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XLR8 Cache Cntl 1.3.2: XLR8 has released v1.3.2 of its G3 Cache Control. It's available to XLR8 card owners by registering online or if you're already registered go to this page. For non-XLR8 card owners the software costs $29 from www.star-teck.com. Version 1.3.2 is fully compatible with OS 8.6 they say, addressing the cosmetic issue with the startup image seen with the previous version under OS 8.6. I've translated a word document of their press release into a HTML page so you can read the full press release tonight (it will appear on their web site tomorrow). All G3 macs are supported they say, including iMacs (as many of you know, many stock Apple caches _may_ run a bit faster than the default speeds, but this may void your warranty and may not be reliable at some speeds). I welcome your comments on v1.3.2.

As noted on the G3-ZONE overclocking page, Powerlogix's cache control has been used by even PB G3 owners for years (I used it on my first PB G3 (aka 3500) to run 166mhz back in 1997). Results are often mixed but recently there has been some surprising results noted. XLR8's software claims to test the cache to verify higher speed reliability automatically before enabling the setting, which can prevent a lockup from trial and error settings that are too fast for the installed cache.

Overclocking Results Wanted: Just a reminder that you can enter not only your G3 card upgrade, but any Overclocking results in my Database of Owner reports. For Apple overclocking reports - just select your mac model/series and then list Apple as the card brand (note the stock speed/CPU type and any higher speeds you obtained *reliably*). BTW - reports on Other World Computing's $299 366MHz ZIF upgrade should be entered as Other World Computing brand, not Apple. The database now has almost 1,300 entries and growing daily. Thanks to all that took the time to report your results and comments.

I saw this note in the QD3D Developer list that during the 'Carbon Overview' WWDC session attendees were told that Apple has made a "strategic decision to go with OpenGL for 3D in Carbon - QD3D will not be supported in Carbon". This has apparently caused an uproar with QD3D developers who note that the Quicktime support in QD3D is absent in OpenGL. There may end up being some form of QD3D/OpenGL integration before all is said and done.

David sent a note that Apple has released a B&W G3 Firmware update 1.1 for those owners that had problems installing the 1.02 update. Note that the code is the same as the 1.02 update so unless you had problems with that version you do not need to apply this update.

Vimage L2 Cache Upgrades/OS 8.6 Fix: Pete Plank sent a note on a software update:

"Hello, I'm not sure if anyone reported this yet or not, but the current driver for the Vimage Vpower PF L2 upgrade isn't compatible with MacOS 8.6; it crashes right after hitting the extension.

However, Interware of Japan (the actual makers of Vimage products) has in fact released a MacOS 8.6 compatible driver. It's available for download at: www.iijnet.or.jp/Interware/update/Booster6454_Beta.html

Since Interware calls the Vpower the "Booster" in Japan, the installer won't replace the old Vpower drivers in the system folder. You must remove these old VPower drivers manually prior to restarting the machine with the new MacOS 8.6 compatible ones. The files to remove are "Vpower PF G3 Extension" in the Extensions folder and "Vpower Control" in the Control Panels folder.

I'm sure given time that Vimage will release this update, but the Interware one is available now and it works perfectly.
Cheers,
Pete Plank"

Keyspan USB Card Fix: Thanks to Paul Bush, I've updated my FAQ with detailed guide to getting the Keyspan card to work with OS 8.6. There was a guide there on modifying the DDK drivers (1984 resource hack) but this new addition is more detailed and specific to the Keyspan/OS 8.6 problem.

Jim Down's problems with the Quake3Test 1.05 update noted earlier today were due to his deleting the MesaQuake files. Reinstalling MesaQuake fixed the problem he just reported. The Q3Test 1.05 update requires removing all your previous Q3Test files but MesaQuake is still needed for 3Dfx owners to provide OpenGL support that is missing from Apple's OpenGL drivers (which are for ATI cards only). For more information on MesaQuake, see my Quake 3 Tips page and the MesaQuake page linked there.

