[sf-lug] Dual-boot PPC-based PowerBook G4 to meeting

[acohen36]

This may be tangentially related to Bobbie S's mis-sent SF-LUG thread, 
'[TAML-net] Apple rejects ad industry effort to stop Safari privacy 
feature - CNET'
In any case, I'm planning to bring a secondhand, wireless-enabled, 
dual-boot, powerpc-based PowerBook G4 to tonight's meeting.

Going top-down from a higher level to lower level, ~or~, depending on how 
you look at it, from the bottom up: 
...........................................

I. Hardware. It's a secondhand 
PowerBook G4/867 12" (Al) in moderately-used condition featuring an 867 
MHz PowerPC 7455 (G4) processor with the AltiVec "Velocity Engine" vector 
processing unit and 256k on chip level 2 cache, 1,152 MB of PC2100 DDR 
SDRAM, a 120 GB Ultra ATA/100 hard drive (4200 RPM), a slot-loading 8X 
"Combo" drive, built-in Bluetooth 1.1 (AirPort Extreme capable with 
optional upgrade), and NVIDIA GeForce4 440 Go (4X AGP) graphics with 64 MB 
of DDR SDRAM in an already opened and tinkered-with aluminum alloy case 
with a 12.1" TFT XGA display (1024x768 native resolution) -- see [1]. 
Unfortunately, the slot-loading 8X "Combo" drive is mechanically 
defective, so new software essentially must either get downloaded online 
or transferred using one of the two USB 2.0 port-connections on the side 
of the unit.

II. Firmware. PowerPC-based NewWorld Macs such as the secondhand one I 
have use OpenFirmware firmware[2][3], instead of the typical MBR BIOS's 
for 32-bit CPU's or EFI BIOS's for 64-bit CPU's. Apparently, OpenFirmware 
uses the Forth programming language (that's "Fourth" sans the "u", as in 
"Go Forth and Conquer".)

III. OS Bootloader.
The main OpenFirmware bootloader to use on NewWorld PowerPC Macs is 
'yaboot' [4], as opposed to GRUB for most PC OS's. I have yaboot 
successfully booting both the pre-installed Mac OS X 10.5.8 Leopard and 
Debian Jessie 8.9.0 powerpc[5]

IV. Init[ialization] system.
Unfortunately, there may be little choice for Debian Jessie on this 
powerpc other than the default systemd init system[6] :-(.

...........................................

There are some items I could use assistance with for the Jessie install on 
this PowerBook G4, but I have to further identify and better define what 
it is I really require, i.e., to formulate actual troubleshooting 
questions --- as well as to effectively research (e.g., through [7] and 
[8]) and try to fix _by myself_ what's needed.

-A

References
=================
[1]http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/powerbook_g4/specs/powerbook_g4_867_12.html
[2]http://mac.linux.be/content/guide-open-firmware-apple-bios-0
[3]https://everything2.com/title/Open+Firmware
[4]http://mac.linux.be/content/yaboot
[5]https://cdimage.debian.org/mirror/cdimage/archive/8.9.0/powerpc/
[6]https://wiki.debian.org/Debate/initsystem/systemd
[7]https://wiki.debian.org/PowerPC
[8]https://ppcluddite.blogspot.it/2012/03/installing-debian-linux-on-ppc-part-i.html
=================

acohen36 at sdf.org
SDF Public Access UNIX System - http://sdf.org