Submitted by This new version can now utilize the built-in Wi-Fi hardware in all Apple systems that feature Broadcom’s BCM43 chipset. In addition, MorphOS further extends its support of graphics chipsets to include AMD’s R400 series by adding compatibility with Radeon X800 XT/Pro and FireGL X3 cards. Moreover, the latest version of MorphOS now enables laptop owners to define custom screen modes and provides default modes for increasingly common high resolution displays.
Improving interoperability and overall convenience, MorphOS 3.6 adds a new SMBFS filesystem handler with 64-bit I/O support for easy file sharing via network storage devices, a new VNC server to control your MorphOS systems remotely or even without a display, and a Synergy client for sharing a nearby mouse and keyboard with any Linux, MacOS or Windows machine that is part of your local network and acts as a Synergy server.
Seems like a pretty big update. I’m keeping my eyes open for a nice PowerBook G4 so that I can re-review MorphOS somewhere in the near future.
No mention of idemacio.device DMA in the changelog; without that smooth DVD playback and disc burning without taxing the CPU is really out of the question
This might be a good place to start hunting a G4 Mac to run MorphOS:
http://lowendmac.com/2014/lem-swap/
I’m not affiliated with them, but I have bought and sold on there occasionally.
Or E-bay. I bought a perfectly fine G5 there.
What WiFi chip is in the PowerBook G4 5.8? BCM43?
It’s that chip that’s supported now in 3.6 so my bet is yes.
The driver is for the so-called “AirPort Extreme” card, found in PowerPC Macs listed in the following Apple article: http://support.apple.com/kb/ht3024 The WiFi in these machines is now *supported*.
Macs equipped with the earlier “Airport” card (as listed here: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1621) have a different WiFi chipset (called Lucent WaveLAN/Orinoco) and are *not* supported by this driver.
Yes, that PowerBook has a BCM43. I have the same PB5,8 and it works perfectly with MorphOS.
Since we’re talking about second hand hardware, please check for known issues with these laptops before buy. Also, even if slightly obsoleted, because MorphOS supports plenty of models now, the “Buying a PowerBook” guide by one of the MorphOS authors is still a good read (especially the “testing the thing” part): http://dreamolers.binaryriot.org/powerbooks.html
Well, even though we use 10 something year old hardware, one good thing about MorphOS is that it doesn’t feel slow at all
I would recommend a Powermac G5 2.3 GHz with a X800XT GFx card. It’s not much more expensive than a Powerbook and is a resonably fast system even by todays standard (faster than new, low end, single core laptops at least). Faster systems use liquid cooling, which can be troublesome (I got a 2.7 GHz with liquid cooling that works just fine, but you never know).
That is, if you got the room since a G5 is huge and weights a ton!
I hope it will be a fair and balanced review of the _OS_ and not the usual “there is no software!” whine you hear everywhere. Reviewing an OS should be about the OS and only the OS and not if it got that copy of GIMP you like so much or not.
2 two cents 🙂
On the surface that’s a pretty fair statement, however, the software that is available to run on a particular OS can be an extremely important consideration. I would expect a factual statement somewhere in the review about the availability of software for an OS. If I can’t get real functionality out of a computer, what’s the point? Now, if all I want is to play with an interesting OS, then the dearth of s/w really doesn’t come into play.
I suspect that this is a niche product, and as such will be extremely attractive to some, not so attractive to others. I expect a review to be honest enough to let me know.
Fair enough 🙂