Jose Maria lamented that the new PowerBook G3 series only have one media bay, which means that you can't have say the CDROM and VST ZIP modules installed simultaneously (when running on AC power of course). I was not aware of this, but the new PB G3 specifications page does seem to indicate this is the case. I often run both the VST ZIP and the CDrom or Floppy drive in my Wall Street so this would be a feature I'd miss. I use my WallSteet PB more than any computer I've ever owned. In fact, it has seen so much use in the last year that some letters are beginning to wear off the keyboard. :-)

Steve Weisel wrote with a comparison of the old vs new Powerbook models and verifies the claims made:

"With the new PowerBooks, Apple really took aim at the proper areas where the Wall Street fell short:

• weight
• size
• heat

And, they threw in some bonuses where the Wall Streets were doing a nice job of holding their own:

• battery life
• CPU speed
• video graphics

But let's separate the wheat (big improvements) from the chaff (hype):
Apple claims the new PBs are 2 lbs. lighter. Depends which model you compare to. The specs for the new one say: 5.9 lbs. The specs for the original Wall Street (which I saved on my HD) say: 7.8 lbs. for the 14" model, 7.6 lbs. for the 13" model, 7.2 lbs. for the 12" model.

Battery life: 50-watt-hour LIon for the new, 49-watt-hour LIon for the old. Even Avie Tevanian, during the keynote, said that a large part of the added battery life comes from the power saving capabilities of OS 8.6, so we original Wall Street owners can get 25% to 37% improvement in our batteries. That is a sweet bonus for a free upgrade! Also note that the new batteries, though they have about the same life per charge as the old, are smaller.

New PowerBooks 20% thinner? Depends which model you compare to. Again to the spec sheets. Depth on original Wall Street: 2.0 inches (5.1 cm; 5.3 cm for the 14.1-inch model). Depth on new PB: 1.7 inches, 4.3 cm.

CD: 20x for the old, 24x for the new.
DVD: 1.5x for the old, 2x for the new.
[Note - all DVDs movies play at 1x-Mike]

CDs played on the DVD player: 12x for the old, 20x for the new.
Bus [Speed]: 83 MHz for the 250 and 292 CPU old ones. 66 MHz for all others.
Ethernet: 10bT for the old. 100/10bT for the new.
PC card slots: 2 for the old, 1 for the new.
VRAM: old had 2MB for the 12", 4 MB for the 13" or 14". New has 8 MB. New also plays back MPEG2 movies without needing a DVD video PC card. [I suspect they are either using a software decoder from ATI (if so don't expect to do anything else in the background) or have an onboard decoder (unlikely)-Mike]

CPU: 233 no cache, 233 512k cache, 250 1024k cache, 292 1024k cache, 266 1024k cache, 300 1024k cache for the old. The new has only 512k cache on the 333 MHz, but 1024k on the 400 MHz. To paraphrase , he says that this is just "a carrot and stick to make people pay more and buy the 400 MHz model. [What I meant was that it's another selling feature to tempt you to get the 400Mhz model-Mike] The part would only add $20 to the cost of the 333 MHz model. [Based on 225Mhz 512K Cache cost mentioned in an article last year on the PII, cost may be less now-Mike]"

Old has serial port. New has USB. There's also a rest state between keystrokes. I wonder if that's in the chips or the new OS update? [OS I'm sure -note previous ability to slow the CPU option in the advanced energy savings control panel-Mike] All in all, I'd say it's mostly wheat. Kudos Apple!!

As the owner of 4 PB models, I can tell you that you can slice half an hour to an hour off any claims made for battery life. Take off even more if you use the hard drive, CD drive, or DVD much, or brighten up the screen.

Now the issue that Apple wisely didn't mention much in the keynote: HEAT. They moved the modem to the back and opened a big vent on each side to create airflow under the keyboard. And supposedly added a better fan. Plus cooler running copper chips. They were wise not to point out what was the biggest failure of design and pre-release testing in the older PowerBooks (not counting the cable ribbon problem on the 13.3" screens; mine had to be fixed twice). I seriously worry about the longevity of the components in my Wall Street every time I feel the bottom (or even the trackpad) while watching a DVD movie. Once, I literally burned my finger on the trackpad. (A slight burn, but a burn nonetheless.)

