Run Mac OS 8 in Your Browser
MacOS 8 may have debuted in 1997, but thanks to the Infinite Mac Project, you can now run MacOS 8 in a virtual Quadra right in your web browser.
The Infinite Mac MacOS 8 installation is complete with a whole host of retro apps and games, including everything from Adobe Photoshop 3.0, KPT Bryce, ResEdit, BBEdit, Warcraft I, Warcraft II, Civilization, Glider, KidPix, MacPaint, HyperCard, and much more. All the major apps of yesteryear are brought together, and you’re sure to find something you remember and enjoy.
All you need now to run MacOS 8 in your browser is a modern web browser, on just about any device.
This is a complete and well-functioning installation of MacOS 8, standalone in your web browser. Start exploring the folders and you will find many programs and games to have fun with.
Remember rendering complex 3D virtual worlds with KPT Bryce? This was considered absolutely incredible in the late 90s.
Remember how fun Warcraft was? One of the original real-time strategy games, send your orcs or humans into battle!
You can do more heat but just remember old apps and games, you can actually work on files and add your own stuff if you want.
Using the desktop part “The Outside World” you can save things and allow them to persist on previous reloads and relaunches of the website, as well as add and remove files and data from the browser-based emulator.
Placing documents or applications in the “Saved” folder will persist them, meaning you can return to the emulator and continue working on a document or playing a saved game.
The “Downloads” folder allows you to drag and drop files into the MacOS 8 emulator, while the “Uploads” folder allows you to extract them.
It’s a lot of fun for anyone who likes retro computing, emulators, virtualization, and just reminiscing about the good old days of computing.
If you’re interested in learning more about the technical details of the implementation and what’s going on behind the scenes, check out the developers’ blog post about the project
Also, check out a video of the developer running through both MacOS 8 and the companion System 7 emulator:
Notably, the MacOS 8 installation doesn’t appear to have Internet access, similar to the standalone Macintosh.js emulator application for Mac OS 8, so if you were hoping to navigate the modern web with Netscape Navigator, you’ll find that it doesn’t is not possible. Regardless, the web app is a lot of fun, so check it out.
Also, don’t miss the sister project, which allows you to run System 7 in a web browser.
