I have two MDD G4 towers, one is a dual 867 w/ GeForce 4MX, and the other is a recently acquired dual 1.25 w/ GeForce4Ti (score!). The super MDD (the dual 1.25 one) didn't come with a hard drive or even a rear hard drive caddy, and since the dual 867 has an unstable PSU (I confirmed this because I replaced both towers' PRAM batteries and the dual 867 still has tons of random shutdowns) I harvested its rear drive bay (with both an old 60GB HDD and a 500GB quad-partitioned OWC SSD) and installed it into the super MDD. The super MDD boots successfully and can run Leopard and Classic off of the transplanted HDD (I haven't gotten around to installing OSes on the SSD yet) and recognizes both drives.

Because the super MDD's SuperDrive turned out to be unreliable (it has burn failures at both 8x and 4x, and it hasn't been able to recognize inserted DVD-R discs thus far), I harvested the combo drive from the dual 867 and installed it in the super MDD's lower optical drive bay. However, the computer is only able to recognize the SuperDrive and not the lower combo drive. I have pushed by IDE ribbon cables in fully and have seated the power cables fully. In addition, the lower drive is set to cable select (C-S on the header). How do I get the second optical drive to show up in OS X, e.x. in About this Mac->More Info? Once I do that I should be able to deploy it with option-eject. BTW, the combo drive was able to burn a few CD-Rs successfully, before the dual 867's PSU started going haywire.

BTW, I will be selling the dual 867 for parts or restoration after all this is done, I've already harvested its drive caddy and optical drive so it's just a dying PSU, a motherboard w/ daughtercard, PC2100 RAM, a GeForce4MX, and cables for someone to install an optical drive and an SSD.

I quite like watching what folk submit to this sub, being a user since the Apple II era and think I can appreciate the nostalgia and engineering craftsmanship of these old endearing devices.

But I’m curious do you guys restore these machines to keep as collectors items or have specific uses for them? I think there can be value either way, but wondering what’s up.

So just a random thought. Who else in this group would actually buy a new MacBook if they had a retro see through plastic casing with color on the tips like the clamshell version did? Just curious as to how many people would say yes, especially if they had that round circular shape with the matching charger.

PowerBook 140 Screen lights up and the harddrive spins momentarily and does it over and over again

I found it in a box and currently have no floppy drive at hand

eMac btw

I've been trying to find the fastest browser for these old macs but I can't seem to narrow it down

It's either AquaFox, IceWeaselPPC, or ArcticFox

What do you guys things? What is the fastest browser?

Recently got a Macintosh 512k with a bunch of accessories but can not find anything about this one online or ebay... If anyone can help identify it or a price associated with it that would be awesome :)

I haven’t used my IMac in a while but I it’s still plugged in ready to go :)

I have an old PowerBook 5300CS, it works, with some display issues. However, I was wondering how do I transfer programs from my Windows 11 PC to the PowerBook?

Apple Websites with this style are rare these days.

https://www.apple.com/rss/

And I even found this thing on the website: https://rss.applemarketingtools.com

I actually wanted to ask why my keyboard doesn't work anymore, but now I've noticed that the Apple IIe doesn't turn on anymore... what can I do? Thanks for the help!

And if collecting computers is still a thing in the future, can you imagine a kid like yourself today collecting the new Mac Mini 15-20 years from now? They'll able to fit so many in a cabinet or wherever-- it would be so much more convenient. Anyway, it was a thought that came to mind when I saw it, that it'll be a great size for a future computer collection.

i have two eMac but they both have a problem where the crt after a while goes black then comes back on. after leving it to sit unplug for a while the problem goes way but then comes back after a bit. also a lower brightness seems to make it work normally for longer. what could this be.

Hi folks! I posted about my MacCharlie XL a while back and wanted to share how I “finished” restoring it. It’s a very unique piece of Mac history, and its rarity definitely hampered a quick and thorough restoration.

The MacCharlie XL is a sorta clone of an IBM PC XT terminal with an 8088 inside, meant to be connected to a Macintosh 128k/512k via serial.

The MacCharlie XL (versus the vanilla MacCharlie) is meant to have 640kb RAM and two floppy drives. Unfortunately, the original Micron RAM modules and one of the floppy drives failed over the years. Through trial and error, I finally got it working by changing the configuration around a bit:

• 512kb of Micron branded RAM had to be removed. The remaining 128k is Texas Instruments branded, and all checks out fine. The Micron RAM continually errored out and prevented the machine from checking past 64k. I had to dig up some PC XT docs and still a bit of trial and error to learn which DIP switches and jumpers needed adjusting for 128k ram/2 banks (original values for 640k have been documented)

• One floppy drive failed and had to be disabled (Left side drive was formerly Drive A, but it does not work. I unplugged the drive and set the DIP switches for one drive only, after attempting to repair it).

• Dust removed from case and floppy drive heads cleaned

So now it runs DOS 3.30!

This work was extremely difficult, as it does not exactly follow the layout and jumper configuration of a real PC XT, and as a limited run piece of hardware with a warranty sticker on the seam, it never had a publicly available service manual or any kind of concrete documentation of what’s inside.

I had originally meant to get it back to 640k RAM and two functional floppy drives, but multiple pets in my house have had medical issues this last month, and I think “functional” is a good enough state to pass on to the next collector or tinkerer, so it’s time to let it go.

Some of you reached out after my previous post and were curious if I was selling it, so yes, here’s the eBay.

I was watching the new MacBook Pro announcement and noticed a PowerBook (at least I think it is one) in this super modern Apple “lab”! The mouse next to it seems to be vintage too… Tim Cook recently said in an interview that there is no museum in Apple Park and that one could not find older machines there, but obviously someone has a different opinion… 😀

Hi!

I am looking at ways to modify bootable .DSK files so make them "single purpose" (for the purpose of making standalone Application .DSKs that can be used to execute specific applications or games without having to deal with the OS itself.

I can do this manually but I want to automate it from the terminal (MacOSX and Windows).

So far it's been possible using a combination of tools (file manipulation through HFSUtils and scripts, with the DSK itself having 6.0.8, replacing the Finder with AutoQuit, having AutoLaunch launch the application, etc.).

Something I haven't been able to automate is the creation of a StartupScreen. As you all know for pre-System 7 systems, a StartupScreen is a file that has resource fork of type PICT and is placed in the system folder with that exact name (no need to edit the System file).

I can create the PICT, but I just can't find a way to create the necessary Resource-based PICT file from OSX/Windows.

Alternatively, a System 6 init that can take the PICT from the system folder and convert it in startupscreen for the next boot would also work in a pinch.

Hi, so I don't yet know that the machine works (I know it beeps and the power light works). but I guess I'd need a floppy controller with drive emulation, hard disk alternative? Just looking to experience what I can with the machine, doesn't need to the best fastest thing, but as a collector of vintage machines and a fan of the demoscene, I'm based in the UK if there's any UK based apple IIe online stores you know of. I guess whatever I'd need to enjoy that on the machine. Look forward to your suggestions.