One sidenote.
Given that we've established that Mac OS X 10.4 on Intel won't run Classic mode, have you considered running a newer version of the operating system, either on true Apple hardware (it's not hard to find out which machines are the best in terms of durability and performance) or on a non-legitimate system?
It's safe to say that Mac OS X as far forward as 10.6 is nearing the imagined support cycle for Mac OS X releases (if it's not already there, I've forgotten how it goes), given that 10.9 is going to be released this year. And Mac OS X 10.9 actually has a reasonable number of compelling reasons why it's a good upgrade from 10.8, including memory compression, better multiple-display support, filesystem tagging, the removal of the skeumorphism in the UX, and it also bears mentioning that the requirements haven't changed, so at release it'll be safe to say it'll run on everything five years old and newer. (and older, the GeFORCE 8600m GT MacBook Pros from 2007, although not particularly stable, should have no problems running it, just as an example.)
As an aside specifically about classic. I realize many people have had really good experiences with it, but my individual experience with it has been very poor, and using it as a wrapper for your Mac OS 9 applications is a very poor idea unless you're going to be upgrading to a WILDLY powerful system like the 2.7GHz dual-core Power Macintosh G5, which should handily outperform almost any G4 that can natively boot 9. Otherwise, I recommend a speedy upgraded G4 for 9 tasks, and using networks, Firewire, or USB 1.1 for your file transfer needs. Your apps will be more stable, will have access to more resources (and direct access to resources such as the graphics accelerator) and (again, my own experience) the whole thing will be happier.
As far as the eMac disc being a universal installer goes, that's for installing Mac OS 9.2.2 onto the newest and fastest G4s that can boot it, such as the eMac 800MHz, the iMac G4s, and the 867/1000MHz PowerBook G4s.
Given that we've established that Mac OS X 10.4 on Intel won't run Classic mode, have you considered running a newer version of the operating system, either on true Apple hardware (it's not hard to find out which machines are the best in terms of durability and performance) or on a non-legitimate system?
It's safe to say that Mac OS X as far forward as 10.6 is nearing the imagined support cycle for Mac OS X releases (if it's not already there, I've forgotten how it goes), given that 10.9 is going to be released this year. And Mac OS X 10.9 actually has a reasonable number of compelling reasons why it's a good upgrade from 10.8, including memory compression, better multiple-display support, filesystem tagging, the removal of the skeumorphism in the UX, and it also bears mentioning that the requirements haven't changed, so at release it'll be safe to say it'll run on everything five years old and newer. (and older, the GeFORCE 8600m GT MacBook Pros from 2007, although not particularly stable, should have no problems running it, just as an example.)
As an aside specifically about classic. I realize many people have had really good experiences with it, but my individual experience with it has been very poor, and using it as a wrapper for your Mac OS 9 applications is a very poor idea unless you're going to be upgrading to a WILDLY powerful system like the 2.7GHz dual-core Power Macintosh G5, which should handily outperform almost any G4 that can natively boot 9. Otherwise, I recommend a speedy upgraded G4 for 9 tasks, and using networks, Firewire, or USB 1.1 for your file transfer needs. Your apps will be more stable, will have access to more resources (and direct access to resources such as the graphics accelerator) and (again, my own experience) the whole thing will be happier.
As far as the eMac disc being a universal installer goes, that's for installing Mac OS 9.2.2 onto the newest and fastest G4s that can boot it, such as the eMac 800MHz, the iMac G4s, and the 867/1000MHz PowerBook G4s.