Any Mac experts here?

[MikeL]

Can anyone help with suggestions as to what to do with my Mac G3 (other than throw it off a very tall building...)?

Bought it off Trademe for $200, worked well for a couple of weeks, then froze and I stupidly pulled the plug (having not used a Mac for a while I had forgotten about that microscopic reset button). Anyhow now the hard drive seems to be dead (grey screen with a little folder icon and a question mark comes up). I tried all the usual things and also obtained a Norton Disk Doctor CD, but this doesn't recognize the hard drive at all.
Is there anything I can do to recover the hard drive? It's hardly worth putting a new one in...

[riffer]

Before assuming your drive is dead, I'd try a parameter RAM reset.

Press the restart button, then hold down all of the following keys until it beeps THREE times.

APPLE-OPTION-P-R

[bugjuice]

when you start it up, do you get an icon of a folder with a '?' flashing on it?
also back what Rif said

[Sniper]

when you start it up, do you get an icon of a folder with a '?' flashing on it?
also back what Rif said

He did write that. Silly billy bugjuice man :violin: :woohoo: :nono:

:rofl: :rofl: :killingme

[Skunk]

Which OS? X or 9 (or less)?

[Badcat]

Can anyone help with suggestions as to what to do with my Mac G3 (other than throw it off a very tall building...)?

Bought it off Trademe for $200, worked well for a couple of weeks, then froze and I stupidly pulled the plug (having not used a Mac for a while I had forgotten about that microscopic reset button). Anyhow now the hard drive seems to be dead (grey screen with a little folder icon and a question mark comes up). I tried all the usual things and also obtained a Norton Disk Doctor CD, but this doesn't recognize the hard drive at all.
Is there anything I can do to recover the hard drive? It's hardly worth putting a new one in...

the flashing question mark means the drive can't find it's system folder to boot the OS.
a nortons or discwarrior CD may allow the machine to boot and fix the disc problem. it's common in old and non-loved macs.
are you in auck?
i may have the disc you need.

k

[Mooch]

Can anyone help with suggestions as to what to do with my Mac G3 (other than throw it off a very tall building...)?

Bought it off Trademe for $200, worked well for a couple of weeks, then froze and I stupidly pulled the plug (having not used a Mac for a while I had forgotten about that microscopic reset button). Anyhow now the hard drive seems to be dead (grey screen with a little folder icon and a question mark comes up). I tried all the usual things and also obtained a Norton Disk Doctor CD, but this doesn't recognize the hard drive at all.
Is there anything I can do to recover the hard drive? It's hardly worth putting a new one in...

Not sure about the G3 disks , but earlier Mac's suffered from the drive bearings seizing. You should be able to hear if the drive is spinning up .
if it's not , we use to as a last resort grab the case and give it a fast sharp twist horizontally , 2 out of 3 times this worked freeing the drive bearing up , the drive will then continue normally.

[Lias]

Its a mac.. I vote for throwing it off a tall buidling even if its in perfectly good condition! :moon:

[MikeL]

Before assuming your drive is dead, I'd try a parameter RAM reset.

Press the restart button, then hold down all of the following keys until it beeps THREE times.

APPLE-OPTION-P-R

Tried that. No beeps at all.

[MikeL]

the flashing question mark means the drive can't find it's system folder to boot the OS.
a nortons or discwarrior CD may allow the machine to boot and fix the disc problem. it's common in old and non-loved macs.
are you in auck?
i may have the disc you need.

k

I borrowed a Norton CD with Disk Doctor and other utilities on it, but can't get it to recognize the HD.

[Badcat]

Its a mac.. I vote for throwing it off a tall buidling even if its in perfectly good condition! :moon:

yeah.
thanks for your input.
GN250s are incredible, and not deserving of any critisism.

[Badcat]

I borrowed a Norton CD with Disk Doctor and other utilities on it, but can't get it to recognize the HD.

if the disc utility is older than the OS version on your g3 - that will happen also.
k

[bugjuice]

if you have the OS disc for the mac, try booting off that and run the disc repair app in the utility folder. Can't remember what it's called, but has a pic of an ambo on it. Try running that if you have the cd. Every little might help ;)

[Big Dave]

Flashing ? means it can't find a valid system folder. Nortons won't repair it huh? - Easiest thing would be to boot from the system CD (hold the C key down on startup) that comes with the machine and re initialise the hard disc. Good thing you had everything backed up.

