I have two rather old Macintosh computers, one is an original iMac and the other is an older G3 machine. They both contain data representing over 10 years' work. I was involved in several publications and have original files, documents and images, as well as final QuarkXPress and PageMaker files. I need to preserve all of them and perhaps even archive the data with a database. I was thinking of using FileMaker Pro. I also want to buy a new machine, possibly another Macintosh with the ability to burn DVD-Roms, but I am uncertain how to get all the data together. I also wonder if I should move to a different system. I am not that technical and have no time to learn a lot of new things. Can you help?
James Kennedy Town
This will happen to many of us in time, if it has not already. There are a number of possible solutions, but some preparation is required. The most important thing to do immediately is to get the data off the old G3 machine. Considering its age, it is the one most likely to have something go wrong with it soon.
The easiest way to move large amounts of data, if you cannot plug in a second hard disk, would be to use a crossover Ethernet cable. It is much like a regular Ethernet cable, but is wired differently to network just two computers without a hub. Connect the two computers and turn File Sharing on.
Assuming these old machines are running a pre-OS X operating system, you do this by clicking on the Apple logo in the upper left of the screen and clicking on the Control Panel. You then go to the Chooser and click on AppleShare. If all is correct, you should see the other machine appear in a window.
When you click on the other machine it may prompt you for a name and password. An icon of the second machine should appear on the desktop. You can now copy anything you want by dragging and dropping.