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What to do with old Power PC G5


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<p>We finally upgraded everything to an Intel Mac due to software constraints. We have a couple of PowerPC G5 towers running Mac OS 10.5.8 with 6GB RAM. Is there anyway that we could use these for backup or storage. What about keeping our iTunes library consolidated on that machine? We only have a tiny 13 inch LCD hooked up to it but its not a work station any more. How can we make it useful for some time longer.?<br>

Thanks, Joe</p>

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<p>Dedicated use for email, downloading/uploading data; developing presentations; and fixing up web (72ppi) graphics are among some of the uses I’ve put on my old PPC Dual 5G.<br>

All the real heavy duty processing is now under the Intel Macs.<br>

Cheers!<br>

<em>I guess using it for music playback, as Andy suggested, isn’t too shabby either.</em></p>

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<p>We have a couple of PowerPC G5 towers running Mac OS 10.5.8 with 6GB RAM.</p>

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<p>That's a pretty penny in hardware.</p>

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<p>We finally upgraded everything to an Intel Mac due to software constraints.</p>

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<p>Funny how this never comes up in the "Mac OS is so wonderful, Windows sucks" threads.</p>

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<p>Why do you want to keep it? I just did the same, 2006 PPC G5 (OS-X 10.5.8) to a new Mac Pro (OS-X 1.6.5) and 24" cinema montor with a new LED monitor and for the same reasons, no one, not even Apple or Adobe, supports it anymore (many are Intel chip and OS-X 10.6.x only). There's nothing for the PPC to do except take up space. The new Mac runs everything the old PPC did (no app lost, not even Adobe CS2 and CS3 apps) and works with all the peripherals (after new drivers and app updates). Apple has a recycle program you can ship the old PPC and monitor back and they'll recycle it free (you paying shipping of course). I plan to strip all of my files and apps off and send it back (still have the original shipping boxes).</p>
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<p>I use the iMac G4 I got for free from work when it was surplussed out (saw it on the cart and asked my friend in IT if I could take it home) as an iTunes music server. Have all my CDs (and many many from the local library) archived in Apple Lossless format. We also use it to stream radio stations from around the world. It is hooked up to my HiFi in the living room and it sounds great. I use an inexpensive external USB DAC with it.<br>

If I had an old G5 tower I'd be tempted to use it as a movie server hooked up to my TV. You can fit massive amounts of storage into a G5 case.</p>

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<p>We finally upgraded everything to an Intel Mac due to software constraints.<br /> Funny how this never comes up in the "Mac OS is so wonderful, Windows sucks" threads.</p>

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<p>It isn’t coming up here because its <strong>irrelevant</strong>. Software constraints like running <strong>modern</strong> software (CS5, Lightroom, Capture 1, Bibble) that require an Intel processor! Try running those apps on Intel® Pentium® 3 (ain’t going to run). Those app’s will not run on Windows 95, or OS9, so both suck?</p>

Author “Color Management for Photographers" & "Photoshop CC Color Management" (pluralsight.com)

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<p>Try running those apps on Intel® Pentium® 3 (ain’t going to run).</p>

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<p>Oh brother. You better get busy. There's hundreds of pages on wikipedia.org that need editing, now. Intel would want to be informed of course.</p>

<p>When it was beta and free, for giggles I loaded and ran Windows 7 on a P2 with 256 megs of ram. It's older than a P3 in case you're not aware. I don't even know how ancient that P2 was but once it had W7 on it, there's no reason why it wont run any of the above software you say it "ain't going to run". In this day and age of engineered obsolescence, it's marvelous, really. What's even better, is that apps that are nearly 10 years old that I bought for XP 32-bit, load fine today Windows 7 64-bit.</p>

<p> </p>

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<p>What's even better, is that apps that are nearly 10 years old that I bought for XP 32-bit, load fine today Windows 7 64-bit.</p>

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<p>More irrelevant text.</p>

<p>So you are saying that CS5, Lightroom, Capture 1, Bibble <strong>will</strong> run on a non Intel Mac or a Pentium® 3? </p>

Author “Color Management for Photographers" & "Photoshop CC Color Management" (pluralsight.com)

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<p>Are you into the drink? What part of</p>

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<p>...I loaded and ran Windows 7 on a P2 with 256 megs of ram. It's older than a P3 in case you're not aware. I don't even know how ancient that P2 was but once it had W7 on it, there's no reason why it wont run any of the above software you say it "ain't going to run".</p>

 

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<p>didn't you understand?</p>

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<p>Try running those apps on Intel® Pentium® 3 (ain’t going to run).</p>

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<p>Why not?</p>

 

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<p>So you are saying that CS5, Lightroom, Capture 1, Bibble <strong>will</strong> run on a non Intel Mac or a Pentium® 3?</p>

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<p>Different from your first challenge. Why are you suddenly including the non-Intel Mac into the equation when we've established a debate about what an Intel P3 will accept vs. what non-Intel Mac wont accept?</p>

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<p>I loaded and ran Windows 7 on a P2 with 256 megs of ram. It's older than a P3 in case you're not aware. I don't even know how ancient that P2 was but once it had W7 on it, there's no reason why it wont run any of the above software you say it "ain't going to run".</p>

