how much will an OS 9 re-install actually help?

enathan1085

enathan1085

Registered
Hello all,

my family owns and OLD bondi blue iMac. the specs are as follows:

OS 9.2.2
233 MHZ G3
160 MB Ram
6MB Video Memory
161 MB Virtual Memory
4GB HD

my problem is this: lately the computer has been running extremely sluggish and freezing up a lot. i was wondering how much re-installing OS 9.2.2 would actually help. my dad has the OS 9.2 install disks that came with his iBook (which he has since upgraded to 10.3). is re-installing OS 9.2 worthwhile, or are there any better options to make the machine usable again. thanks for the help. peace.
 
All you need to do is a bit of maintenance.
First, check to see how much free space you have on the hard drive. If you have 400 MB or less, I suggest you go through your documents folder and download folder to get rid of files you never use. We all download with good intentions, only to forget about it or not like it. Back up those files that you are unsure of on a zip disk (I am assuming you do not have an external burner on that iMac). Remember to empty the trash.

Next, empty the cache of your web browser. The easiest way is to launch the browser and go to the preferences. Clearing history and cache (temp files) will speed up the browser.

Next, do a desktop rebuild. Restart the computer and immediately hold down the option and apple keys. Continue to hold them down until you get a dialog box asking if you wish to do a desktop rebuild. This will appear after the extensions load at the bottom of the screen. When that dialog box comes up, release the keys and click on okay.

If it still seems sluggish, check to see what programs you have running in the background. If you don't use it, quit it, then remove it from the Start up folder that is in the system folder.
Run a disk utility on the drive. Disk Warrior, Norton Utilities, or Tech Tool Pro's version for OS 9 work well. You need to start up the computer with the CD (insert CD, restart the computer, hold down the C key). I suggest you run the disk doctor and optimize - (defrag) the hard drive. You will notice an improvement.
 
enathan1085 said:
my family owns and OLD bondi blue iMac.

...my dad has the OS 9.2 install disks that came with his iBook
Click to expand...

Apple did a pretty good job of making sure that the software install disks (specially for Mac OS 8/9) that came with one type of computer won't work on another.

For example, I have a iMac/350 that came with 9.0.4. The software install disk that came with it won't install Mac OS 9 on my PowerBook G3, PowerMac 7500 or 7100. Which is why I own a generic Mac OS 9 disk (and a Mac OS 8.5, 8.1, 8.0, 7.5, 7.1, 7.0, etc.).

How did you get Mac OS 9 on that system to begin with?


Before doing anything, make a backup copy of your OS. The thing about reinstalling the system software is that many apps install special preferences and extensions in the System Folder that are required for them to function. You may find yourself reinstalling all (or much) of your software.

And on that note, having a ton of extensions on from applications (specially those which you might not have any more) can slow down a system. The next best thing to doing a clean install is to reset the extensions in the Extension Manager.

For doing that, follow these steps...

  • (1) Open the Extension Manager in the Control Panels in the Apple Menu.
    (2) Create a duplicate set based on the current set as of today (I usually name that set with todays date for future reference).
    (3) From the pull down menu in the Extension Manager where the set name is shown, select Mac OS 9 All (or Mac OS 9 Base) to get your system back to the original set of extensions that it had with the install install/update of Mac OS 9.
    (4) Go through the list and activate any extensions you know that you'll for sure need (if any).
If you just leave it at Mac OS 9 All, that is like doing a clean install. So if you don't know what extensions to reactivate, then just reinstall software as needed to get everything running again.

The best way to make a quick backup of things like the System Folder is Apple's Disk Copy utility. Just make an image of the folder and you can go back to it later.

Best of luck.
 
thanks for the advice. as regards the original OS 9 discs: my dad tells me he doesn't know where he put them. i'll see what i can do short of a complete re-install to get the computer usable again. again, thanks.
 
As for the actual OS 9 system, you shouldn't have anything other than 9.1 or below. 9.2.2 was designed primarily to work with OS X present on the system. :)
 
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