[benj]

Hi,
This is in regard to G4/agp boards
and OS 8.6. I am a sys admin at
a Biotech company. We qualify OS 8.6
as our "top level" software for
G3 and G4 machines. I have a new G4/450/AGP
which I've tried to install 8.6 onto
(it ships with 9) to no avail.
After talking to tech support it seems
like there is no fix but to "buy" an
OS 8.6 AGP cd and try to downgrade(?). Pray tell, couldn't a patch be distributed which would let people fix their 8.6 installs so it would work on the new beasts?
This software/hardware weirdness is very
Un-Maclike. Apparently, the new machines (with
AGP) will not run run anything below 8.6 and
will run 8.6 ONLY if it's a "special cd"
which I assume only shipped for a limited time anyway.

[seanyepez]

Ben,

The most probable reason for not being able to use MacOS 8.6 on the G4 is because it is dependent on some feature in MacOS 9 to run. For example, one can't install anything earlier than MacOS 7.6 in the 3400c line of notebooks.

The special CD has the stuff that is in MacOS 9 that the G4 needs. (most probably)

Hope this helps,

- Sean Yepez

[GryphonG4]

there should be a version of 8.6 out there that you can install on your G4. it was a fairly well-voiced gripe for some time that many of the G4's which shipped after the announcement of OS9 still had 8.6 as their system software. i'd say it's a fair bet that you just need the drivers for the software unique to the G4 (i.e. from a "Power Macintosh G4" install disc). i have 8.6 on my install disc, but i also have a PCI graphics G4. still, there should be some means of getting it onto your machine -- you just need to find someone who can get you a G4 specific install disc with 8.6 on it.

good luck!

adrian

[tadd]

Apple has been doing this since System 6 (which is where my experience with Macintosh starts). Each time they come up with a new computer they make a patch to the OS to support it's hardware. Sometimes they rev the OS, sometimes they just include an "enabler". My first Mac that was new was a Mac IISi which shipped with 6.0.8 and 7.0. You could run 6.0.8 but not the current 6.0.7. Everybody else was running 6.0.7 at the time. I was the only person I knew that HAD to run 6.0.8.

The same thing happened when I got my Power Computing 180. It came with 7.5.2. Most were using 7.5.1. Apple didn't even ship 7.5.2 to the unwashed masses. They had to wait for 7.5.3.

Same story. Different computer.
The thing that seems different here is that they are making a distinction between the 8.6 OS and an 8.6 AGP OS.

Oh yes... a thing Apple does that bothers me a little but I understand... They will ship an install disk for System 8.5 with the iMac C 266Mhz.. I can't use this install disk to install that OS on my PowerComputer 180 even though the 'real' 8.5 install disk WILL install on my PowerComputing. I guess that made a small amount of sense. It's just tough that I have to maintain both the iMac install disk AND the 8.5 install disk in my CD wallets. (we'll pretend that I was going to by the 'real' 8.5 install disk anyway!)

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Tadd Torborg