[bradmays]

My service guy is out of town. Any help is appreciated.

On computer number 1, when I tried to switch to OS X from 9.2, the computer stalled half way through the process, then displayed something about passwords in the upper left hand corner. Computer number 2, when I try to open it, momentarily shows the Apple logo, which is then immediately followed by a circle with a slash through it. The circle remains on screen.

Does anyone know how serious these issues are? I'm an editor and this is my bread and butter.

[SSharon]

I wish I could give a better answer, but I think I can get some more info out of the situation. On computer 1 is the password stuff plain text (no graphic in back), as in the entire screen is a command line interface. If it is, it sounds like it has booted into open firmware. You can try entering the admin password, type reboot I think. Someone else will have to give better instructions than that, but trying reboot can't make anything worse to the best of my knowledge.
As for computer #2 I am not sure what the circle with a slash through it is. It sounds like it can't find the HD. Try rebooting and hold down option. This will make it list all bootable drives. If none show up, I would peek into the case and make sure the drive is plugged in securely.

Good luck.