G4 Power Mac wont install OS X

Have you talked to apple? This is finnickey stuff.

The retail OSX comes on a DVD. Your machine only has a CD-ROM (not unusual for an Educational machine to be a low-spec configuration), or perhaps the optical drive is malfunctioning.

But I have run across this once before with a more modern G4 (quicksilver) which refused outright to boot from an OSX DVD, even when I replaced the drive with a known-good DVD drive that boots when installed in another G4. I ended up creating a bootable partition with an installer on a Firewire drive, and updating from that. Google for instructions.

CanadaRAM said:

The retail OSX comes on a DVD. Your machine only has a CD-ROM (not unusual for an Educational machine to be a low-spec configuration), or perhaps the optical drive is malfunctioning.

Click to expand...

I have to agree. You're more then likely going see CD-RWs only until the Mirror Drive Door models.

When Tiger came out, we had several Macs at work without DVD drives. I just put Tiger on my iPod and used that. Worked like a charm.

So let me get this straight, the school sold you a PMG4 with out an operating system?! did you ask why? As far as security reasons I can understand but if it was a license/app issue they could have been uninstalled and sold you a G4 with OS X!!
My school didn't sell me the G4s due to the fact that they [G4] were bumped down from the college division to the high school division. OK understandable. Even so, when I got this G4 I was more then surprised to see that;

A) It worked with an old PC monitor

B) It not only has Panther but Photoshop, Illustrator CS, Aftereffects, and
Final Cut pro, just to mention a few.

C) And that I can still use MS Entourage and mail, yet I can't receive any mail


All in all this has been the best 45 bones I have invested....If all the suggestions have not worked, then take it in the your nearest APPLE store and have it looked at, they can still service these great machines!!