Neither batteries, DVD drives, Zip drives, power supplies, or just about anything can be swapped between the old and the new.

Since Apple has now deviated from the strategy of having many parts fit in their entire product line, it's not hard to imagine them coming out with an Ultra-thin for this fast growing segment of the market. I saw a Vaio again yesterday, and it's not much thicker than two slices of matzoh! ; - ) Amazing.-Steve"

Bob F. writes that the 'Mac OS Purge' utility does not work with OS 8.6.

Note: All the reports on OS 8.6 are summarized and listed in full on my OS 8.6 Coverage page. Some I've posted here as well.

Sonnet Upgrades Software for OS 8.6: I received this last night from Sonnet:

" Hi,
As of May 11, 1999, Sonnet has released an update to the Crescendo software for Mac OS 8.6 support. Information on compatibility updates is available at:

http://www.sonnettech.com/news/macos86_comp_stmnt.html

The following Sonnet products are compatible through Mac OS 8.6:

* Crescendo G3/NuBus
* Crescendo G3/PCI
* Encore G3

The following Sonnet products are compatible through Mac OS 8.5.1. Sonnet is working on Mac OS 8.6 support for these products:

* Crescendo G3/L2
* Presto PPC

Regards,
Mike Henderson
Webmaster
Sonnet Technologies, Inc. "

OS 8.6/PCfx Win98 Shutdown Problem:

" Reading with interest your problems with the 8.6 upgrade.
I've detailed my own problems with getting Orange Micro's PCfx to work reliably with this rev. Turns out the new Apple Enet and Ethernet (built-in) DO work to allow me to boot, they just don't allow me to Shutdown. Mac locks up every time once I get to the W98 "It is now safe to shutoff your computer" screen.
Dave "

He also had some comments on problems with the next OS version booting.

QT 4 Ads hit the 'streets' (literally):

" hey -
Guerrilla marketeers for quicktime 4 struck last week in SF - plastering posters for it on buildings in the downtown area. i put some shots up at: http://www.sirius.com/~pjfraser/ in the "post no bills" subdirectory. thought you might get a kick out of it...cheers, and keep up the great work!
-- Peter Fraser "

MP Performance - Less with OS 8.6? Most of the MP owner reports have indicated slower apps performance with OS 8.6, contrary to the promises of an improved MP microkernel:

" Mike -
A note on your 8.6 feedback page:
The RC5 client fails to initialize TCP/IP simply because of a shortage of memory (there's several warnings from Apple that some programs will require more). Simply upping its memory allocation slightly stops this warning from appearing.

A note on 8.6 performance:
We've got a Umax dual 604/250 here in lab, so i was anxious to check out the improved MP support. I did a non-clean install, and found performance to be extremely sluggish (windows opened slowly, menus drew slowly, etc.). So i tried a clean install, and got slightly better results. Then i started up the RC5 client, and found that performance dropped again. Thinking that RC5 was just grabbing too much of the processor time, i checked its performance, only to find that the kkeys/sec had DROPPED by about 20%. I'm currently at a loss to explain this, though it may be something specific to Umax's dual processor implementation (the processors reside on individual daughter cards). I've not tried extension bashing to see if there is an individual culprit(s) yet, either.

And, once again, thanks for providing a superb source of information.
Jay Timmer "

More on Keyspan USB Card/OS 8.6 Several readers reported running fine, yet others said even Keyspan verified there will be a driver update. One common thread in the problem reports was a Logitech mouse I believe (possibly a software conflict?):

" Mike,
I haven't installed 8.6 on my system yet, but I did find something interesting in the developer section of the apple site in regards to the keyspan card. http://developer.apple.com/hardware/usb/download.htm

Quote:
'USB v1.2 will support PCI USB cards from several vendors, however the Keyspan card has been extensively tested for compatibility with MacOS 8.6 and an the complete range of PCI-based Macintosh models. This card includes USB v1.1 software on diskette, and Keyspan is prepared to technical support to customers.'

