Iıve been on this list for about a year now (since I switched back from 6 years of Wintel and bought my 12² G4) and in that time have always wondered what was up with everyone who is so into their Wallstreet, Lombard and Pismo PowerBooks. Now Iım still a big fan of the ³less is more² approach to laptops, but I must admit that Iım starting to see the appeal in the larger books. It started a about 6-weeks-ago when on a whim I bought a Lombard off eBay to satisfy my daughterıs desire for a laptop of her own. Well I configured the 333MHz machine with OSX Panther and OS9 and found that it was quite an enjoyable machine to work on. Much slower than the G4 and rather unstable, but still enjoyable. I traced the stability problems to the upper 256MB ram module and sent it back to OWC last week, with the replacement due any day now. Running on only the lower 256MB module the Lombard is rock solid, and unless I launch more than three or four programs it remains fast enough for general office-type work. This is where things got a bit strange. I am currently studying for the California bar exam and keep my study folder with all of my outlines and what not on our desktop PowerMac G4 (400MHz Sawtooth, also running Panther rather well), which is nice because I like to write and study from my living room recliner, and when the batteries on my 12² G4 run down, rather than plugging it in, I just save my work and resume where I left off on the Lombard. My wife saw this a few times and then looked over my shoulder and noticed the large text and overall clarity of the Lombard display, and proclaimed that as soon as I finish the exam, the Lombard is hers. Okay, so back to eBay I go to find another computer for my daughter. I watched both the ending soon and newly listed views for G3 PowerBooks and came upon a loaded 400MHz Pismo, which is now sitting on my lap as I write on its like-new bronze keyboard. About an hour after buying the Pismo on eBay, I saw a listing on the LEM Swap list for a Kanga at $150 shipped, so more out of curiosity than anything I bought that too, thinking if either the Pismo or the Kanga arrive in clean cosmetic condition I will make that my daughterıs machine (she is 10 and will use mostly edutainment software in OS9) and keep the ugly one for myself. What is really amazing is that I got all three computers, a pair of old Orinoco pc cards for the Lombard and Kanga (the Pismo already had an AirPort card) and a total of three working AC adapters (all compatible with all three computers) and four excellent batteries (1 Kanga, 3 Lombard/Pismo) for less than the cheapest new iBook over at my local Apple Store. The Lombard is the only one that shows any signs of wear, though because its CD ROM drive and keyboard are a bit quieter than the DVD and keyboard of the Pismo, it is still my wifeıs choice of computer. The Pismo is a nice backup to my G4, and for long hours studying, is actually a far better computer than the newer aluminum machine. With the two best batteries installed I get a whopping 7 hours runtime (the other good battery can hot-swap in for an additional 2:45) and that 14² TFT is much easier on the eyes for long sessions than the 12² panel on my G4. There is also something just friendlier about the black PowerBooks with their bronze keyboards, and of course the ergonomics are far superior. About the only downside compared to the G4 is that the keyboard isnıt as crisp, though its much better than I thought it would be. Actually even the old Kanga is a delight. Running OS8.6 (until I get more ram for OS9) is extremely fast, and that is with the paltry 32MB of ram that it came with. 9.1 should fly after I add 64 or 128MB of ram, and who knows, maybe Iıll give XPostFacto a try (if I get the 128MB module) and try to run Panther on it. So, I guess what Iım trying to say is that while I wonıt be taking this like-new Pismo with me when I fly, I can see myself really putting a lot of mileage on its keyboard in the years to come. These older PowerBooks really are great examples of superior design, and I can see why you guys like them so much. How much was that G4 upgrade again?
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