On Tue, Feb 24, 2004 at 04:42:30PM -0800, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > Still enjoying my once-again-working Mac Classic II, I was just pondering > whether or not I should upgrade the System software. It arrived with > System 7.1
System software is mostly a matter of taste. Personally, I wouldn't use anything later than System 6.0.8 on a 68000 (eg. your Plus) and stick to System 7.1 on the 68040. I would lean heavily towards System 6.0.8 on the 68030, but some applications just won't allow for that (eg. web browsers). The reasons for this are simple: speed and memory. At this point in time, a high end System 6 capable machine is dreadfully simple to find. System 6 and System 6 era software is pretty lean and fast because many models had the 68000 and less than 4 MB of RAM. Good hardware and well designed software is a win-win combination. Of course, a lot of people like features at their finger tips. System 6 era applications probably won't provide that because the machines simply were not capable of supporting the extra load. That doesn't mean that it was incapable of doing the same things, it simply took more creativity. IMHO, solving problems is more interesting than clicking buttons (which may explain why I also find Unix appealing :-), so System 6 is fine with me. Until, that is, I need to use a web browser or the odd application which needs it. (Note: I have spent a lot of time collecting software which will run under System 6. I have word processors, text processors, development tools, raster and vector illustration programs, and even a 3D modelling packages. So when I say "the odd application," I really mean the odd application.) Back to the point: System 7.1 strikes a nice balance between the simplicity of System 6 and the features of System 7.5. Granted, it is not for the faint of heart because the odd program will require a feature from System 7.5. Most of the time, you can add that feature to System 7.1 when needed (eg. Thread Manager), but it takes a bit of work. Depending upon what you do, you may end up with System 7.5 in all but name anyway. If that is the case, you may as well go with System 7.5. Another point: technically System 7.1 isn't free. So if you upgrade you should be prepared to live with some version of System 6, System 7.0, or System 7.5 -- or to pay for the operating system. Byron. -- Compact Macs is sponsored by <http://lowendmac.com/>. Support Low End Mac <http://lowendmac.com/lists/support.html> Compact Macs list info: <http://lowendmac.com/lists/compact.shtml> --> AOL users, remove "mailto:"; Send list messages to: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To unsubscribe, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> For digest mode, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subscription questions: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Archive:<http://www.mail-archive.com/compact.macs%40mail.maclaunch.com/> --------------------------------------------------------------- >The Think Different Store http://www.ThinkDifferentStore.com ---------------------------------------------------------------
