ibook g3 900mhz

Hi, and welcome to Apple Discussions.

Do you know what version of the OS it is running?

Do you have the system CDs that came with the iBook when it was new?

Have you tried starting up in Safe Mode?

OS X has many versions. OS X could be from OS X 10.0, 10.2, 10.3 or OS X 10.4.

If you got to the login screen with an attempt to start up in Safe Mode, then it probably has Mac OS X 10.2 at the least.

Did you try to start up normally again after the attempt to start up in Safe Mode?

Click here and follow the instructions.

(37971)

all you need is a simple reinstall of osx. if you have a cd you can boot up from it and easily install the os again. if you dont have a cd, you will need to obtain one.

This isn't the same problem but the closest I could find. I recently bought a used iBook 14.1 LCD 900 mhz. I had some initial problems with the screen going dark on occasion but now when I turn it on, I hear the chime, see the Apple logo for a nanosecond then get a very dark, unreadable screen. I can see faint images there but I can't make them out and I don't see the cursor.
I've tried the F2 key with and without the fn key, and also tried re-powering but no luck.
If I take it to an Apple store can I just pay to have the problem diagnosed and then decide if it's worth fixing?

Have you tried resetting the PMU? The PMU (Power Management Unit) has control over the backlight function, so resetting it may help.

It didn't work but I appreciate your suggestion.