ibook g3 OSX 10.2.8 was upgraded to 10.4 but screen went black, sound fine. How do I revert to 10.2.8 with blank screen?

Question

Level 1

4 points

ibook g3 OSX 10.2.8 was upgraded to 10.4 but screen went black, sound fine. How do I revert to 10.2.8 with blank screen?

So here's what happened. The Apple Store Geniuses generously upgraded my ibook g3 with OSX 10.2.8 to OSX 10.4 via USB port since my CD drive no longer works. But the screen suddenly went black, sound was fine. Genius was stumped, but when I restarted later I very briefly got an initial screen plus the music that accompanies an initial OS installation before screen went black again. I really think that OSX 10.4 was more than my ibook g3 could handle. I don't recall the specifications anymore and can't check them with a black screen, but capacity was fairly limited. I went back to Apple a few weeks ago to ask them to downgrade my poor ibook g3 to OSX 10.3 which seems more likely to work with my computer's specifications, but was informed that OSX 10.3 is no longer available for them to load via USB. Today it occured to me that OSX 10.2.8 is still somewhere on my ibook, and if there's some shortcut I can use to restart under 10.2 instead of 10.4, some switch of OS I can make while blind (since the screen is currently dark), I could at least still use the ibook using the old 10.2 OS. Is there a way to do this switch in OSX while essentially blind? If not, my ibook is basically a doorstop I originally spent over $600 on 10 years ago. I really can't afford to just run out an buy new computers as I am disabled and dying a slow painful death from Lyme disease, but can't afford medication to treat my own illness, let alone buy another computer every 5 years. Please help!

Posted on Feb 21, 2013 3:11 PM

Reply

Answer 1

Feb 21, 2013 3:29 PM in response to ramahbear

Hello,

Ok let's see what we can do here.

First thing to try is resetting the PMU. Http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1431 it may make no difference but its good practice to do so.

So times it can resolve faults. You say they installed Mac OS X 10.4. Did they setup a user a count and did you see the desktop? Did they simply hand it back to you when the installed failed with a blank screen?

The truth is, in order for you to restore your iBook your going to need the system restore disk. With a broken CD drive this has limitations as you have no real means to install.

The only option would be to use target disk mode on an external drive, but being an early G3 iBook I'm not sure if target disk mode will work. I am going to assume the shop used this method to install via USB.

What would be a good solution is to fit a replacement CD drive. They are often cheap enough to buy and relatively easy to fit on a white duel USB model. Replacement CD drives can be brought from eBay at very little money.

An online guide can help you fit one with the right screwdrivers.

With a replacement drive, you will be open to better options for installing or even using an apple hardware test disk to diagnose any faults with the screen.

Suprised you was left in such a situation by the shop.

Reply

Answer 2

ramahbear Author

Level 1

4 points

Feb 21, 2013 3:39 PM in response to Knucklesmac

Hi, Thanks for replying. I read another post that wasn't the same issue but gave me the right vocabulary. I guess what i'm asking is how to switch to the other partition that still has OSX 10.2.8 lurking there, when I can't see anything on the screen. I don't have the original OS disks, bought the ibook on ebay years ago, plus can't afford to replace the CD drive.

The new OSX 10.4 install did not get beyond first screen before it went black, so could not set up the account. Fun music plays when I restart, telling me OSX 10.4 would like to set up an account for me but I can't see it! So do you think the Apple Geniuses could get to the partition with 10.2.8 while working blind? It's difficult to get a ride to the Apple Store, and the last Genius didn't think about getting back to 10.2.8 by finding the proper partition, so not sure this is possible. I'm not a techie. He just shrugged and said my computer must just not be working anymore, but I don't buy this simplistic "I don't know." It seems like Apple just doesn't want to help users with 10 year old products.

Thanks! Aleksu

Reply

Answer 3

Feb 21, 2013 3:46 PM in response to ramahbear

Hello,

Depends on what the shop have done. They may have formatted the drive clearing the old version of Mac OS X.

You could try holding the option key when it starts and see if it give you any boot options to Mac OS X.

Just so we have a better understanding, do you see the apple logo appear on the screen when you switch it on? Is it after that point the screen goes blank or is there nothing on the screen?

Have you tried switching it on whole connected to an external montor to see if anything comes on the screen?

Reply

Answer 4

dalstott

Level 4

2,639 points

Feb 21, 2013 3:51 PM in response to ramahbear

If the G3 iBook has a firewire port you could try to access the drive through another Firewire equiped Mac by way of FireWire target disk mode

http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1661

http://www.macworld.com/article/1139208/Target_Disk_Mode_to_the_Rescue.html

Reply

Answer 5

ramahbear Author

Level 1

4 points

Feb 21, 2013 4:04 PM in response to Knucklesmac

Hi again,

On a few occasions when something briefly came up on screen before going dark I think I saw the apple but it was quite brief. Tried all that reset stuff and didn't get a screen. Don't have another external monitor to try. Shouldn't the Apple Geniuses have tried that? Or maybe the firewire stuff? I think I will give up. Anyone want to buy the thing as-is?

Thanks for trying, Aleksu

Reply

Answer 6

Feb 22, 2013 1:07 AM in response to ramahbear

Hello,

The shop should have help diagnose this problem, by testing your iBook with an external monitor and trying to run some diagnostics tests. Sadly these are legacy computers and not many Apple shop will do anything with them. The problem we have is what state has this iBook been left in.

When you say the screen is black, is the computer actually powered and running? I wonder if when you switch it on it comes on for all of a few seconds and goes off again. What color ring is the power adapter when plugged in to the iBook?

Try removing the battery and switching it on with the power adapter plugged in.

Do you have a friend who has a monitor you could use to test?

It could be a simple fault with the power adapter or a serous problem with the logic board.

You limited on your options if you haven't the tools to diagnose. Maybe someone here that lives in your country could offer some further assistance or a good local computer shop.

Reply