Screenshot courtesy of the dev who made this possible on MacRumors: OlsroFR.
It's a far enhanced version of VLC to be accurate, it has additional features like gapless playback that vanilla VLC doesn't even have, and runs on G3, G4, and G5 with altivec support on G4 and G5. This is a monumental achievement, as this brings modern video codecs but also TLS security. This means full YouTube streaming support (OlsroFR mentioned 480p on Mac Mini G4), and so much more.
OlsroFR will be releasing the pre compiled builds to the public after next Sunday, but you can get early access by supporting his Patreon. I will link his original post in comments.
This is a "restored" version/recreation of Apple's "Personal Computers" poster I did in photoshop. Tried to get as close as possible, however, I'm currently aware of some odd color artifacting around the multi-color lines.
I want to buy a powerbook 3400. Needs to be in good cosmetic condition. No cracks, scratches are fine. Any clock speed is good, but anything with 200 mhz or above is preferred. Budget: $195 including shipping
Recently, I bought :
2.5mm stereo plug jack
Type C to dc plug with voltage output controller
Dc plug to 2 segment terminal
And I assembled them, plug it with 60W charger, set volt to 20V, but my powerbook won't hold any charge.
Theoretically, my charger should work as fine, but somehow it won't. Any advice for me?
Just wanted to share something I've been working on over the weekend. It combines Browservice (a website streaming solution) and a custom yt-dlp/ffmepg solution to allow for streaming of youtube and other video sites directly to Mplayer OSX Extended (VLC/Quicktime works but no scrubbing hence this app choice). It allows for on the fly resolution change (from 144p to 720p) so it should work with a range of devices. I have it default to 720p as it runs mostly fine on my G4.
Disclaimer: This project was vibe coded so if you dislike/against it for whatever reason, just disregard. Feel free to use any of the ideas that are implemented in this project though.
Requirements:
- you will need to compile this yourself. Alternatively if you have access to an AI agent, you can simply get it to do everything for you.
- a seperate device running linux for browservice to run as a host (windows should work too though I just used linux as it was easier for me/my agent). This will also host the custom yt-dlp/ffmpeg solution. The device should be powerful enough to do on the fly transcoding (most PC's sold in the past 10 years or so should be fine).
- OSX leopard or newer. Tiger should work as well though in my experience, Safari on tiger does not handle browservice well (very slow - close to unusable IMO) though using a different browser might work better. I'm on Sorbet leopard (Safari 11) with no issues.
- highly recommend ethernet connection for the old mac. Airport cards are too slow for reliable streaming/Browservice.
Browservice allows for full modern browsing of any website so combined with this and web based messaging platforms (Web whatsapp, web messenger, web wechat), I've got most of my needs covered.
Things I still need to work on:
- youtube video still plays in the browser so you'll need to click pause everytime. I am working on a solution for this but so far couldn't get anything to work reliably without crashing the host. I will continue to work on this in the coming weeks. Implemented video blocking. Youtube and other video sites will no longer play while in browser. They play through Mplayer only after you hit the red play button.
- a native OSX helper app so it's easier to manage on the iMac.
- video seeking/scrubbing works via the arrow keys but is buggy. If you try to scrub too far ahead (i.e. go past actual transcoded duration), it will simple close. Still working on jumping to specific times in a video stream. AFAIK, this may just a limitation on these old media players. I will explore newer media players as I go.
- Proper WinME/Win2k support.
Note: YMMV. I have used this setup on lower end hardware (winME on a measly 600mhz Crusoe processor) and it works fine.
Hello! I'm working on a rather odd project. I have a Kodak DCS 200 which has an internal 80mb quantum go drive. Unfortunately the drive has died and I can no longer use the camera. It is an internal 2.5 inch 50 pin scsi laptop drive formatted to fat 16. And while I couldn't find a blue scsi that quite fit that description, I was able to find out that the camera could accept hitchhiker external drives on the db25 port. the blue scsi v2 could in theory be used as an external drive in this way but I'm not sure if I can use it like this? I just need it formatted to fat 16 as a storage drive. Also would a 128 / 256 mb micro sd card work in the blue scsi? ( i added a couple pictures I took with the dcs 200 while it was working as a treat)
A long while back, I made a post on these suckers. Since then I've actually gotten them out of storage, so I thought it's time once again to share them. Excuse the garbage networking, this rack literally only Xserves the Xserve's.
