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Array of problems on MacBook... In short - It's dying!

If you were to browse the disc, using with Finder or Windows Explorer, you should see an array of different folder directories. I'm not sure what exactly. I haven't use Ubuntu properly in a long time.

If you were to put it in a PC and boot from the disc, you should see a menu with a list of options about boot from the disc or just boot from the internal hard drive.
 
Right, on the install page of ubuntu (on the website) do I pick 32-bit or 64-bit?

2. "I would like to create using a:" -CD
"To create it, I will be using: -Windows or -Mac

Ooh, just come across "infrarecorder"
Should I have used that?

EDIT: at the moment on the disc, all I see is a file called "ubuntu-10.04.1 -desktop-i386.iso"
Double clicking it tells me that windows cannot open this file.

EDIT: bear with me while I burn the image via ISO Recorder!
 
I just downloaded ISO recorder on the PC to burn ubuntu onto the disk, but just after it finished installing, I can't find it anywhere! What gives?

EDIT: doesn't matter. Just found that you access it by right clicking the ISO file!

EDIT 2: but it says "Cannot use this media" WHY? FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!!!!!!
 
If you can't find it in the Start Menu, open up My Computer > C: > Program Files > and see if you can locate the .exe of the program and start it that way.
 
Ran into yet another wall. I installed the 32-bit ISO recorder on the 32-bit PC. I right clicked the Ubuntu ISO file and clicked "Copy image to CD". The CD recording window appears as shown the ubuntu website, but it says "Cannot use this media" underneath.

I am really starting to hate this PC even more!

Ah ok. On the ubuntu site, the window says "E: Blank Writable Usable"
On mine it says "E: Non-Blank Writable Non-Usable".

So now I need to find a new blank disc??
How can I format this disk to make it blank and usable?
 
If you're using a CD-RW, open up My Computer, right click on the drive that has the blank disc in and click 'Erase this disc'.

If it's a CD-R and you're getting that message saying that it's unusable, then I think that disc has had it.

What version of Windows are you using to burn the ISO with? If you're using Windows 7, you could try the built-in ISO burning tool by simiply double clicking the ISO or right click and Burn ISO Image.
 
Grannyville7989 said:
If you're using a CD-RW, open up My Computer, right click on the drive that has the blank disc in and click 'Erase this disc'.

If it's a CD-R and you're getting that message saying that it's unusable, then I think that disc has had it.

What version of Windows are you using to burn the ISO with? If you're using Windows 7, you could try the built-in ISO burning tool by simiply double clicking the ISO or right click and Burn ISO Image.
Click to expand...

I'm using vista and it was a DVD-R which apparently you cannot format and erase, so I just found a DVD-RW but I'll have to take the two films off it...
 
Okay, it seems that the ISO Recorder likes this DVD so it will work once I delete that film!
 
Imanaged to boot my mac with ubuntu!

Now I just need to figure out how to connect it to the internet! Any ideas? I have a password free wifi connection at the ready!
 
Forget about ubuntu, If I were you:

1.- I'll pay a visit to your friend who has an iMac, connect your mac to the iMac with a firewire cable, boot your computer pressing the T key. This will mount your mac on your friend's iMac as an external hard drive. Copy your files to his/her desktop. If they are too big, copy them to an external hard drive.
2.- Then re-install mac os x on your macbook, once that is done, get yourself one hard drive, copy your files back to your computer and set Time Machine in order to have some backup system.
3.- Do no forget to invite your friend to dinner afterwards! ;)
 
dhd said:
Forget about ubuntu, If I were you:

1.- I'll pay a visit to your friend who has an iMac, connect your mac to the iMac with a firewire cable, boot your computer pressing the T key. This will mount your mac on your friend's iMac as an external hard drive. Copy your files to his/her desktop. If they are too big, copy them to an external hard drive.
2.- Then re-install mac os x on your macbook, once that is done, get yourself one hard drive, copy your files back to your computer and set Time Machine in order to have some backup system.
3.- Do no forget to invite your friend to dinner afterwards! ;)
Click to expand...

This MacBook doesn't have a FireWire port, nor do we have a cable. Also, I'm about 300miles away from the guy I was with the other day.

And then we've got this far with the ubuntu method, and because this OS let's me access my iphone's files, I can save my stuff on that and take it back off once I've formatted and reinstalled Mac OS X, and then put the ubuntu disc back in.
 
