Where to Buy OS 9.1?

Does anyone know where I could get an OS 9.1 or 9.0 CD?<br><br>And that's true too.--Shakespeare, King Lear

It's pretty much hit and miss.<br><br>eCommerce likes like Smalldog, OWC, MacResQ are probably the most likely candidates. You might find a better price on an auction site like eBay than elsewhere. Sooner or later MacResQ will have one or both.<br><br>Of course as a legitimate owner of some version of OS9 I'm of the opinion you're entitled to a free copy. I don't know how you'd get a freebie from Apple, but if I knew someone with a CD and had Shrink Wrap or Apple's Disk Copy I think I'd have the equivalent on a hard drive in short order.<br><br>If I didn't want that big file on my hard drive I'd probably fire up the CDR/RW burner and make myself a CD. Burning a CD from a disk image is often as accurate as it gets.<br><br>OTOH, if I had an OS 9 or 9.04 or 9.1 CD that was shipped with my Mac and wanted to install OS 9 on a different model I might be tempted to download that little utility Ted Landau has posted on MacFixIt which fools the CD into thinking it's in the "correct" Mac. While Ted's utility isn't 100% I'm told it works most of the time, depending on the original CD and Mac model if there's one of the few failures.<br><br>I really don't know much about CDs. I never keep them. They're part of my son's hoard mentioned elsewhere. I make disk images of everything then burn a CD if I want one. But if I still kept them I suppose I wouldn't have to burn a CD......hmmm....guess I'm confused by your question. <br><br>128k_Mac<br><br>"The box said 'Requires Windows XP or better' so I bought a Macintosh." - Anonymous

My problem is not that I'm missing an OS 9.1 CD, but that I don't have enough. Here's the story.<br><br>At the place where I work, the so-called manager of the computer center decided that she was no longer going to support Macs. Lots of us howled, and she withdrew the blanket rejection of Macs, saying that a couple of us, who know more or less how to handle Macs, could become a "support" team. Well, I took that literally, so as my home computers migrated from 9.1 to 9.2, I installed 9.1 on the Macs in my immediate area--three so far. I actually do have CDs for eachof the installations, except that one of them was actually an upgrade from a 9.0 disk, which I've since lost.<br><br>Anyway, the same computer center manager now says that we don't have "licenses" for the computers running 9.1. Now you know as well as I do that Apple doesn't have the silly code-typing that MS does, and that a CD per computer is basically what represents a "license." So I'm trying to find a third CD to pacify the lady.<br><br>I'm actually tempted to get one of the X-upgrade plus 9.21 offers on eBay (for five bucks or so) and just upgrade one of the suckers to 9.21.<br><br>What really irritates me is the assumption that somehow I've done something illegal. I hven't. I'm downright scrupulous about not doing the illegal bit.<br><br>There are so many things that this lady has done that have irritated me as well as others, that I'm tempted to start a petition drive to have her fired. I know I won't do it, but I'd love to see her out of my school.<br><br>And that's true too.--Shakespeare, King Lear

yoyo52<br><br><blockquote><font size=1>In reply to:</font><hr><p>What really irritates me is the assumption that somehow I've done something illegal. I hven't. I'm downright scrupulous about not doing the illegal bit<p><hr></blockquote><p>That is precisely my point in my reply. I was speculating on circumstances and trying to suggest the simplest means possible. For one thing I assumed they are newer Macs.<br><br>All Macs shipping in 11/99 or later were licensed for OS 9. Some shipped with 8.6. A free OS 9 CD (license) was available with no shipping charge.<br><br>Such Macs include the first slot-loading iMacs, the G4 tower, and some late shipping G3 B&W 400 or 450 towers. For Macs in this class the license provides for backup. That can be CD media, DAT Tape, Zips, or all of the foregoing. The license is always and has always been restricted to one Mac and it has always permitted "backup."<br><br>Don't have an original 9.x CD? Buy the cheapest one you can find to make the sales manager happy. It will be meaningless and have no value, but if it makes her happy then take that route. I don't care if you use it for a slot-loading iMac DV and the CD says it's for TiBook. OS 9.21 Update CD on eBay? Gofer it.<br><br>But you have a problem if the Macs are older, i.e., Rev. A-D iMacs, beige G3 desktops or towers, most B&W towers, or earlier Power Macs. You then need a commercial Apple Mac OS 9.x CD or equivalent proof of a license, i.e., a sales receipt. Then that Windoze sales manager is correct and likely enforces the same requirements for each Wintel box.<br><br>Do people violate these licenses? Of course they do. Most don't care. Some who know better do it because the Mac OS is so easy to copy, but the Windoze users pirate the heck out of Mr. Bill's OS, hauling CDs home from work. They "explain" that they work at home on their PC. Some even claim their license at work permits this. Never disagree with such people on a forum. They're badly informed and will only get upset. <br><br>Good luck.<br><P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by 128K_Mac on 12/13/01 11:12 PM (server time).</EM></FONT></P>