[Clairon]

Hi all,

Today my beloved Dual 2.0 Ghz G5 Powermac (2003) died too!
I really can't believe it, because yesterday I worked so hard on it and I had no problems with it.

It has the excact same symptoms as descibed here so often.
Grey Startupscreen with Apple-Logo but no Spinningcircle.
Can't boot from DVD also. Tried all to fix it! Changed battery, resetted PMU, changed RAM, disconnected
the HDs, reset nearly all, what could be resetted, changed the Graphic-Card Radeon X800 with one on
PCI-X Slot a.s.o. But Hardwaretest 2.1 (short and extended) says, all is ok - ridiculous!

I really could cry the whole day, maybe the next whole year!
Because at the moment I've no money to buy a new one.
And tomorrow my new Highend-Monitor will arrive here and I can't use it with my good old Powermac 7600,
the Mac I'm using here at the moment to descibe my nightmare!

OMG, the next Mac will be a Hackintosh with E-FIX dongle, because after 15 years as a Macuser and five
Macs I paid enough to Apple and with my last experience I don't want anymore!

My good old Powermac 7600 works the whole time with no problems till now and that is what I like to pay
for a bit more than to other PC-Hardware, but my trust in Apple-Hardware has gone!

Cheers


PS: Sorry for my bad english, I'm a german

[glaston]

I once asked Apple why they don't sell propoganda such as shirts, hats, etc...



The rep said it was because those things break down quickly and they don't like their logo to be on things that break down so fast.

I'm tempted to pass out flyers at Apple stores that detail the whole issue and Apples response to it.

This isn't isolated to these machines and the G5 parts.

I've seen all over the web that a wide range of Apple products are now breaking down in under 2-3 years.

So I guess Apple changed its policy about having its logo on things that break down quickly.

I wonder if they'll start making shirts and hats now?

[VladimerePain]

Glaston that is too funny. The sad part is the shirts would probably be in better shape. It's nice having a copy of Leopard that I wouldn't even dare trying to run on this machine now. I don't think I should even bother with Logic eight express either. I wonder what they would do at the Apple store if you'd walk in there with the busted machine, bad parts, and software you can't even run safely. Oh well maybe in due time.

[glaston]

How ironic it is.

Over the past few months I've been getting my machine to run by using the hair dryer method, then as soon as the desktop loads I use the CHUD applet to set it to 1 CPU.

It's worked well, albeit not ideal since it's reduced to 1 CPU.

But yesterday the mouse movement became choppy and the system informed me that the batteries on my keyboard were low.

I replaced them with fully charged batteries and all was well.

Until today.

All of the sudden, now, the system isn't discovering the keyboard at boot, and I don't own a USB keyboard.

I don't want to buy one either if it's not gonna help at all, so I'm stuck until I can borrow someones to test it(anyone know if a standard PC keyboard can be used with a Mac? provided it's USB?).

So with no keyboard, after 10 mins give or take, the inevitable freeze occurs.

After several reboots the screen either goes dark with the "you need to restart your computer" screen, or an all out kernel panic on CPU 1.

After searching the web, I notice that this problem is all too common as well.

But there's another "duct tape solution" of course..

You place either small balls of steel wool or tin foil between the positive end of the battery and the contact on the keyboard.

Haven't tried it yet.

It seems that the hardware/software integration that makes OSX so lovely is a double edged sword.

On one hand it makes everything easier than a windows box.

On the other hand it means that when a problem occurs like the ones we're having the options are severely limited.

The only good thing that came out of this is that I'm getting re-acquainted with my old pal Slackware.

At this point I'm reduced to a 1.8GHz P4

But whenever I have to use the terminal(which is very often with slackware), it reminds me of how great the terminal in OSX is.

SOB, I miss my G5 already! :( X-(

We should set a time every night that we as a group meditate and visualize the demise of Apple(or the ressurection of our beloved machines).

BOTH!?

I don't believe in things like that personally, but even if there's only a minuscule chance, I'd be willing to try it. ;)
Message was edited by: cpoff

[californiak]

Vladimere seem like a lot of people are hairdrying their macs lately, LOL. I need to know what is CHUD and how do you use it exactly, can you help?

morho1 at charter dot net



thanks, Miro

[Droid]

californiak said:

I need to know what is CHUD and how do you use it exactly, can you help?

