Need advice about buying iMac

Hello,
I am buying a used iMac G5 from private party.
Do not have much money. Going to look at it. He does not
have restoration discs, but is including Leopard
disc. Seems like a good computer for 400.00
just wondering if I need restoration discs...what to look for.
Am a college student and need one for school.
Any help would be great. I am familiar with
Apple.  Thank you

I wouldn't put your money into a PowerPC at this point.  You can buy a refurbished Intel-based iMac, with standard 1 year Apple warranty, for $929 in the Apple store:  http://store.apple.com/us/product/FC508LL/A or if you want a lower priced mac, a mac mini starts at $579 with the education discount.  If you're limit is $400, at least buy an Intel-based mac, as that will serve you better for the next few years.
Unfortunately, PowerPC's have been left behind. Some programs like Flash no longer support PowerPCs, and some web sites require a current level of Flash to work (some ESPN programming comes to mind).  I've also found that some online content requires Intel processors.
If you decide to buy the iMac G5 without the original distribution disks, you may want to call Apple to see if you can buy a set (they were about $60, however, Apple may no longer have them in stock) or plan to, at some point, buy TechTool Pro, which can do similar hardware testing as the Apple Hardware Test which is on the original distribution disks.  You might be able to find a set on ebay, but make sure they are the gray-faced OS X disks for your model iMac G5. Those disks only work on the systems they are delivered with. 
Personally, I wouldn't buy a used mac unless it came with a clean hardware report via the Apple Hardware extended test or via one of the TechTool products (Deluxe or Pro).

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