So it look the driver for the card needs to be reinstalled to solve the problem. I hope this helps, don Lee "

Another reader with a Keyspan/Mouse problem

" I wrote to Keyspan, because I was having the same exact problem. It does work to simply unplug/replug your USB devices. They work normally then, although i did have to reset my Mouse settings. They said there will probably be another driver to fix this problem, and that they're (Keyspan) aware of the problem.
Ron "

No problems reported here:

" I can't solve your problem, but I can tell you that I have a Keyspan USB card in my 7600 and it works fine after installing OS 8.6. I have an Artec 1236USB scanner [which draws all of its power from the USB port] connected through one USB port and the other has a Logitech Quickcam VC, which also works. I suspect you may have an extension conflict, perhaps a three way conflict. Try Conflict Catcher.
Mark Saur "

This reader installed the card after OS 8.6 and reported no problems.

" I installed 8.6 on Saturday during it's short appearance on the FTP. All seemed well. Yesterday I went out and purchased a Keyspan 2 port USB card and an Agfa 1212u scanner. I'm happy to report that they both work PERFECTLY.

Ask the people with problems this:
Are the USB drivers 1.0 or 1.1 [OS 8.6 installs v1.2 I think -Mike]
Is it the 4 or 2 port USB card?
Are they sure it is firmly seated in the slot?
Are there ANY other USB drivers NOT from Keyspan installed?

I am running the card and scanner on a Beige G3/266 MiniTower.
Mark Tuleweit
Byte Media "

" Mike,
Apparently if you are using the older DDK (USB 1.1) it will no longer work in 8.6. You must update to the release version of USB 1.2 aka USB DDK 1.2f7.

The USB DDK 1.2 appears to be specifically designed for 8.6. I was having various kinds of problems with DDK 1.2 in 8.5.x that I eventually resolved by making the USB extensions load first. But in 8.6, none of this was needed. Also the problem that I had had in one of the 8.6 betas were the Logitech MouseWare software would cause a hard freeze when doing a click-drag appears to be resolved by the final of 8.6.
Lee Eichelberger "

Two readers reported that disabling Speed Doubler's 'Faster File Copying' fixed their problems in OS 8.6. As noted yesterday, other readers noted that setting SD to not stay open also solved the shutdown problem.

Gary Dailey of Daystar/XLR8 wrote to say that XLR8's Cache control 1.3.1 is 'fully compatible with OS 8.6', but that the startup banner was not drawn properly. He said a 1.3.2 update will be released to correct that.

In reply to a post of problems from a B&W G3 owner yesterday (crashes on startup), Gregory Johnson reported that SoftArc's FirstClass ran fine on his PB 3400. I've added this to the original problem report on the OS 8.6 page.

A reader replies to the note that OS 8.6 fixed the DHCP problem::

" The DHCP client problem is fixed unless you do a force restart, then it goes back to the 169.254.x.x address. I noticed this when I had to force a restart after the 8.6 no shutdown thing.
Jim Muha "

FoolProof/OS 8.6 Warning: [Update: A reader said not to install 'Advanced Disk Locking'. However current users of the product should take precautions before they upgrade to OS 8.6] This compatibility issue was so severe I wanted to highlight it here in addition to listing it on the OS 8.6 Summary page:

" On a Powerbook 1400, with a G3 upgrade, the latest version of Foolproof will not work. An error message keeps coming up. Foolproof locks the disk, so I had to erase the whole disk and reinstall everything. Good thing, I did back up all my data.
Sam "

Epson Twain Driver Fix: A reader sent a note of an older version that may solve the problem noted on yesterday's updates to the OS 8.6 Feedback page:

" I was reading about the person who had the Epson 1200-C Twain Driver problems. I also had those same problems at work, and Epson DOES have an older Twain driver that works. The 2.62A driver does not work with 8.6. When you try to launch the Twain through the Import menu in Photoshop, or with the Epson Scan II Application, it quits. I've included the link to the driver version that works, which is 2.02e and Epson Scan Version 2.53A

ftp://ftp.epson.com/drivers/MCTW253A.SEA.hqx

I am running 8.6GM (until I can get into Apple's ftp) and this Twain version works fine. Hope this helps him out, as I got pretty scared when this happened to me (I'm always on a tight deadline).
Keep up the great site! I love it!
David "

I've added this to the OS 8.6 page which I intend to keep as a summary list of problem reports/fixes.

