As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, my new (to me) eMac is in desperate need of an operating system upgrade. Considering the G4 processor it’s incapable of running the newest Mac OS X “Leopard” (10.5) as that’s written for the newer Intel based lineup. However, the eMac is fully capable of running the just-prior OS X “Tiger” (10.4) which was written for the G3, G4, G5 and Intel processors. With that all figured out, next came the issue of obtaining a previous or somewhat outdated OS.
I was browsing Amazon and a number of other sites and was, quite literally, taken aback by the seriously high cost associated with purchasing the software. The least expensive price I could find on a reputable site was somewhere in the area of $150 for an open box (used) copy. A sealed box was running about $100 more. Holy crap. Not only are the computers expensive, but so’s the software that makes them run. I remember reading somewhere that Steve Jobs said that Apple couldn’t make a system for under $1,000 because of their quality and how everything “just works”. While I think it’s actually more of a monopoly on the architecture and their resistance to licensing that’s kept the prices ridiculously high, I’m finally getting to understand what Mac users must go through. In the end, Apple must make one hell of a slamming system for their loyalists to be so damned loyal at such a high cost of ownership.
Here, again, is where I am amongst the VERY fortunate few. First I was given the actual computer by my friend, and fellow Freemason, Al Noyes. Now my friend, and former high school classmate, Liz (Elizabeth) Michel is sending me her original copy of OS X “Tiger” from the Mac she used to own. She’s mailing it to me from Portland, Oregon sometime as early as tomorrow!
Once the OS X “Tiger” software arrives I’ll only have the Superdrive left to upgrade for just about $100. Replacing the 512MB of memory to max out at 1GB isn’t that big of a deal as PC133 memory isn’t all that terribly expensive, currently about $60 total for two 512MB chips.
I am very excited, first at the prospect of being that much closer to my upgrade goals and, second, at the fact that I have the kind of friends that are ready and willing to do what they’re doing or have done for me. Thank you so very much, Liz! You are as awesome as you ever were! In fact, you just keep getting that much more awesome in my book…
THANK YOU AL and LIZ!!!
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Tags: Elizabeth Michel, eMac, friends, OS X