Q: Flashing folder with question mark comes up at startup, HELP!

More than likely that means your hard drive has completely failed.

Let's start you over here. Snow Leopard does not have an Erase and Install option so you may be booting from a Leopard DVD, not a Snow Leopard DVD.

Drive Preparation and Install Snow Leopard

1. Boot from your OS X Installer Disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button.  When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Utilities menu.

2. After DU loads select your hard drive (this is the entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the left side list. Note the SMART status of the drive in DU's status area.  If it does not say "Verified" then the drive is failing or has failed and will need replacing.  SMART info will not be reported  on external drives. Otherwise, click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.

3. Under the Volume Scheme heading set the number of partitions from the drop down menu to one. Click on the Options button, set the partition scheme to GUID then click on the OK button. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Partition button and wait until the process has completed.

4. Select the volume you just created (this is the sub-entry under the drive entry) from the left side list. Click on the Erase tab in the DU main window.

5. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Security button, check the button for Zero Data and click on OK to return to the Erase window.

6. Click on the Erase button. The format process can take up to several hours depending upon the drive size.

7. When the process is complete quit DU and return to the installer. Install Snow Leopard.

Take the computer in for service. Either your hard drive is toast or your motherboard is.

Hi I have the same problem and previously read on another post to press the Shift key and that the mac would start. It worked the first times but now it doesnt start. The apple loading screen just stays there forever. I've tried doing the command R and option key but it doesn't work.

Any ideas? My MacBook is only 2 years old and the previous one lasted only 2 years so I'm freaking out here :)

Thanks

Please post a new topic for your problem.