Member Avatar for jaydee2

Hi:
I have a Mac Powerbook G3 (Wallstreet) with 18GB HDD and 288 MB RAM. I use AT&T DSL on my Win XP desktop. I'm heading north and would like to take my laptop to check in on the web and check my email etc. I'll be staying in motels that advertise Hi Speed internet connections.
I have a PCI slot, ethernet and Firewire jacks on the laptop. No Floppy but a CD-ROM drive.
I have OS 9.2 and 10.2.3 running.
What, exactly, do I need to do what I want? I'd like it to be as financially painless as possible but absolutely fool proof.
tks,
johnd

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Short summary and model check: as suspected, the early PowerBook G3 "Wallstreet" machines were built with two Type II PC‑Card slots and a 10Base‑T Ethernet jack and do not include FireWire or USB ports. Confirm the exact submodel with About This Mac / System Profiler or the model number on the case before buying accessories. PowerBook G3 specs (Apple). (support.apple.com)

Most foolproof, cheapest route: treat the laptop as a wired machine. A short RJ45 Ethernet cable will usually get online at motels that offer “high speed” in‑room jacks. For motels that are Wi‑Fi‑only, use a pocket travel router configured in Client/Bridge mode so the hotel’s wireless is bridged to the PowerBook’s Ethernet port — the laptop then sees a plain wired connection and needs no extra drivers. TP‑Link pocket routers document Client/Bridge modes and this workflow in their manuals and FAQs. TP‑Link: choosing mode / TL‑WR802N manual. (tp-link.com)

If a wireless card inside the PowerBook is preferred: use a known 802.11b PC‑Card (Lucent/Orinoco / WaveLAN families were the common, well‑supported options) together with a Mac driver package made for legacy Macs (third‑party drivers such as IOXperts historically supported many PC‑Card Wi‑Fi adapters for Mac OS 9 and early OS X). Test any card/driver on the laptop at home — incompatible chipsets can fail to mount or even cause a kernel panic on 10.2. Also note that WPA support arrived later (Panther / AirPort updates), so older OS versions often only work with open or WEP networks unless special firmware/driver updates exist. IOXperts / Mac OS driver coverage. (macworld.com)

Quick checklist (practical): bring a short RJ45 cable and the laptop power adapter; download and test any PC‑Card drivers (have backups on CD/USB); bring a small travel router (set up once at home in Client/WISP mode); verify the motel’s login method (captive portal vs DHCP); test the full setup before travel so the laptop can be used without surprises.

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Member Avatar for firstr8photog

Johnd,
I was looking over the specs for your machine and wondered if indeed you have a Wallstreet. Looking over the specs on tells me Wallstreets don't have firewire.

If you have a newer machine like a Pismo, first powerbook with firewire, then all you would need is an original airport card.

Member Avatar for jaydee2

Johnd,
I was looking over the specs for your machine and wondered if indeed you have a Wallstreet. Looking over the specs on tells me Wallstreets don't have firewire.

If you have a newer machine like a Pismo, first powerbook with firewire, then all you would need is an original airport card.

Well....I'll take another look at the backside of this thing and recheck all those holes.
I bought it as Wallstreet...but really didn't care what it was; I just wanted to try to learn my way around a MAC.
Tks for the response, everyplace else I've asked about this sez buy a newer machine like a G4
johnd

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