Hey. I have this old Imac sitting around and i have found need for it for the first time in over 5 years... It is an Imac G3 333 with 128 MB ram I have read a few posts about these computers but nothing containing much information about what i am trying to do. I barely ever grew uccustommed to anything apple but i need software for this computer. The two things i am mainly in need of are: [1] An instant messeging program that supports Windows Live accounts and isnt malicious. [2] A web browser that supports much more modern codes. The one i am currantly using on it is good ol' IE5 and it sure aint' doing the trick! If anybody could please provide me with links that i can download these programs and others (Please only free-stuff, i cant be bothered spending money for this peice of ____ :P) Also, i attempted to update the OS o 9.2.2 but it didnt seem to work. I think i need to boot i off a 9.1 disk which i think i may have thrown out.... thanks. BTW: I am using OS 9.1 International English. I ts processor it PowerPC. It clearly doesn't have a Gigabyte motherboard either but...

we'll here's the thing, Mac OS 9 is NOT a modern OS anymore, as a matter of fact Apple doesn't sell any macs that are PowerPC or can even boot up into OS 9. The last version of OS 9 I used is 9.2.2 (9-10 YEARS ago) and I believe that is the last revision Apple has made. I don't think a Mac that old can run OS X because of the G4, 800 mhz, 1GB suggested spec for running it. You would be better off getting a newer Mac from PowerMax/MegaMacs and see if you can get any trade in for that ancient Mac. Upgrading the OS will only frustrate you to no end.

Lol, Ok, Cool, Thanks. I read somewere that this comp. would run anything up to OS 10.3.9 And that would be incredibly slow, so i wanted to go more OS 10.2.-. I was expecting a reply like that though - I remember it was a good computer in its day.... For about a day until the slot-loaders were released. Trading it in at one of those places wouldn't be the best idea because i live in australia and postage for a 18KG 40X40X30 box would be almost twice what the thing is worth. Thanks for the suggestion though. But would there be any of the software i am after? And something that plays MP3's if possible. Its speakers are pretty bad but i put it through my proper speakers and it plays music-CDs quite well. Thanks, Atoru

Mac OS X would be VERY slow with a 333MHz G3 and only 128MB RAM. The best OS 9 browser is called 'iCab'. You might try an old version of MSN Messenger, but I doubt it will work with Windows Live accounts. For music you want an old version of iTunes, probably version 1 or 2.

the PowerPC in Macs is dead. I have 2 PowerPC Macs and one is collecting dust, a faster iMac than yours (Sage iMac DV with a 450 (!!!) mhz G3, 20 GB HDD, 512 RAM) but it's still a clunker and a PowerMac G5 with a 1.6 Ghz G5, 500 GB HDD and 2GB RAM and they are DEFINITELY showing their age. The G5 can be used indefinately(the living dead..lol) but the G3 is so dead. G4s are borderline, I had a Mac Mini (the 1st one!) that choked on something simple like CD ripping and 500MB file copying. Save up or slap a card down and get a newer Mac. You'l be glad you did. :)

To all you people saying "PowerPC is dead" Knock it off! It is only because of Steve Screwball Jobs that us true mac users are forced to use intel crap(I still use a 1Ghz G4) and forced to run a BS unix clone known as OS-X. So knock it off, PowerPC is not dead, The Power line, and Cell line of Power products still lives on at IBM and are some of the most powerful processors in the world, besting anything intel can produce. Now... IE 5.1.7 is the last version of IE you can run on a mac that uses 9.X You should really switch over to iCab(very slow and crash prone, but modern), or WaMCom(a mozilla 1.2.x build with some fixes). WaMCom is not as modern as iCab, but it is much more stable. As for Windows Live? Well I really don't use Microsoft products and Windows Live is a trojan in itself for the PC world. If you can use MSN messenger to chat with your Live buddies than I would use that, but ultimately you're going to want to steer away from any MS Live products. For most of your old world needs use this website: http://www.pure-mac.com/ For upgrading to a more modern OS(such a twist of words considering unix has been around since the 60's) so you can run a more modern web browser, purchase a copy of Mac OS-X 10.2, or 10.3 and install that, then you can download almost any browser you like. However do be aware that apple drops application support for previous version of their OS's now every year, or every time a major update is released. What I mean by that is while a few more things will run on 10.2, ALOT will not and will require 10.3 or 10.4 to run. Next year it will be even worse. Thank Steve Jobs for this current mess at Apple. I've been an Apple technician since 1995(or '94) and I still use 68K macs, so don't let anyone tell you PPC macs are dead. Every machine has it's use and some people just don't understand this because everyone has a throw away mentality and it's only going to get worse. PowerMac 9600(1 ghz G4) 512mb RAM 50gb SCSI ATi 9200 PCI

PowerPC is dead even Apple is ending support with the next release of Mac OS X Snow Leopard. The last verison of OS 9 (9.2.2) is the fastest OS you'll get on a G3/G4 Mac. The lastest, greatest version of OS X will be Intel-only which sucks for me and lots of other people with 2 or 3 PowerPC Macs they would like to upgrade or tinker with. Using 68k Macs is for hobbyists, collectors and people with too much time on their hands.The Power architecture will live on in Cell, Xenon and myriad of others but the PowerPC in Mac computers is dead. Deader than dead. Get offended if you want to, you know it's the truth and futsing with extensions is something I'm glad I'll never ever do again. EVER! LOL