SheepShaver is an open source emulator of PowerPC based Macintosh computers. Using SheepShaver it is possible to emulate a Macintosh computer capable of running Mac OS 7.5.2 through 9.0.4. Builds of SheepShaver are available for Windows, Linux and Mac OS X. When SheepShaver is installed on a PowerPC based system, applications run at native speeds. When the emulator is installed on other systems, applications run at about 1/8 native speed. SheepShaver is considered a good replacement for the Classic Environment which is not available in the most recent versions of Mac OS X.
<br /><br /><span class='notifyMsg'> Updated </span>on Jul 4, 2012<p/>Thumbs up for the new copy-and-paste capabilities.
Good Classic replacement
jasocean
Pros
Works most of the time
Cons
But not all the time. Some old programs just won't work.
Summary
I use it to run a legacy version of "Canvas" (version 3.5). This one works, which is all I really wanted "classic" for.
Brilliant Mac OS Emulator
zunipus
Pros
It works beautifully! 64-bit! Intel! Will probably work on Mac OS X 10.7 Lion!
Cons
Getting it set up is a bit annoying. It occasionally crashes.
Summary
I am very pleased that the SheepShaver project lives on. I spent a couple hours with this new, updated and slightly simpler 64-bit Intel version and it runs great!
My favorite version of Mac OS was 8.6. I have it installed as per instructions and enjoy playing in it. Everything runs very well. The only trouble I ran into was a missing QuickTime video codec for a game, which probably means I have to dig out a later version of QuickTime.
If you want to run most of your old Mac OS applications and system add-ons, this is the way to go. Be sure to follow the excellent instructions very carefully. The hardest part is getting an old Mac OS ROM file, but the instructions will help.