Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

z970

macrumors 68040
Jun 2, 2017
3,580
4,502
I agree. YouTube used to work GREAT in Camino on my iBook G4. 360p without any stutters. I wish YT had an option to use Flash instead of HTML5...

As the months go by, I'm getting the feeling that Linux is getting to be increasingly viable for PowerPCs.

I will be making the switch in early September. The new face of my G5 will be Lubuntu 16.04, Tiger will be relegated to a secondary OS, I may just give Leopard the boot.

What do you think of all this? How is life for your PowerPCs?

Or early Intels, for that matter...?
 
Last edited:

Imixmuan

Suspended
Dec 18, 2010
526
424
As the months go by, I'm getting the feeling that Linux is getting to be increasingly viable for PowerPCs.

I will be making the switch in early September. The new face of my G5 will be Lubuntu 16.04, Tiger will be relegated to a secondary OS, I may just give Leopard the boot.

What do you think of all this? How is life for your PowerPCs?

Or early Intels, for that matter...?

Debian is no longer supporting PowerPC, which means all the 'buntu's are essentially end of life. MintPPC, out of date but still the best ever PowerPC distro appears to sadly not exist anymore. Yes, distros like Lubuntu will have some support for the last PowerPC LTS, as will MATE, but honestly these days you are probably better off with OS X. That gives you Leopard Webkit, Tenfourfox, Roccat, Coreplayer, Office, Blender, current Libre Office etc. Dronecatcher here has done more than most to get Linux to play nice with PowerPC, and he has said over and over that whilst he likes Linux, it just doesn't offer any more, sometimes much less than Tiger and Leopard. That has been my experience as well. I've custom compiled PowerPC kernels, I've compiled my own custom PowerPC apps, edited more config files than I care to think about, tried out every video card known to man and while I usually get Linux to work on PowerPC, I always end up back with Tiger or Leopard.

Give me an x86 from the same era and I can run a dozen or more distros on that machine, with few or now headaches. Peppermint OS is my current fave for old hardware. Holy mackerel that is a great distro, with no equivalent for PowerPC.
 

z970

macrumors 68040
Jun 2, 2017
3,580
4,502
Debian is no longer supporting PowerPC, which means all the 'buntu's are essentially end of life. MintPPC, out of date but still the best ever PowerPC distro appears to sadly not exist anymore. Yes, distros like Lubuntu will have some support for the last PowerPC LTS, as will MATE, but honestly these days you are probably better off with OS X. That gives you Leopard Webkit, Tenfourfox, Roccat, Coreplayer, Office, Blender, current Libre Office etc. Dronecatcher here has done more than most to get Linux to play nice with PowerPC, and he has said over and over that whilst he likes Linux, it just doesn't offer any more, sometimes much less than Tiger and Leopard. That has been my experience as well. I've custom compiled PowerPC kernels, I've compiled my own custom PowerPC apps, edited more config files than I care to think about, tried out every video card known to man and while I usually get Linux to work on PowerPC, I always end up back with Tiger or Leopard.

Give me an x86 from the same era and I can run a dozen or more distros on that machine, with few or now headaches. Peppermint OS is my current fave for old hardware. Holy mackerel that is a great distro, with no equivalent for PowerPC.

Leopard Webkit is worse than Safari 5.0.6 for me, TenFourFox is slow and Dr. Kaiser is getting tired of devising new releases, Roccat doesn't really fit with the theme of Leopard and can't really do much more than TFF already can, if you have a G5, QuickTime is just as good as CorePlayer, Office 2008 is old, Blender for Leopard is outdated and Linux has the latest versions, LibreOffice is built-in and up-to-date on Linux, not so on OS X, etc. Are you telling me that PowerPC Linux can't run any of these things? If that's the case, well damn, that ruins everything. Everything.

I'm still going to try.

Why is Peppermint OS your favorite? Can't Lubuntu do everything it can and more, like be less resource intensive?
 

Dronecatcher

macrumors 603
Jun 17, 2014
5,209
7,783
Lincolnshire, UK
HTML5 is so slow.

Flash was so much better for PPC Macs...

Everything about Youtube is getting harder for PowerPC playback - even Flash now is harder to play than it was a year ago - there's no getting away from it, the clock's ticking for being online with PowerPCs.
 
Last edited:

AmazingHenry

macrumors 65816
Jul 6, 2015
1,285
534
Central Michigan
As the months go by, I'm getting the feeling that Linux is getting to be increasingly viable for PowerPCs.

I will be making the switch in early September. The new face of my G5 will be Lubuntu 16.04, Tiger will be relegated to a secondary OS, I may just give Leopard the boot.

What do you think of all this? How is life for your PowerPCs?

Or early Intels, for that matter...?
I think that OSX will work well for at least the next 5 years. Even if Kaiser stopped making TFF now, the current version will work OK for awhile. Also, I don't see LWK going away anytime soon. I know you don't like it, but most people (including me) have used it and experienced great speed and compatibility.

As for Linux, I think by the time OSX is unusable, we won't have up-to-date Linux distorts either.

