Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Faulty Powerbook

Dronecatcher

Dronecatcher

macrumors 603
Original poster
Jun 17, 2014
5,278
7,937
Lincolnshire, UK
I've just picked up a 15" DLSD Powerbook and came across this glitch upon first boot and installation.
However, after putting Leopard on it and various apps it's been running a few hours and been rebooted many times and the glitch has shown no sign of returning.
My only thought was that the Powerbook was stone cold when I started it - I normally let them adjust to room temperature but on this occasion didn't.
Any ideas?

OpenFirmware.jpg


Screen.jpg
 
The mystery though is I haven't seen it since first boot and ive I've had the screen up and down many times - the first thing I checked was if moving the screen made a difference.
 
Dronecatcher said:
The mystery though is I haven't seen it since first boot and ive I've had the screen up and down many times - the first thing I checked was if moving the screen made a difference.
Click to expand...

If the cable itself is failing, it's likely from corrosion on the ribbon cable itself rather than something which can be fixed by reseating (similarly to how the SATA cables fail in the cMBP), which is possibly why this isn't changing when moving the display.

Certainly it's not software and graphics failure would look much different or exhibit the same problem via an external display. Internal display failure would be more consistent between the two pictures or show visible damage.

Also as eyoung's had the same issue, and he's had more PowerBooks than I've had hot dinners, I imagine it's a fairly common point of failure on these models.
 
The cold may have brought out the issue. I've seen that happen. As long as it's working warm, just leave it on and close the lid when you aren't using it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dronecatcher
reukiodo said:
That's really awesome and really sad at the same time...
Click to expand...
Well, I suppose that depends on your outlook. I've had lots come and go for various reasons and some that are still usable but have problems.

But I've never quite seen it as sad as long as I've gotten my use out of them.
 
timidpimpin said:
Collector is a euphemism for hoarder.
Click to expand...

It's never fun when collectors latch onto redundant markets, scoop up everything they can and sit on their 'investment' - I've seen this for years now, taking an alternative route and buying legacy items, enjoying giving life to discarded technology...then the collectors move in, drive prices up and cut the enthusiast out of the picture.
 
  • Like
Reactions: eyoungren
timidpimpin said:
Collector is a euphemism for hoarder.
Click to expand...
I don't necessarily disagree, although I use the literal definition of 'collector', meaning I tend to add to what I have and therefore it becomes a 'collection'.

I tend to hold on to stuff so 'hoarder' would probably apply, but I'm mainly doing that for parts or to be able to send stuff to other people who need it. My main Macs are functional. If they aren't, I fix them. But they must serve a purpose. If I've got a fully functional Mac without a purpose that I just cannot use, that's a waste to me and I tend to try and pass it along if I can. I don't like storing usable computers.

But if I can't fix a Mac or it's got other problems it becomes a parts machine that I either keep or pass on. So from that perspective I fit the definition you give.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Raging Dufus and Dronecatcher
z970mp said:
May I have a reason why I came up with essentially the same conclusion in 2017 and everybody yelled at me?

What was different here?
Click to expand...

My opinion was the same back then - maybe I just missed the post? Also, participating forum members have been and gone since then.
 
As for the display issue here... I would say faulty display cable. I have seen many failed LCD, and they don't look like that. The fact that the top 1/3 of it is fine leads me to this conclusion, and also rules out a bad GPU.
 
@Dronecatcher, I bought a 15" DLSD last year which had the same issue- the lower half of the display would intermittently become garbled like that. It wasn't the LVDS cable, but the panel itself. The machine still looked brand new and the previous owner had shelved it long ago due to the fault. He was selling for a song as "faulty" and had a photo on the listing with the display issue captured in the shot. However, when I received it, all was A OK for the first few days before the issue became apparent.

I dismantled the display assembly and separated the plates of the LCD panel to investigate. When putting it back together, I found that applying pressure to the flexible PCB ribbons at the sides of the display panel (there were possibly 6 of them from memory), would cause the image to return. If I took the pressure off, it would garble and disappear again.

I tried creating small rubber boots to apply regular pressure to those ribbons, but it wasn't a reliable repair, so I scrapped the panel and used its (very bright) CCFL tube, which was installed into an SLSD 1.67GHz 15" model which had a blown backlight. I then bought a replacement hi-res panel for the DLSD and installed it, but was never able to fully revive that twitchy panel.
 
  • Like
Reactions: philgxxd, z970 and Dronecatcher
AphoticD said:
However, when I received it, all was A OK for the first few days before the issue became apparent.
Click to expand...

Mine still hasn't returned since the first boot - I'm convinced it was brought on by the PB being stone cold after the it's journey.
I actually only bought it for a replacement PSU - they tend to be more expensive bought separately!
 
  • Like
Reactions: sawpits and Traace
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back