iBook G3 Special Edition with dead hard drive

[mikeebean]

Yes they are all PowerPC iso's:

lubuntu-14.04-desktop-powerpc.iso
lubuntu-12.04-desktop-powerpc.iso
ubuntu-12.04-desktop-powerpc.iso
ubuntu-10.04-desktop-powerpc.iso
ubuntu-9.04-desktop-powerpc.iso

Good idea though!

Oh and, I have no idea what graphics card is installed; I'm not sure how to check. Whatever came with the laptop originally, but I know that isn't necessarily consistent across a production run.

[TREESofRIGHTEOUSNESS]

The 12.04 PPC Lubuntu is installing right now on my machine. It is working just fine.
Are you planning on using the Compact flash for the Hard drive?? That is something I have been wondering about trying. I had a 60gig HD that crashed (I kept getting the ? on powerup) Then I took a 20Gig from an iBook that had a broken hinge and installed it. And now the once dead useless computer is alive!!!
I also moved over some memory from the other one, and now have 512.... When it had 128MB it took FOREVER to load Lubuntu, so I installed a Debian Mini ISO, and built everything from the ground up using JWM instead of LXDE, as JWM is possibly the lightest stacking window manager. It is kinda ugly, but you can do a lot to make it look nicer. You may have to simply install the OS on the machine (though partitioning might lose some data).
Does it have an OS on it? If you are planning on upgrading the hard drive anyway, you can get a USB case for the harddrive and access data from another computer that way. Though, be forewarned the iBook is not meant for people uncomfortable with opening the computer to service the harddrive. It is like an hour process.. seriously. Getting the case apart was the hardest part.

Can you give me the specific device you have?
this is mine:
http://www.everymac.com/systems/appl...ibook_800.html

[mikeebean]

This is mine, a bit older than yours:
http://www.everymac.com/systems/appl.../ibook_se.html

The current HD had OS9 on it, but I get a ? on startup, so probably it's dead, and I'm reticent to buy a USB caddy for it if it is dead. I've taken this computer apart in the past, and it was a bit scary but rewarding. My only concern is that the case plastic seems brittle now.

I do plan to use the compact flash drive as my main HD. I've read concerns that the CF could fail due to repeated write operations, but the prevailing attitude seems to be that the minimal cost is worth the risk, and I agree. I've also read warnings about compromised speed with CF, but it seems this isn't an issue with these older computers, and that there may actually be an improvement. I considered an SSD, but I don't really want to try that right now. I'm also not keen on simply installing a replacement mechanical hard drive.

I also just discovered that my OS9 Zip disks aren't readable in Ubuntu, Windows 7, or Mountain Lion, at least without a lot of effort, plus I have a ton of old floppies, so it would be wise to get OS9 running just to clear off those disks.

[TREESofRIGHTEOUSNESS]

Whew... that has very little memory. I am not entirely sure you can do a good live cd.
One option would be to run a live cd and install to a USB drive. Then you can boot the computer using that USB drive from openfirmware. It is REALLY slow, but... it works! It might do just what you need.
Though... I'd try installing the Ubuntu Mini ISO, and install a very minimal WM, like JWM. You'll need to install the package named 'menu' to get a useable menu... but it might be worth a try.

[mikeebean]

Tonight I checked the RAM, and it's the standard 64MB (although I truly remember being offered and accepting a RAM upgrade.) So I swapped in a 128MB module from my white dual-USB iBook and voila- Lubuntu 12.04 boots and works! Slow as molasses, but it works.

GParted considers the built-in 6GB HFS-formatted drive to be "unallocated(!)". hfsutils is already installed, and I tried to install hfsprogs in case that helps, but the computer freezes up during the install. I also tried to uninstall some unneeded applications to make room for hfsprogs, but that freezes up the computer as well.

If I can find a USB hub, I might try to install lubuntu from one USB key to another and boot from the installation, or use my install disks to put OS9 onto the USB key. I'm not sure any of this is even possible. Otherwise I'm stuck until next month!

Michael

[TREESofRIGHTEOUSNESS]

Glad it worked (mostly). You could potentially put a swap partition on the usb drive, and have extra memory (make it aroung 512MB)... not terribly sure if the live environment will use it.
Are you using the terminal to install? Every program you open eats up more memory, and you could Ctrl+Alt+F1 Then you could even stop lightdm and install hfsprogs.

sudo service stop lightdm

I have had to stop lightdm to add in an xorg.conf to make the graphics not so psychedelic, so I know that works.
make sure you don't have any programs open, and install it from the command line

sudo apt-get install hfsprogs

Then restart lightdm

 sudo start lightdm

Anyway this is worth a try

[mikeebean]

Success! (Well, sort of...)


I managed to get Lubuntu 12.04 to install on a USB key using the alternate install ISO on a second USB key (I could have used a CD but I hate to burn one every time.) Both keys were connected through a hub to the one USB port. I was briefly worried that the installation had frozen at 83%, but I left it alone and it was fine. Unfortunately it couldn't install yaboot (a commonly-reported problem) and won't boot by itself; so I boot to the alternate iso's yaboot, then select the yaboot.config file from the other key. I might play with that later, but it's not a priority since I'll be replacing the USB key with a compact flash drive. At any rate, it works and runs very smoothly. Hot-swapping USB devices on the hub can freeze up the system, but that will also be remedied with the CF HD. Boot-time is acceptable, except for a lag at "HDIO_GET_IDENTITY failed for /dev/sdb: Invalid argument". (My HP laptop lags at the same message on Ubuntu.) I'm really enjoying Lubuntu, it's a very clean and fun environment. Maybe I'll try Mint next!


I also installed OS9 from the original CDs to a USB key (very easy) and it boots fine as well, from the USB port or a hub. Strangely, I had to keep the mouse moving during installation to prevent the CD drive from going to sleep. Rediscovering OS9 has been great, it's really nice to see an old friend again! I definitely want the option to dual-boot!


OS9 and Lubuntu both confirm that the HD is toast. In a few weeks I'll tear down the laptop, remove the HD and try to create a dual-boot on a CF HD. Incidentally, the OS9-formatted Iomega Zip disks *do* work in Ubuntu, OSX and Windows 7. The first one I tried just happened to be corrupted and unreadable.


Thanks for all your help! I'll come back and report on my CF HD experience in a new thread, since there seems to be lots of questions and few answers out there. Take care!


Michael