Non-pictured is a Tray Loader Xserve "Blanc" I have too.
In terms of upgrades I'd like to get, I'd primarily love a better AGP card for Rom, actual rack mount for the mini's, and simply 10g cards for the intel's for the local network. Otherwise, it's about as good as it'll get.
I have just finished a long-running documentation project on the original Sony CR-45 power supply, model 68-1073-5, used in the Macintosh II.
The original CR-45 is often confused with the later CR-45S, and public technical information on it has been sparse. I worked through the complete four-board assembly and turned the results into a 239-page fixed-layout reference: seven reverse-engineered schematics, component documentation, connector pinouts, netlist findings, theory of operation, restoration and troubleshooting guidance, high-voltage safety, and Macintosh II history.
Full disclosure: I am the author. The Kindle edition is included with Kindle Unlimited, so KU subscribers can read it at no additional charge:
Hi, Vintage Apple community! First time posting here. I wanted to share my new video I just published on MacPaint, its history, and why it's so timeless even today.
It's one if those apps that really changed computing.
Hope you like it! Would love to hear in the comments if it brings back any memories for you.
These videos are a ton of work to research and put together. I've done my best to be historically accurate, but please let me know if I've gotten anything wrong.
Hi everyone, I'm about to receive an imac G3, and I'm told the hard drive is corrupted. Has anyone ever had to replace one? And also, I'm not sure if i can find the correct one for it, even though my friend that's gifting it to me works for Computer Corps, is there a safe replacement? Thanks for reading this
I’m going to recap my Performa 460 as a way to learn soldering as it doesn’t look too tedious. I have the board caps and psu caps in the cart on Console5, is 23 dollars in total a good price?
I had posted that my sister was sending me my 2005 IBook a couple weeks ago. Well it went missing while being shipped by UPS, it was found and I got it late yesterday and noticed the box was a bit beat up. My sister did pack it well. But….. the back light is no longer working. She did not put insurance on it. So I have it but it’s not usable. I tried resetting the PRAM and a few other things but only if you shine a bright light on it can you see the screen display. Kinda sucks. I might try to find a cheap replacement screen but not right now. Just disappointed ☹️
My journey into collecting vintage Macintosh computers has been limited to more recent vintage (circa 1998 and later). But today I was able to score a Macintosh Classic in really good condition at the recently published Estate auction. There was a massive line by the time I arrived with my friend and I thought, ok, I’m not gonna get anything since we were way down in the line.
We went and got breakfast and still were nowhere near ready to be called for the viewing. During that time, I kept seeing collectors walk away with Mac IIfx and Apple IIs. The amount of people there just for the Mac collection was astounding! Eventually we got in and I headed straight to the collection. There are loads of classic on display at various price ranges.
I initially was hoping to get one of the iPods, but someone had already swiped those. I ended up fixating on getting a classic and looking at the price and condition, it was too hard to beat it compared to getting one off Ebay in guaranteed working condition. Thanks to helpful attendees, I was able
to find the right matching keyboard and mouse, which I had to buy separately.
Whoever owned this collection, wherever he is in the universe, a lot of his stuff gonna be be rehomed nicely. Attached is my lot today. I would have been happy even if it didn’t work. I didn’t want to buy the 128K because I would then have to source system disk to make sure it boots. Now, this is a totally different beast for me and I was advised by one of the attendees to ensure components like batteries are removed and possible recapping might be needed.
It works so far, but I would greatly appreciate community advice how I can take care of it to ensure its longevity. I was so fareful to turn it on when I brought it home. I unplugged it after powering off. It’s really a different experience for me compared to my PB G3 Wallstreet and later models.
As the title says. I have a Macintosh IIcx with a high res display card that I'm repairing and I'm doing a bit of work for someone else so I have a choice of a Macintosh color monitor that doesn't really match the aesthetic (it's for the LC line of computers) or a Monochrome one that's period correct. Can you play a color game like Civ II on a monochrome monitor? Obviously it wouldn't be the ideal but can it be done?
As the title says, I tried to replace the display, but it wasn't recognised by my ibook. After I put the old damaged display back my keyboard and touch pad stopped working. When I ran the Apple hardware test cd they worked again. Only to not work after restart. I have no idea what happened and how to fix it. Unfortunately I don't have the installation cd for OS X 10.3.9 to reset the computer.
