note, I also have real problems with the stability of newer versions of the Mac OS on Power PCs.
My 800 runs System 7.6.1 and hardly ever crashes, even while using lots of devices, printing, networking, etc. simultaneously. Power PCs seem to crash much more often and suffer from extreme System Folder bloat. I'm anxiously awaiting Mac OS X, which offers the hope of Unix-like stability.
If that proves true, I'll be the first person to sign up for a G4. Any thoughts?
A. Until a little over a year ago, I was getting by with a
Centris 610 (20 MHz 68LC040, about
half the speed of your 800). Once we hit about 132-180 MHz
604-based Macs at work, the Centris just seemed too pokey -
especially for my primary task, Web design. I could have spent
about $300 for a QuadDoubler that would double CPU speed and
provide the FPU my Centris lacked, but that plus a larger hard
drive and a faster CD-ROM (mine was an external 1x unit) would
bring the cost of updating the computer to about $800.
Fortunately that was about the time the last clones were discontinued; the SuperMac machines went on "fire sale" pricing in June 1998. So I replaced my $1,300 (original cost) Centris 610 with an $800 (discounted from $1,800!) SuperMac J700, a180 MHz 604e machine. I haven't regretted it. I'll probably be happy with this for another two-to-four years, especially since I can drop in a fast G3 or G4 card later on.
(Honest truth: I ordered a replacement computer this week. Small Dog Electronics had stripped SuperMac S900s for $299. I'll put everything from my J700 into the S900, then drop my old video card and an old hard drive in the J700, along with a third-party 4x CD-ROM drive and $39 180 MHz 604e processor. My new computer will be exactly like what I'm using now, but in a tower configuration with two extra PCI slots. And my old computer will be just like it was when I bought it. The J700 will become my new home server, replacing a Centris 660av handling IPNetRouter, a Quadra 650 running Stalker Internet Mail Server and NetPresenz, and a Quadra 630 using Macjordomo to process over a dozen mailing lists. Low End Mac really is a low-end operation.)
My SuperMacs will run OS 8.1, 8.6, and 9.0, although Apple won't officially support them on a clone. I've heard OS 9 is incredibly stable, but I won't try it until I get my "new" SuperMac S900 set up and have a second hard drive to play with.
All of these versions of the Mac OS are very stable. I run OS 8.1 on every Quadra in the house. They're solid as rocks. Ditto for the SuperMacs and Power Macs running OS 8.6 - and 9.0 appears to be even better.
Since nothing I currently own may ever run OS X, that's not an issue for me. Some day it would be great to have it, but until then, my older Quadras and Power Macs will keep my happy.
If you have enough memory (at least 24 MB, preferably more),
visit Small Dog for some
great deals on a Mac OS 8.1 CD - usually available for under $30
(depending on the current special).
Not sure if you should upgrade your old Mac or replace it? Check the Mac Daniel index to see if we've already addressed your problem.
Recent Mac Daniel columns
- Bringing G3 iMacs and other G3 Macs into the Tiger Age, Dan Knight, 12.07. Tips on hard drives, memory, WiFi, and getting Mac OS X 10.4 installed on G3 iMacs and other older G3 Macs.
- Multiple users on the same Mac at work, Dan Knight, 11.15. How to set up a Mac so multiple users can log in and use it - and use the same pool of work files.
- 1 working eMac from 2 broken ones, Dan Knight, 11.14. A pair of matching eMacs, each with a different failure, results in one working eMac and lots of leftovers.
- More in the Mac Daniel index.
Recent Content on Low End Mac
- Time Machine can now backup to a shard hard drive, Alan Zisman, Zis Mac, 07.08. Earlier versions of Leopard didn't seem to allow backup to a shared drive on another Mac, but the 10.5.4 update allows it.
- More air: Expectations for future MacBook and MacBook Pro models, Dan Knight, Mac Musings, 07.08. Next generation 'Books are expected to include Intel's next generation Montevino processor, but wireless power and wireless USB could give Apple a leg up on the competition.
- Safari 3.1 Is the best browser for Macs and for Windows, Carl Nygren, Classic Macs in the Intel Age, 07.08. Apple's Safari browser is fast, lightweight, and compatible with pretty much any website that doesn't require users to run Windows and Internet Explorer 5.5 or later.
- Best iBook G3 deals, Low End Mac Deals, 07.08. Used clamshell, $100; 500 MHz CD, $169; 700, $279; 600 CD-RW, $240; 900 Combo, $299; 14" 700, $300; 900, $449.
- Best Power Mac G4 deals, Low End Mac Deals, 07.08. Used 450 MHz ACP, $79; 533 DA, $100; 867 QS, $200; 1.25 GHz MDD Combo, $375; 867 dual, $325; 1 GHz, $395; 1.25, $529; 1.42, $619.
- Best classic iPod deals, Low End Mac Deals, 07.08. Used 20 GB, $100; 30, $120; 40, $150; 60 color, $175; 30 video, $160; 80, $200; refurb 80 classic, $209; new, $229; refurb 160, $299; new, $319.
- Mac of the Day: 'Lombard' PowerBook G3, June 1999 - 'bronze keyboard' model is first PowerBook with USB, reaches 400 MHz, trims almost 2 lb.
- List of the Day: PowerList for those using Power Computing Mac clones.
- July 9 in LEM history: 01: Anti-spam measures marginalize low-end Macs - Color Classics on eBay - DSL diary - The 25th Anniversary Mac - 02: eMac test drive - Women in IT - 03: A week with an eMac - Are Apple's applications helping or hurting? - 04: Hardware failure, that rare Mac headache - Radeon Enabler unlocks video features
- Macintosh reliability improving since the shift to Intel, Kev Kitchens, Kitchens Sync, 07.07. For a while in the G3 and G4 era, Apple was plagued with logic board failures and analog board problems, but they seem to be a thing of the past.
- 1.8 GHz, SSD MacBook Air price cuts; Samsung vs. Hitachi notebook drives; Centrino 2 preorders; and more, The 'Book Review, 07.07. Also MacBook shipments up 61% over Q1 2007, Apple notebook redesign rumored, Santa Rosa MacBook Pro video failure, Mopar in-vehicle wireless Internet, bargain 'Books from $150 to $2,749, and m
- iPhone 3G service more costly in States, outrageous in Canada, and more, iNews Review, 07.07. Also long fingernails and the iPhone, future iPhone may include keyboard and Intel Atom CPU, voice control for iPods, Ringtons Studio for the iPhone, and more.
- Best MacBook deals, Low End Mac Deals, 07.07. Used 1.83 GHz Combo, $819; 2.0 SD, $975; refurb 2.1 GHz Combo, $949; 2.4 SD, $1,099; black, $1,299; new 2.1 Combo, $1,005 a/r; 2.2 SD, $1,205 a/r; more.
- Best eMac deals, Low End Mac Deals, 07.07. Used 700 MHz CD, $140; CD-RW, $150; Combo, $170; 1 GHz, $200; 1.25 GHz SD, $230; 1.42 GHz Combo, $300; SuperDrive, $439.
- Best Mac OS X 10.0-10.3 deals, Low End Mac Deals, 07.07. Mac OS X 10.0.3, $40; 10.1, $49; 10.2, $60; 10.3 DVD, $80; CD, $160; 10.1 Server, unlimited users, $80; 10.3 Server, unlimited, $130.
- More links in our archive.
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