Charlie Ruggiero
- 2001.01.22
Q: I just purchased a G4MP, and I am wondering if there
are there any good reasons to hold on to my Power Mac 7300? Should I sell it,
or am I missing something I could be doing with this computer?
A: Save it, save it, save it. There is always something you can
do with a PPC Mac, especially one with PCI slots. My recommendation
is to put an older System on it, such as System 7.5.x, and use it to run programs that no
longer work on newer Macs. I personally find some of today's newest
software to be bloated and slow, even on new machines. I miss the
days when there were programs like Aldus Superpaint 3.5. I still
use that program and find that I get simple graphics work done
faster and easier than in the ever-confusing Illustrator or similar
programs. The fill tool in Superpaint works on and off in
OS 9, and the save command sometimes does not work on my G4.
However, it runs fine under Mac OS 7.6.1 and lower. This software
hasn't been updated since version 3.5; thus I use it on an older
Mac.
This may seem to be a hassle: work on one Mac, transfer files to
another. To help this situation (and anyone with more than one Mac)
you should network them together with ethernet. Get a hub or use a
crossover cable and network them so you can quickly and easily
transfer files between the two Macs. Forget LocalTalk, floppy
disks, and Zip disks. The best way to do this is to turn on
file-sharing on one Mac and mount the hard drive over your network.
I recommend having file sharing on the older Mac so your new
machine does not get slowed down from the file copying.
I have a pile of old software that no longer works with my
current computers, and this is software that has not been updated
or has been canceled completely. If you can run the software on
your old Mac and still get good use or fun out of it, then why sell
your older Mac?
Other uses for an older Mac are to use it to burn CDs, play
older games, give it to a relative without a computer, use it as a
router (so all computers in your home can share the same Internet
connection), and hundreds of other tasks that you don't want your
main computer bogged down with.
I will often use an old Mac to test out software under various
operating systems before making the decision to install in on my
main computer or the computers at work. There are many options
here, and I get this question all the time. Selling the computer on
eBay or through local sources (see Selling Your Older Mac) is going to get
you maybe a few hundred dollars, but I think it's worth much more
to keep it as a second computer.
Charlie Ruggiero has used a lot of Macs, from Plus to G4, and
even ran a BBS (remember those?) on a Plus. He works as Macintosh
tech support and technology advisor for the College of Education at
Michigan State University. He does a lot of hardware and software
troubleshooting, as well as a great deal of video editing, capture,
and streaming. Charlie is well versed in HyperCard, fairly
knowledgeable in Future Basic, and has a good background in sound
and video. He even has his own site, Edge of Heaven.