I can't remember what CHUD stands for but it is a preference pane that comes with the developer tools. You need to install the developer tools (it comes on the install DVD's, or can be downloaded from developer.apple.com) The Pref Panes are inside the Extras folder. It's called Processor.prefpane

You could also try this? http://www.macosxhin...071028005353629 ? or you could just use the NVRAM method. It is explained on the Apple thread http://discussions.a...ssageID=7956121 just use find to get to 'NVRAM' in Whoopy's post on the huge page. It can also be set in Open Firmware mode (Apple O F at start) too.

I used the nvram method because it is persistent across boots, and I personally think that the earlier the CPU is disabled after boot, the less likely it is to crash. I think you can wipe the NVRAM settings via a PRAM reset.

[alanholey]

hey guys,
ive got this really ANNOYING problem and you wont believe how pissed i get sometimes.
so heres the story.
i was using the com and out of nowhere these random grids appeared (mostly black and white) and i can see the screen covered all over them but i was still able to see my mouse cursor and everything. i called the apple shop and then they said the moniter had a problem. So they changed the monitor but still the problem wasnted fixed. Then they said could be the logic box.
So i waited a week and then they came to my house to change it. Fianaly it worked,but then if u touch the com even just a tiny bit with even your pinky the whole screen comes with those boxes again!! i called them again and they brought in another one.
i waited another week and they changed it. Now it works.
i was able to use the com for about another 2 months and now the same thing happens sometimes.I gotta like start pressing the com everywhere and it sometimes fixes the prob.
i wanna know does that mean my logic box is broken? Or is it just not placed properly or some other reason?
i use a powerPC G5(3.0)
PLEASE HELP ME!!

[Droid]

alanholey said:

i was able to use the com for about another 2 months and now the same thing happens sometimes.I gotta like start pressing the com everywhere and it sometimes fixes the prob.
i wanna know does that mean my logic box is broken? Or is it just not placed properly or some other reason?

I have no idea what is wrong with your G5, but it is clearly not correct. You said the monitor & logic board (not box) were replaced?
You should contact Apple again since they should fix it if it is a prior problem reoccurring. Take some photos of the screen (or video if possible) of the screen coming back to life as you touch it. It sounds like a loose connection in part of the graphics system, but that is just a wild guess.

Apple will fix this (or replace it) if you have a history of it having this issue.

[alanholey]

both of them were replaced.
it seems fine now but im sure its gonna go crazy again!! ill take a pic of it when it happens and ill post it.(if you can)
well so far all i know is that the technitians said the logic board was damaged so they replaced it. OH and sometimes when i use the com the com preezes and the screen fills with this giant pink thing on the corner and slowy makes the whole screen black,does tht mean it overheated?
PS:soz for the bad grammer and stuff,im only 13 so...yea =]

[alanholey]

1 last question, MY WARRANTY IS EXPIRED!! so if i have to replace it again do i have to pay full price?

[Droid]

alanholey said:

1 last question, MY WARRANTY IS EXPIRED!! so if i have to replace it again do i have to pay full price?

If you buy a new mac you will pay full price, but if you contact Apple & explain that the same issue has come back they 'should' look into it. The G5 will have it's repair history recorded in the Apple support system, if the original failure was covered under warranty (or Applecare) it shouldn't come back. It suggests that the original fault wasn't fixed correctly in the original repairs. It may depend on how long the G5 is out of warranty, did it have Applecare? - Apples 3 years extended warranty.

It would help if you have a list of case ID's, dates and repairs that have happened to the G5 so that you can go through them with the Applecare staff if necessary. You have the phone number for Apple support don't you?

It may help to have the person who purchased the G5 make the call since you are only 13.

[macbabe]

Do any of you have an email address to Apple customer service? I can't find exactly what I want on their web site, so I'm either overlooking it or they don't want hordes of enraged former Apple customers dumping thousands of emails on them.

[VladimerePain]

I did find these.

Apple Computer Inc 310-264-2000
2401 Colorado Avenue
Santa Monica, CA 90404-3585

Apple Computer Inc 916-394-2600
2911 Laguna Blvd
Elk Grove, CA 95758-7411

Aplle Computer Inc 408-996-1010
1 Infinite Loop
Cupertino, CA 95014-2084

I don't know whether sending a heartfelt snail mail letter carries any weight in the digital era though.

[macbabe]

I just sent my complaint to www.apple.com/feedback/imac.html . Again. Not that it did any good the first time. I might just send the same letter every week and see if I get any response. I'm already out $2500 on a useless hunk of junk so I figure I've got nothing else to lose anyway. I don't care at this point if they think I'm a pest, and I'm trying to figure how to install Linux on my laptop and say to heck with Apple and MS both.