iBook G3 starts but doesnt do anything

J

jaku

Registered
I have an iBook G3 500mhz. It had a bad logic board so the monitor wouldn't turn on and when it did it would boot sometimes. But could never get 10.3 installed. To install I did a Target Disk mode with a friends mac to get it an OS. And I was able to install ubuntu on it before as well.

But now after replacing the logic board, the screen comes on all fine and has no problems with that. But now it just has the little Mac guy, then a ?, then the mac guy and then a ?.

I've tried safe mode
I've tried to boot from cd, by holding C
I've tried holding option down (it showed the cdrom and hd)
I've tried target disk mode and that showed up (couldnt try to hook to another mac though)
I've reset the PRAM.

Now I'm a pc user so I don't know what else I could try, I want to switch to mac, just can't with all the problems I'm having. Anyone have any ideas?
 
The OS does not eventually start. It just stays on the ?, screen. It won't even boot from a CD. But it does find the CD and HD while holding down the option key.
 
You're aassuming that OS X is installed on this iBook. From the description about the little Mac icon and the question mark, it sounds as though this had OS 9 installed on it previously.

After you held down the Option key, did you select the hard drive? Did it finally boot? If so, then (depending on the OS version you had) you have to do oneof the following:

1. If it's Mac OS 9, then head to the Apple menu at the top left and go to Control Panels-->Startup Disk. Select the disk you want to startup from and reboot. See if this fixes the problem.

2. If it's OS X, then you need to head to System Preferences and select the Startup Disk pane. There, select the disk you want to boot from and reboot. See if this solves the problem.

Post back with results.
 
Never seen this problem before, I'm afraid.

When it does recognize the HD and the CD: can you not choose to startup from one of the two?

Maybe try to borrow a friend's installation CD and see whether you still have the same issue.

Is there any possibility that the open firmware password has been activated on the machine? Maybe try resetting that (documentation for the commands can be found through Yahoo! & Google).

ecirtap
 
I have held down the option key and it shows my choice to boot to cdrom or hd. However after clicking on either one and clicking the --> it will sound like its checking and then it just shows the same screen again asking me to pick the hd or cd.

As for the open firmware i was going to try that, but the keyboard I'm using has a few keys that don't work, O being 1 of them. I have a new keyboard being sent to me so that might arrive today or tomorrow.

I know the cd's I have are bootable because I can boot them if I use my old logic board, only problem with that is the video usually doesn't come up, and when it does it freezes after a bit. And also I have CDs and DVDs so neither of them boot, when they used to.

I have disconnected the HD and I cannot boot from CD. So it's not a bad HD, causing any of the problems.

Is there anything that I can do with 2 logicboards? I know they are pretty much 1 peice but any chips that might fix one or the other?

EDIT:

After leaving the mac on all day it has still yet to boot from anything. I got a new keyboard in the mail today for it. After hooking it up I was able to get into Open Firmware. However everything I've done doesn't help fix the problem. I can view the files on the hd and cdrom but I can't boot from any, I've reseted it a few times and nothing. Is there a way to try and run a file from the HD if i can see it?
 
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