Best OS for an original G3 PowerBook?

March 20, 2006 11:54 AM

What's the best operating system for an original PowerBook G3?

I have an original G3 PowerBook (Kanga). It's only got 342 MB and upgrades are expensive. I use it for word-processing and emails for the most part. It is too slow for much web browsing.

It came with OS 8.5. It will run up to OS 9.1. Which is the best OS to use with it, 8 or 9? What extra features would OS 9 give me?

posted by Grinder to Computers & Internet (15 answers total)

Response by poster: I mean 32 MB....
posted by Grinder at 11:55 AM on March 20, 2006

OS9 will give you better TCP/IP and Appletalk over IP. You should be able to run IE, Netscape and Eudora, Office 98 etc without trouble. You can network to OS X systems very easily.
posted by Gungho at 11:58 AM on March 20, 2006

Oh, only 32... Beg borrow or steal some additional RAM and the browsing won't be so slow.
posted by Gungho at 11:59 AM on March 20, 2006

I woudl stick with 9.1

I ran OS X on my Wallstreet G3 PB and it ran slooooow. Of course you could always install both and make it a duel boot. That way in case you need to run any OSX stuff you could.

OS 9 incorporated, from what I understand, a lot of the tech that ended up in OS X...I think such things are protected memory, better multitasking etc. In many ways it was a test bed for a lot of the OS X tech. It also is probably the most stable of the Pre-OSX OSs.

Mac OS 8.5.x (two releases) (Fall 1998)

Requires a PowerPC processor

Introduces Sherlock, a powerful volume and Internet searching utility that replaces Find File

AppleScript rewritten to be PowerPC native, greatly improving performance

Ability to anti-alias all text on the screen

Built-in application switcher and "tear off" Application menu

HTML-based help system

Interface enhancements such as smart scrolling, resizable Finder columns, 32-bit icons, icon tags, themes, and URL "aliases"
Mac OS 8.6 (Spring 1999)

Built-in nanokernel that improves performance and reduces CPU power usage

Newer computers (e.g., iMac, "blue and white" Power Macintosh G3/G4, "bronze" PowerBook G3, iBook) have the capability to boot off the network if an appropriate server is present.

Game Sprockets included with the operating system (formerly a separate install)

Improvements to Sherlock, LaserWriter 8, DVD-RAM, FireWire, Speech Recognition, and other components
Mac OS 9.0.x (two releases) (Fall 1999)

Support for multiple users, storing individual preferences for each and with several levels of access

Improved security with the Keychain (stores passwords), voiceprint authentication, and encrypted file transfers

File sharing via TCP/IP with another Mac OS computer without the need for AppleShare IP

Sherlock, dubbed Sherlock 2, updated for performance and capability

Ability to automatically download software updates from the Internet and install them

Support for Carbon and Carbonized applications
Mac OS 9.1 (Spring 2001)

Several changes for improved compatibility with Mac OS X, including a slightly reorganized folder structure, OS X-aware Startup Disk control panel

USB printer sharing over TCP/IP

Apple File Security increased to 128-bit encryption

Finder shortcuts to empty the trash, add to favorites, and show folder view options
posted by UMDirector at 12:00 PM on March 20, 2006

If it's going to cost you to upgrade the software, don't bother. Spend the money towards a low end used iBook instead.

If the upgrade is free, go for the latest version of 9 that will work, for the reasons that Gungho lists.
posted by tkolar at 12:01 PM on March 20, 2006

Yeah, 9.2 will work just fine. At least 8.6. A lot of newer apps require that you have at least Mac OS 8.6. However, there are very few non-OS X browsers. Mozilla is dead, there's no Firefox, IE is dead, so it's either Netscape 4.7 or something like iCab.
Internet Explorer 5 (which came with 9.x) fails to render a lot of modern sites. I was just playing with 9.2 the other night, and my nostalgic feeling was quickly squashed when I remembered how funky things really were.

UMDirector is thinking of the wrong PowerBook. Mac OS X will not run native on the *original* PowerBook G3 (the Kanga, as the OP mentioned. It's in the same case as the 3400.) I had one of those for the longest time.

And in the meantime, keep saving up for something faster & newer. :)
posted by drstein at 12:08 PM on March 20, 2006

OS 9 incorporated, from what I understand, a lot of the tech that ended up in OS X...I think such things are protected memory, better multitasking etc. In many ways it was a test bed for a lot of the OS X tech.

You're vastly overstating the case. There was some crossover in order to let Carbon apps run on both OS's, but that's about all. Even in OS 9 the memory protection and multitasking were pretty laughable compared to OS X.
posted by xil at 12:09 PM on March 20, 2006

You could always try yellowdog - Linux for PPC. It's not OSX, but it might be easier to find (free) software for it, and it'll run on your hardware.
posted by caution live frogs at 12:13 PM on March 20, 2006

Response by poster: Yes, this machine won't run X. Not that I'd want to in that much memory.

I have used both 8 and 9 on various machines and couldn't see any real difference between them. 9 didn't seem much stabler and I didn't feel it multi-tasked better.

I've been thinking about Yellowdog as a good option. I know my way around Linux but have lost touch with it in recent years. The PB has a big enough HD (for something of its vintage) - a whole 5 GB! - so I could share it between both OSes.
posted by Grinder at 12:18 PM on March 20, 2006

I stand corrected...guess my Apple code name knowledge is not up to snuff! Add my vote to if at all possible dump the machine and spend a few bucks on a used iBook.

Quick glance on ebay says $100-$300 for older iBook G3...either clamshell or the newer white ones depending on features.
posted by UMDirector at 12:25 PM on March 20, 2006

Response by poster: I hadn't actually thought about upgrading the computer itself - it works fine and is well able to handle typing. Hmm.
posted by Grinder at 12:52 PM on March 20, 2006

Grinder writes...
I hadn't actually thought about upgrading the computer itself - it works fine and is well able to handle typing. Hmm.

Having used OS X, I find it hard to ponder going back to 9 or less. But then, I'm a big time Unix weenie.
posted by tkolar at 2:20 PM on March 20, 2006

If you're going Linux, don't bother with yellowdog, go Ubuntu. I installed it on a Bronze recently and it worked fine, though that Powerbook had more than 32MB RAM.
posted by AmbroseChapel at 2:35 PM on March 20, 2006

Or you can just ignore the "install Linux on it" comments and use it for what you want to with software that works. Heh.

The original G3 was kind of funky. Trying to install Linux on it might just drive you batshit insane. I'd just stick with a Mac OS release, and when you can afford it, move up to a used iBook or something.
posted by drstein at 4:09 PM on March 20, 2006

I still use 8.6 on an older G3 desktop mac. The only problem I've run into is when I try to connect to it over the network from OS X. I get the error "This file server uses an incompatible version of the AFP protocol. You cannot connect to it."

I can connect to OS X from 8.6, but not from OS X to 8.6. I'm not sure if this problem would be fixed in OS 9.

Other than that one minor note, 8.6 works fine for word processing, small scans and other simple tasks.
posted by letitrain at 4:35 PM on March 20, 2006