This is what I did to fix my iMac* after installing Debian
Lenny 5.03** on my G3 iMac and it booting to nothing but a command prompt (Scary!) Kind of long, but hope this helps other newbies like me get a desktop on their G3 iMac.
NOTE: Installation instructions I used are for Linux only on your Mac. My iMac is not dual boot.
Step 1
I burned the ISO CD of Debian Lenny, and followed the instructions in this Debian forum post by Oswald Kelso. This tells you how to burn the CD, and make sure it works ok and very thorough instructions on how to install Linux on your iMac.
http://forums.debian.net/viewtopic.php?t=20481
If you have an older tray loading iMac like Oswald’s you might get a desktop with just this information. It has notes on how to edit a file called xorg.conf which has the computer video / monitor information if you do not get a desktop immediately.
Step 2
On my first boot, all I got was the command prompt. I then went back to Oswald’s post (step 1) to look at the steps to edit the xorg.conf information. I saw how he edited the file for his G4 eMac to get it to work properly. I also then searched and found two other threads with different xorg.conf files to test: http://forums.debian.net/viewtopic.p…t=imac#p210546
Step 3
After reading and copying some of the information in the above thread, I tried booting again but only got as far as the log-in screen and it was very slow. The iMac would then take almost two minutes just for me to enter my username alone! So I found this thread and posted questions regarding not being able to get past the log-in screen: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1242108
Step 4
I also started my own thread with the information about the iMac freezing at log-in. Oswald Kelso posted two xorg.conf for me to test. With this information, I was able to get past the log-in screen (still slow) and get a corrupted version of the desktop. I was almost there! See photo in thread.
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1273159
Step 5
Since I was now going past the log-in screen and getting a corrupted desktop, I knew my xorg.conf was almost fixed. I then got a post from B_Free in the thread in the previous step (step 3) about trying Ubuntu 5.10 Breezy Badger Live CD. He had good success with this version. He also mentioned that though it was an older edition, it had more prompts to specify what hardware you had.
http://old-releases.ubuntu.com/releases/breezy/
http://old-releases.ubuntu.com/releases/kubuntu/5.10/
Step 6
I wanted to try the Breezy Badger CD, thinking that if it worked, I would just needed to update to the newest version of Ubuntu and have a working computer. So I wrote down the information in my current xorg.conf file from Lenny, which was producing a corrupted desktop. In case I went back to Lenny, I at least wanted to go back to where I had progressed.
Last step
I loaded the Breezy Badger CD on my iMac, installation worked without problems. Desktop was perfect, all the apps worked. BUT it never asked me to establish a root password during instillation. So I had no way to set my internet connection and update. I installed a second time in case I ignored it or messed up the install somehow. No luck.
So I decided to make use of the working xorg.conf in Breezy Badger and go back to Lenny with the corrupted desktop. After re-installing Lenny, and getting back to the corrupted desktop, I then proceeded to make use of the information I got from the working xorg.conf from Breezy Badger. I used the information to identify my exact video card model, in the format that allowed the OS to see it. Previously, it was listed as generic ATI video card. This is my working xorg.conf file in my iMac:
Code:
