Low End Mac’s Compleat* Guide to the Lombard PowerBook

The Lombard PowerBook G3 (officially the PowerBook G3 Bronze Keyboard) was rolled out on May 10, 1999 – exactly a year after the first WallStreet iteration of Apple’s PowerBook G3 Series laptop line debuted, also at the Worldwide Developers’ Conference (WWDC). While the Lombard superficially looks similar to the WallStreet family, it had taken a […]

Low End Mac’s Compleat* Guide to 17″ PowerBooks

Apple’s 17″ PowerBook G4, announced at Macworld Expo in January 2003, essentially eliminated any reason other than lower cost for owning a desktop computer for most of Mac users. With that big screen, plenty of speed, and an inventory of features undreamed of even in high-end desktops only a handful of years prior, this PowerBook […]

iHeartRadio Misses the Mark

We listen to radio, podcasts, my iTunes collection, and iHeartRadio at work while we assemble high pressure air hoses. The air compressors in the next room over are noisy, and so is the machine that crimps the ends on each hose. It’s a good thing the stereo has lots of power and a big speaker […]

iPad Home Button Unnecessary?, New iPad Tops Says Consumer Reports, Nat Geo Titanic App, and More

This Week’s iPad, iPhone, iPod, and Apple TV News Editor’s note: Compiled by Charles Moore edited by Dan Knight – 2012.04.05. Ported by Mark Sokolovsky on 2025.05.03. Because many businesses close early on Good Friday, and because Low End Mac’s 15th birthday is Saturday, we’re posting our news roundups a day early this week. Come back […]

Creating a Workstation That Meets Your Needs

We take the Low End part of our name seriously at Low End Mac. Until six weeks ago, my newest Mac was a refurbished 2004 1.25 GHz eMac – and that’s not even a production machine. I picked up a secondhand dual 1 GHz Power Mac G4 to replace the eMac as my production machine […]

Mac Pro (Mid 2010)

It’s been over 15 months since Apple rolled out the 2009 Mac Pro, and the 2010 Mac Pro is yet another big step forward: every configuration uses quad-core Intel Xeon Nehalem or quad-core and even hex-core Westmere CPUs for even more power. Each core has its own 256 KB Level 2 (L2) cache, each quad-core […]

Mac Pro (Early 2009)

It’s been 14 months since Apple introduced the 2008 Mac Pro, and the 2009 Mac Pro is a big step forward: every configuration uses quad-core Intel Xeon Nehalem CPUs for even more power. Each core has its own 256 KB Level 2 (L2) cache, and each quad-core CPU shares an 8 GB Level 3 (L3) […]

Mac Pro (Early 2008)

It’s been 17 months since Apple introduced the original Mac Pro, which shipped with two dual-core processors (an 8-core model with two quad-core CPUs was introduced in April 2007), and the new Mac Pro is a big step forward: every configuration uses quad-core Intel Xeon CPUs for even more power. The new 45nm Harpertown CPU […]

Mac Pro (Early 2007)

Apple introduced the Mac Pro as a fully customizable quad-core computer in 2006 and updated it to eight cores in April 2007. The buyer could choose as little as 1 GB of RAM or as much as 16 GB. 160, 250, or 500 GB in drive bay one, and optionally 500 GB in bays 2-4. WARNING: If […]

Mac Pro (Mid 2006)

Apple introduced the Mac Pro as a fully customizable quad-core computer. The buyer can choose from two dual-core Intel Xeon Woodcrest at 2.0, 2.66, or 3.0 GHz. As little as 1 GB of RAM or as much as 16 GB. 160, 250, or 500 GB in drive bay one, and optionally 500 GB in bays 2-4. […]

Screens of Plastic Could Be Fantastic

2000: Last week, Lee Dye of the Los Angeles Times reported on a research project by Ghassan Jabbour, an assistant research professor in the optical sciences department at the University of Arizona in Tucson, whose team is developing thin computer display screens so flexible that they can be folded and tucked away in your pocket.

That Sense of Mac Ownership

My first computer was a 386 PC loaded with an elegant, almost forgotten program called GeoWorks. It was an impulse purchase in the fall of ’92, during a personal crisis. I badly wanted a distraction, something I could throw myself into. I dropped $1,300 on a credit card, carted home three boxes in my Honda, and […]

Second Processor for SuperMac S900 and S910

A unique feature of the SuperMac S900 and S910 is their second processor slot. This slot accepts a proprietary CPU card and allows these machines to function as dual-processor computers without the need to remove the primary CPU and the expense of a dual-processor card. In a dual-processor system, the speed of the secondary processor […]

Short Takes 9/23/99

Short Takes, Sept. 23, 1999 Cinema Display DFP – DFI Confusion Correction Why Doesn’t iBook Have A Sound-In Port? CD-R/RW Expansion Bay Drive For Wall Street PowerBooks Lombard SCSI Disk Mode Problems Discussed How To Beat The High Price Of Wall Street Internal Modems Trackpad Clicking Not Default-Enabled On iBook Moore’s Mailbag

The Depreciation Game

July 1999: One of the baneful things about computers is that they depreciate on a curve whose trajectory resembles that of a falling rock – even worse than cars. I hate depreciation. That’s the reason I have never bought a new car and never will. Unfortunately, while a 10-year-old automobile can still be excellent, no-compromise […]

Multi-Processing: Benefits of a Secondary Processor

How an application runs, and what gains in speed may be seen on a multi-processor (MP) Mac OS computer, can be confusing. Understanding a little of how multi-processing works with software applications will help you properly set your expectations when selecting applications designed for MP and begin using them.

Send Out the Clones?

1997: The entire Mac world has been on a roller coaster ride for the last year. Good news: Power Computing, Motorola, Umax, Daystar, and others were making Mac OS computers. They were offering performance, features, and prices that made them a legitimate alternative to Apple’s own hardware. They seemed to be growing the Mac market […]

SCSI Accelerator 7.0

SCSI Accelerator 7.0 is a set of extensions that work with a Mac Plus running System 7 and allows improved SCSI throughput. As a former Mac Plus owner, I will attest to the fact that they really do work. It’s been a few years, but I believe I had my hard drive interleaved at 2:1 […]

Online Resources – 333 MHz iMac (Rev. D)

Best iMac G3 deals. Upgrades for the tray-loading iMac, 2003.05.12 (since updated). Overview of memory, hard drive, CD-RW, and CPU upgrade options for the Rev. A-D iMac. Best Classic Mac OS Deals. Best online prices for System 6, 7.1, 7.5.x, Mac OS 7.6, 8.0, 8.1, 8.5, 9.0, 9.2.2, and other versions. Best Mac OS X […]

Online Resources – 266 MHz iMac (Rev. C)

Best iMac G3 deals. Upgrades for the tray-loading iMac, 2003.05.12 (since updated). Overview of memory, hard drive, CD-RW, and CPU upgrade options for the Rev. A-D iMac. Best Classic Mac OS Deals. Best online prices for System 6, 7.1, 7.5.x, Mac OS 7.6, 8.0, 8.1, 8.5, 9.0, 9.2.2, and other versions. Best Mac OS X […]