PowerBook
The Power to Be Your Best
Macintosh Portable – 1989
Macs with PowerPC processors (G3/4/5) were not designed to boot from USB external drives. Needs to be FireWire, something the Wallstreet lacks. If the internal drive does not work, you can boot from a system CD.
The Mac Portable (aka “Mac Luggable”) was Apple’s answer to the growing cry for a portable Mac in the late 1980s. Essentially an SE in a suitcase, the Portable had a great keyboard, backlit screen, a built-in trackball and vintage Apple styling. Unfortunately it was also heavy and expensive, and not a big seller in its day. The Portable attained a strong cult following over time, and today has become a valuable collector’s item. Its lead acid batteries pack real heft and never fail to impress visitors to the Museum!
- How To Create A Bootable Usb For Powerpc Mac G3. 11/4/2020 0 Comments. If youre using a USB drive, it has to be formatted as Mac OS Extended (Journaled) and set to.
- Power the computer on (or restart it if it's already running) and immediately. 3.hold down those 4 keys together: CMD + OPT/ALT + O + F until you see the white Open Firmware screen similar to this: 4. Then at the Open Firmware command prompt, type this and press ENTER: boot usb0/disk@1:,:tbxi.
This Mac Portable utilizes the System Picker application to choose startup between System 6.0.8, 7.1 or 7.5.5.
PowerBook 170 – 1991
The PowerBook 100 Series replaced the Macintosh Portable with a truly portable system, and was the first incarnation of the PowerBook name and battleship grey color. The form-follows-function design was rugged and popular, lasting several generations. The 170 hit the market with a powerful 68030 CPU, built-in modem, 2.5″ laptop SCSI hard drive and an active matrix screen, making it a favorite for business users, writers and students alike. This form factor lasted for several generations, topping off with the color model 180c. The VMM 170 runs System 7.1
Personally, I remember having my first case of PowerBook Envy at about this time… VMM TV:What’s on your PowerBook?
PowerBook 540c – 1994
Radical in its day, the PowerBook 500 “Blackbird” series took the Quadra on the road in style. The 540c offered an active matrix color screen, 68040 CPU, a trackpad, dual battery bays, 16 bit stereo sound and built-in ethernet, along with a bold new case style that influenced PowerBook models all the way through to the PowerBook G3 “Pismo” years later. Like the 840AV on the desktop, the 540c represented the pinnacle of 68k PowerBook design.
The 540c runs Mac OS 8.1 has served a vital role on the VMM network, capable of mounting 3.5″ floppy disks as well as accessing AppleShare volumes from Mac OS versions 7, 8, 9 and X for inter-generational filesharing.
PowerBook 2400c/3400c – 1997
The early PowerPC era wasn’t kind to Apple, and PowerBooks were hit hardest. After a disastrous experience with the lackluster, sometimes flammable 5300 line, Apple released the x400 series of portables (1400, 2400, 3400). The 3400c was built for speed with a 240MHz PowerPC 603ev (low power) processor, which Apple claimed at the time was the fastest portable computer in the world . An expansion bay supported CD-ROM and floppy drives, and an active matrix screen made this a useable if somewhat beefy portable. The 1400c was a budget model with a nice keyboard, while the 2400c was a subnotebook that was scarce in the US but very popular in Japan – the MacBook Air of it’s day.
PowerBook G3 “Wallstreet” – 1998
With the G3-based Wallstreet, the PowerPC PowerBook finally hit its stride. Sporting a striking jet-black Batman’esque case, 14″ active matrix screen, 2 PC card slots and dual expansion bays with lots of options (CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, Floppy, Zip, SuperDisk and later CD-RW drives), the Wallstreet (Apple’s internal project name) was built like a tank and a pleasure to use. SCSI, ADB and serial ports gave full compatibility with existing peripherals for desktop machines, and it was a big seller. Like many early G3 systems it was underpowered for Mac OS X but makes a very good Mac OS 9 system.
At the VMM a Wallstreet runs Mac OS 9.2.2 and serves the primary computer for Oakbog’s vintage file transfer efforts: it can bridge the worlds of floppy disks, SCSI drives and Ethernet. This model was a tank and is still a pleasure to use.
VMM Blog:Vintage Mac Museum Workhorse – Wallstreet
PowerBook G3 “Pismo” – 2000
Two generations after the Wallstreet, Apple introduced the Pismo. An ultra-refined and minimalist design, many Mac users (this writer included) consider this to be one of Apple’s most attractive laptops. The Pismo (officially the PowerBook G3 “FireWire”) dropped ADB & SCSI in favor of USB & FireWire, but retained the dual battery/expansion bays and curvy styling first introduced with the 540c. A good dual-bootable Mac OS 9/Mac OS X system, the Pismo was Apple’s last black computer until the Intel-based MacBook (Steve hates black). It remained popular for years and still retains decent resale value.
