The last of the 12" G4 iBooks (1.33ghz? I forget exactly) will actually take more RAM (1.5mb) than the 12" PB G4 (1.25mb), and runs cooler (Radeon versus NVidia graphics), while also not suffering from the horrible reliability issues of the rest of the late iBook series. I bought one for my teenager, who had it for a while around 2008, so I got to see it up close and personal. The iBook will also take more physical punishment, whereas the PB is noticeably thinner, has more VRam, and looks much better. So you takes your pick—but I'd pick a PB if I'd decided that a PPC machine suited best. It's just classier.
On the PPC versus Intel question, the Intel machines are indistinguishable from the PPCs in terms of user interface, etc., since it's just UNIX with dollops of lipstick, after all. So the only real question is whether you want to run PPC-only software. A nice 13" MacBook Pro would outrun anything PPC-based if you are running almost any software produced after around 2006, with small exceptions generally covered by Roseta. So the age of the software is the big question, not the hardware.
But back to the PowerBook, and as to the RAM limit: if you equip the thing with a PATA SSD, you have basically got very large quantities of very, very fast virtual memory. The RAM ceiling problem, qua problem, is no more. It disappears. Thus, my 12" PB with (OWC) SSD is an excellent machine for writing and light browsing, for running old software (e.g. I have CSII on the thing), AND I can effectively open an unlimited number of applications without noticing a slowdown because of the nature of the virtual memory provided by the SSD.
But then, I have had it since 2005, it is a trusted old friend, I have all the software, etc. I'd never have forked out for the SSD had I not already had this all in place, much less bought it, software, and the SSD from scratch.
On the PPC versus Intel question, the Intel machines are indistinguishable from the PPCs in terms of user interface, etc., since it's just UNIX with dollops of lipstick, after all. So the only real question is whether you want to run PPC-only software. A nice 13" MacBook Pro would outrun anything PPC-based if you are running almost any software produced after around 2006, with small exceptions generally covered by Roseta. So the age of the software is the big question, not the hardware.
But back to the PowerBook, and as to the RAM limit: if you equip the thing with a PATA SSD, you have basically got very large quantities of very, very fast virtual memory. The RAM ceiling problem, qua problem, is no more. It disappears. Thus, my 12" PB with (OWC) SSD is an excellent machine for writing and light browsing, for running old software (e.g. I have CSII on the thing), AND I can effectively open an unlimited number of applications without noticing a slowdown because of the nature of the virtual memory provided by the SSD.
But then, I have had it since 2005, it is a trusted old friend, I have all the software, etc. I'd never have forked out for the SSD had I not already had this all in place, much less bought it, software, and the SSD from scratch.