PowerBook 5300: The Real PowerBook

The concept of Luddite Mac appeals to me at the gut level, because I am temperamentally resistant to change. When I have found something that works well for me, I’m happy to stick with it and reluctant to move along to the next big thing.

Peak Performa

It’s not often I get to write anything but groundless rumors for Luddite Mac, but the opportunity to look back at one of Apple’s finest computers ever got my interest.

I’m Not Moving to GS/OS!

Everyone is talking about how great the GS/OS is for the Apple IIGS. Sure, it looks good, and it’s rock solid, but I think I’m going to stick with ProDOS for a few reasons.

The SE/30 Is the Perfect Mac

The first Mac didn’t quite cut it. With 128 KB of RAM, a single-sided 400K floppy, and no native support for a hard drive, it was a proof of concept machine…

Why the Mac Plus Is Best

Q: My Dual 450 MHz G4 keeps crashing when I try to load one of my daughter’s games. I recently upgraded to OS X, and I believe the problem is occurring when classic mode is booted. Can you help?

The $299 2 GHz iMac ‘040

2002 – The G4 has finally reached the 1 GHz mark. This comes even as chips from Intel and AMD surpass the 2 GHz level. Will Apple ever catch up, let alone surpass its PC counterparts in MHz? The answer may lie in revisiting a decision made over eight years ago.

The March on Redmond

It all started with the keynote. The lucky few who were there, the invitees in the stores and the streaming video downloaders all knew…

Getting the Most from Your Older Mac

Luddite Mac is a somewhat tongue-in-cheek celebration of vintage Macs — and even Apple IIs. The point we always try to make at Low End Mac is that until it dies no computer is ever less capable than it was when you bought it, so try to make the most of it. Our other focus […]

Windows XP Beta 2: Only 106,500 Bugs

A senior programmer high in Microsoft’s Windows XP development team has written me with details on many additional improvements WinXP packs that were previously unknown to testers of XP Beta 2. The focus of the email was on the bugs in XP Beta 2.

Going High End Requires Some Adjusting

It had to happen, what with Dan Knight getting a new TiBook and retiring his Umax SuperMac S900. Dan sets the tone of things for the now-former Low End Mac, being the founder, publisher, editor, and all, and there is nothing “low end” about a titanium G4 PowerBook.

iPerforma

This is a review of iPerforma, the next generation of Macs to hit the desktop and replace my vintage Performa.

Firmware Truth

Remember last weekend? Apple quietly released a firmware update Friday evening that disabled third-party memory in a lot of newer Macs. By Saturday morning, the Mac Web was abuzz with warnings and theories.

Just Wait

I must respectfully disagree with the new focus of Low End, er, make that High End Mac. Simply replacing your old Mac every two years, or three at most, isn’t the whole solution to Apple’s financial crisis or the consumer’s lust for power.

Lost Desktop Pattern

Q: My favorite desktop pattern disappeared. How do I get it back? A: Buy a new computer. With a faster machine, you’ll save precious time…

The Virtues of a G4

I don’t understand why Low End Mac readers stick with your old clones or pre-G3 computers. I’ve been using Macintoshes since 1994, and most of the time I’ve had one of the latest machines. To me, living without the latest, most powerful stuff is unthinkable.

About High End Mac

Hey, what happened to Low End Mac? Have you guys gone nuts? No. We realize that the future of the Macintosh platform is intimately tied to the future of Apple Computer. If you don’t buy a new Mac every now and then, Apple suffers financially…

Buy New Every Two

A local auto dealer has been pushing “drive new every two” for a few years. It’s also become the norm in the Windows world, where three years used to be the norm. Mac users, it’s time to make “buy new every two” our battle cry as well!

The Apple Digital Hub

I accidentally set my system clock ahead to 2020 while fiddling around with time zones, and then I received this email. I started to delete it as spam, but I kept it just in case….

Low End Win

Welcome to Low End Win, our April Fools 2000 idea of what a low-end Windows website might be. Several other Mac sites joined us in the fun of defecting from Apple for the day!

‘286 Gaming Prowess

So you’ve got an old 286 sitting around, and you want to have some fun with it. Most people believe that computers from this era are entirely obsolete. Not true!

Some Thoughts on Going PC

It is with mixed emotions that I join Low End Mac’s transition to Low End Win. After all, I’ve spent so much time and effort over the past eight years evangelizing the Mac and doing my best to convince anyone who would listen that Windows is an inferior alternative to the Mac experience.

The iPaq: What Is Compaq Thinking?

What is Compaq thinking these days? The world’s biggest computer company, world renowned for its cheaply built computers sometimes lacking a plastic case, which we all know is the best way to make them, has suddenly turned to a bizarre concept…