I think I need to wipe hard-drive and start from scratch...

argeliusargelius
Posted:
in Genius Bar edited January 2014
I switched from PC to Mac about 3 weeks ago and been having persistent problems with my Mail application (very important) and iChat (not so important), as well as sluggish response of system (during startup and less frequently during shut down).



To solve the Mail problem (which consistently froze during mail retrieval) I spoke to Apple Support and after trying a number of maneuvers was instructed to do a archive and restore (or whatever it is called).



That seemed to work for a while, but my original problem is back. I am considering doing a complete reinstallation (with no archive) of the OS to see if that helps.



Can anyone point me to some instructions on how to back up various files, settings, etc that would be needed after I start adding stuff back to the freshly-cleaned hard drive.



Thanks.



Signed,

An Unhappy Switcher, hoping to make a fresh start

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 4
    thinkingdifferentthinkingdifferent Posts: 1,604member
    I don't know about saving setting but you will probbally want to copy your home directory to another drive. This will not only save your documents but also your iTunes, iPhoto and iMovie files. Assuming you saved them in their default locations.
  • Reply 2 of 4
    fahlmanfahlman Posts: 740member
    Make a new user and see if this user has the same problem before formating and reinstalling.



    What kind of third party software are you installing. It's a little unusual the the exact same problem reappears.
  • Reply 3 of 4
    argeliusargelius Posts: 309member
    Thanks, all for your thoughts.



    When I was on the phone with Apple support, they did have me create a new user. The same freezing problem with Mail happened, which is why they had me do an archive/install.



    As far as 3rd party Apps, I don't think I have anything too odd:

    Office for Mac

    Quicken

    Photoshop Elements
  • Reply 4 of 4
    fahlmanfahlman Posts: 740member
    In the mean time download Thunderbird and use it as your mail client until you get your problem figured out.



    You also might want to try AdiumX as your IM client. If you have friends or family on another service besides AOL, AdiumX is a multi-protocol chat client: Yahoo!, MSN, ICQ, etc.
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