Problem playing DVDs
I've got a G4 running 10.3.9
Just recently it refused to play video DVDs, including ones that it successfully played previously (although it still plays music CDs OK) I opened up system preferences/hardware/CDs & DVDs and went to the selection button where it says "when you put a video DVD - " I tried using 'Open DVD Player' and 'Quicktime Player' and finally 'iDVD' but none of them worked. I then repaired disc permissions and re-booted a couple of times... but still nothing. When I put a DVD into the drive I hear a few almost indistinguishable clonks then it ejects the disc after about 30 seconds. But like I said, music CDs automatically launch iTunes and play OK. Is this a hardware problem that needs the skills of an Apple engineer or is there a simple fix I can do myself? Anyone any ideas?
Thanks - Dave
Just recently it refused to play video DVDs, including ones that it successfully played previously (although it still plays music CDs OK) I opened up system preferences/hardware/CDs & DVDs and went to the selection button where it says "when you put a video DVD - " I tried using 'Open DVD Player' and 'Quicktime Player' and finally 'iDVD' but none of them worked. I then repaired disc permissions and re-booted a couple of times... but still nothing. When I put a DVD into the drive I hear a few almost indistinguishable clonks then it ejects the disc after about 30 seconds. But like I said, music CDs automatically launch iTunes and play OK. Is this a hardware problem that needs the skills of an Apple engineer or is there a simple fix I can do myself? Anyone any ideas?
Thanks - Dave
Comments
Yes, that sounds like a hardware problem with the optical drive. Do you have a tower Mac? If so, getting a new drive should be pretty cheap, especially if you install the drive yourself (not hard).
Do you have any data DVDs (e.g. iLife install disc)? Will the drive read any of those?
Also, you could try creating a new user and seeing if the drive works there:
1.) Open system preferences
2.) Click on "accounts"
3.) Click on the padlock in the bottom left and enter your password when prompted.
4.) Click on the "+" button just above the padlock icon, and enter something like "test" as user-name and password.
5.) Log out and then back in again as this new "test" user, and see if the drive now reads DVDs OK.
Yes it is a tower. I don't have any data DVDs to hand but tried changing accounts as you suggested. Unfortunately it didn't make any difference. I guess I'll have to install a new drive. I'm fairly busy right now, so will try to do it in a couple of weeks.
Thanks once again for your help - Dave