Today the Tin Can Mac Network expanded with the addition of an iBook 300 MHz Blueberry 6 GB 320MB Airport OS 9.2.

I ordered it several weeks ago from mikesbasementmacs.com, and was pleasantly surprised by Mike delivering it personally to my daytime job. He cleaned it up a bit and replaced the keyboard, but was nice enough to leave the reflective fleet identification number on it. I am either in possession of number 01 or 10, depending on which way the original iBook owner defined up: hard tellin’ on the clamshells.

OK, no secret. Ten years ago, Tin Can Publishing was 100% Old-Fi: paper, pencils, some ink, oil and rusty steel presses. The audio division was still recording all new material on 4-track tape. Some of the engineers in the studio were complaining about always having to rewind when comping overdubs. After some thorough research, the board concluded that digital recording had come a long way; not to mention the cost of analog tape was sky-rocketing on account of Jeff Tweedy and Steve Earl stock-piling every reel they could get their hands on.

Anyway, a firewire iBook, in combination with the new Mark of the Unicorn 828, was picked as the most cost-effective, versatile, and portable option. Orders were noted, colors were debated, and money orders were purchased when, “BAM!” Apple introduces the new IceBook 500. Alas, more power and speed was worth the sacrifice of a little character. The minimalistic IceBook is another story (watch here for a link).

But finally ten years later, if only for sake of its AirPort card, this new cherished “vintage” Mac will become a functional node on the Tin Can Network. First up: a new battery and a Tiger install.