Upgrading from 9.0 to OSX 10.3 Panther

I have a 450MHz G4 and am currently running Mac OS 9.0.

I wish to upgrade to OSX 10.3, but understand there are some issues that I have to deal with first.

I am told that I will require having 9.1 or 9.2 installed first before installing OSX (any version) if I want my Classic applications to work. I have a TON of apps that will not run in OSX, but have NEW apps that will only run if OSX is installed. I am also told that OSX 10.3 does NOT ship with Classic. And so, if these two things are true, I have a dilemma.

If the above is true, then where to I find the necessary intermediate OS 9.1 or 9.2 software? It hardly seems fair that I have to purchase TWO upgrades just to have 10.3 and Classic, but I'm stuck.

I appreciate any and all help in this matter. Thanks,

-- TRegner

you should be able to find the 9.1 and 9.2 updates on apples website

Thanks, but...

Wapa18 said:

you should be able to find the 9.1 and 9.2 updates on apples website

Click to expand...

Thanks, but are you also saying that what I've heard is true, and that 9.1 or 9.2 is required before I can install OSX 10.3 and maintain Classic?

I've looked for the 9.1 and 9.2 upgrades on Apple but didn't see them. I'll look again.

You can pick up OS 9.2 on ebay.

i believe classic comes with panther. the govt gave me mine and it came with classic but maybe thats just because there the govt

Go here to get your downloads…
http://www.info.apple.com/export/

From what I understand, you don't need to have OS 9 to install OS X 10.3. If you want to run the classic environment, then you need to have OS 9.

Found on Apple Website

rman said:

From what I understand, you don't need to have OS 9 to install OS X 10.3. If you want to run the classic environment, then you need to have OS 9.

Click to expand...

I finally tracked down the info on the Apple website. For anyone interested in upgrading from 9.0 to 10.3, you must first have either 9.1 or 9.2.2 (recommended by Apple) installed. Since a Classic CD is NOT included with 10.3 Panther for we non-government types (see post above), Apple has a PDF form on their site that lets you get a 9.2.2 startup/install disk for FREE, provided you send in proof of purchase for OSX 10.3. This involves using the US Postal Service, unfortunately. The URL for the PDF file is:

http://www.apple.com/macosx/upgrade/pdf/MacOS_9.2_Upgrade_Form_v3.pdf

If you back out the URL just to http://www.apple.com/macosx/upgrade/ and look around, you can find the system requirements (including prerequisite Mac OS) for doing the upgrade to also have the Classic environment. If you're running OS 9.0 and want to install 10.3, then upgrading first to 9.1 or 9.2.2 is required if you also want to have the Classic mode of operation.

Thanks to everyone for their input, and I hope my research has been informative.

Follow-Up

To find the specific Apple reference for upgrading OSX and have the Classic environment, the URL is:

http://www.apple.com/macosx/upgrade/requirements.html