On Tue, Nov 07, 2000 at 12:57:41AM +0100, schaecsn@gmx.de wrote:
> I have gotten a very old mac (macintosh II) and I would love to run my
> favorite os on it.

Is it a plain Mac II, or is it a IIx (or IIfx)?  If in doubt, see what
model name is silk-screened on the motherboard (the case may say
"Macitosh II", but the motherboard may have been upgraded to a IIx or
IIfx).  If it's a plain Mac II, this model has a MC68020 and will need
a MC68851 PMMU (or an '030 or '040 accelerator, such as a DayStar) in
order to run NetBSD.  If it's a IIfx, then unfortunately NetBSD won't
work on it; see the FAQ and mailing list archives
(http://www.netbsd.org/Ports/mac68k/) for details.

> the install.{txt,ps,html} file and the FAQ emphasis that one needs
> MacOS for the installation! really?

Yes; well, *technically* you can install from an existing NetBSD
installation, but if this is the first install, then you'll need
MacOS.  Either way, NetBSD is still dependent on MacOS for booting
(see the mailing list archives for much discussion on this subject).

Sorry, you are lost.

> if the answer is "sorry, you are lost" then could somebody let me know
> the situation for linux?

Sorry, you are lost. :)  (Last I heard, linux/mac68k was in the same
situation, but I don't follow linux/mac68k.)

Note, however, that you can boot MacOS off a floppy, and in turn, have
that boot NetBSD off the hard drive.  Install may be possible off
floppy too (assuming you have a copy of the NetBSD packages on CD),
but it'd be tricky getting MacOS, CD drivers, and NetBSD install
utilities to all fit on a floppy.  If your Mac II has two floppy
drives, you may be able to get away with this, else you can still use
two (or more floppies) and do a lot of floppy swapping. :) I'd
recommend putting a minimal MacOS install on the HD however.  Another
option is to use some other removable media, such as Zip (you can
install and boot MacOS from Zip w/o any problems).  If you don't have
a copy of MacOS, you can download it (up to System 7.5.5) from Apple.

John