Hello All!

I want to first start by saying that I've read a lot of the materials here and tried several things and am still having a lot of trouble. Here's the situation: I updated my mother-in-law's machine to 10.5.5 from 10.4.11 only to discover that Classic support was removed from 10.5. She insists on using very old versions of filemaker and MS Office and will demand that I revert to 10.4 if she does not have this functionality.

The machine still has the previous intact System Folder, including a ROM file. It had a fully functional Classic set-up prior to the upgrade, so to my knowledge, everything required to run Classic should be intact.

I guess I am unclear (in spite of a lot of reading here) about how to do the install. I have started up the SS GUI and located the existing system folder with the ROM file several times, only to be told that the ROM file is no good. I can make no progress from this point. I've acquired both a 9.0 and 9.0.4 disc image for use, but I cannot get past the point of pointing the GUI to the System Folder on the machine.

Any information would be GREATLY appreciated. I am happy to provide any further details about my situation which may be helpful.

Hi,

Let me try not to disappoint you too much: SheepShaver will perhaps run Office and the other programs your mother-in-law needs, but not as stable as in her previous 10.4.X installation. Also, if printing or stable networking is required from the OS 9 programs, SheepShaver should not be your first choice.

I wouldn't yeopardise that perfect classic install by trying to get it to run with SheepShaver. SheepShaver requires a separate hard disk image to run from, something classic doesn't provide.

If you're still determined to try, then get a decent rom file from somewhere like www.redundantrobot.com and install mac os 9.0.4 from a universal install disk and copy (not move) the programs you need to a shared folder with SheepShaver and then to the hard disk image.
If you proceeded to that point and have additional questions, please ask them here.

Good luck,
Cat_7

1. If you want to go ahead with SheepShaver: In July I posted my July 21, 2008 build of SheepShaver, complete with a step-by-step setup guide:
http://www.emaculation.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5275

Edit: Because you already tried SheepShaver and the GUI on that machine, you need to delete the prefs file before you start following the instructions in the manual. Script to delete the prefs file is included in the download.

Note that the ROM file that you found in the MacOS9 System folder will not work with SheepShaver and that SheepShaver can only run MacOS 8.6 through 9.0.4. So, apart from the ROM file, SheepShaver cannot use the 'Classic' System, which will be 9.1 or later.

2. With the Classic 'System' folder (and possibly the 'Applications (Mac OS 9)' folder) still intact, it is probably better to reverse the MacOSX upgrade and do an archive and install of Tiger. Even if you manage to get SheepShaver running with some of the applications your mother-in-law needs, the user experience will be very different from running the Classic environment in Tiger.

I want to start by extending my thanks to you gentlemen for your help. I was able to get the app to launch and remain more or less stable enough to run her filemaker (2.1!!) and office 98 apps. I've agreed to provide support in the even that she has stability issues, but so far, so good.

Thanks again for your assistance and for the development of this great app!