Filed under: iLife, Software, Apple
Got a G4 or G5? iPhoto '09 will be missing features
As Apple continues a march toward all Intel-based computers, those hanging on to perfectly good G5 and G4 computers are left to watch features slowly bleed off.
In the recently released iLife '09 package, iPhoto has left some owners of older Macs wondering where their slide show transitions have gone.
Apple has now released a support document detailing what is missing:
The number of slideshow themes available in iPhoto '09 depends on your Mac's processor and, in some cases, available vRAM:
- Intel-based Mac computers, PowerPC G5 with more than 64MB of vRAM: All iPhoto '09 slideshow themes are available.
- PowerPC G5 with less than 64MB of vRAM: Only Classic, Ken Burns, Scrapbook, Sliding Panels are available.
- PowerPC G4: Classic and Ken Burns are available.
Apple has also changed the minimum specs on Garageband '09, noting that one of the apps most desired features is Intel only: GarageBand Learn to Play requires an Intel-based Mac with a dual-core processor or better.
It is also rumored that the next version of OS X, Snow Leopard will completely drop support for PowerPC processors. Last year, iMovie dropped PowerPC support, so it looks like the handwriting is on the wall. Apple's push to get consumers and businesses to change to the newer Intel platform will get less and less subtle as time goes on.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Andy said 10:48AM on 2-06-2009
Would have been nice to have that on the box. But, face recognition works nicely on my G4, so I can't say I'm cut up about it. I updated the graphics card in my PowerMac though, so I bet it would cope fine with the transitions...
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michas_pi said 10:54AM on 2-06-2009
What about an iMac G5 with exactly 64MB of vRAM?
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woaha said 8:54AM on 2-26-2009
It doesn't work on mine (1,6GHz G5 iMac, 64MB of vRAM).
Jon said 10:57AM on 2-06-2009
There is a workaround for PPC users who want to use Learn to Play:
http://www.macfixit.com/article.php?story=20090204233656252
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iMneme said 11:24AM on 2-06-2009
There is a complete work-around at http://blog.clawpaws.net/post/2009/01/31/GarageBand-s-Learn-to-Play-feature-on-PowerPC
which will let you download new lessons and so forth. It does require using the terminal and running Garageband from the command-line (actually from the debugger, gdb, to bypass its checks).
The article is a bit long, but if you ever wondered how to figure out what's going on in a situation like this, the author says what some good steps are.
XIV said 11:27AM on 2-06-2009
Where can we see how much vRAM we have ?
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Rick said 11:36AM on 2-06-2009
I'm really getting tired of this overly dramatic language of Apple "pushing" people to buy Intel machines. No one is forcing those with PowerPC processors to upgrade their iLife. You're computer will still function without Face Recognition in iPhoto. They're being a good company and coming out with new products. Just because Honda comes out with a new Accord, doesn't mean I'm being forced to give up my perfectly fine '98 Accord. Also, it's being said as though it's shocking news. Guess what, five years from now, your MacBook probably won't be able to use iMovie '14. It's fine to report on these things, but please, drop the tragedy.
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Jon said 11:57AM on 2-06-2009
I agree. I have a PowerBook G4, PowerMac G5, Xserve G5 and 3x Xserve RAIDs. So that's a lot of stuff that's going to be obsolete in the next few months.
Am I throwing them in the trash? Of course not. It doesn't change the product - they perform just as well now as they will when they are officially obsolete. I'll probably keep them for another year or so.
I can still do everything I always could - I'm just limited in the number of *new* things I can do, and I'm fine with that.
Apple has to kill off PPC sometime. They've given us nearly three years' notice which is about the average lifetime of a computer anyway. So it's annoying and expensive for me, but I'm not getting too worked up about it because the longer I leave it, the more advanced the replacement machine will be when I purchase it.
Justin said 1:36PM on 2-06-2009
Amen++
oliver hart said 1:45PM on 2-06-2009
Yeah, but what if you went to Honda to get a part for your car, and they say "we dont make them for your model". I think that's the clear message.
They're making add ons that aren't compatible
Rick said 1:54PM on 2-06-2009
Oliver, I think that's a different scenario. I'm talking about the idea of UPGRADING software, you're example was REPAIRING parts. Two different things. If you're viewing the new iLife '09 as a necessary part of your old, PPC Mac, then you're mistaken.
SpinThis! said 4:29PM on 2-07-2009
The word "obsolete" is such a misnomer in the computer world. Companies love to push consumers into the latest stuff, even if their old stuff still works great.
