iBook seems happier today. I figured out which boot settings to use to prevent the freezes; eventually I will make those settings permanent in yaboot.conf.
I also found out how upgradeable this box is even today: up to 1,25 GB RAM and SSDs up to 480 GB with the required parts available from a specialist store. The RAM upgrade will probably happen in the next few weeks; the SSDs are somewhat pricey and I'll need to think on it.
@starbreaker Through a different URL, apparently, but yes. I stumbled upon it through Everymac.com, which helped me identify the exact model of my iBook. It's older than I thought it was - late 2004 instead of mid-2005. This is what I can still upgrade it with: https://eshop.macsales.com/upgrades/apple-ibook-g4-1-0ghz-12-inch-opaque-white-early-2004/memory
The RAM is super affordable and I will probably order it. It's been mentioned as one of the best things I could do for it. But I could also really use a new top plate/trackpad.
@Reinderdijkhuis Getting that 120GB SSD would probably do wonders for your performance and battery life. :)
@starbreaker Well, it's been mentioned as the SECOND-best thing you can do for your old machine. But it's much more expensive than the very best thing.
@Reinderdijkhuis Wow! It's been a while since I last read yaboot. Good memories.
@windmills As far as I can tell, it's still used in new releases of Lubuntu. Dunno about other Ubuntu flavors; I had never come across yaboot before I switched fully to Macs a decade ago.
@Reinderdijkhuis ok, it's just that I haven't played with a powerpc mac in a while. I suppose that it's still in use.
@Reinderdijkhuis That was my first Apple machine! \o/
@skematica Mine too! It's been with my parents since 2009 but they'd long stopped using it. It's been sitting in a drawer for years but everything including the battery still works fine, except the trackpad which was unreliable-to-dead at the time I gave it to my parents.
@Reinderdijkhuis I thought the RAM was soldered on to the iBook. You got the guts to go at it with a soldering iron? I surrendered my daughter’s iBook to the Goodwill computer store when the ram on the mobo went bad.
@Devils_Rancher It's been a while since I've seen this done (if I ever did actually see it! My memory is a bit hazy on this front after 10+ years), but as I recall there are two RAM slots and the second one can be inserted normally. But thanks for the heads-up! I will read/watch instructions before ordering so I know what needs to be done.
@Reinderdijkhuis Ah, you are correct, 256 mb soldered on plus 1 expansion slot. I have heard of people removing the on-board RAM when it went bad, but had forgotten the slot. So many Macs lost to the sands of time...
@Reinderdijkhuis Have you been looking for parts at https://macsales.com?