[FAQ]Mac OS X 10.4 "Tiger" Installation

[fryke]

We'll add more questions and answers as they come up and are answered, so check back. Feel free to add your own below, we might add them to this list on occasion. Please only post if you have an _answer_, too. Questions should be asked in our FlashChat (use the link in the forum menu) or in a separate thread. This one should provide _answers_.

My Mac doesn't boot from the Tiger installation DVD. What can I do?
- Make sure your Mac meets the minimum requirements that are stated on the box or here: http://www.apple.com/macosx/techspecs/ ...
- Insert the DVD, reboot and after the boot chime, hold down the "c" key until you're sure it's booting from the DVD.

Should I upgrade, archive & Install or clean install?
That depends.
- Many agree that a new version of the operating system like Tiger is one of the best times to start with a clean slate. That's also the most work, of course. It means backing up everything and to choose formatting your drive at installation time. After installation of the OS, install the third party (and Apple) software you have and lastly import your documents and settings - unless you want to get rid of them, too (which might be helpful if you had a lot of little problems with Jaguar or Panther).
- Archive & Install is almost as clean. It doesn't involve formatting your drive (is less thorough that way) but a lot easier to move the old files around (faster, too).
- To upgrade is the most simple thing. You simply upgrade - and off you go. Mail.app will take some time, btw., to import your E-Mails into the new format for Mail.app 2.0 once your installation is done. If you don't really want to clean install but are unsure, why not do the following: 1) Backup, 2) Upgrade and if all's well, that's it, if not - 3) Clean install.

Tiger uses much too much CPU power. Is this normal?
When you first install Tiger, Spotlight is indexing your harddrive(s). Whenever you attach a FW-drive, for example, Spotlight also does its job. In the first few hours (sometimes even days), Spotlight seems to eat a lot of CPU power for creating and adjusting its index(es). This is normal and gets better over time, until normal disk I/O operations are back to normal or even slightly faster. (Personal experience thing, I guess...)

Spotlight doesn't find everything?
Apart from it taking some time to display everything it finds (so you might have to, well, just wait a little longer, it could be that you're trying to find something that's on a FAT32 formatted (Windows) external drive. Those are <i>not</i> fully indexed by content/metadata, i.e. Spotlight will only find your search-terms in the filenames for those drives. There is not currently a solution to this (i.e. you won't be able to metadata-spotlight such a device). A workaround is to reformat the drive (make sure to back it up!) in Mac OS Extended (HFS+) format. But then you can't share the drive with PC users any longer.

Can't add a volume to the Spotlight Privacy area?
Then it's probably a FAT32 formatted volume. Read the entry above this one.

Why doesn't Dashboard show me the ripple effect?
Because your graphics card doesn't match the minimum requirements for Core Graphics and Core Video. There's really nothing you can do about it. But there are voices (including Fryke) who say they'd turn off the ripple effect on supported hardware if they could. So maybe you should simply be happy about it. At least concerning Dashboard.

Some application/utility/driver doesn't run or doesn't run well in Tiger. What now?
You go to www.versiontracker.com or www.macupdate.com and check for the newest version of that particular application/utility/driver. Chances are that the developer has already done his/her task and prepared an updated version for use with Tiger. If not, bug him/her about it. Before that, you should check their website. Maybe they've already _announced_ a forthcoming update that's not available yet (and thus not on VT or MU).

We'll add more questions and answers as they come up and are answered, so check back. Feel free to add your own below, we might add them to this list on occasion. Please only post if you have an _answer_, too. Questions should be asked in our FlashChat (use the link in the forum menu) or in a separate thread. This one should provide _answers_.

[Ryan1524]

How come certain Applications don't function anymore, can't turn on, or lost some of its capabilities?

You will have to reinstall these applications. these symptomps occured on archive/install because the connections to the application support files or the library files might have been damaged in the archiving and restore process. your best bet is to reinstall the affected Apps. if it still doesn't work, then you'll have to wait for their respective developers to release a fix. as for people doing Upgrades, i'm not sure if the same principles apply, but i wouldn't recommend Upgrades in the first place anyway, they're slow, unstable, and are prone to problems. it's better if you do a clean wipe, or Archive/install if you don't have time to move all your files.

[appleman.design]

I have done it both ways.. and have seen no real change in the operation os the OS...

[madkeys]

Ok I have read lotsa postingss about Tiger and installation.
My theoretical proceedure is as follows:
Clone my 80gb h/d to an external FWD with Super Duper.
Clean my internal Drive and reformat.
Install Tiger
Copy over my files and apps from the FWD.
Now, that all sounds very simple but I know there are going to be problems.
i.e. some apps will be non Tiger compliant.
Has anyone tried this and if so what other probs will be encountered ?
Can I still boot from Panther on the ext FWD ?
Tim Hinkley
PB 1.25MHZ, 2GB RAM, Superdrive, 80 GB H/D
OSX 10.3.9, Cubase SX3 + Software Instruments/Sampler, BIAS Peak, Toast, Melodyne, BFD, Adobe Creative Suite, MS Office et al.

[tommy.v]

Hi Tim,


i think that would be a perfect plan but with the third party applications reinstalling them should normally work or if its no good than i would suggest wait for the vendor to release the new drivers. that would be your last option untill or unless u end up buying the brand new version in stores which would be compatile with the new OS.

usually the problems would be
* application quits unexpectedly
* some functions like print and copy would not work
* if multimedia apps., those may not detect external devices

i would not recommend booting from external HD as that would cause issues to u r installed OS. the firewire drive would be slow compared to the performance of ur internal SATA HD since ur using Adobe suites and Melodyne sw.

[fryke]

No, no, it doesn't do anything to your installed OS if you boot from an external FW drive. Really: It's the perfect way. I've done it this way since 2000 or so. Works perfectly.

[bobw]

Please only post if you have an _answer_, too. Questions should be asked in our FlashChat (use the link in the forum menu) or in a separate thread. This one should provide _answers_.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!

[u999ebj]

I installed Tiger on my Ibook, upgraded from OS X Jaguar. Now my DVD Drive no longer seeems to function.

I made the move because I bought an iPOD Nano and the associated software stated I need OS 10.2.8 or higher to load the iPOD Software. I upgrade. The install looked as though it went well. Now, I can not install my iPOD software because when a Disk is loaded into my drive nothing appears on my desktop or in my HD Window to access the information on the Disk. I can hear the disk spin up, but it seem not to see the disk is loaded in the draw. What has happened?