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setlistgirl · Oct 23, 2006, 01:27 PM

I had been getting a warning that my startup disc was nearly full and that I needed to delete files. I hadn't taken the time to do it. So...imac has shut itself off and it won't come back to me! I used troubleshooting from mac.com and tried to reset the SMU by holding power button and plugging the power back in, then letting go of the power button and then pressing it again. Nothing. Nothing. If I press the power button the light will only come on every 3 or 4 times I press it. Am I off to the apple store for tech support, or does anyone have advice? Have I crashed it? Lost all my data? Not enough memory left to start up? Can I add RAM myself? Would that help?

seanc · Oct 23, 2006, 03:06 PM

Sounds like a coincidence that it isn't starting up. What type of iMac is it? If it's a 1st Generation (Rev A.) iMac G5 then they are prone to issues like this and Apple should fix it free.

setlistgirl · Oct 23, 2006, 03:11 PM

it's an imac G5. it turns two in December. I can't remember if 04 was the first generation or not. So I should just take it to the apple store and hope for the best? Should I tell them I heard they had problems like this and ask for a warranty repair? Also, when I was troubleshooting on mac.com it said the first generation had a button to reset the SMU, I could not locate a button...but perhaps I was looking in the wrong place? As if there are many places a second button could hide, but...
thanks for the reply.

seanc · Oct 23, 2006, 03:17 PM

Well when you looked on the website, did it instruct you to take the back off or do anything like that? Only the 1st generation iMacs allowed you to take the back off etc.

Take a look at this page Apple - Support - iMac G5 Repair Extension Program for Video and Power Issues to see if your serial number falls within the range. The website tells you how to check the serial number. If it is covered you will have to take it to the Apple store.

The Apple store should also know whether it is covered under warranty etc, but if they give you a quote and your serial number is covered then remind them.

setlistgirl · Oct 23, 2006, 03:26 PM

seanc, thank you so much! I'll follow your recommendations and hope for the best. I have had my imac for two years, but only recently really started to get to know it. I was always pc, but mac is sooooo much better, you know, for photos and music. In fact I am purchasing a 320 gig external hd to handle my media as i soaked up 80 gigs almost immediately once I started really using it. Anyhow..thanks again.

seanc · Oct 23, 2006, 03:28 PM

Your welcome, good luck.

Post back when it's fixed.

kick52 · Oct 23, 2006, 05:13 PM

Originally Posted by setlistgirl

Not enough memory left to start up?

no, but thanks for that AMAZING laugh i just had.

No, because any mac should be able to power on even if it has no HD or RAM. (Though it might not if the motherboard is damaged) What starts the mac up is the PSU (power supply unit), which turns the mac on before the RAM, or motherboard is. Anyway, the memory which your Mac told you about is talking about hard drive space, not RAM. So, RAM would not solve the problem. RAM is only tempory memory used by the system, and is wiped clean every time you restart your mac. You might need to take it to the Apple Store to get it fixed, and then you will need a new hard drive.

Hope this widens your computer knowledge. (most of this covers over PCs aswell)