Burning Mac OS X Panther DVD for iMac G3

[benadnam]

Hello everyone yet again,

I'm planning to get a Bondi Blue iMac G3 and install Mac OS X 10.3 on it.I looked around the internet and found iso files for installation.Will it work on iMac G3? I found some installation DVDs that are specific to some iMac models but i didn't found one for iMac G3.How can i install Mac OS X on it?

[shiroishimatora]

Yes, a retail copy of Panther (10.3) will work. The tray-loading iMac G3s support Mac OS 8.1/8.5 through Mac OS X 10.3.9 (Mac OS X 10.4 requires a slot-loading iMac G3 or later). You won't need a model-specific restore disc unless you really want to install Mac OS 8.1 or 8.5 (depending on what OS the iMac shipped with).

To install Mac OS X, put the disc in the iMac and hold down the C key on startup to boot from it.

[James]

Bondi Blue iMac G3s don't have DVD drives, they have CD drives.

[mrpijey]

Nor will you find any OS X 10.3 on DVD discs either, so no conflict there .

[WwOS]

Sorry, I know this topic is from 2017, but just for future reference:

• Any gray Mac OS X installation media (CD or DVD) will install Mac OS X on any supported Mac.
• The only thing that will not work is the software restore. For that the specific model is checked by the installer and if they don't match up, no luck.
• As for the retail versions of Mac OS X installation media: they behave just the same, obviously.
• As for the retail upgrade version of Mac OS X: they look for an existing installation of Mac OS X. Is it found it will continue, is it not found the installation will be cancelled. Other than this check however it is the exact same installation as the one you will get from the full retail and the gray bundled installation media.

That's one of the good things from Apple: only one version for every Macintosh computer. The rest is licensing stuff. Naturally there are ways to circumvent those checks...

Additional things to consider:

• Every Mac OS X installation method has support for all language that are available within Mac OS X.
• Naturally, Macs with CD drives cannot use DVD installation media. This is an issue with Mac OS X Tiger which came on DVDs. There is at least one rare Tiger installer on 4 CDs, so there is a way if you look really hard to find it.
• The newer the model, the more likely a specific bundled version is required due to driver requirements. E.g. the last PowerPC based Macs in 2005 came with 10.4.2 pre-installed. Bare 10.4.0 installer discs may not work. The same is true for the last Macs capable of running Mac OS X 10.6 in 2010/11: they require at least 10.6.7, so a full retail 10.6 installer DVD will not work due to missing drivers.
• Likewise if you want to install the version of Mac OS X that shipped with the Mac you might require the bundled gray installation media. The reason again being driver support.
• If you are interested in classic Mac OS, be aware that its installation discs are language specific. For most Macs you also require the bundled version, or a later retail or upgrade disc.

Cheers!