Amber Rhea <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > out. ;) They want Macs to be at least a G3. So I'm trying to decide whether > to buy a new iBook (base configuration, which I can get for $1099 through > the Apple Education store) or a used Powerbook G3. I would want at least > 128MB of RAM... hard drive doesn't have to be all that big, just > decent-sized... and built-in ethernet. SNIP > As far as speed goes, I certainly don't need the "latest and greatest"... > 300MHz with sufficient RAM would be fine. A related, somewhat tangential > question: I am very happy with my desktop G4 @ 350MHz... what speed G3 would > you say a 350MHz G4 is comparable to? > > I guess a lot depends, money-wise, on whether or not I decide to sell my > desktop G4 when I get the laptop... in a way I don't want to, since I'm > partial to desktops... if I use a laptop for too long the screen gives me a > headache, and I've always found it difficult to type on those small > keyboards! -Of course, if I buy a new iBook, I can apply for Apple's > Educational Loan program.
Congratulations, Amber! We are happy with our minimal Lombard 333MHz with 64MB RAM running OS 9.1 for casual use. I prefer its screen size over the small iBook. On the Internet, it is a lot nicer than our old Performa 6300. Of course the Quicksilver 733 is even better. Your 350MHz G4 was an early G4, and the G4 architecture has come a long way since then. I'd like to guess that a contemporary G3 laptop at 400MHz would come close to your G4 desktop except for those applications like Photoshop that take advantage of the G4's AltiVec boost. A 500MHz G3 should beat it. Take a look at benchmarks at: http://www.MacSpeedZone.com/ It provides some comparative performance results. You could also look for old Macworld magazine articles at the library or online. OK, ergonomically you can't get rid of your desktop monitor, keyboard, and mouse. Consider keeping at least those pieces and plugging them into your laptop. I believe you have a VGA monitor and USB keyboard/mouse which I also believe will work with Lombard and other laptops, but not all iBooks. A look at lowendmac.com will help sort out the details. Honestly, though I think you'd be happier keeping your G4 and getting a Lombard for when you're on the hoof. It's always nicer having two computers anyway. All this assumes you will not NEED to venture into OS X anytime soon. -- Al Poulin Anger, hate, and revenge are for the devil, forgiveness is for God, proactive self-defense is for the rest of us. -- G-List is sponsored by <http://lowendmac.com/> and... Small Dog Electronics http://www.smalldog.com | Refurbished Drives | -- We have Apple Refurbished Monitors in stock! | & CDRWs on Sale! | Support Low End Mac <http://lowendmac.com/lists/support.html> G-List list info: <http://lowendmac.com/lists/g-list.shtml> 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/g-list%40mail.maclaunch.com/> Using a Macintosh? Get free email and more at Applelinks! <http://www.applelinks.com>
