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Question Profile
| DATE | Apr 27, 2008 |
| TICKET | #337188 |
| STATUS | Closed |
| SUBJECT | flashing question mark on screen of imac |
| CAT | Computers, Operating Systems, Applications or Connected Devices |
| TYPE | Operating System Features, Bugs and Problems |
| DESC | Apple |
| DESC | 10.4.X (Tiger) |
| PLATFORM | Apple Macintosh (PowerPC G3,G4,G5) |
| MODEL | apple g3 |
| PROC | |
| RAM | |
| DRIVE | 40gb |
| NAME | John |
| USERNAME | jjdipalo77 |
| TECHNICAL | Little Experience |
| ISSUE | Stumped |
Question Details
TICKET ARCHIVE -> flashing question mark on screen of imac
jjdipalo77 - Apr 27, 2008 - 11:00 am
when i turn on the power all i get is a flashing question mark on the screen i do not have any discs for this because it was given to me but when i recived it it was working perfectly there was nothing wrong with it at all
DeltaMac - Apr 27, 2008 - 4:30 pm
The flashing ? means that your Mac cannot find any boot software.
That may mean that you have accidentally moved an important file out of place, and then restarted. Or, it may mean that the hard drive has completely failed - or something in between.
You need either a set of OS X install disks, or at the least, a bootable disk with a disk repair utility so you can check the health of the hard drive.
Disk Warrior is a very good choice to check and repair the hard drive, if needed. But, if your operating system has been corrupted, or just needs to be reinstalled, DiskWarrior won't help with that.
If you have the iMac G3, and the CD fits into a slot on the front (not a tray), then a 10.3 (Panther) install set would be a good choice. You can find sets on eBay, just watch that you get one of the commercial sets, which are black with a large X on each disk. Some sets will be grey, and are for use on specific Mac models, regardless of what the ad might state. If you were using Tiger (10.4.x), then that's OK, too. The same notes apply, look for the black disk.
The problem you will find, is if your CD drive is a CD-RW, and not a DVD drive. The CD sets for Tiger are much harder to find - most are DVD.
Panther (10.3) is always on CD....
Hope this helps you...
- Dale
That may mean that you have accidentally moved an important file out of place, and then restarted. Or, it may mean that the hard drive has completely failed - or something in between.
You need either a set of OS X install disks, or at the least, a bootable disk with a disk repair utility so you can check the health of the hard drive.
Disk Warrior is a very good choice to check and repair the hard drive, if needed. But, if your operating system has been corrupted, or just needs to be reinstalled, DiskWarrior won't help with that.
If you have the iMac G3, and the CD fits into a slot on the front (not a tray), then a 10.3 (Panther) install set would be a good choice. You can find sets on eBay, just watch that you get one of the commercial sets, which are black with a large X on each disk. Some sets will be grey, and are for use on specific Mac models, regardless of what the ad might state. If you were using Tiger (10.4.x), then that's OK, too. The same notes apply, look for the black disk.
The problem you will find, is if your CD drive is a CD-RW, and not a DVD drive. The CD sets for Tiger are much harder to find - most are DVD.
Panther (10.3) is always on CD....
Hope this helps you...
- Dale
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