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freecell · 09:19 PM

hi guys,

i'm new to this form and i really need some help. today my ibook g4 is booting to the dreaded folder with the ?. when i put the restore disk in and go into the utility to check the hard drive, it checks out fine. since i don't have any data that i need saved, i decided to reinstall the OS. i did an erase for the hard drive wich erased fine and proceeded to reinstall the OS. it was going fine until it started installing java applications at 54% and was completely stuck. it's getting stuck every time i try to do something as checking permission through the disk utility. i'm thinking it could be a memory problem. thanks in advance.

freecell · Apr 13, 2007, 02:25 PM

bump

seanc · Apr 13, 2007, 02:28 PM

Is the HDD making any strange noises and whats the S.M.A.R.T status?

freecell · Apr 13, 2007, 02:38 PM

no the hard drive is not making any noises at all. i'm a noob with macs and i don't even know where to go to check the S.M.A.R.T status.

seanc · Apr 13, 2007, 03:22 PM

Check in Disk Utility. It's in the menus at the top in the OS X installer.

freecell · Apr 13, 2007, 08:15 PM

i'll try that when i get home. thanks.

freecell · Apr 23, 2007, 10:14 PM

i got into the disk utility and went through checking the hard drive but it doesn't say anything about s.m.a.r.t. what should i do next? it keeps locking up during installation.

brokenjago · Apr 23, 2007, 10:34 PM

Probably a dead hard drive. It will need to be replaced.

freecell · Apr 23, 2007, 10:56 PM

i was thinking that too but you never know what else could be the problem. it gives me the results of all the things it checked and checks out fine but when i try to install the os it just locks up, this time at 74%.

voicebox · Apr 24, 2007, 03:26 AM

Originally Posted by freecell

hi guys,

i'm new to this form and i really need some help. today my ibook g4 is booting to the dreaded folder with the ?. when i put the restore disk in and go into the utility to check the hard drive, it checks out fine. since i don't have any data that i need saved, i decided to reinstall the OS. i did an erase for the hard drive wich erased fine and proceeded to reinstall the OS. it was going fine until it started installing java applications at 54% and was completely stuck. it's getting stuck every time i try to do something as checking permission through the disk utility. i'm thinking it could be a memory problem. thanks in advance.

Hi freecell,
Try resetting the PRAM by holding down Command+Option+P+R at start up and wait for the second or third chime before releasing.

When you see the flashing question mark over a folder it means that Open Firmware did not find a startup disk (locally or on the network).
If it was a memory problem, after the initial black screen you would hear the following: one beep = No RAM installed. Two beeps= Incompatable RAM.Three beeps=No good memory banks. Four beeps=No good boot images in BootROM.
On the other hand a good indication of a failing HD is a metalic clicking noise during startup. So resetting the PRAM should fix the problem.
Hope this helps.

freecell · Apr 24, 2007, 02:01 PM

Hi voicebox,

awesome. i'll try that hopefully tonight to see if it works. thanks