Help with installing OS X on dual USB iBook with broken combo drive.

[delta mono]

I had the brilliant idea of trying a clean install of OS X on my circa 2002 iBook.

I had Tiger on there, but the iBook was quite sluggish and I was getting frustrated with the performance of the iBook on the only thing that I wanted it to use it for: the internet. So I thought that if I wiped the hard drive and installed OS X again, I could benefit from erasing an accumulation of junk on the iBook. (One thing to note is that the hard drive is actually from a clamshell iBook. The hard drive stopped working a few years ago, and I spent a weekend replacing the drive)

The combo drive has long since stopped working on the iBook, so I hooked up the iBook to my MacBook via firewire and erased the hard drive. But like an idiot I installed 10.5 instead of 10.4 and now the iBook only returns the folder with the question mark.

I have not had any luck (either before the ill advised OS X install or before) with doing a remote install. I have the original disks that came with the iBook (10.1), but when I try to install them using the MacBook's drive it just tells me that I can't install it on my MacBook, which is not what I want to do.

Does anyone have any ideas, or have I basically killed the iBook after 8 years of service?

 

[NewMacbookPlz]

Can you install via USB optical drive? I dunno if those older models can boot via USB though...

 

[delta mono]

Can you install via USB optical drive? I dunno if those older models can boot via USB though...

I actually borrowed an optical USB drive today, but like you surmise it doesn't appear that this iBook can boot via USB.

 

[old-wiz]

PPC Macs cannot boot off USB. Intel Macs can boot off USB.

 

[Reflow]

Use target mode and wipe the drive again. Then install 10.4 through target mode again.

 

[delta mono]

Use target mode and wipe the drive again. Then install 10.4 through target mode again.

I tried that, but the MacBook won't let me do it. It says that I cannot install Tiger on the MacBook even though I want to install it on the iBook.

 

[Reflow]

I tried that, but the MacBook won't let me do it. It says that I cannot install Tiger on the MacBook even though I want to install it on the iBook.

Find someone with another PPC machine you can borrow. Then use that in target mode to install 10.4 The reason your macbook won't do it b/c you can't load 10.4 on it.

 

[OrangeSVTguy]

PPC can boot from a USB optical drive, just not a USB hard drive without a OF hack.

Connect the Macbook and iBook together with a firewire cable and hold the "T" on the Macbook as you boot it up with the iBook disc to put it in Target Disc Mode. Hold the option key on the iBook as you boot that up and select the Macbook's optical disc drive to boot and install the OS onto the iBook. Be sure to partition the iBook as APM partition.

Do you have a firewire hard drive? You can put your OS discs onto a harddrive and boot from that disk as those it were a CD.

 

[delta mono]

PPC can boot from a USB optical drive, just not a USB hard drive without a OF hack.

Connect the Macbook and iBook together with a firewire cable and hold the "T" on the Macbook as you boot it up with the iBook disc to put it in Target Disc Mode. Hold the option key on the iBook as you boot that up and select the Macbook's optical disc drive to boot and install the OS onto the iBook. Be sure to partition the iBook as APM partition.

Do you have a firewire hard drive? You can put your OS discs onto a harddrive and boot from that disk as those it were a CD.

I did not even think of doing this: using the MacBook as the Target drive!

It worked perfectly. I installed OS 10.1 for now, and I may leave that on there if I can connect to my Airport base from the iBook. Right now it's not letting me, but I haven't checked the settings.

Thanks for your suggestions!

 

[xraydoc]

I did not even think of doing this: using the MacBook as the Target drive!

It worked perfectly. I installed OS 10.1 for now, and I may leave that on there if I can connect to my Airport base from the iBook. Right now it's not letting me, but I haven't checked the settings.

Thanks for your suggestions!

10.1?!
Holy retro OS, Batman!

 

[delta mono]

10.1?!
Holy retro OS, Batman!

It's the only thing I have that I can install on it. It runs fairly well, but it comes with Internet Explorer which crashes every other minute.

I'm not sure what version of OS X would be ideal on this rather under-powered iBook. 10.3?

 

[NewMacbookPlz]

It's the only thing I have that I can install on it. It runs fairly well, but it comes with Internet Explorer which crashes every other minute.

I'm not sure what version of OS X would be ideal on this rather under-powered iBook. 10.3?

I imagine 10.3 would be fine. Ran great out of the factory on my 800mhz G4. Yours is what, 500mhz G3?

 

[dwdillard]

Swap?

It's the only thing I have that I can install on it. It runs fairly well, but it comes with Internet Explorer which crashes every other minute.

I'm not sure what version of OS X would be ideal on this rather under-powered iBook. 10.3?

I have the original install/restore disks from my iBook G4 - OSX 10.3 - I would be willing to do a swap- I am wanting to install 10.4 on a PowerMac G4 that I got recently. Do you have a PPC G4 install disk?


It would need to be hacked to remove the bit of code that limits it to only the iBook G4- if someone can tell me where to find this code I would gladly remove it for you.

Let me know.