Differences Between Instalations MacOS Versions, Drivers and other stuff

[peido]

Hi.

I'm very new in the world of Macs and I don't have a lot of experience.
I'm mostly looking for a retro experience.

I bought a G3 Pismo about a year ago and I installed "Mac OS 9.2.2 Universal Install (Our Most Popular Download)" http://macos9lives.com/smforum/index.php/topic,2109.0.html
Everything as been great with it so far.

Last week I bought a G4 Graphite (seems that the lowest OS for the version I got is 8.6) and a G4 QS.

On the G4 Graphite I want to install Mac OS 8.
1 - Should I install MacOS 8.7 or 8.6? Is 8.7 more similar to version 9 than to version 8? Is 8.7 incompatible with certain programs and games like version 9? Or is 8.7 just like 8.6 but with a few bugfixes?
2 - If I go with version 8.6, should I use the correct installation CD indicated in the thread "http://macos9lives.com/smforum/index.php?topic=2296.msg12588#msg12588" or should I use the universal install in "http://macos9lives.com/smforum/index.php/topic,806.0.html"? What is the difference between them? Does the universal install contains newer versions of drivers, does it support more machines than the correct installation CD?

On the G4 QS I'm probably going to install 9.2.2.
3 - In the thread "http://macos9lives.com/smforum/index.php/topic,2539.0.html" the user DieHard explains several differences between the "Mac OS 9.2.2 Universal Install (Our Most Popular Download)" and others (thank you). What is the difference between this and "Mac OS 9.2.2 Universal (Developed by User: Blackholemac)" (http://macos9lives.com/smforum/index.php/topic,2580.0.html)?

I'm also a bit ignorant in terms of drivers.
4 - Should I upgrade drivers after installing MacOS, or all the latest drivers are already included in the installation CDs?
5 - In "http://macos9lives.com/smforum/index.php/topic,2109.0.html" the user MacTron talks that this version contains "CPU version 5.9". Is that a driver for the CPU?
6 - In "http://macos9lives.com/smforum/index.php/topic,2143.0.html" is written "Mac OS ROM Version 10.2.1", is "Mac OS ROM" also some kind of driver?

After installing 9.2.2 on my G4 QS, I will have two machines with 9.2.2: the G3 Pismo and the G4 QS.
7 - Do any of you suggest me to try a different OS on my G3 Pismo, like 9.1 or any other?

Thank you for all your help and suggestions.

[IIO]

there is not much drivers or extensions which you could update in a MacOS 9.2.2., except of quicktime 6.x, which eventually is even required by the one or other program.

there is a bunch of third party extensions which some people would recommend you, though. but if you are new, it is probably best if you start with a juvenile OS and then see what you dislike and want to be changed.

[DieHard]

Mac OS 8.6 is rock solid as far as stability, if no user apps need OS 9, then stick with Mac OS 8.6

If an app needs Mac OS 9, then just go for 9.2.2 as you will have the latest version of OS 9 extensions

[ovalking]

1. There is no such thing as 8.7. On my G4 graphite I have 8.6 on one partition, and 9.2.2 on another. Why not try both? I have no preference on them. 8.6 is more like 9.x than 8.1.
2. I used the correct installation CD.
3. Yes, I would use 9.2.2 on a QS (don't know about those installers).
4. Don't worry about too much about drivers unless you want to use some special hardware.
5. Sometimes system software components are grouped into packages, such as Quicktime, Open Transport or CPU Software. I would not worry about the detail at this stage.
6. Mac OS ROM is a file in the system folder. More important when trying to use non-supported h/w.
7. I don't think it's worthwhile bothering with any earlier versions of OS 9 unless using a pre-G3 machine.

[peido]

Thank you @IIO @DieHard @ovalking for your help

I'll probably use the original installation CD for MacOS 8.6 on the Graphite, use the "Mac OS 9.2.2 Universal Install (Our Most Popular Download)" on the QS and keep the G3 Pismo as it is, at least for now

I hope I can get more retro Apple hardware in the future, but they are not very common in my country

As a child I played with several versions of DOS and Windows. Because of that, today I like to install several different versions of DOS and Windows on my retro PCs, so that I can relive those days as a kid.
Do you have any MacOS versions that marked you when you were younger? Or you just use the last versions of a major release (7.6.1, 8.6 and 9.2.2) and nothing in between?