mcina
Level 1 (4 points)
Notebooks

Q: Power book G3 :: Hard Drive Icon Appear With Flashing Question Mark

When I tried to reinstall the OS it does not open past the install icon. Startup utility does not find the one and only hard drive

Posted on May 14, 2016 6:17 PM

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mcina

Q: Power book G3 :: Hard Drive Icon Appear With Flashing Question Mark

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  • by Niel,

    Niel Niel May 14, 2016 6:25 PM in response to mcina
    Level 10 (311,446 points)
    May 14, 2016 6:25 PM in response to mcina

    Open the Disk Utility(or Disk First Aid for Mac OS 9 and earlier) and try repairing or erasing the drive. If it doesn't show up there, it's either dead or not properly connected.

     

    (142301)

  • by mcina,

    mcina mcina May 14, 2016 7:17 PM in response to mcina
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Notebooks
    May 14, 2016 7:17 PM in response to mcina

    I think in my case the drive is dead it keeps making the cycling sound when trying to load.

  • by Jan Hedlund,

    Jan Hedlund Jan Hedlund May 15, 2016 3:47 AM in response to mcina
    Level 6 (9,864 points)
    May 15, 2016 3:47 AM in response to mcina

    There were several G3 models. Is it the original PowerBook G3, or possibly one of the PowerBook G3 Series machines (see, for example, http://lowendmac.com/powerbooks.html)?

     

    Which operating system version CD are you using? Mac OS 8.x and 9.x discs contained a Drive Setup utility.

     

    Was Drive Setup tested while booted to a CD? If so, was the internal hard drive recognised? If yes, and if you do not need the data on the hard disk, you may want to use Drive Setup in order to reformat/initialise (and then make an attempt with a new system installation). Please note that reformatting/initialisation will erase everything on the hard disk, so do not procede unless you have backup copies of important files.

     

    If the hard drive in fact is faulty, you could replace it (to get an idea of the level of difficulty, guides at ifixit.com may be of help).

     

    Since the PowerBook G3 and the PowerBook G3 Series computers have PC Card slots, you may also want to experiment with a system installation onto a CompactFlash memory card placed in an inexpensive PC Card adapter for CompactFlash. A CompactFlash card (normally PC-formatted) must be reformatted to Mac before a system is installed.

  • by mcina,

    mcina mcina May 15, 2016 8:30 PM in response to Jan Hedlund
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Notebooks
    May 15, 2016 8:30 PM in response to Jan Hedlund

    Thanks Jan,

     

    I can't access the disk utility at this point, all I can do is load the operating boot system, which I have 2 original ones that came with the G3, which is OS10.4 and OS 9.2.2, 10.4 seems to be more limited to what I do in terms checking for the disk drive, but at this point neither boot disk for both operating system are recognising the drive at all.

     

    I'm not overly confident in changing the drive out myself but I do have a spare one from a later model compaq which is useable, it might be a case where I'll need t seek some assistance in changing the drive and starting again.

  • by Jan Hedlund,

    Jan Hedlund Jan Hedlund May 15, 2016 11:17 PM in response to mcina
    Level 6 (9,864 points)
    May 15, 2016 11:17 PM in response to mcina

    >2 original ones that came with the G3, which is OS10.4 and OS 9.2.2

     

    Could you please confirm the exact model? It is not an iBook, or is it?

     

    PowerBook G3 Computers: How to Identify Different Models - Apple Support

  • by mcina,

    mcina mcina May 16, 2016 12:46 AM in response to Jan Hedlund
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Notebooks
    May 16, 2016 12:46 AM in response to Jan Hedlund

    it's an ibook PowerPC from 2003, for some reason these posts keep linking to the powerbook G3 (I think someone else had the same question), and the original operating systems are as you've listed above.

  • by Jan Hedlund,

    Jan Hedlund Jan Hedlund May 16, 2016 12:12 PM in response to mcina
    Level 6 (9,864 points)
    May 16, 2016 12:12 PM in response to mcina

    Hi,

     

    Yes, with these systems, I thought it was an iBook. My previous replies were based upon the "Power book G3" in the title. An iBook does not have PC Card slots. Unfortunately, iBook hard drive replacement is much more complicated.