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<p>WTF has that got to do with anything bud? The facts, <strong>the FACTS are</strong>, modern software, the software I listed <strong>will not run on a PPC chip nor will they run on an old Pentium chip</strong>. You once again sabotage a post with your personal dismissal of Mac products by saying <em>Funny how this never comes up in the "Mac OS is so wonderful, Windows sucks" threads. </em>which has <strong>squat</strong> to do with the OP’s question about what to do with his PPC Mac, then when I point out that your post is irrelevant, you go off into another tangent. WTF has the statement <em>Funny how this never comes up in the "Mac OS is so wonderful, Windows sucks" </em>threads have any useful context here? The facts are, a PPC box can’t run a number of modern applications, end of story! </p>

<p>Go to http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop/photoshop/systemreqs/<br>

You see the requirements to run CS5? Where do you see it will run on a P2 let alone P3 chip? Or a PPC chip? Dito for http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshoplightroom/systemreqs/ (Lightroom)? Ditto for http://www.phaseone.com/en/Software/Capture-One-Pro-6/Additional/PRO-FAQ.aspx (C1)? </p>

<p>Seriously you have a reading comprehension problem. <br>

Do YOU understand? </p>

Author “Color Management for Photographers" & "Photoshop CC Color Management" (pluralsight.com)

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<p><strong>the FACTS are</strong>, modern software, the software I listed <strong>will not run on a PPC chip nor will they run on an old Pentium chip</strong>.</p>

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<p>Uhm, do you need a new keyboard after that? Like I've been saying, I can load Windows 7 onto a P3 and in turn load CS5, LR, et al. Whether you want to run it or not, is a different matter. But it loads and the only thing that happens is Adobe warns you and says "hey, this is old and slow, doesn't meet our requirements, are you sure you want to continue?" and it loads. Adobe says the same thing for CS4 and LR2 yet I put them on a P3 as well. Everyone, I thought, knows this.</p>

<p>But no matter what you do, you can't load CS5, LR3 etc onto a relatively new and expensive PPC. You know, the argument that got your knickers in a twist in the first place.</p>

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<p>anyways Joe, I'd do like Dave Lee says and make it into an entertainment box. Does Apple Tv work on the PPC? Apple Tv is cool and the few people I know with it, love it. Another option is you can load Ubuntu on them and Bibble is available for Ubuntu. Andrew is probably not aware that it's hard to give away obsolete gear for a tax receipt.</p>
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<p>Wow, this thread quickly eroded to a bunch of completely unrelated posts. If I was a moderator, I'd certainly clean it up a bit...</p>

<p>To the OP: Your Mac G5 is still plenty useful. 10.5.8 is a superb OS and the G5 tower is a classic design. I used to covet one of these until Apple upgraded to the Intel (faster and cooler CPUs) platform. Ignore all the noise in this thread. </p>

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<p>Whether you want to run it or not, is a different matter. </p>

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<p>No, I want to “load” it but have the inability to run the app. Geeze. </p>

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<p>If I was a moderator, I'd certainly clean it up a bit...</p>

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<p>So would I! Here’s the original question: <em>How can we make it </em>(the PPC) <em>useful for some time longer.?</em><br>

Mr.K writes two sentences as he’s done elsewhere, that has <strong>zero</strong> to do with the OPs question:<br>

<em>That's a pretty penny in hardware. (</em>so was the first 45mb hard drive I purchased for $950 in 1988 and irrelevant to the OP), and <em>Funny how this never comes up in the "Mac OS is so wonderful, Windows sucks" threads. </em>Not only <strong>more</strong> irrelevant to the OP’s question but one that appears to have a computer-political slant. Its so typical of the posts he hijacks. <br>

And they guy doesn’t even support the PhotoNet community financially (not that this would make his hijacking of threads any more bearable). </p>

Author “Color Management for Photographers" & "Photoshop CC Color Management" (pluralsight.com)

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<p>Andrew is probably not aware that it's hard to give away obsolete gear for a tax receipt.</p>

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<p>Actually I’ve had zero issues doing so over the years, from Mac’s to high end printers (Pictrography 4500, Canon iPf5000, displays). My accountant hasn’t had any issues with this either. Its only hard for people who are not generous and understand what a *501C is and are not so negative about providing useful yet older technology to people who can genuinely use the products. I guess wherever you live, there are no high schools or photo schools who even without a tax deduction would gladly accept this equipment. </p>

<p>*http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/501©</p>

Author “Color Management for Photographers" & "Photoshop CC Color Management" (pluralsight.com)

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<p> </p>

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<p>No, I want to “load” it but have the inability to run the app. Geeze.</p>

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<p>Is that code for "oh, i miss-understood you and you're correct. i'm sorry."?</p>

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<p>If I was a moderator, I'd certainly clean it up a bit...</p>

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<p>And we'd like you too. Things would be much easier if Andrew could be strong and be wrong. I bet, unlike he claims, it's possible to load CS5 onto a P3 and use it...very slowly.</p>

