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Top stories of Dec. 27th, 2001: |
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| Installing iMac Slotted CDRW Drive in G4 Cube: |
In the discussions recently on the new Powerbook G4's Slotted DVD-CDRW drive a reader replied that the Cube had a notebook form factor drive plus the notebook to standard IDE interface adapter standard (which means that if there can be a source found for the combo drives - they'd fit the G4 Cube).
In the meantime, a G4 Cube owner wrote that he's swapped out the DVD-ROM drive for a CDRW model made for a slotted iMac:
"
Hi Mike,
Great News for DVD Cube owners with CD-RW envy!
I saw that you had
mentioned a source for iMac CD-RW slot loading drives and were curious
whether or not they would indeed work in a Cube...
Well, I ordered one (through allapplemac.com, see: http://excalibur.icni.com:80/icni/dept.asp?dept%5Fid=1052 ) with the hopes of replacing the DVD drive in my G4 Cube
450 (I have yet to use a DVD disc in my cube and a CD-RW would suit me
better at the moment). Upon receiving it, I dissected my cube and swapped
out my DVD drive for the CD-RW. The entire operation took a total of
about five minutes - not bad considering that I haven't tinkered with my
Cube as of yet.
The only unexpected step was that the IDE connecter on
the slot load drives utilizes a smaller connection and there is a small
circuit board that screws into the back of the drive that breaks out its
connector to standard size IDE and power cables. Removing this adaptor
board from the DVD drive and attaching it to the CD-RW drive added about
30 seconds on to the job - no sweat. I slid the drive back in and the
four torx screws lined up perfectly! Lastly, I re-assembled the cube (a
total of eight more torx screws) and booted up...Success! A fully
functional drive recognized as a standard Apple CD-RW - iTunes checked out,
Toast Titanium checked out, Disc Burner works perfectly, it boots, it
slices, etc (under 10.1.2 & 9.2.2)... I would still like to eventually
find a combo DVD/CD-RW drive for the ultimate Cube; that is, after I
upgrade it to a dual 500 :^)
Keep up the great site!
Cheers,
Brant"
Last night I finished my Dual G4/500 Cube mods and would like to find a Combo Slotted DVD/CDRW drive to swap for the DVD ROM drive. Last Thursday's news page had a reader comment on the brand/model of the combo drive (DVD/CDRW) in the new Powerbooks. If anyone spots a source of them on the web let me know.
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| Yamaha SCSI CDRW Owner Notes iTunes 2.03 + El Gato Drivers Adds iTunes Support: |
(Note: another reader tried this tip with a Beige G3, onboard SCSI and Yamaha 6416 drive and said it did not work for that setup. However a Beige G3 owner with the same drive noted in the drive database that this tip did work - he had forgotten to reinstall iTunes if El Gato drivers were installed after iTunes was installed. He said that old tip (noted here last month and in drive database reports) resulted in that setup working.) "
Mike,
Last month I sent a report on SCSI CDRW Helper which allowed me to use Toast
within Mac OS X to burn CDs on my Yamaha 8424 CDRW attached to an OEM 2930
SCSI card. In my original message I stated that although SCSI CDRW Helper
allowed Toast to work, I could not burn CDs from iTunes or through the
Finder using Apple's built-in CD burning functionality.
Well, I guess the folks at Apple decided to give us folks with SCSI CDRW a
surprise holiday gift! After installing iTunes 2.0.3 and the Mac OS X 10.1.2
update via Software Update, my SCSI CDRW works! I can now burn music CDs in
iTunes, burn CDs in the Finder... the works! Even the "Burn Disk" function
within Disk Copy works. None of the documentation I've seen suggests this
expanded support for SCSI CDRW, so your readers may want to check this out
to see if their CDRW now works with iTunes and the Finder.
This makes me VERY happy, to say the least. I was worried that I'd have to
replace my drive (which worked perfectly in Mac OS 9) with a Firewire drive
to be able to burn CDs from iTunes, etc. It's nice to not have to replace a
working piece of hardware.
I should also note that the 10.1.2 update fixed all of the minor glitches I was experiencing on my dual G4 500 as well as a networking problem
(disconnected from server) I was having when copying large files (or a large
number of small files) to an iMac I have set up as a server running Mac OS X
10.1.2 (with regular file sharing).
