iBook G4 overheats too easy/fan runs too much

My 1.33ghz 12" iBook G4's fan runs fairly constantly and very noisily, which is extremely annoying (much of my use has to do with playing music or messing with music, so it interferes, especially with recording).

yes, the cpu runs hot, but it doesn't have an excuse most of the time: for example, tonight, i was simply websurfing with only Mail and Firefox open, and the activity monitor showed 95% free and nothing hogging the cpu in any way, and Energy Saver settings are set to Automatic... but the fan was whizzing away and the bottom's hot, as is the area above the HD, to left of trackpad.
the 80GB hard drive (presumably not original) has 35 GB free, there's 1.5GB of RAM in it... why might this iBook run so hot, and what can i do about it? As soon as i play ANY audio or video, from itunes to online, the fan comes on, loudly, regardless of how few programs i have open, but it also runs a lot of the time with no explanation at all.

someone told me this could warn of impending logic board problems, is this true? it has been a gradually increasing problem.

What can i do to get it to run cooler? or at least make the fan quieter?

alternately, how do the Macbooks do, re getting too hot/ fans running too much? i'm thinking of upgrading.

PowerBook G4, iMac G4, iBook G4, Pismo and MORE, Mac OS X (10.4.7)

Posted on Mar 27, 2008 11:56 PM

Apr 2, 2008 6:32 PM in response to lisajoy

lisajoy:

Your RAM is fine. You have the maximum RAM your computer will support. Great!

In terms of the heat, from what you have reported, your temperatures are within the normal range, albeit at the high end. You might help your computer stay cooler by propping it up a bit with a 1/2 inch or so strip of wood toward the back to facilitate airflow. When you are running processor intensive tasks, like video, try not to multi-task so that the processor does not have too much to do.

Assume Adblock it must be tweaked/fiddled with?

You can unblock items that you want to permit. At the bottom right of the browser page there is a button Options. If you click on that button you can allow or forbid items. If it seems something is blocked, click on Options and temporarily allow the item. After you are sure you want it you can allow it the next time.

In terms of the Pismo, there are a number of other threads in the PowerBook G3 forums that deal with processor upgrades. The one I linked is one of the most comprehensive. If you still have questions after reading through you can post a new topic in the Using your PowerBook G3 forum.

Good luck.

cornelius