[Big Dave]

if you have the OS disc for the mac, try booting off that and run the disc repair app in the utility folder. Can't remember what it's called, but has a pic of an ambo on it. Try running that if you have the cd. Every little might help ;)


Disc first aid.

[Big Dave]

Its a mac.. I vote for throwing it off a tall buidling even if its in perfectly good condition! :moon:


I reiterate a post I made to Bugjuice earlier. I have some words for you to look up and employ.

1. HELPFUL
2. APPROPRIATE
3. HUMOUROUS
4. DICKHEAD

[Gremlin]

I reiterate a post I made to Bugjuice earlier. I have some words for you to look up and employ.

1. HELPFUL
2. APPROPRIATE
3. HUMOUROUS
4. DICKHEAD
It was very helpful and extremely appropriate given that its a Mac.

And humourous?? Absolutely. :rofl:

Dickheaded?? Only about as dickheaded as those who suggest those with Microsoft problems get a mac :whistle:

[Big Dave]

It was very helpful and extremely appropriate given that its a Mac.

And humourous?? Absolutely. :rofl:

Dickheaded?? Only about as dickheaded as those who suggest those with Microsoft problems get a mac :whistle:


OK heres another couple

1: FUCK
2. OFF

[MikeL]

Flashing ? means it can't find a valid system folder. Nortons won't repair it huh? - Easiest thing would be to boot from the system CD (hold the C key down on startup) that comes with the machine and re initialise the hard disc. Good thing you had everything backed up.

For $200 would I have expected to get a system disc with it??
As for backing up... ):

It is (correction: was) running on OS X. I think the Norton repair disc might have had something about 9 on it...

[Skunk]

As it's on OSX you need Diskwarrior. Had this happen to mine (I caused it). Nortons (OSX version) didn't fix it. Start it up in Target mode if you can.

If not I can sent you my Diskwarrior CD for you to fix it with.

[MikeL]

If not I can sent you my Diskwarrior CD for you to fix it with.

That's very kind of you. I'll try to find one locally first but if I don't have any luck I will take you up on your offer.

[Big Dave]

For $200 would I have expected to get a system disc with it??
As for backing up... ):
.

Probably not. It would be OS 8.6 at best for a G3 anyway.

[bugjuice]

which G3 is it? the older ones weren't supported by OSX, but the 'end of' G3s can run up to 10.2 or .3 I think..
I've got an old OSX disc I can drop round if you want.. PM me and let me know if so.. I think it's 10.2

[Skunk]

Beige had support to 10.2, B&W fully supported to 10.3 - must check 10.4... (edit: yep, good for 10.4
Requirements
Macintosh computer with a PowerPC G3, G4 or G5 processor
Built-in FireWire
DVD drive for installation
256MB of RAM
3GB of available hard disk space (4GB if you install the developer tools))

Beige G3 had SCSI still, and ADB so that was the cruncher. Once Apple dropped full support for SCSI and reqd built-in Firewire the Beiges had problems.

[MikeL]

which G3 is it? the older ones weren't supported by OSX, but the 'end of' G3s can run up to 10.2 or .3 I think..
I've got an old OSX disc I can drop round if you want.. PM me and let me know if so.. I think it's 10.2

Will check when I get home. I know that it's got a couple of Firewire ports at the back so might be one of the later ones.

[MikeL]

O.K., it looks like the HD is stuffed. Got system disks from bugjuice (thanks mate) but when I get to the point where you have to specify a location it doesn't recognize the HD. Tried the Repair utility and also total Erase but it comes up with an error message.

Any advice on (cheap) HDs for G3? Doesn't have to be huge (the stuffed one is only 20 GB).

[Skunk]

O.K., it looks like the HD is stuffed. Got system disks from bugjuice (thanks mate) but when I get to the point where you have to specify a location it doesn't recognize the HD. Tried the Repair utility and also total Erase but it comes up with an error message.

Any advice on (cheap) HDs for G3? Doesn't have to be huge (the stuffed one is only 20 GB).Try Diskwarrior first - I had the same thing with mine. System disks got not see the HD but Diskwarrior fixed it. PM me your address if you want and I'll post them to you.

Otherwise any ATA drive will do unless your mac is a beige...