Possible change in computers, some thoughts

[voodoopenguin]

So, I'm sitting here in front of a single screen and can swap it between my G4 1 GHz Mirror Door and my G5 Dual 1.8 sitting next to it (both folding happily by the way). The G4 is my everyday internet, letter writing etc. machine and the G5 is used for PhotoShop stuff, music and video editing. My wife has her year old 1.8 G5 iMac which was a replacement for her G3 Pismo PowerBook. Sitting unused on the shelf are the PowerBook and a G3 iBook 600.

So I'm now thinking. I could sell the two laptops and the Mirror Door and buy a MacBook or MacBook Pro, possibly a refurb. Most of the time it could be hooked up to a full size keyboard and the bigger monitor as a replacement for the Mirror Door but it would give me the portability the few times I need it like when we go on holiday or we want to show photos to people we are visiting or even use as a demo machine at our local MUG meeting.

It all sounds right, it would give me entry into the world of Intel, clear shelf space, even a bit more street cred when I take it out but is there anything where I might have a problem? Losing the Mirror Door would mean getting rid of the last machine we have that can boot into MacOS 9 natively but I haven't used 9, even in Classic mode, for at least a year so that won't be a hardship. I shouldn't have to fork out too much extra cash if I went for the MacBook.

What about printers and scanners? At the moment it's an Epson R200 and an Epson 3200 Photo. Anything else I should think of?

[MacMagus]

> Losing the Mirror Door would mean getting rid of the last machine we have that can boot into MacOS 9 natively...

I was talking about a similar move for my brother recently.

He was all for it until he needed the data from a disk image off of an old CD and discovered that it was a ShrinkWrap image. 'Only opens when booted into the old OS. 'Doesn't work in Classic. Much of his old work is archived that way.

He's keeping that G4 and saving his money for a Mac Pro. If Sheepshaver can run ShrinkWrap then he might ditch the G4 after he's moved to the Intel Mac.

[modelamac]

You are on the right track. I'd do it if I were you, and go for the MB. It worked for me.

[vicrock]

MacMagus - seems like if he knew of the shrinkwrapped files, he could un shrink them - archive to CD or DVD and then kiss the OS 9 necessity good bye forever.

[MacMagus]

> MacMagus - seems like if he knew of the shrinkwrapped files, he could un shrink
> them - archive to CD or DVD and then kiss the OS 9 necessity good bye forever.

It's a heck of a lot of work to go through hundreds of CD's trying to find every disk image, including the ones that were compressed in Stuffit archives, mount them, copy the data off of them and re-archive them.

Who has that kind of time or the disposable income to pay someone else to do that?

[Dennis S]

I like a G3 slot-loading iMac with Firewire as a cheap mac that will use OS 9 for around $100.

[Carthaigh]

[quote voodoopenguin]It all sounds right, it would give me entry into the world of Intel, clear shelf space, even a bit more street cred when I take it out but is there anything where I might have a problem?
You still wont have as much street cred as Martha Stewart. Think about it.

[mattkime]

>>Who has that kind of time or the disposable income to pay someone else to do that?

Who's dumb enough to tie important backups to an outdated machine running a dying operating system?

[MacMagus]

> Who's dumb enough to tie important backups to an outdated machine running a dying operating system?

Yeah, that was so predictable back at System 8.1.