Greetings all

I have a few problems with a recently aquired LC575 running system 7.5.something.
1) I know nothing about macs, an online guide to using system 7.5 would be handy if someone knows of one
2) I can only boot the machine if the shift key is held down, this turns of the extensions manager,
I have been right through the extensions, disabled all non system 7.5 extensions, and when that didn't help disabled all extensions but it still has the same problem.
Should I be doing something in the control panels section of the extension manager everything has had the ticks removed so it shouldn't be effecting it at all should it?

3)How do I go about downloading system 7.5.3 from the apple site and writing it to floppy as I only have a PC (WIN2K & Linux) will an install wipe everything or not?
-- is there a CD version that is able to be downloaded?
--How would I install the upgrade to 7.5.5 after this, is it worth it?

Any help would be much appreciated

those are very old machines. i wouldnt spend much time or energy on it unles your very curious.

even if you did get system 7.5 installed on it... it wouldnt be powerful enough to do anything useful.. not even browse the web. it would be very frustrating. heh...

I'll never understand why the most negative responders are always also the most uninformed!
A 575 is one of the very best, and fastest, of the older 68k macs, and is most certainly worth setting up..I have one with 128 megs of RAM and OS 8.1, and IE 401, and it smokes!
They do, in fact, really well on the web, (like most macs, really).
Firstly, an install of 7.5.3 won't erase your old system if you don't want it to (you can pick 'clean install ' and it will simply re-name your old system as 'previous syst em folder')
The problem you describe is typical of the ones best resolved by a re-install- it can be maddening to find the exact extension responsible, even if you know what your'e doing...
the Mac OS 7.5.3 install (Here-http://download.info.apple.com/Ap p le_Support_Area/Apple_Software_Updates/English-North_American/Macintosh/System/Older_System/System_7.5_Version_7.5.3/) comes in 19 parts- copy each "bin" file unchanged to a PC floppy and copy them onto the mac harddrive (if you've got system 7.5 you sh ou ld have the pc exchange control panel, which must be loaded to recognize the pc floppies.
Since you've got a problem booting , remove all the extensions from the 'extensions' folder , and all the control panelsexcept for the pc exchange (you'll still b e able to boot) and then boot normally..the only thing that'll load is the pc exchange, so you should not have any prioblems..also make sure your start-up items folder is empty.
You can use stuffit expander to expand the 'bin' files after they're all on the mac, you'll end up with a 19 part disk image (stuffit will report a 'shrink wrap' error if it tries to mount them- ignore it..it's an error error message :).
Double click disk 1 of the 19 part image andit will mount..find the installer inside andyour on your way..
I can't remember precisely which option offers the 'clean install', but if you pick custom install, instead of 'easy install, the option,might be there, or perhaps ther's an 'advanced' button, i just can't remember...
You'll find it...:)
P.S.- heres a site with lots of useful onfo on this, and other older macs...
http://www.lowendmac.com/500/lc575.shtml
@L

dont htink that all negative reponders are negatively informed.. because its just not true. most lc575's that i've come across typically dont have more than 32 megs of ram. typically more like 16-24. 128 megs on an lc575 is not typical.

as far as frustration goes.. look at your post and how many steps required.

Thanks All

It now works after following those instructions

All those steps have nothing to do with it being an LC 575, but everything to do with having to transfer it from a PC..
If it was already on the mac, the only steps needed would be 1) double click the installer
2) start using the mac after the install finished.

And the amount of Ram currently in a machine doesn't define it's usefulness, but more the amount that *can* be installed..
A 575 is about as fast online as a P100,that's perfectly acceptable for the average website (if not blindingly fast)..
those machines are not quite 10 years old yet, and there's still a lot of macs that age in use...