[mwelty]

Hello, I hope I am posting this in the right forum:

I ordered a 20" iMac G5 and I simply can't wait to get it. That aside though, I have a question about the additional applications (namely the video games, encyclopedia, iLife) that come loaded with the system.

Whenever I get a new Apple system I generally do a clean install right off the bat. I don't like having all that Classic biz hanging around the hard disk, I don't need 20 million language localizations and fonts, drivers for printers I don't own/will never have access to, etc. I want this thing to be spiffy clean. (Obsessive compulsive disorder, clinical.)

In order to do that, I do an erase and install off the restore cd/dvd that comes with the system. Then, after bringing the system up, if I want to install the bundled apps I put in another cd/dvd that came with it for the additional apps. From experience, there is a single installer file that doesn't allow you to specify which components to install/not install. For instance, I want the encyclopedia, the games, iLife, but not Quicken and definitely not CLASSIC!

Does anyone know how to get around this problem? Is there a way to extract individual installers from the additional applications disc?

Thanks for any help you can offer.

[Jadey]

Yep, use Pacifist to extract individual packages from the CD.

[mwelty]

Awesome. Thanks so much for the tip!

[Rickster]

Recent Apple hardware comes with a Software Restore app/disc for restoring the bundled software that isn't handled by the OS X installer... it does have some options for what to install, though it doesn't let you choose individual apps. (My most recent new-hardware experience was a spring-2004 model PowerBook: its software restore app offered GrageBand, iDVD, Developer Tools, and Classic as separate options and lumped the rest together under Additional Applications or some such.)

Unfortunately, Pacifist won't help you with stuff installed via Software Restore... it uses disk images instead of installer packages. At the root level of the restore DVD there should be an invisible folder called ".images" with a separate image for each software package: mount it and you'll find the software in the same places it'd be installed to, and you can copy it to your hard drice. (Note that some images have more than just an app; they also put things in /Library. You'll need to copy that stuff in parallel.)

[CharlesS]

Rickster's advice is correct. However, the next version of Pacifist is going to open the Software Restore images. It's not out yet, but since it wouldn't hurt to test what I have to do an actual installation, you can try out an alpha version if you'd like, mwelty. E-mail me at suppo rt [äŧ& amp;#93; cha& #114;less& #111;ft [đ&o slash;Ṱ] co&# 109;.

Note: this offer is for mwelty only, at the moment. When this is ready for a general beta test, I'll post something on the forums.