Got this as a "freebie"...trying to find out what's under the "hood"... But I can't open the case!!!... Can anyone tell me how to open the case, and maybe what the specs are??? Is it big enough for graphic work, like some Photoshop stuff??? thanx Steve

For starters, the processor is a 180Mhz 603e. If you can start the machine up, you can find pretty much everything you need to know. In the "About this Computer(Macintosh)) in the Apple Menu, you can find out how much built-in memory there is. If you click on the hard drive and choose "Get Info" in the File menu, it will tell you how large the hard drive is. This machine does perform much better with the optional cache installed, which you can't easily determine in the System Software. To access the motherboard, take the two screws off the back left, lower part of the machine, and pull on the two tabs. There is a slot that says cache on the motherboard. If it is filled, great. If it isn't, I wouldn't worry about it too much. If you wish to access the hard drive (and floppy drive), you get at it from the front of the machine. There are two tabs on the bottom of the front lower bezel of the machine. You push these tabs up, and then pull the cover away (from the bottom). You can use a flat-head screwdriver along the side of the front bezel to help remove it. Keep the screwdriver flat with the bezel to avoid marking the plastic. Unless you want to get a larger drive, I wouldn't bother removing the front bezel. Can you use it for Photoshop? Yes. Will it take a very long time to render stuff compared to a newer computer? Yes. You can look your machine up in Apple's Spec database for more info (in the Older Products section): http://www.info.apple.com/support/applespec.html James

I have a 6500 which is similar to your 6400. Its been very reliable (5 years now) and a real workhorse. Upgrading is fairly easy. I have a Sonnet G3/250mhz card, Radeon GA graphics card, USB card for periferals. The performance boost was really noticable but even with these upgrades, it will never be as fast as a 'production' G3 machine. -jk

James and JK, thanks a lot...got exactly what I needed... Tried to fire it up last night, no HD...!! Well, still, the price was right!!! Steve

Steve, I have a 4gig HD that will fit your 6400. Drop me an email " applebyte@yahoo.com " -jk