What a great way to start the new year! I've gone from Happy in Mac OS X to
VERY Happy. Thanks Apple! And El Gato!
Andy"
I asked that he post a drive database entry on this also. If any other SCSI CDRW owners see support with iTunes 2.03, let me know or post a database update. |
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| G4 Cube Owners - Request to run CPU Temperature Test: |
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Last night (about 6AM) I finished installing a Dual G4/500 CPU module in my G4 Cube. I'm trying now to determine (relative) CPU temperatures compared to the original single CPU, and wonder if any G4/500 (or G4/450) Cube owners can run this test and send me the maximum CPU temperatures reported. (Hindsight is always 20/20 - I should have ran this test before replacing the CPU module.)
Using OS 9.x (I'm running 9.2.2), please:
- Download Altivec Fractal Carbon demo (if you don't already have the latest version)
- Download Newer Tech's GaugePro 1.1 (if you don't already have it)
- While running OS 9 (not classic), run GaugePro and drag the window to the lower right hand corner of the screen (to keep it visible when running Altivec Fractal demo). GaugePro will report the CPU temperature in C (and F). (Temperatures may not be literally accurate but I'm looking for relative differences between the single and dual CPUs.)
- Run Altivec Fractal demo repeatedly (use Command+R key) at least 30 times or more and watch the maximum temperature reported by GaugePro during this exercise.
If any Cube owners could send me the max temperatures seen during an extended run of the above I'd apprecate it. Email me with your results and system details. Thanks!
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| Wavelan 802.11b PCCard Drivers for OS X 10.1.2: |
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A reader sent a note on a source of Wavelan (Airport compatible Wireless networking) card drivers for OS X that he said worked with his PowerBook G3 wallstreet and OS X 10.1.2:
"
Dear Mike,
I have an update for you: the OSX drivers listed in your page are out of
date. [The ones noted months ago for OS X 10.1.0-Mike]
Updated ones, with complete instructions, can be found at:
http://wirelessdriver.sourceforge.net/
and as this email message proves, they work!
Thanks for everything!
Martin Rocek
"
I've updated the networking and OS X sections of the FAQ with this source.
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| Western Digital 120GB Drives, $199.xx plus $100 Gift Card (In-Store) |
(See the reader update below Sandor's post that says their online site has a $299 price, not $199, but Sandor replied $199.xx was the price he paid in the store and offered to send a copy of the receipt. Another reader also wrote to say his local store had the same price/offer. So this may be a in-store only price/limited time special and may expire at any time.)
Earlier this month I posted a note about Sam's Club having 100GB WD drives (2MB cache models) with a $100 rebate (for December only) that resulted in a net cost of appx $120. A reader sent a note about an offer at Best Buy on the 120GB model:
"
hey mike
just wanted to let you know Best Buy had a western digital 120
gig 7200 rpm ATA-100 hard drive for $199 plus a mail in rebate for a $100
Best Buy gift card. pretty good deal considering the lowest price i have
been able to find on a 120 gig 7200 rpm drive was around $275.
sandor
"
A reader replied to this post saying the above comments from Sandor were not correct (I wrote Sandor to ask for clarification - i.e. was this an instore special, etc.)
"That is not accurate. The price is $299 then you get the $100 mail-in rebate
for $100 gift card on future purchase. You still end up paying $300 for the
drive.
http://www.bestbuy.com/detail.asp?e=11092115&m=488&cat=511&scat=512
Martin"
Sandor wrote his comments were not a mistake - he paid $199.xx plus tax in-store today:
"
i bought the drive at 10:30 this morning. i handed the cashier 215 and
change (after tax) and he handed me a 120 gig drive and a rebate form for
a $100 gift card. this was NOT online, but in person, at a real store. and
the display for the drive said "as advertised WD 120 GB 199.97" if you
would like, i could scan the reciept and rebate form and send them to you
= ) the drive runs perfect in my QS 867 too...
sandor"
Another reader wrote to say he also saw the $199.xx price at his local Best Buy store:
"
The $199 WD 120 GB HD with $100 Gift Card is correct. I bought one in Jacksonville, Florida...
Gary Wood"
The comments above were from in-store buys on 12/27/2001 - prices may change later this week. (It may be an after-christmas sale only good for a few days.)
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