# /etc/X11/xorg.conf (xorg X Window System server configuration file)
#
# This file was generated by dexconf, the Debian X Configuration tool, using
# values from the debconf database.
#
# Edit this file with caution, and see the /etc/X11/xorg.conf manual page.
# (Type "man /etc/X11/xorg.conf" at the shell prompt.)
#
# This file is automatically updated on xserver-xorg package upgrades *only*
# if it has not been modified since the last upgrade of the xserver-xorg
# package.
#
# If you have edited this file but would like it to be automatically updated
# again, run the following command:
#* *sudo dpkg-reconfigure -phigh xserver-xorg
Section "Files"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/misc"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/cyrillic"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/100dpi/:unscaled"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/75dpi/:unscaled"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/Type1"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/CID"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/100dpi"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/75dpi"
# paths to defoma fonts
FontPath "/var/lib//defoma/x-ttcidfont-conf.d/dirs/TruType"
FontPath "/var/lib//defoma/x-ttcidfont-conf.d/dirs/CID"
Section "Module"
Load "GLcore"
* *Load* *"i2c"
* *Load* *"bitmap"
* *Load* *"ddc"
* *Load* *"dri"
* *Load* *"extmod"
* *Load* *"freetype"
* *Load* *"glx"
* *Load* *"int10"
Load "type1"
* *Load* *"vbe"
EndSection
Section "InputDevice"
* *Identifier* *"Generic Keyboard"
* *Driver* ** *"kbd"
* *Option* ** *"XkbRules"* *"xorg"
* *Option* ** *"XkbModel"* *"pc104"
* *Option* ** *"XkbLayout"* "us"
EndSection
Section "InputDevice"
* *Identifier* *"Configured Mouse"
* *Driver* ** *"mouse"
EndSection
Section "Device"
* *Identifier* *"ATI Technologies, Inc. Rage 128 PR/PRO (AGP TMDS)"
* *Driver* ** *"ati"
Option "UseFBDev" "true"
Option "AGPMode" "2"
Option "AGPFastWrite" "true"
EndSection
Section "Monitor"
* *Identifier* *"Generic Monitor"
* *Option* ** *"DPMS"
# HorizSync 28-51
# VertRefresh 43-60
* *HorizSync 60-60
* *VertRefresh* *75-117
EndSection
Section "Screen"
* *Identifier* *"Default Screen"
* *Device* ** *"ATI Technologies, Inc. Rage 128 PR/PRO (AGP TMDS)"
* *Monitor* ** *"Generic Monitor"
* *DefaultDepth* *24
* *SubSection "Display"
* ** *Depth* ** *1
* ** *Modes* ** *"800×600" "640×480"
* *EndSubSection
* *SubSection "Display"
* ** *Depth* ** *4
* ** *Modes* ** *"800×600" "640×480"
* *EndSubSection
* *SubSection "Display"
* ** *Depth* ** *8
* ** *Modes* ** *"800×600" "640×480"
* *EndSubSection
* *SubSection "Display"
* ** *Depth* ** *15
* ** *Modes* ** *"800×600" "640×480"
* *EndSubSection
* *SubSection "Display"
* ** *Depth* ** *16
* ** *Modes* ** *"800×600" "640×480"
* *EndSubSection
* *SubSection "Display"
* ** *Depth* ** *24
* ** *Modes* ** *"800×600" "640×480"
* *EndSubSection
EndSection
Section "ServerLayout"
* *Identifier* *"Default Layout"
* *Screen* ** *"Default Screen"
* *InputDevice* *"Generic Keyboard"
* *InputDevice* *"Configured Mouse"
EndSection
Section "DRI"
* *Mode* *0666
EndSection
Note: I cut & paste and I get those asterisk. Those are NOT part of the code. The Debian Forum let me cut & paste without the extra asterisks. :confused: Everything is spaced correctly, just don’t enter the asterisk. Sorry.
This should work for several models of G3 iMac that have the 8MB ATI Rage Pro 2x AGP video card. These other iMac / iBooks may also be able to use this xorg.conf file successfully. I think the hardware (motherboard & video card) is almost identical to my iMac. CPU / RAM are all different.
iMac G3/400DV - fruit, G3/400/DV SE, G3 /350 - Summer 2000, G3/450DV+ and maybe iBook G3/466SE - clamshell, G3/500 - dual USB, G3/500 - late 2001, G3/600 - late 2001 Go here http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple to look for your Mac.
* NOTE: My iMac is a 400MHz, Indigo w/ Firewire and a 8MB ATI Rage Pro 2x AGP video card.
http://www.everymac.com/systems/appl…00_indigo.html
** NOTE: I used Debian Lenny (Ubuntu’s parent Linux) because it seems to work better with my older G3 hardware. I have since tried Ubuntu 9.04 Jaunty Jackalope Live Disc on my G5 Power Mac and it worked perfect : )