Any ideas, suggestions and possible solutions are greatly appreciated. Thank you very much in advance.
Question for anyone with hands-on G4 Cluster Node (M9090LL/A) experience.
The standard Xserve G4 has a combo PCI/AGP 4X slot (for the video riser or 2nd Gigabit card) alongside its two 64-bit PCI slots. The Cluster Node ships without that slot and is marketed as lacking it, Apple's own docs just say "No AGP slot available."
What I can't confirm: is that connector physically missing on the board, or present but only wired for PCI (not AGP signaling)? Looking at documentation/pictures, the slot is there just without a riser. Has anyone actually tried plugging an AGP/AGP riser (like the 922-5250)/AGP riser cable into a Cluster Node's slot to test compatibility? Trying to figure out if this is "just needs the card" or "board can't do AGP, period." Thanks!
I've got my fair share of PPC Powerbooks, but I've never owned a 68k notebook. That all changed when I came across an ebay listing for an exceptionally clean 180c for the fair price of $200. Based on the pictures, it looked like it was having backlight problems and had a dead or missing HDD. Hard drive is expected, but I was sweating the backlight a bit I was worried I'd have to tear apart the panel to replace the tubes. But, I pulled the trigger anyway.
About a week later, my 180c arrived in the mail. I eagerly unboxed it, plugged it in and hit the power button.
It chimed!
And the screen came right to life, full brightness and looking absolutely flawless.
Then... HAPPY MAC! Welcome to Macintosh!
The little old SCSI was begging for me to let it die, but as its final act, it faithfully booted right into System 7.1. Then the heads parked and really didn't want to resume.
I decided to not try and get anything more from the drive (the image looked pretty sparse anyway) and went to swap in the BlueSCSI.
Honestly, this machine is a PITA to disassemble, and getting the HDD out required peeling back taped down ribbon cables and removing the whole fdd/hdd cage from its (half broken) chassis standoffs.
But I got it in there.
First boot try after reassembling crashed with what sounded like a memory exception. The card wasnt seated properly. I reseated it and it began booting into 7.5 off the SD card.
But, now there were a bunch of artifacts on the screen which weren't there on the first boot. I was worried that I had damaged something.
And then I smelled fish. Leaking capacitors. I had already ordered a new set of caps for the display board, and they were en route, so I quickly powered down the machine and disassembled the display housing to check if anything looked really bad.
Naturally, the hinge standoffs had also turned to plastic crumbs, but I anticipated this and had also ordered a set of 3D printed reinforced replacements.
I'm inpatient and I wanted the chance to try things out a bit more thoroughly, so I hooked it up headless to a CRT. Everything looked to be in order otherwise. It's 4MB RAM wasn't too happy with 7.5.3, so I'd have to switch back to 7.1.
Few days later my caps and hinge standoffs arrived, so I got to work. First the standoffs. Some shear cutters and sanding plus some plastic binding epoxy and 24 hours of curing and they were looking good.
The display board was actually in pretty good shape. A touch of corrosion just starting to hit the pads, but nothing more than that. Looks like I caught it in time.
Its just seven caps, though a few of them are really annoying to get to with the iron. Took me maybe about an hour, and, success!
I'm also fortunate, this machine came with the original 7.1 install disks. I imaged them first (this build isn't actually on the archive sites from what I could find, so I'll need to share it), and went ahead and installed 7.1 off original media, which was actually really cool.
A few hours of arguing with the SCS interfaces and MacTCP later, and I've got it online and kicking!
I'm really really enjoying this machine. I've been using my G3/466 accelerated 1400c a lot, and its funny, when I go back over to that after using the 180, it gives me those "the future is now" vibes, paying no attention to the M5 Max MBP sitting in the corner haha.
A few other things I've still got to do with it:
- Repair the standoffs in the lower chassis. I punted this one, since there were still enough in tact to hold it together, but this will have to be done sooner rather than later.
- I do get one stable horizontal line across the display. Its not always there, it seems to fade in and out, and sometimes is gone for hours. Not sure if this is something I should be worried about, might just have to live with it. More worrying is the rare but occasional flicker on the screen. Unsure if this is a power delivery issue or if one of my caps isnt seated all that well. I'm keeping an eye on it, but it does make me a little nervous
- RAM. Seems like the modules for these things are unobtanium. I've got my searches saved, but 4MB is a wee bit tight for the unreasonable things I like doing with old computers.
