There is a certain sense of accepted outrage that everyone seems to have about computers, and it can roughly be summed up as this: I bought my computer last year and it’s already obsolete!
Well, that’s true. I doubt it even took a year for that to happen; it could have been days (handy-dandy tip: Apple has a 14 day return policy, and even if you’re past that, they are often quite receptive to helping out folks who just shelled out a ton of cash on a machine that has been freshly discontinued). Of course, being obsolete is very different from “not able to do what it did when you bought it,” which is a situation that is going to go on for years. After all, technically, car models are rendered obsolete every year also, but no one has a spasm and insists their car is now worthless.
Curiously enough, one of the most significant ways that your computer is eventually going to show its age is internet access. While most websites, at their heart, are simple amalgamations of text and images, the technologies they use to provide services get constantly updated, and have heavier and heavier system requirements. For many of my clients, the biggest reason Facebook won’t work on their older computers is because newer versions of Flash won’t run on older Macs with a PowerPC chip. It’s not that these new flash videos are any more awesome than they were a year ago; it’s just that you won’t be able to play them.
And if your computer happens to be satisfying you in every other way – which is entirely possible, because many computers running PowerPC G5 chips are still very capable machines – that can be really, well, lame.
But rather than drown our sorrows in digital pity, we have options! Many of them, but here are some internet options that are frequently overlooked:
1) TenFourFox
A little while ago I was demonstrating Carbon Copy Cloner – one of the more invaluable tools in my line of work – to a client I was migrating from one hard drive to another. “And the best part is, it’s free,” I explained cheerfully, to which he replied with immediate suspicion, “Why would he release this for no charge? What’s the catch?”
One of the incredibly impressive aspects of the technology world are the many, many projects that exist solely as a function of passion. TenFourFox is a perfect example: a version of Firefox coded to run on PowerPC Macs that still run OS X 10.4, Tiger.
If you’re running a PowerPC that’s over 867mhz, you should really be running 10.5, which will still let you run modern versions of just about every browser out there. On the other hand, if you have an even older Mac, then TenFourFox is a real option.
2) OmniWeb
TenFourFox got a mention first simply because it is quite remarkable, and there are some sites out there that are happier with FireFox than anything else. On the other hand, virtually everything runs on Safari these days, and OmniWeb runs the same engine that Safari does. Not only that, but it is one of the most feature-rich and powerful browsers in existence. The most amazing thing? The OmniGroup, as of the latest version, still supports 10.4. If you have an older Mac, OmniWeb is your only option for accessing the full entirety of the internet with a modern web browser (although some sites might choke your computer). Fortunately, it’s one of the best options no matter how new your computer is.
3) MacTubes
A remarkable little application that lets folks with older macs load and play videos (including Flash videos) that might not work for them otherwise. It’s not a guarantee by any means, but it stands a pretty good shot, and is much better than a kick in the face.
If you were Wilbur, and had an old Mac, this place would save your bacon. Developers have developed a nasty habit of letting the auto-update on their software (I’m looking at you, Skype) replace your functioning application with one that won’t work on anything but a Mac with an intel chip. In that case, or in the many other situations where you might want a piece of older, but still perfectly functional software (the iLife apps, Picasa, so on), OldApps will let you find the version you had and install it again. A lifesaver. Pretty handy even for people with newer computers, if you ever need to downgrade after a disastrous upgrade.
You’re really pushing the tide now. If, for some bizarre reason, you are trying to browse the web on a machine that runs OS 9, these might give you some semblance of life. It’s really more a state of un-death than anything, but who knows. Maybe you’re trapped with a Performa in an old barn and need to email the police or something.
This is a great list. TenFourFox and OmniWeb are the two best browsers for PowerPC Macs. I use OmniWeb even on my good MacBook because it’s a great browser but for some things I would prefer TenFourFox because it’s so optimized for it.
I also tried Classilla before and it’s surprisingly a really great browser, on slower PowerPCs it works awesome under Classic and the fact that it’s compatible with OS 9 still shocks me.
It’s true – I’ve often considered that if one were to do it in a planned and considered way, you could assemble a powerful workstation with incredible software for a fraction of the price of a new system. And, if it was anything made in the last 12 years, you could still squeeze a decent amount of internet compatibility out of it.