So in my opinion, it's all about preference. In terms of support and the Internet these operating systems are very similar at this time and will continue to be.
 

z970

macrumors 68040
Jun 2, 2017
3,580
4,502
I think that OSX will work well for at least the next 5 years. Even if Kaiser stopped making TFF now, the current version will work OK for awhile. Also, I don't see LWK going away anytime soon. I know you don't like it, but most people (including me) have used it and experienced great speed and compatibility.

As for Linux, I think by the time OSX is unusable, we won't have up-to-date Linux distorts either.

So in my opinion, it's all about preference. In terms of support and the Internet these operating systems are very similar at this time and will continue to be.

I'd like to like it! The problem is that it never works well for me, and performs worse than Safari. Seriously, YouTube is buggy on LWK with my G5. There's no getting around that for me.

I get the feeling PowerPC systems will become unusable for main driver use in 2020 and beyond. I believe we have something like a little less than 5 years left on them.

...Sigh...
[doublepost=1500146429][/doublepost]
Everything about Youtube as getting harder for PowerPC playback - even Flash now is harder to play than it was a year ago - there's no getting away from it, the clock's ticking for being online with PowerPCs.

This is something I am coming to agree with...
 

AmazingHenry

macrumors 65816
Jul 6, 2015
1,285
534
Central Michigan
I'd like to like it! The problem is that it never works well for me, and performs worse than Safari. Seriously, YouTube is buggy on LWK with my G5. There's no getting around that for me.

I get the feeling PowerPC systems will become unusable for main driver use in 2020 and beyond. I believe we have something like a little less than 5 years left on them.

...Sigh...
Yeah, I tried it... YouTube is buggy. But all other sites work fine... at a much faster speed than TFF (@eyoungren: I'm not saying it's better, just saying it's faster. ;)).
 
  • Like
Reactions: eyoungren

Imixmuan

Suspended
Dec 18, 2010
526
424
Leopard Webkit is worse than Safari 5.0.6 for me, TenFourFox is slow and Dr. Kaiser is getting tired of devising new releases, Roccat doesn't really fit with the theme of Leopard and can't really do much more than TFF already can, if you have a G5, QuickTime is just as good as CorePlayer, Office 2008 is old, Blender for Leopard is outdated and Linux has the latest versions, LibreOffice is built-in and up-to-date on Linux, not so on OS X, etc. Are you telling me that PowerPC Linux can't run any of these things? If that's the case, well damn, that ruins everything. Everything.

I'm still going to try.

Why is Peppermint OS your favorite? Can't Lubuntu do everything it can and more, like be less resource intensive?

PowerPC Linux was pretty much dealt a death blow by Debian's not supporting it past Jessie. I hope the rumors of some people moving Debian for PowerPC forward are more than just that, but with everyday that passes that will be harder to do. Gentoo requires compiling the OS and apps to install, Fedora supports PPC64, not 32 bit, so no G4s or G3s. Then there are the BSDs, with godawful browser support. The best you will do is Netsurf on OpenBSD. And that looks unlikely to change.

Lubuntu is a nice, snappy OS. But Peppermint....on the same hardware its just smooth as silk, everything works, it gives me zero headaches. I also don't especially like where the Lubuntu team are taking the distro, things that used to just work, like Compton for instance, have become almost unbearable. But this is just one Brit's opinion.
 

Dronecatcher

macrumors 603
Jun 17, 2014
5,209
7,783
Lincolnshire, UK
...And so they're stopping now? Last I checked, PPC Linux is halting.

I'd very gladly accept a counter argument.

Quote from their site:

"After the announcement made by the Debian developers to drop PowerPC support, a dedicated group of programmers joined in and is now trying to take over the maintenance of PowerPC ports, trying to keep the platform at the same level of other mainstream ones. Of course, to accomplish such a huge task we are always looking for additional passionate people, so do not hesitate having a look at our wiki pages (http://wiki.powerprogress.org/DebianPowerPcStartersManual)."
 

z970

macrumors 68040
Jun 2, 2017
3,580
4,502
Quote from their site:

"After the announcement made by the Debian developers to drop PowerPC support, a dedicated group of programmers joined in and is now trying to take over the maintenance of PowerPC ports, trying to keep the platform at the same level of other mainstream ones. Of course, to accomplish such a huge task we are always looking for additional passionate people, so do not hesitate having a look at our wiki pages (http://wiki.powerprogress.org/DebianPowerPcStartersManual)."

Has Debian dropped support recently, and these guys are trying to bring it back up?

Or was this long ago and all this time has seen community releases of PPC builds? That's just my understanding, anyway.
[doublepost=1500228669][/doublepost]
PowerPC Linux was pretty much dealt a death blow by Debian's not supporting it past Jessie. I hope the rumors of some people moving Debian for PowerPC forward are more than just that, but with everyday that passes that will be harder to do. Gentoo requires compiling the OS and apps to install, Fedora supports PPC64, not 32 bit, so no G4s or G3s. Then there are the BSDs, with godawful browser support. The best you will do is Netsurf on OpenBSD. And that looks unlikely to change.

