27-year-old Apple iBooks can connect to Wi-Fi and download official updates

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Title & hardware reality

  • Several commenters note the Reddit title is misleading:
    • iBook G4s are ~20–23 years old, not 27.
    • No iBook is “currently supported” by Apple; they can only reach old update servers.
    • Truly 1990s-era iBooks/iBooks G3 can’t speak modern Wi‑Fi or security (often only 802.11b/WEP).

Old Macs: what still works

  • PowerPC-era Macs (iBook/PowerBook G4, G4 Cube, 2010–2012 MacBooks/Mac minis) can still:
    • Join some Wi‑Fi networks (often only 2.4 GHz, older WPA, or via separate “IoT” SSIDs or Ethernet).
    • Download OS updates from Apple, sometimes over plain HTTP.
    • Run old software (DVDs, abandonware games, IRC/BBS/Gopher, distraction‑free writing).
  • With RAM maxed and SSDs, many users find them “surprisingly usable,” mostly for niche or offline tasks.

Networking, TLS, and certificates

  • Main breakage points are not CPUs but:
    • Modern Wi‑Fi encryption (WPA2/WPA3, dual‑band SSIDs) that older firmware cannot handle.
    • Expired root certificates and obsolete TLS, which block browsers, App Store, and even OS updates.
  • Workarounds include: special legacy Wi‑Fi, USB Ethernet, manual certificate copying, or offline DMG installers.

Apple’s update and distribution quirks

  • Multiple stories describe reinstalling macOS on 2010–2015 Macs as painful:
    • Internet Recovery failing on modern Wi‑Fi.
    • Needing to install an intermediate OS (e.g., Lion) just so the App Store or Safari can work enough to fetch a newer installer.
    • Installer links being hard to find or broken, though Apple still hosts very old System 6/7 images.
  • Some praise tools like OpenCore and third‑party downloaders; others just switch old Macs to Linux.

UI nostalgia vs Liquid Glass criticism

  • Strong nostalgia for Aqua and earlier macOS/UIs (10.4–10.9 era) as “clear,” “tactile,” and visually coherent.
  • Liquid Glass/Tahoe design is heavily criticized for:
    • Transparency causing text-on-text and accessibility problems.
    • Monochrome/tinted icons harming quick recognition.
    • Slower performance and worse battery on phones.
  • A minority says they like the new aesthetics or notes that every redesign draws backlash here.

Planned obsolescence & platform lock‑in

  • One side points to:
    • Decades-old update servers still running.
    • Long-lived Intel Macs that still get security patches.
  • The other side cites:
    • Rapid abandonment of PPC, 32‑bit apps, and soon x86; hostile stance toward emulators/virtualization on iOS.
    • iPads/iPhones becoming nearly useless once OS support ends, despite good hardware.
  • Consensus: Apple preserves some very old infrastructure, but modern iOS/iPadOS devices in particular age poorly from a software standpoint.

Desktop vs phone-ified computing

  • Several subthreads lament that macOS, Windows, and major Linux DEs have drifted toward phone-like, touch-first design.
  • Older systems (classic Mac OS, early OS X, Windows 3.11/2000/7, GNOME 2/MATE, XFCE, KDE 3) are remembered as denser, clearer, and more “for computers,” even if dated visually.