Powerbook G3 Pismo - Mac folks?

jose · Post by **jose** » August 17th, 2007, 5:18 pm

I dragged a non-working Powerbook G3 Pismo (I have no idea what any of that means except what I've found on Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PowerBook_G3) from Phoenix to here, hoping to see if I could get it up and running in this fair city of yours.

I got it from a non-techie neighbor who picked up really cheap at a yard sale.

Right now, it doesn't even turn on ... the simplest thing will be to get it over to the Apple Store and see if they'll let me plug it in and see what's actually up with it.

Now, assuming that it all goes well and that it actually runs, what would I need to slap on it to get it doing really basic stuff like word processing, picking up neat wi-fi signals, and email?

Considering that it is one million years old, I'm sure that it might be running whatever the OS du jour was back then. Would I have to spring for some fancy shininess to get the basic amenities mentioned above working?

I'm sure that my questions will be more informed and much less ridiculous when I actually make that trip to the Apple store and have their resident geniuses give me perturbed looks replete with arched eyebrows. So, let's consider this the pre-game tailgate party!

mpbrockman · Post by **mpbrockman** » August 17th, 2007, 6:13 pm

When you try to turn it on, does the hard drive spin up (you'd hear a whine)?
Does it click, whirr, blink or do anything besides sit there and leer at you in a superior fashion? Are you trying to run it off battery power or off of an outlet? Are you using the right adaptor? Have you tried starting it up from a system disk? So many questions...

I'm pretty handy with Mac and will help a fellow Phoenician if I can...

jose · Post by **jose** » August 18th, 2007, 10:24 am

Ah, clarity! (or lack thereof on my part)

Yeah, it has no power adapter which is why I'd like to take it over to the Apple store and see if they can plug it in and see if it'll even boot up (or whatever Macs do when they're starting - I'm that green in terms of Macs!).

So, yeah, I doesn't currently do any of the neat stuff you mentioned, even though I'm pretty sure it's sitting there silently judging me, Frank Mackey-style.

---

Phoenix, eh?

Hm ... I have no idea when the last time you were back in the 602.

Um ... Power 92.3 is now on 98.3, and 101.5 dropped the Free FM format (talk shows) and is now 101.5 Jamz and is trying to take down Power 98.3.

Also, KTAR, which used to be on 620am, is now at 92.3fm.

Despite that chaos, Phoenicians have remained relatively calm.

mpbrockman · Post by **mpbrockman** » August 18th, 2007, 1:39 pm

jose wrote:Despite that chaos, Phoenicians have remained relatively calm.

and culture-free - now with Stage 5 smog alerts!

I lived in Moon Vly. from '80 to '85, PV '96-'97 and Sctsdl. in 2002, and I have family in Carefree.

Let me know what's going on with your machine after your "Quest for Power". I have an adaptor that should work if you're down south here in AUS. Otherwise Apple store or CompUSA are good bets.