Here are a few other new additions to the problem list on my OS 8.6 page. Complete details are linked there in the summary list.

• Switcheres (won't allow shutdown)
• QuarkExpress 4.04/ATM Deluxe 4.03 (Quark Quits w/Type 11)
• Dynodex 3.0 (obsolete) - printing margins off (worked in 8.5.1)

B&W G3/OS 8.6 Resolution Startup Switching

" I found this at Apple's forums. It addresses the resolution switching problem. The fix posted on your site does not work [a reader report-Mike] and here is why:

"It is indeed normal. The Blue & White computers had the same display driver as Mac OS 8.5, which is why you do not see this behavior there. The newer driver in 8.6 does this, and it is the same behavior that older Power Macintosh computers got with the AppleVision displays in 8.5 (and 8.1 for that matter). It is a newer display driver than what you have in ROM, and therefore it has to load. If you start up with extensions off, it doesn't load, the display is not being driven properly, and it stays in 640x480.

No patch will be released to change it, since it is behaving as we expect it to, and using the new driver.
John Phelps
Forum Leader - Apple Support Discussions"

Please post this fix so fellow B&W G3 owners can finally get some sleep. Thanks a lot your site kicks butt!!!
Lucas Kuntz "

OpenGL 1.0 Allows DVD: Mark Costa reports the previous issue with DVD is resolved with the latest update:

" Hi Mike
Kudos to Apple [I believe ATI does all the OpenGL drivers-Mike] for fixing the bug in the beta version of the ATI Resource Manager extension which prevented detection of the B&W G3's DVD.

Now when I boot with the Resource Manager installed with the final OpenGL drivers, the Apple DVD player launches perfectly.
Mark Costa
"

If you have other comments on improvements or bugs with the OpenGL 1.0 release, please contact me with specifics.

More Q3Test 1.05 Feedback: The latest reader comments on the update released recently. The first comment is in reference to the problem reported in yesterday's news

" Something that may be checking is the name of his Hard Disk or the folders in which Q3 is held - if they have any "/" in them, it can confuse Quake3. Worth a try, anyway.
Toby Austin "

I received several mails from readers running OpenGL 1.0 (new)/OS 8.6/Q3Test 1.05 indicating problems. Here's a sample:

" My copy of Q3test 105 freezes the whole machine during the loading process when connecting to a server. I have a B&W with 8.6 and 1.0 of the OpenGL drivers. I wish I could get it working. I did do a from scratch install BTW.
David "

Update: A reader reported deleting Q3Test, reinstalling the 1.0 OpenGL drivers, then reinstalling Q3Test, zapping the Pram and rebuilding the desktop (whew!) fixed his lackluster performance problems.

BTW - Gamecenter has posted a Guide for Q3Test.

More on Ult. Rez/Vimage Compat. Issue: A reader that noted a problem in the Rate Your G3 Upgrade database provides more info on the problem:

" (6400 w/Vimage G3 320/160)
Mike, regarding the Ultimate Rez not working with the Vimage 320/160 on a 6400. I forgot to tell you what the specific issue was. With the Vimage activated the screen freezes just before the VPOWER extension loads - early in the startup process. The odd thing is that I can hear the startup continuing on the machine even though the screen is frozen. When I disable the Vimage extension by holding down the x key as instructed the startup completes but, of course, I am then using the old 603 processor.

I tried the original drivers for the card - no difference. I also disabled all of the Ultimate Rez extensions and control panel and it still freezes! The only way I could get the G3 to work is through the stock monitor connector and then everything works fine.