Just to check, when I've restored and reinstalled Mac OS X, will I be able to run ubuntu from the disk again, transfer all the files I just put on my iPhone, save them to "Mackintosh HD", and then restart the computer in Mac OS X - and all the files will be there?

If you got that!


I can't access the mac folders; Desktop, Documents, Downloads, Pictures etc. Because it says
"The folder contents could nit be displayed. You do not have the permissions necessary to view the contents of _____"

How do I get around that?
 
did u tell the computer u burnt the disc from to actually burn the iso file or tell the burning program that the file ur burning is an iso and unpack it to the cd so it can load
 
ljonesj said:
did u tell the computer u burnt the disc from to actually burn the iso file or tell the burning program that the file ur burning is an iso and unpack it to the cd so it can load
Click to expand...

I used an iso burning program to put it on the disc. That is no longer an issue - I have ubuntu running on my mac from the DVD.

My current problem is I cannot access the main folders like "Pictures" "Documents" etc.
It just tells me I dont have the right permissions or something. How do get past that message?
 
Really don't want to lose thousands of important files!!!! PLEASE HELP ME!!!
 
The only other thing that I can think of is to pull the hard drive from your laptop and install it as a secondary drive to which then you can pull the data off.

It's either that, or try something like Disk Warrior that you can boot from and tell it to check and repair any problems so far.

I apologise for the delay in my response, I've been getting distracted at home with people coming to me with other problems with their laptops. :)
 
dayneoram said:
Anybody?
Click to expand...

You need: A friend with a Macintosh, the Snow Leopard DVD, and any external drive. Could be a USB hard drive, could even be a USB flash drive (8 GB at least).

On your friends Mac, plugin your external drive. Start "Disk Utility", it is inside Applications in the Utilities folder. In "Disk Utility", click on the external drive, click on "Partition", and change it to one partition in "Mac OS Extended (Journaled)" format. There is some option to choose to turn it into a bootable disk, but the software will tell you.

Insert the Snow Leopard DVD. In Disk Utility, click on "Restore". Drag the Snow Leopard DVD onto "Source", and the external drive onto "Destination", then click on "Restore". A few minutes later you have a bootable USB drive.

Try that you can boot from it: Restart the Macintosh, and hold the Alt/Option key pressed. The Macintosh gives you a choice which device to use for booting, select your external drive. When it boots, you should now be running the Snow Leopard installer. If that worked, then take it home.

Didn't realise you had things on your Mac that you need to keep: Buy an external hard drive. You really, really, really need one - if you had bought one earlier and used Time Machine, you wouldn't be in this trouble. Again, plug it into your friends computer, use Disk Utility to change it to "Mac OS Extended (Journaled)", then restart from the Snow Leopard DVD and _install_ Snow Leopard on your external drive. Again, try that you can boot from the external drive (hold the Alt/Option key down while restarting). If that worked, do the same thing at home. If you aren't completely out of look, you should be able to boot from the external drive, and both drives should be visible. Copy everything that needs copying to the external drive.
 
I've decided to make do with the files I have here on my iPhone so far. I've saved most of the important ones...

Can I be sure that I can get the files back off my phone before iTunes formats it after I've reinstalled th OS?

I'm going to try to format the computer now. I'll let you know if it works or fails and if I need more help
 
It's sorted! I reinstalled the OS and I'm putting my stuff back on now!

Thanks everyone! Grannyville7989 in particular!
 
Nice to know you made it!, now, go and get an external HD and set up Time Machine/Carbon Copy Cloner/SuperDuper.
 
dhd said:
Nice to know you made it!, now, go and get an external HD and set up Time Machine/Carbon Copy Cloner/SuperDuper.
Click to expand...

I'll see if I can use my dad's terabyte HD which is connected to the router. We're using it as a server at the moment, but I should be able to use it for time machine too, shouldn't I?
 
I'm not really sure but you can use it if you connect it via usb or firewire, and (probably) it will be necessary to re-format it to the mac file system (I guess that at the moment is formatted on the Win filesystem), I guess that your father won't like to discover his hard-disk wiped out.

You can get 1TB external hd from 70-80eur, so it's cheap to have some back up plan in place!
 
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