Hello, i recently tried to boot up my old Ibook g3 but it refused to do so. The battery charges and it currently at 2 stable lights and the charging cable glows orange where it connects to the laptop. However when ever i press to power button nothing happens; the screen doesn't light up and the computer doesn't make any noises.
Any help with this problem would be greatly appreciated. Thanks P
iBook, Mac OS X (10.4), G3
The orange means it's still charging i thought?
The iBook G3 has a barrel-type low-voltage DC connector.
To begin with, see the following article.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1431
Any change if the battery is not in place?
Is the low-voltage DC plug securely in place? Many laptop computers (both Mac and PC) have problems with the DC-in jack. The pins sometimes work loose (and may have to be resoldered). One can often discover this through a change (intermittent connection) when one tries to move the plug a bit.
Also, some iBook G3 computers have an issue with a graphics chip that may have to be resoldered (special technique). Applying pressure to a certain area near the trackpad can lead to a temporary change (a computer that did not react at all may then attempt to start up). Try a web search for more information.
Jan
For vintage pre-Intel based Apple Portable computer power adapter identification see:
•PowerPC-Based Mac notebooks: Identifying the right power adapter and power cord--US
The battery, power adapter, and DC-in board all work together to alternately power/charge
the computer, and charge the battery, also to let the computer run at correct voltage when
the battery is fully charged. Or to run the computer at reduced CPU without battery installed.
These three component products need to be correctly functioning for this to happen. Also
there is a fourth possibility outside of these three, in this line of thinking, that may contribute
to a failure of the system to function as expected. The logic board can sustain some kind of
damage that may cause the charging/power systems to fail, outside of the above component
parts that may test OK otherwise.
The DC-in Board issue can be a part of a greater level of troubleshooting by replacement
of parts, however difficult opening the iBook computers can be, to be sure the logic board
has no defect which may have occurred due to rough handling.
Then, the other issue with the logic board and graphic chip, involving Shims to jamb the
failed solder joints together, could affect some models among the iBook G3 & iBook G4.
There had been a few articles online by a guy who'd figured out how to shim these years
ago, and I am not sure of his name (Cory? something) but a general search such as this
https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=ibook+solder+defect+repair+shims does bring
up V-chip repair by shims, and may touch on the re-flow or re-bead of cracked solders.
Hopefully you can make your old iBook G3 work OK; and that the logic board or graphic
chip, etc are also not part of the issue.
Good luck & happy computing! 🙂
In addition to the comments you've already received, I'd try a couple of other things:
I'd remove the battery and just leave it out for say, 10 minutes before putting it back in before reinserting it.
If nothing changes isn't there a PRAM Zapping thing you can do? This might be an OS9 only trick, but it's worth a try. To Zap the Pram, with the machine off, hold down the Command Key, the Control and the Power key together. Keep the keys pressed down and listen to the computer startup three times. After you hear the startup noise for the third time take your fingers off the keys and let the machine startup as normal.
Major apologies if that is an OS9 only trick, but I don't think it'll do any damage to try.
IBook g3 will not power up
