Powerbook G4 won't start up

Posted:
in Genius Bar edited January 2014
Hi, I have a 1ghz Powerbook G4 12" that won't start up. It turns on, then I get a white/grey screen that it sits at indefinitely.



I tried putting it in target disk mode and hooked it up to another computer and it took about 10 minutes to mount. Once it did I hit "Verify and repair" and it's been doing that for about 15 minutes, seemingly making no progress.



I tried booting it up with a 10.4 DVD and I get a spinny wheel then a circle with a line through it and it hangs.



Is the HD busted? What else should I try?

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 3
    i had that very same problem with a G3 iBook. sadly it was the logicboard. i revived it a couple times by zapping the ram, and it ran long enough for me to backup. then it gave up the ghost.

    But thats kinda quick for a 1GHz model like yours. anyways, if it was the HD, then it shouldn't affect the booting off the tiger DVD. my take on it is the logicboard failure.

    -all4design
  • Reply 2 of 3
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by all4design View Post


    i had that very same problem with a G3 iBook. sadly it was the logicboard. i revived it a couple times by zapping the ram, and it ran long enough for me to backup. then it gave up the ghost.

    But thats kinda quick for a 1GHz model like yours. anyways, if it was the HD, then it shouldn't affect the booting off the tiger DVD. my take on it is the logicboard failure.

    -all4design



    that last post didnt answere your question on what to do next. I was just relating my experience.

    -all4design
  • Reply 3 of 3
    kareliakarelia Posts: 525member
    A bad hard drive can possibly (albeit rarely) interfere with the entire ATA chain, making CD boots impossible too. Best bet is to remove the hard drive and try booting from CD then.



    This is, of course, assuming you are comfortable with performing surgery on your own computer. If not, find someone who is, preferably an Apple-authorized repair center.
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