Everything Old Is New Again

Using vMac to Run System 6 and 7 Inside OS 9 and X

Patrick McCloskey - 2002.09.13

My Turn is Low End Mac's column for reader-submitted articles. It's your turn to share your thoughts on all things Mac (or iPhone, iPod, etc.) and write for the Mac web. Email your submission to Dan Knight .

If you've got old Mac games or programs that won't run with the latest Mac OS versions, or if you're new to Macs and would like to experience the original Mac OS's, vMac is the program for you.

vMac lets you create a virtual Mac running System 6 or System 7 inside your new Mac. It lets you runs games and programs written for these older operating systems about as quickly as on a 68030 Mac, it includes sound output, it can multitask, it can run in a window or full screen, it can run up to System 7.5.5, it runs in OS X or OS 9, and it's small and free!

To setup vMac, download the vMac program (only 1160 KB) and vMacBoot disk image (a virtual hard disk or floppy) file from www.bannister.org/software/vmac.htm, leb.net/vmac/, or www.vmac.org. The only other file you need is a Mac Plus Image ROM (read-only memory) file. leb.net has a program called CopyROM you can use to you copy the ROM from your Mac Plus.

If you don't own a Mac Plus, eBay and other sources can help you purchase one cheap. It doesn't even have to have a hard drive. Copy the CopyROM program onto a system boot disk, copy your ROM, and then put the resulting file together with the vMac program and vMacBoot file in a folder on your current Mac. That's all it takes to be up and running with a virtual old Mac inside your new Mac.

Now you can search the Web for disk image files of old games and programs to run in it. vMac opens you up to a whole new world of old world Mac mania within the stability and convenience of OS X or OS 9.

To get your own old programs running in vMac, just follow these simple (hopefully) steps: Copy your old Mac games, files, and applications into a folder on your Mac. One method is to use a LocalTalk to Ethernet bridge, e.g. the EtherMac iPrint adapter offered by Farallon for around $90 or cheaper on eBay. Other possibilities are by using a USB to SCSI adapter costing around $50, or a FireWire to SCSI adapter for about $100. Jagshouse.com explains how to connect a Mac Plus to the iMac's Ethernet port via SCSI.

Once you've got your programs copied over into one folder, convert the folder into a disk image file. To do this, download a 30-day evaluation copy of Aladdin's ShrinkWrap (then pay for it if you like it). Boot to OS 9, install ShrinkWrap, launch it, select Image, New Image from Folder..., choose the folder containing your old program(s), type the a name you want the disk image file to have (different from the folder name), select Size: Custom, add 100k just to give the image some breathing room, choose Mac OS Standard, Create, File format: DiskDup+, uncheck copy used blocks only.

That's it. You get a disk image mountable in vMac. Restart back into OS X (or stay in OS 9 if you prefer, because vMac can run in both), and run vMac. When you get the flashing question mark, select Hardware, insert Disk #1, choose the vMacBoot.dsk. You are now in a classic Mac running Mac OS 7.1. Once that loads, select Hardware, insert Disk #2, select the disk image you created. You will see a new floppy disk appear on the vMac desktop. Double click it to open it and run your programs.

ShrinkWrap deserves special mention here, too. It is an incredibly useful utility you can use to create blank disk image files of any size that you can use in vMac to copy programs to. I used it to create a 20 MB disk image that contains all the files from my Mac Plus and SE/30 running System 6.0.8. I use it as Disk #1 to boot vMac. It's like I have my old Mac back again, but with a new life running inside my new iMac. I run Sound Master (anybody out there remember that?) and other old favorite control panels, and I can play StuntCopter, ShufflePuck Cafe, and many other good ol' games and applications, all on my OS X Mac.

The guys who developed vMac deserve a lot of credit. They develop it in their spare time and offer it for free. Visit their site(s), try vMac, then send them a vPat-on-the-back for their fine work that lets us revisit how the Mac used to be.

Share your perspective on the Mac by emailing with "My Turn" as your subject.

Join us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.

Recent My Turn articles

Back to Mac OS 9 Because It's All I Need, 2011.01.26. Sebastian Patting sold his Intel Macs and went back to PowerPC Macs and Mac OS 9. Here's why.
Using Low End Macs for Internet Radio, 2008.08.18. When the local public radio station moved classical music to HD radio, it was time to find another way to listen. An old iMac with iTunes solved the problem.
'That's Not a Computer', 2008.07.30. Salvaging a broken PowerBook by turning it into a desktop computer.
More in the My Turn index.

Links for the Day

Mac of the Day: Mac IIfx, introduced 1990.03.19. This 'wicked fast' 40 MHz Mac trumped the 33 MHz DOS world.
February 14 in LEM history: 98: A perfect compact Mac - 00: Extended computer warranties worth the cost? - Making your PC work with your Mac - 01: Customize Microsoft Word - 02: Quadra revives a passion for computing - 03: Real world performance - DIY Pismo screen replacement - Best Mac for writing - 03: Fastest browser on the Mac - 06: 15" MacBook Pro - Impressions of a newly acquired Lisa - Finding and using free WiFi - Apple should liberate OS 9 - 07: New Mac mini cheaper than upgrading a Power Mac - 08: Falling in love with OS X
Support Low End Mac

Recent Deals

About LEM Support Usage Privacy Contact

Low End Mac is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple Inc. Entire Low End Mac website copyright ©1997-2012 by Cobweb Publishing, Inc. unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, Macintosh, iPad iPhone, iMac, iPod, MacBook, MagSafe, Mac Pro, Apple TV, and AirPort are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. Additional company and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks and are hereby acknowledged.
Advice is presented in good faith, but what works for one may not work for all. Please report errors to .
LINKS: We allow and encourage links to any public page as long as the linked page does not appear within a frame that prevents bookmarking it.
Email may be published at our discretion unless marked "not for publication"; email addresses will not be published without permission, and we will encrypt them in hopes of avoiding spammers. Letters may be edited for length, context, and to match house style.
PRIVACY: We don't collect personal information unless you explicitly provide it. For more details, see our Terms of Use.

Custom Search

Follow Low End Mac on Twitter
Join Low End Mac on Facebook

Low End Mac Reader Specials

TypeStyler 11 is now in the Mac App Store!! -- Special Introductory Price of $59.95!! -- To Buy From The Mac App Store Click Here Now!! Or buy direct from Strider Software.

Don't install Parallels to play poker online! Poker Mac will show you how to download and install a native Mac poker and Mac Casino applications in minutes.

Affiliates

Amazon.com
The Apple Store
The iTunes Store
PC Connection Express
GainSaver
Parallels Desktop for Mac
eBay