BigEndian wrote:
> I need to keep my PowerPC skills up. Can anyone recommend a cheap
> (sub $200) Linux PowerPC platform? Maybe an older Mac on ebay???
> What's best?

IMO, the best old Macs in that price range are the PowerSurge series
(the 7300/7500/7600, 8500/8600, and 9500/9600), as well as the original
"beige" Power Mac G3s. The 9x00s still command more of a premium due to
having 6 PCI slots, something no other Mac has had since they were
discontinued, but are still under $200 on eBay. (The later Blue and
White G3 is still somewhat expensive, but can be found for ~$200 if you
look sharp and act quickly.)

If you get a PowerSurge machine, you might also want to get a G3 upgrade
for it, if the processor in it is slower than 250 MHz anyway. Even with
the PowerSurge's relatively slow system bus (50 MHz maximum), it makes
quite a difference, and (if you're willing to spend the cash) you can
even put a G4 in one.

Don't get a first-gen Power Mac (6100/7100/8100), a NuBus 603 Mac or a
7200 if you can help it. The first-gens and the 7200 are 601 machines
and their 601 isn't (easily) upgradable. The NuBus 603 Macs are cobbled
together from Quadra 605/630 parts, have stability problems due to Apple
basically integrating a PPC Upgrade Card into a 630 mainboard, and
didn't run well even in MacOS -- the PCI 603s like the 6360 are better,
but not as common as the PowerSurges.

-lee

"BigEndian" wrote in message
news:de2d3bb7.0402271751.7f30b71f@posting.google.c om...
> I need to keep my PowerPC skills up. Can anyone recommend a cheap
> (sub $200) Linux PowerPC platform? Maybe an older Mac on ebay???
> What's best?
>
> Thanks,
> BigEndian



For anyone who is looking for a "new open platform PowerPC solution" in microATX
formfactor, AGP slot 3 PCI slots and 2 year warranty, check this out:

www.pegasosppc.com
https://www.pegasosppc.com/purchase.php <- international resellers.
https://www.pegasosppc.com/store.php <- direct sales.

On Fri, 27 Feb 2004 21:56:45 -0500, Lee Cremeans :
> BigEndian wrote:
> > I need to keep my PowerPC skills up. Can anyone recommend a cheap
> > (sub $200) Linux PowerPC platform? Maybe an older Mac on ebay???
> > What's best?
>
> discontinued, but are still under $200 on eBay. (The later Blue and
> White G3 is still somewhat expensive, but can be found for ~$200 if you
> look sharp and act quickly.)

The _earlier_ G3 iMacs have reached Apple End of Life and can't be
upgraded to OS X. It makes a fine Linux box though.


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On Sat, 06 Mar 2004 20:55:59 +0000, s. keeling wrote:

> The _earlier_ G3 iMacs have reached Apple End of Life and can't be
> upgraded to OS X. It makes a fine Linux box though.

I'm not sure precisely how early you're talking about, but I've got a 1999
266MHz iMac (upgraded to 192MB of RAM) that's running Mac OS X 10.3 just
fine. It's a bit sluggish at times, but it does run. (Overall, I prefer
Linux on my iMac; with a slim desktop environment like XFce, it's still
pretty useable.) Perhaps Apple doesn't officially support OS X on iMacs
from this era, but the OS does run; or perhaps you're thinking of still
earlier iMacs (the bondi blue ones). FWIW, the Max OS X 10.3 box doesn't
say anything about iMacs being unsupported; it just says you need a Mac
with a G3 (or better) CPU, USB, and 128MB of RAM.

--
Rod Smith, rodsmith@rodsbooks.com
http://www.rodsbooks.com
Author of books on Linux, FreeBSD, and networking