It probably is a hardware issue with the Utimate Rez. I even fooled around with the load order of the extensions and could not get it to work. Same freeze at startup every time.
Phil "

News.com is reporting that IBM has claimed a Storage Density Record - doubling their previous record. They now claim 20.3 billion bits per square inch, a level that many experts believe is the physical limit of current technology.

IBM 36GB SCSI Drives: IBM also announced their 36GB UltraStar 36LZX drive that features *glass* platters, up to 8MB of cache and auto head unloading (parking). I wonder if this will affect drive performance, but that will depend on the response time and the idle period before the head unloads/parks I suspect. Their past 9LZX model with 4MB cache is generally considered the fastest drive on the planet, with 4MB cache now standard and 10,000 RPM speeds, several reviews I have read show it outperforming even the Seagate Cheetah 10K RPM drives. Here is a snippet of the specs on their 18LZX and 36LZX drives (note Ultra160 SCSI option):

" 10,000 RPM, , 3.0 ms average latency, 4.9 ms average read seek time [5.4ms for the 36LZX], 186.4 to 354.4 Mbits/sec media data rate (banded), 3.5 billion bits per square inch areal density, 10/5 GMR heads [20 on 36LZX], 5/3 glass substrate disk platters [10 on the 36LZX], interfaces: Ultra2 SCSI, Ultra160 SCSI, SSA, Fibre-Channel Arbitrated Loop (FC-AL). "

Note that these drives have a No-ID sector formatting scheme, which should increase formatted capacity. Rather that store the sector ID on the disk, the ID is stored in solid state memory on the drive which saves space (increasing capacity) on each track.

If you don't check every day's daily news (updated several times a day normally) you might miss something valuable. Check the summary list below for highlights of the last two days news and the archives page for older new page links. For a blast from the past, read what was on the news page here exactly a year ago.

Other Net News:

• IBM may ink $1 Billion contract with Nintendo (News.com)
• OfficeMax shunning low-cost PCs (News.com)
• AT&T to start cable telephony trials (News.com)
• C&W teams with IBM on Net access (News.com)
• Guide for Quake3 Test (Gamecenter.com)

Tuesday's News Summary

• Notes on my PB G3 OS 8.6 install
• OS 8.6 Feedback tracks Issues/Fixes
  [Compatibility issues/Improvements/Feedback]
• 3D Gaming News updated
• Reports of OS 8.6 lowering G3 CPU temperatures
• Q3Test 1.05 problem report
• OpenGL 1.0 released
• Q3Test 1.05 released
• Lombard CPU module still has ROMs onboard
• Pre-G3 Macs networking issue fixed by OS 8.6
  [Dantz Tech note & my 8.6 page lists models]
• Downloading problems and tips on OS 8.6
• Apple updates on ARA, USB mass Storage, OT, Applescript
  [OS 8.6 CD has these files]
• Rate Your G3 Upgrade database updated
• Other Net News

Monday's News Summary

• New Powerbook Details
• OS 8.6 improves battery life
• Mirrors for OS 8.6 update
• Pentium III 500Mhz Photoshop 5 Performance
• OS 8.6 Feedback page created
• 3D Gaming News updated
• More on Mac Server Cases
• Quake3Test Perf. w/MP850 3dfx Banshee
• World's greatest Quake player comments on Mac
• PCI Timing Update comments
• G3 CPU Upgrade Ratings database updated
• Other Net News

For other recent site news/features links, see the Sidebar to the right and the Recent Site Features page.

If you own a G3/300 or faster Mac, you might want to get our PPC Checker utility that will report if your CPU is copper or aluminum based.

Considering a G3 Upgrade? Check the CPU Upgrade Owner's Survey results and search for owner reports by Mac model and/or card brand. The database is being updated daily for new reports. Also make sure you ask your dealer about any issues with current builds of some models (ie PF G3) as I have gotten several reports of issues with certain mac models in the last few months (Mach 5, PowerBase, 7300). I urge any owners that have had problems to report this via the Survey Form. Always give the most weight to recent owner reports (dated in the listing).