In the case of Apple, one of the big problems with supporting PPC is the performance just isn't there anymore. I hate the car analogy but it would be like Honda introducing a 4-cylinder engine that drinks half the gas and does 0-60 in half the time as its previous 6-cylinder engine. That's about what Intel's new chips do. A lot has happened in 3 years... but the biggest thing was PPC just got stagnant and x86 got way better, faster.
I sympathize with PPC owners since I also have a PowerBook G4 and a G4 MDD. Both run Leopard just fine. But my Mac Pro easily puts them both in the dust when it comes to certain things.
Stacey said 11:55AM on 2-06-2009
Here's some iLife tips for the new iLife '09, including workarounds for using iMovie on PPC. http://tinyurl.com/dj97oc
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alansky said 2:16PM on 2-06-2009
@Oliver Hart:
Oh the horror! Honda is making new add-ons for the 2009 Accord and they don't fit my 1998 Civic! Oh the injustice of it all!
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JaceFace said 2:37PM on 2-06-2009
I am actually seeing this error on an Intel MacPro with more than enough RAM, vRAM and processor power to qualify. I actually just thought the extra boxes were the bug.
Silly me and my overly positive view of Apple.
Any suggestions?
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Rich said 3:02PM on 2-06-2009
Follow the same instructions as the PowerPC users will be using.
iamdigitalman234 said 3:19PM on 2-06-2009
This is not fair. I just got a 1.2ghz iBook G4 after owning a eMac 1.25ghz (both of which I got for free). These are my first G4s, and my first + 1ghz machines. All this after coming off a 450mhz B&W G3 from 1999 (which I got in 2005 and used until 2008).
Why should I have to deal with a sub par experience simply because I don't own (and can't afford) the latest and greatest? Now I have to hunt down a copy of iLife '08 or even iLife '06 to run on this "antique" hardware.
Both machines do run leopard just fine, however. Hell, I was running Tiger on my B&W G3, a 1999 machine running a 2005 OS. That's pretty damn good.
Maybe in a few years I will be lucky to snag a used macbook for free, but until then, the iBook and I will be very good friends.
/rant
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punctureddesign said 3:58PM on 2-06-2009
@iamdigitalman234
Honestly think about what you are saying. You have two machines that you got for free, both of which are several years old. And both those systems are capable of running the most current operating system as well as most of the current software (though with the mentioned limitations). Prior to that you were using nearly a 10 year old machine. You're completely right, running Tiger on a machine from 99 is pretty damn good.
Now put this into perspective. Take a PC from 1999 (or a PC at 450 mhz) and run XP on it. Now take a PC made at the same time as the iBook and eMac with those kind of specs and run Vista on it. Even if you were able to get any of these to work, they certainly wouldn't work as well as what you are experiencing now.
My family has sub 1GHz iMacs and G4 towers, as well as a 1GHz G4 tower. All of these machines are at least 7-8 years old, and all of them are running Tiger or Leopard without any issues at all. The fact that my mom is having to use an older version of iMovie is no big deal at all considering she is able to get a free mac and able to experience the mac experience. Her next computer will undoubtedly be another mac.
I'm not criticizing having older macs, not at all. I love them! I'm just saying you shouldn't expect a machine that old to function just the same as the newest stuff. As people said with the cars, you certainly don't expect your 99 car to have built-in integrated GPS and backup camera and heated seats and TVs in the headrests and etc etc etc. You're happy that your 99 is still running smoothly and getting you to and fro and being what you need it to be. If you want the newest and greatest you have to buy the newest and greatest. Thats just life, not Apple.
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iamdigitalman234 said 11:22PM on 2-07-2009
Ok, but still SEVERAL years out of date, instead of more than 5. if a piece of hardware is less than 5 years old, it is still worth being FULLY supported, not this partly supported crap with features missing. Why should I have to spend hundreds, if not thousands of dollars to get the "full" mac experience? The way I see it a piece of software written for a platform should work IDENTICALLY across all machines. Or at least that is what I have been told while programming.
hell, even when some of their machines are brand new, they can not handle everything Apple's software has to offer.
A system requirement should be just that, a FULL system requirement. Either it will run on that hardware or not. Not partially run, or run with some features disabled, but the full fat.
But I guess apple likes to break the rules and push forced obsolescence on everyone.
James Madley said 4:13PM on 2-06-2009
Did they ever release a G5 with less than 64MB of VRAM?
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