| You can return to Mac OS 9 in either of two ways. Here's a summary of the pros and cons of each method: -
Run Classic . The program called Classic is one of the crowning achievements of Mac OS X. You can think of it as a Mac OS 9 simulator or emu la tor. It runs automatically whenever you double-click the icon of a preMac OS X program. At that point, the Classic (Mac OS 9) world takes over your screen, looking exactly as though the old Mac OS 9 you used to know (or not know) is starting up. There's the old startup logo, the parade of extensions across the screen, your old  menu, the non-striped menu bar, and so on. Once it's running, you can run almost all of your older Mac OS 9 pro grams without a hitch. Classic is the reason Apple recommends that you install Mac OS X only on Macs with at least 256 MB of memory. When you run it, your Mac is running two operating systems at once, which requires quite a bit of memory. For most people, most of the time, Classic is the easiest , quickest, and most effective way to run older Mac programs.
Note: Classic requires Mac OS 9.1 or later. The most recent version, 9.2.2, is best.Unfortunately, Tiger doesn't come with any version of Mac OS 9, and neither does a new Mac. To use any of the tricks described in this chapter, then, see the box below.
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Restart the Mac in Mac OS 9 . Classic is only a simulator. It's not your operating system at the timenot controlling your Mac. Mac OS X still runs beneath it. When a certain Mac OS 9 program " reaches for" a particular piece of circuitry on your Mac, such as the FireWire or USB jack, it may come up empty-handed. That's why many scanners , digitizing tablets, and even printers don't work when you run programs in the Classic mode. Fortunatelydepending on the age of your Macyou may also be able to restart your Mac in Mac OS 9, just as though you don't have Mac OS X installed at all. At this point, you've got just a regular Mac OS 9 machine, and all of that older gear works just as it always did. Of course, you don't get any of the benefits of Mac OS X, such as its stability and multitasking prowess. This chapter describes both of these methods . FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTION
Where to Get Mac OS 9 | | Hey, I just bought Mac OS X 10.4, and it doesn't come with a Mac OS 9 CD! Where am I supposed to get a copy of Mac OS 9? If you bought your Mac within the last several years , you already have a copy of Mac OS 9, right on the hard drive. Thanks to the software downloads page of Apple's Web site, you can update any version of Mac OS 9 to the very latest version (9.2.2). Even if you bought your Mac today, you, too, have a copy of Mac OS 9. It's the folder called System Folder in your main hard drive window. (Don't confuse the folder called System Folder with the folder just called System , which is your Mac OS X folder.) In short, you're completely out of luck only if you have an old Mac that's still running Mac OS 8.5 or 8.6. And for you, Apple has a special offer: $20 buys you a copy of Mac OS 9. (You must prove your worthiness by sending Apple a copy of your Mac OS X receipt.) Details are on Apple's Web site. |
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