Getting 10.4 onto a G3 iMac w/o DVD drive

So I'm having some Tiger taming trouble.
I've been quite happy with my G4 iBook since I bought it; Tiger came with it, and I haven't made the Leopard leap, so it's running 10.4.11 with all current updates. I still have my old G3 iMac (Summer 2001 "Kiva") on my desk at home, though, and still use it happily; it's running Panther 10.3.9, and is otherwise happy. Up until recently, I had no trouble in keeping the two machines in synch through iSynch and my .mac account.
Then some of the post-Leopard updates came along, and now things between my Tiger apps and my Panther apps don't synch correctly, if at all. As I understand it, this is a software generation issue. The solution to this seemed obvious: just bring my iMac up to the same Tiger OS version as my iBook. I did a little research, and 10.4.11 should run fine on my iMac. Problem solved.
Not quite. The copy of Tiger I have to start with is the 10.4.2 that came with my iBook. Those discs are DVDs, and the iMac doesn't have a DVD drive. After a couple of work-around experiments, I figured this way of getting things to run: took my portable Firewire 400 G-Drive mini and copied the Install Disc 1 onto it, then booted the iMac from that drive. Installer opened fine, then told me I couldn't install this software onto this machine. Hmmm.
Being something of an empiricist at heart, I tried an experiment. Set my main external HD (another Firewire 400 G-Drive) as the destination disc, and installed 10.4.2 onto it from the Install Disc 1 DVD itself through the iBook. Fine. Set that drive as the boot disc for the iMac and started up the iMac in 10.4.2 perfectly fine, except that it treated everything as though it was a clean install on an empty machine (and that I don't particularly want my external HD to be the boot disc for the iMac).
Still, I know 10.4.2 runs fine one the iMac, so it seems obvious that I CAN load that software onto that machine. Or can I?
Okay, the answer to my problem may be quite simple. Is it that the Installer itself won't load the OS onto the iMac off of the DVDs because they're OEM bonded to the iBook they came with? If so, why did it install onto an external HD with no problems? And, more to the point, is there some other work-around that will let me get Tiger onto my iMac?
Yes, yes. I know this wouldn't be an issue if I'd bought a copy of Tiger for the iMac back when it was available. But pairing Panther and Tiger wasn't an issue back then, either. I'm looking for someplace online that might still be selling Tiger, but without any luck.
Frankly, I just want my two Macs to sych as cleanly as they used to.

Welcome To  Discussions G-Scott!
If you call Apple Phone Sales 1-800-692-7753, you can order Tiger 10.4.x, for $129.00.
This is the correct one OS, Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger, (DVD) Retail $149.95, at AllMac.
This one Mac OS X 10.4.6 Tiger, (DVD) Retail $159.95, at FastMac.
And this one Mac OS X 10.14 Tiger Retail $199.99 at HardCore Mac.
More expensive that Apple's price of $129.00.
As you have discovered, be sure not to purchase grey, upgrade or machine specific CDs or DVDs.
Tiger is on DVD.
Here are images of the Full Retail Version, of the Tiger Install DVD.
The discs should look exactly like the images in those links, and not say Upgrade, CPU Drop-in DVD, or "This software is part of a hardware bundle purchase - not to be sold seperately." on it.
Additional results for Tiger On eBay.
If your Mac meets the Tiger System Requirements, Once installed, you can use the PPC 10.4.11 Combo Update, to upgrade to the current version.
The posted RAM System Requirement, for all versions of OS X, is the bare minimum.
For optimum performance, more is recommended.
Additionally, Tiger 10.4.x ships on a DVD, so if your Mac doesn’t have a built-in DVD-ROM player, you will have to use an alternative method of installation.
Info here Installing Tiger Using Firewire Target Disk Mode.
And here Installing Tiger Without A DVD Drive.
The Tiger Media Exchange Program, referred to, is no longer available.
There is also a version available on CDs, at FastMac, for $179.99.
Shop Carefully, Examine All Documentation, And I Wish You Success!
ali b

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