The VMM Pismo runs Panther and provides wireless internet in the bedroom and other important locations… VMM Blog:Pismo – We Can Rebuild Him
PowerBook G4 “Titanium” – 2001
How do you make a product smaller and larger at the same time? If you’re Apple, you make the case thinner and the screen wider. Add a processor upgrade and another stunning new design (often imitated, never duplicated) and you’ve got the PowerBook G4 Titanium. The “TiBook” needed a few iterations to get the bugs worked out and it didn’t include any expansion bays, but was slim, lightweight and the PowerBook to have among Apple cognoscenti. Shortcomings included an easily scratched exterior, poor WiFi reception (a metal case will do that) and a weak hinge design, all of which were improved in the PowerBook G4 Aluminum series a few years later.
PowerBook G4 “Aluminum” – 2003
How To Create A Bootable Usb Drive
Citing changing usage trends Apple declared 2003 the “Year of the Laptop” and revamped the PowerBook line to include a variety of sizes. The G4 Aluminum came in 12″, 15″ and 17″ sizes, was sturdier, more scratch resistant and had better wireless reception. The formerly removable keyboard was now permanent, resulting in a notable typing improvement, and like most Apple products had superb fit and finish. The 15″ and 17″ were reused in the Intel-based MacBook Pros; the popular 12″ form factor, Apple’s smallest-ever laptop, was discontinued. G4 Aluminum systems are the last portables to use the venerable PowerBook name. VMM TV:PowerBook G4 “Big & Small”
68k Macintosh | PowerPC Beige | PowerPC G-Series | PowerBook | Rare Items
Each operating system could crash at one time or another. While it's safe to say that macOS is more stable than Windows, it can still be affected by issues that prevent your computer from booting up. In such cases, you might need to boot your Mac from a USB install media to fix the problem. This article shows you two ways to boot Mac from external USB stick, as well as some troubleshooting tips in case Mac won't boot from the target USB.
Boot Mac from USB Option l: Startup Manager
If your Mac won't boot up normally, you can set it to boot from a different drive, such as a USB stick containing macOS installation files in bootable format. The drive will have to contain a version of the OS that is compatible with the Mac. As long as you have the bootable installation USB, you can start your Mac from the USB by accessing the Startup Manager. Here are the steps to be followed:
Step 1: Insert the bootable USB into Mac and power it on.
Step 2: As soon as the startup process begins, hold down the Option (alt) key and keep it depressed until you see the Startup Manager on your screen. If there is a firmware password on your Mac, hold down the Option key until you're asked to enter that password.
Step 3: You will now see the various startup disk options, and your USB will be listed there. If you click on the Up arrow right below the icon for the USB, the computer will only startup once using this disk. If you press and hold down the Control key while making your selection, it will be saved, and your computer will boot from the USB every time, as long as it is left in the computer.
At this point, you can also use the Mac installation disk to boot your Mac from. It will appear as EFI Boot, and it works on all computers running macOS 10.9 or higher.
Boot Mac from USB Option 2: macOS Recovery Mode
Create A Bootable Usb Mac
As an alternative, you can start your Mac in Recovery Mode. This will allow the system to automatically detect and repair directory issues. Recovery Mode will only allow required kernel extensions to load, preventing login items and startup items to load automatically. It can also help you isolate the issue depending on whether or not the issue goes away in Recovery Mode. If the issues you have during normal startup don't show up in Recovery Mode, they are most likely fixed. That means you can reboot normally and your system should be back to normal.
Step 1: Start your Mac and hold down the Shift key. You will see the Apple logo on your screen.
Step 2: When you see the login screen, you can release the Shift key and login to your Mac.
Step 3: To check whether your Mac has booted into Recovery Mode, click on the Apple logo on the top left and then on About this Mac. In the window that opens, click on System Report… You should be able to see this:
How to Fix Mac Won't Boot from USB Drive
Sometimes Mac won't boot from USB as expected. If you are unable to select a different startup disk, it's possible that your disk is not showing up in Startup Manager. If you try Method 1 above but don't see your USB drive listed there, it could mean one of the following problems:
Hardware Port: On old Mac models, the latest port such as USB 3.1 or Thunderbolt ports are not recognized at hardware level. You have to use USB 2.0 for making macOS bootable USB.
Compatibility: It is possible that the version of macOS or Mac OS X that you have on the USB drive is not compatible with the hardware. That means you won't be able to see it in the Startup Manager so, of course, you won't be able to boot from it. In such cases, you may need to burn a compatible macOS version on USB drive in order to be able to boot Mac from it.
Startup Security Utility: In certain cases where your Mac has the Apple T2 Security Chip (2018 and later devices), it may be your Startup Security Utility settings that are preventing you from booting from USB. In this situation, restart your Mac and hold down the Command + R keys when you see the Apple logo. This will put your Mac into Recovery mode. In macOS Utilities, go to Utilities >Startup Security Utility and sign in as admin. Under External Boot, select the second option - Allow Booting from External Media.
Option ROM Firmware: Another known issue is that Option ROM firmware will not load in Startup Manager until you press certain keys manually. To do this, use Method 1 to access Startup Manager. Once you are there, press Option-Shift-Command-Period. You should now be able to see the USB drive. This is not exactly a problem as much as a feature. If the USB contains Option ROM firmware, you will need to press those keys everytime to boot from your pen drive.
Create A Bootable Usb Stick
These two methods and the troubleshooting tips should allow you to boot from USB or in Recovery Mode so you can then isolate the problem that's preventing your Mac from booting up normally.