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<p>Photoshop CS5<strong> Minimum </strong>System Requirements for Windows<br />CPU: Intel Pentium 4 or AMD Athlon 64 processor<br />Operating System: Windows XP SP3/Windows Vista SP1 /Windows 7<br />Memory: 1GB of RAM<br />1024×768 display (1280×800 recommended) with qualified hardware-accelerated OpenGL graphics card, 16-bit color, and 256MB of VRAM<br />Some GPU-accelerated features require graphics support for Shader Model 3.0 and OpenGL 2.0<br />DVD-ROM drive<br />QuickTime 7.6.2 software required for multimedia features<br>

Photoshop CS5<strong> Minimum </strong>System Requirements For Mac OS<br />CPU: Multicore Intel processor<br />Opeating System: Mac OS X v10.5.7 or v10.6<br />Memory: 1GB of RAM<br />1024×768 display with qualified hardware-accelerated OpenGL graphics card, 16-bit color, and 256MB of VRAM<br />Some GPU-accelerated features require graphics support for Shader Model 3.0 and OpenGL 2.0<br />DVD-ROM drive<br />QuickTime 7.6.2 software required for multimedia features</p>

<p>You can’t even “load” CS5 on a PPC box (I still have one), the installer will not even install the product! You can “load” the installer. That’s about it K.</p>

Author “Color Management for Photographers" & "Photoshop CC Color Management" (pluralsight.com)

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<p>You can’t even “load” CS5 on a PPC box (I still have one), the installer will not even install the product!</p>

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<p>I know. My first post here stated this and got you all frothing at the mouth, remember? Regardless of who said it first, that's pretty sad, imo, that such lovely gear is useless to us. I have Mac friends that were forced to update their PS when switching to Intel, or keep their old and be stuck in the mud with rubber boots and the Rosetta emulator. Expensive times. Later on, those that had CS4, had to have 32-bit version and still work really slow as Apple, with no notice to anyone, killed 64-bit Carbon. Slow going in 32-bit. Time is money. And I love how every time Apple soaks you for a $30 "update", all the Epson printers attached to Macs come to a stand still. More time lost. Yeah, wonderful. You never know what Apple is going to do and is no wonder they are an after-thought to the developing community and business world.</p>

<p>Just like the PPC here, I have a 6 year old Pentium P4 that also cost me a bomb years ago. The difference is, it is running a current OS, Win7 64-bit, just fine. I'm not entirely certain how old of an OS it can accept. But safe to day it can take Win 98, 2000, XP, XP 64, Vista, Vista 64, Server 2003, Server 2008, W7, W7 64-bit. I probably left one or two out but who cares. The point being, it still runs CS5 and all my expensive plugins I've bought over the years.</p>

<p>I really don't care what color my computer is or which OS is between the power button and photoshop. I'd take Linux in a second flat. But whatever it is, just has to demonstrate compatibility and give me confidence that my software investment will still work years later. Apple doesn't give us that.</p>

<p> </p>

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<p>You can “load” the installer. That’s about it K.</p>

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<p>Lol. That's not about it? Give it up, you're out of your territory again. I'll say it again. I bet I can run CS5 on a P3. Are you arguing that we can't?</p>

<p> </p>

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<p>Regardless of who said it first, that's pretty sad, imo, that such lovely gear is useless to us.</p>

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<p>Its not useless! The OP stated clearly <em>We finally upgraded everything to an Intel Mac due to software constraints.</em> As requested by the OP, <strong>some of us </strong>have provided ideas to its use outside running software that doesn’t have constraints. Use it for iTunes server, email or as I suggested and you dismissed, giving it to a charity or school that would be thrilled to have it. </p>

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<p>I have Mac friends that were forced to update their PS when switching to Intel, or keep their old and be stuck in the mud with rubber boots and the Rosetta emulator. </p>

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<p>Forced? No more forced than I was when my original Photoshop machine (a IIci back in 1990 for running Photoshop 1.0.7) had to be upgraded over the years. I supposed your PC friends didn’t have to be forced the same way? Apple=bad, PC=OK (maybe even good). </p>

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<p>And I love how every time Apple soaks you for a $30 "update", all the Epson printers attached to Macs come to a stand still.</p>

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<p>More utter nonsense of simplistic black and white, Mac (Epson) bigotry we’ve know to expect from your keyboard. Apple=Bad. DNG=terrorist. </p>

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<p>I <em>bet</em> I can run CS5 on a P3. </p>

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<p><strong>So you don’t know</strong>. That’s typical of you. You want to also bet you can’t even install CS5 on a PPC machine? Again, you don’t know and apparently have no way to test it. <br>

As I’ve said often to you (a point you never seem to get), you are entitled to your own opinion, but you are not entitled to your own facts. Unfortunately you have a bad habit of doing just that. I think I’ve figured you out, you’re certainly not a photographer, I think you must write science fiction for a living. <br>

So do you have <em>anything</em> useful to say to the OP or will you continue to go way OT and hijack this post as you’ve do so often? The territory I’m happily out of is the idiotic mindset you have developed! </p>

Author “Color Management for Photographers" & "Photoshop CC Color Management" (pluralsight.com)

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