10.3 upgrade problem involving XPostFacto4 -- can't log in
Help!!
Someone gave me a Macintosh G3 that was upgraded to a G4, with OSX 10.1.5. I needed an upgrade to use some of the open source software out there, so someone gave me OSX 10.3. When I tried to install it, it said that 10.3 couldn't be used on my machine. Didn't say why.
I found an online bulletin board that suggested that you can't "skip a cat" which means that I'd need to upgrade to 1.2 before trying 1.3. Then a poster said that I could use XPostFacto upgrade to 1.3.
I downloaded XPF 4 and then tried to run it. The user who gave me the computer had seven partitions on it, most of which were empty. XPF gave me a list of drives on which to save 10.3, among them drive 7, which I believe was a partition. The main harddrive, called "Brian's Comp" was grayed out, with a note that said it required 10.2. The other drives were available, presumably because they had no system software on them, which was on Brian's Comp.
I tried to install 10.3 onto partition 7 using XPF 4, and a message came up saying that it couldn't upgrade it (yet) <-- parentheses aren't mine. Perhaps, the message suggested, I could restart in system 9 -- the Classic system. There are two systems on this computer, 9.1 and 10.1.5. I hit the restart button.
It restarted in system 9.1, as it suggested. However, I couldn't find the XPF icon. I couldn't find any of the files that I had put in a folder on the desktop. I couldn't find system OSX. The only option, it seemed, was to reformat the system with the original OSX disk which the person gave me.
I held down "c" as the drive was starting up and I was presented with the format screen. I chose easy install on the Brian's Comp drive. It did it's thing then asked if I wanted to restart, which I did.
Oddly, the original user's screen name came up in the firewall, I guess you'd call it, even though I'd installed OSX again. My name came up as well. Presumably, I hadn't written over the original system software as I'd thought I had.
I typed in my password and waited. A bar appeared on the bottom of the dialogue box showing the working computer, but nothing happened. It didn't hang, since the bar was still oscillating, you migh say. But I could do nothing else.
Just now I tried again and found that I'm able to access some commands even while the firewall, or whatever, is oscillating. "About this computer" "Set Date and Time" -- things like that were available to me, while the bar was scintillating. However, almost none of the commands in that "portal" would do anything. I found a utility to stop certain running programs. It had a number of running applications listed. One was "System Preferences", a window which I'd opened earlier, and about a dozen or so finder icons. I tried quitting one of them, but there were so many I didn't know if it worked or.
I tried using another startup disk which explained that I couldn't see my files because I use a pre-8.1 filing system.. (The CD I was using was running 8.0) On that CD was a disk first aid program, which said that Brian's Comp needed some slight repairs. I had it make those repairs, thinking that would help. It may have, but I'm still not able to get past that page.
Someone gave me a Macintosh G3 that was upgraded to a G4, with OSX 10.1.5. I needed an upgrade to use some of the open source software out there, so someone gave me OSX 10.3. When I tried to install it, it said that 10.3 couldn't be used on my machine. Didn't say why.
I found an online bulletin board that suggested that you can't "skip a cat" which means that I'd need to upgrade to 1.2 before trying 1.3. Then a poster said that I could use XPostFacto upgrade to 1.3.
I downloaded XPF 4 and then tried to run it. The user who gave me the computer had seven partitions on it, most of which were empty. XPF gave me a list of drives on which to save 10.3, among them drive 7, which I believe was a partition. The main harddrive, called "Brian's Comp" was grayed out, with a note that said it required 10.2. The other drives were available, presumably because they had no system software on them, which was on Brian's Comp.
I tried to install 10.3 onto partition 7 using XPF 4, and a message came up saying that it couldn't upgrade it (yet) <-- parentheses aren't mine. Perhaps, the message suggested, I could restart in system 9 -- the Classic system. There are two systems on this computer, 9.1 and 10.1.5. I hit the restart button.
It restarted in system 9.1, as it suggested. However, I couldn't find the XPF icon. I couldn't find any of the files that I had put in a folder on the desktop. I couldn't find system OSX. The only option, it seemed, was to reformat the system with the original OSX disk which the person gave me.
I held down "c" as the drive was starting up and I was presented with the format screen. I chose easy install on the Brian's Comp drive. It did it's thing then asked if I wanted to restart, which I did.
Oddly, the original user's screen name came up in the firewall, I guess you'd call it, even though I'd installed OSX again. My name came up as well. Presumably, I hadn't written over the original system software as I'd thought I had.
I typed in my password and waited. A bar appeared on the bottom of the dialogue box showing the working computer, but nothing happened. It didn't hang, since the bar was still oscillating, you migh say. But I could do nothing else.
Just now I tried again and found that I'm able to access some commands even while the firewall, or whatever, is oscillating. "About this computer" "Set Date and Time" -- things like that were available to me, while the bar was scintillating. However, almost none of the commands in that "portal" would do anything. I found a utility to stop certain running programs. It had a number of running applications listed. One was "System Preferences", a window which I'd opened earlier, and about a dozen or so finder icons. I tried quitting one of them, but there were so many I didn't know if it worked or.
I tried using another startup disk which explained that I couldn't see my files because I use a pre-8.1 filing system.. (The CD I was using was running 8.0) On that CD was a disk first aid program, which said that Brian's Comp needed some slight repairs. I had it make those repairs, thinking that would help. It may have, but I'm still not able to get past that page.
G4, Mac OS X (10.1.x)