Lubuntu is a nice, snappy OS. But Peppermint....on the same hardware its just smooth as silk, everything works, it gives me zero headaches. I also don't especially like where the Lubuntu team are taking the distro, things that used to just work, like Compton for instance, have become almost unbearable. But this is just one Brit's opinion.

I just saw an overview video of Peppermint, and personally, I think it looks a little too busy, a bit too much like Windows 10.

I still prefer the look and feel of Lubuntu, based on what I've seen and used of it.

But hey, every man for himself right? ;)
 
Last edited:

MysticCow

macrumors 68000
May 27, 2013
1,561
1,739
As the months go by, I'm getting the feeling that Linux is getting to be increasingly viable for PowerPCs.

I will be making the switch in early September. The new face of my G5 will be Lubuntu 16.04, Tiger will be relegated to a secondary OS, I may just give Leopard the boot.

What do you think of all this? How is life for your PowerPCs?

Or early Intels, for that matter...?

Now for the Democratic response:

1. Linux hippies are dropping PowerPC like it's the bubonic plague. We'll wind up with only one or two distros before they finally die off from little/no use.

2. MorphOS still supports (certain) PPC Macs and it's pretty darn fast. However, because it isn't "free beer" nobody takes it.

3. We kind of maybe not sometimes support PPC here. We know we're reaching the limits of what our favorite chips offer.

4. TFF with QuickTime Enabler has been a godsend.

5. Classilla is an equally great godsend and might actually handle Youtube better.

We're hitting the hardware limits. It has some to do with the junked up nature of the internet right now, and we can fix that. We can't fix a true hardware limit.
 

z970

macrumors 68040
Jun 2, 2017
3,580
4,502
Now for the Democratic response:

1. Linux hippies are dropping PowerPC like it's the bubonic plague. We'll wind up with only one or two distros before they finally die off from little/no use.

2. MorphOS still supports (certain) PPC Macs and it's pretty darn fast. However, because it isn't "free beer" nobody takes it.

3. We kind of maybe not sometimes support PPC here. We know we're reaching the limits of what our favorite chips offer.

4. TFF with QuickTime Enabler has been a godsend.

5. Classilla is an equally great godsend and might actually handle Youtube better.

We're hitting the hardware limits. It has some to do with the junked up nature of the internet right now, and we can fix that. We can't fix a true hardware limit.

I'm starting to take that back. I'm in Leopard now, and I think I could go like this for years. I've got Safari 5.0.6 for YouTube and certain sites WebKit doesn't like, and WebKit for everything else. Best part, it's all faster than TFF. And unlike TFF, I can play 720pHD video in YouTube when viewing with Safari. And if you slap on Mountain Leopard, you're golden.

I'd still like to see how Linux goes, but for now, I think I've got it covered.
 
  • Like
Reactions: AmazingHenry

AmazingHenry

macrumors 65816
Jul 6, 2015
1,285
534
Central Michigan
I'm starting to take that back. I'm in Leopard now, and I think I could go like this for years. I've got Safari 5.0.6 for YouTube and certain sites WebKit doesn't like, and WebKit for everything else. Best part, it's all faster than TFF. And unlike TFF, I can play 720pHD video in YouTube when viewing with Safari. And if you slap on Mountain Leopard, you're golden.

I'd still like to see how Linux goes, but for now, I think I've got it covered.
That's what I've been trying to say! :D
 
  • Like
Reactions: z970

Appleuser201

macrumors 6502
Oct 12, 2018
400
219
Debian is no longer supporting PowerPC, which means all the 'buntu's are essentially end of life. MintPPC, out of date but still the best ever PowerPC distro appears to sadly not exist anymore. Yes, distros like Lubuntu will have some support for the last PowerPC LTS, as will MATE, but honestly these days you are probably better off with OS X. That gives you Leopard Webkit, Tenfourfox, Roccat, Coreplayer, Office, Blender, current Libre Office etc. Dronecatcher here has done more than most to get Linux to play nice with PowerPC, and he has said over and over that whilst he likes Linux, it just doesn't offer any more, sometimes much less than Tiger and Leopard. That has been my experience as well. I've custom compiled PowerPC kernels, I've compiled my own custom PowerPC apps, edited more config files than I care to think about, tried out every video card known to man and while I usually get Linux to work on PowerPC, I always end up back with Tiger or Leopard.

Give me an x86 from the same era and I can run a dozen or more distros on that machine, with few or now headaches. Peppermint OS is my current fave for old hardware. Holy mackerel that is a great distro, with no equivalent for PowerPC.
MintPPC, alive and better than ever with MintPPC 2019.
Completely modern, fast, and supported.
And the latest Debian version has been ported to PPC. Although nothing beats Mint.
 

z970

macrumors 68040
Jun 2, 2017
3,580
4,502
MintPPC, alive and better than ever with MintPPC 2019.
Completely modern, fast, and supported.
And the latest Debian version has been ported to PPC. Although nothing beats Mint.

Going on a limb here, but it may be possible that he already knows that...
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.