Ticket Options
Question Details
TICKET ARCHIVE -> Need Help iBook M2453
borisdds - Feb 13, 2006 - 1:49 am
I was always a PC user. All of a sudden my neighbor brought an ibook M2453 and gifted to my kids. The only problem that it boots to the blank screen and a small file icon with a ? mark that changes to the some sort of a face.
I know that it is not a great begining, but I would like to know if there is anything that I can do to bring it live that my kids can use it.
Thank you
I know that it is not a great begining, but I would like to know if there is anything that I can do to bring it live that my kids can use it.
Thank you
violincredible - Feb 13, 2006 - 7:52 am
Welcome to macosx.com. I'm Alex and I'll be assisting you.
Firstly, did the iBook come with any system disk(s)? If not, can you get hold of them? Let me know because it could make things much easier.
Basically, the ? mark is telling you that the iBook can't find a valid system disk to boot from, which may mean anything from a slightly corrupted file structure on the hard disk to (worst case) a toasted something-or-other.
If you do have a system disk, pop it in and start up the iBook while holding down the "c" key. This should get it to boot up from the installer cd. Let me know if you get this far and I'll walk you through getting it sorted.
If you don't have/can't readily get a system disk try the following and let me know what happens:
-Reset Open Firmware.
Reboot your computer while holding down Command-Option-O-F all at once. (command is the key with the apple logo)
At the prompt, type:
reset-nvram
and hit the Return key, then type:
reset-all
and hit the Return key again.
-Reset the Power Manager.
There is a reset button on the keyboard above the power button. Press the button once with a paper clip, making sure it pops back up.
-Reset the P RAM.
Boot while holding down Command-Option-P-R
until you hear three chimes.
Let me know as soon as one of these things makes a difference and we'll take it from there.
Cheers,
Alex.
Firstly, did the iBook come with any system disk(s)? If not, can you get hold of them? Let me know because it could make things much easier.
Basically, the ? mark is telling you that the iBook can't find a valid system disk to boot from, which may mean anything from a slightly corrupted file structure on the hard disk to (worst case) a toasted something-or-other.
If you do have a system disk, pop it in and start up the iBook while holding down the "c" key. This should get it to boot up from the installer cd. Let me know if you get this far and I'll walk you through getting it sorted.
If you don't have/can't readily get a system disk try the following and let me know what happens:
-Reset Open Firmware.
Reboot your computer while holding down Command-Option-O-F all at once. (command is the key with the apple logo)
At the prompt, type:
reset-nvram
and hit the Return key, then type:
reset-all
and hit the Return key again.
-Reset the Power Manager.
There is a reset button on the keyboard above the power button. Press the button once with a paper clip, making sure it pops back up.
-Reset the P RAM.
Boot while holding down Command-Option-P-R
until you hear three chimes.
Let me know as soon as one of these things makes a difference and we'll take it from there.
Cheers,
Alex.
borisdds - Feb 13, 2006 - 8:57 pm
Hello Alex,
Thank you so much for helping me with this issue.
No, I don't have a system CD.
And I went through the steps that you have described above, and I can't get this machine to do anything except switching from ? to Apple logo.
Is there is anything else that I can do before I spend money on the new OS?
Thank you
Boris
Thank you so much for helping me with this issue.
No, I don't have a system CD.
And I went through the steps that you have described above, and I can't get this machine to do anything except switching from ? to Apple logo.
Is there is anything else that I can do before I spend money on the new OS?
Thank you
Boris
violincredible - Feb 13, 2006 - 9:57 pm
Hi, Boris,
Probably the cheapest way to proceed is to get hold of a secondhand copy of Mac OS9. Then we can see if the hard drive (or something else) is toasted, and hopefully get your iBook up and running.
This is a fairly low-end iBook, but it would be ideal for surfing the net, word processing, basic audio editing, photo editing (a bit slowly) and even older, pre-OSX games. (software for OS9 is very cheap on eBay etc) For all these things OS9 would be quite capable, even nimble. Although this iBook will run OS X up to 10.3.9 it may be very slow unless the RAM has been upgraded from the original 64M.
Even if you could borrow a system disk (anything from Mac OS 8.6 to OS X 10.3.9) we could easily see if the iBook is ready to go or needs more serious attention.
One last thing: when you reset open firmware, what (if any) text appears when you have restarted while holding down Command-Option-O-F?
Please do let me know how you go and I can walk you through the next steps.
Cheers,
Alex.
Probably the cheapest way to proceed is to get hold of a secondhand copy of Mac OS9. Then we can see if the hard drive (or something else) is toasted, and hopefully get your iBook up and running.
This is a fairly low-end iBook, but it would be ideal for surfing the net, word processing, basic audio editing, photo editing (a bit slowly) and even older, pre-OSX games. (software for OS9 is very cheap on eBay etc) For all these things OS9 would be quite capable, even nimble. Although this iBook will run OS X up to 10.3.9 it may be very slow unless the RAM has been upgraded from the original 64M.
Even if you could borrow a system disk (anything from Mac OS 8.6 to OS X 10.3.9) we could easily see if the iBook is ready to go or needs more serious attention.
One last thing: when you reset open firmware, what (if any) text appears when you have restarted while holding down Command-Option-O-F?
Please do let me know how you go and I can walk you through the next steps.
Cheers,
Alex.
IF THIS IS YOUR QUESTION AND YOU WISH TO RESPOND, LOGIN HERE FIRST.
