I'm not sure what's causing this problem, but in the last day, it has gotten so I can't even use my computer any more. The first time I noticed anything, I had just upgraded to iTunes 5, and noticed that every once in a while the song I was listening to would cut out, only to pick back up again a few seconds later. The pauses gradually increased in length. A few days ago I noticed the same thing happening anytime I tried to load a Quicktime movie in Safari. A pinwheel would come up and hold everything up for 20 seconds or so, and then the download would continue, albeit much slower than usual. Then Safari itself started getting these random pinwheel lockups, then iChat, and now Finder. Sometimes they pass after about a minute or two, and other times I have to turn off the computer and reboot, only to have it happen again. When I last used my computer, it was getting these every minute or so, and after being on for about 10 minutes, would lockup entirely. During the freezes, I can hear a rhythmic noise coming from somewhere in the case in groups of 3 or 4 pulses. I have no idea what could have made my perfectly functioning computer degenerate so quickly into a completely non-functioning one, and I would greatly appreciate any feedback anyone can give. Thanks.
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Escalating problems with Tiger
- Thread starter Spike Spiegel
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Spike Spiegel said:
Sounds like you're hard drive is about to give out on you. As a first step, you should immediately back up all of your improtant data (if you haven't already).
Yeah, I concur. It really is sounding like a hard drive problem.
Although, there's a very small chance it may be a RAM problem. How much do you have? Did you install it yourself? Did the problems start when you installed it?
Although, there's a very small chance it may be a RAM problem. How much do you have? Did you install it yourself? Did the problems start when you installed it?
Same problem
I had the exact same problem after installing Tiger. After much wrangling with Applecare, I sent in the Powerbook and they replaced the hard drive. So far, so good (I've had it back for four days with no pinwheel problems). That said, you should also check a thread in Apple Discussions, as some people have had good success deleting keychain prefs (go to Apple Discussions/Tiger/Usage and search for "keychain" or "spinning beach ball of death").
I don't know why installing Tiger would cause so many people's hard drives to fail, unless it's a situation where the drives were failing and the installation process was so intensive that the problems in the drive were revealed.
I had the exact same problem after installing Tiger. After much wrangling with Applecare, I sent in the Powerbook and they replaced the hard drive. So far, so good (I've had it back for four days with no pinwheel problems). That said, you should also check a thread in Apple Discussions, as some people have had good success deleting keychain prefs (go to Apple Discussions/Tiger/Usage and search for "keychain" or "spinning beach ball of death").
I don't know why installing Tiger would cause so many people's hard drives to fail, unless it's a situation where the drives were failing and the installation process was so intensive that the problems in the drive were revealed.
Bonked said:
I think you may be onto something. Also, were you doing a full format/install? That'll give the hard drive a brief workout, unveiling any weaknesses.
Thanks guys. Unfortunately, when I went to back up the data I hadn't already backed up, the dreaded flashing question mark/finder icon came up. Is there any way I can bypass this, or is this the death knell?
If you have another Mac, you could try starting up in Target Disk Mode.
Otherwise, you could try starting up from your OSX disks. Insert them and start up holding down C from memory. The question mark icon merely means it can no longer find a start up volume from which to get its necessary files. It's not a good sign but you may still be able to salvage your data.
Otherwise, you could try starting up from your OSX disks. Insert them and start up holding down C from memory. The question mark icon merely means it can no longer find a start up volume from which to get its necessary files. It's not a good sign but you may still be able to salvage your data.
When you boot from your install disks go to disk utility and get info on your hard drive. There should be a S.M.A.R.T. field, if it says anything other than verified, you hard drive is gone or almost gone.
If you can you may want to try Disk Warrior to recover data.
Also, I had my 'book do a similar thing over one night. I left it off and unplugged for 24 hours and then it was fine. Been going for 3 months now without a problem and SMART says verified.
If you can you may want to try Disk Warrior to recover data.
Also, I had my 'book do a similar thing over one night. I left it off and unplugged for 24 hours and then it was fine. Been going for 3 months now without a problem and SMART says verified.