iBook G4 freezes

[TigerShark]

My iBook G4 1GHz has since recently gotten a battery replaced, otherwise it's been in good shape.

However, since recently, it occasionally freezes on me. Could it be battery related or is it something else?

Apart from the new battery, it has also had ethernet and charger cables chewed up by my new puppy - Bud. Does anyone have an idea what might be causing it to freeze?

 

[mad jew]

Check the Console app in the Utilities folder for your crash log to see what's written there. Feel free to post it here if you're not sure of what it all means.

 

[TigerShark]

OK, but how do I do that since the whole thing freezes? Will it be still ok after restart?

 

[mad jew]

Wait, is it occasionally freeing or constantly freezing? Can it boot up? Whatever you do, try to back up your important files first, even if that means using another Mac with Target Disk Mode. I think we'll need more info before we can properly help you.

 

[TigerShark]

Occasionally only. It hasn't for the last 24 hrs though, but it probably will again.

What happens is that everything stops responding. I can move the cursor with my mouse, but can't switch between apps, dock doesn't react, can't type or click at anything. It just stays that way indefinitely no matter how long I leave it like this to unfreeze by itself.

Twice it wouldn't wake from sleep. I had to turn it off then turn it back on to make it boot.

I haven't installed any new apps or parts into it recently (aside from the new battery) and what I normally have running at the time of the freeze are Firefox, Mail, Quicktime, Skype, Stickies. Sometimes an app or two aside from those (Word, Preview, TextEdit, iTunes, Photoshop...), but nothing that ever caused any problems before.

 

[Jasonbot]

My iBook G4 did this. I would be working and then *krrr* Nothing: Not even the pointer would move. It was apparently a logic board failure and so I got an iMac Core2 in it's place. You can fix it by clamping it to a desk see link.

 

[iSaint]

The logic board recently died on my G4 1.07 iBook. It was freezing up and progressively got worse. I did some troubleshooting myself, but ended uptaking it to the Genius Bar where they quoted $280 plus tax to fix everything. For that I got a new logic board, harddrive, flexcable, and keyboard (it was missing a key and they put on a new one!). It was purchased in August of '04, so nearly three years old. If I had purchased AppleCare it would have saved $100 or so. Works like a dream now! Oh, and it was repaired and returned within a week. No new one-year warranty, though, only 90 days.

 

[TigerShark]

Thanks guys. I suppose it might be the logic board problem again. Yes, again! That iBook had one logic board failure already back when it was still under warranty... I didn't know iBooks were prone to this.

 

[devilot]

I didn't know iBooks were prone to this.

Quite a few were/ are.

 

[mad jew]

It's not sounding all that good so use Target Disk Mode to back things up if possible. It puts less strain on the iBook and therefore gives you a better chance of getting all your data across in one hit, uncorrupted.

Quite a few were/ are.

That was for the G3s, but yeash.

 

[pdra05]

I'm getting pretty worried about my iBook as well.. I bought it like around August '04 and it has been in perfect working condition until recently, when it frozed a couple of times during the past few weeks..

My iMac G5 (w/ built-in iSight)'s currently dead - It wouldn't start up at all so all and the only computer I have right now is the iBook. I certainly hope the whole freezing problem will not occur again.. But I think it will...

 

[Mr MacBlue]

I'm getting pretty worried about my iBook as well.. I bought it like around August '04 and it has been in perfect working condition until recently, when it frozed a couple of times during the past few weeks..

My iMac G5 (w/ built-in iSight)'s currently dead - It wouldn't start up at all so all and the only computer I have right now is the iBook. I certainly hope the whole freezing problem will not occur again.. But I think it will...

I think that we will hear a lot more about the "old" iBook in the following weeks. According to this danish site, it is defective by design :
http://www.forbrug.dk/presse/nyheder/pressekit/ibookg4/ibook-g4-english/

 

[mad jew]

I'm getting pretty worried about my iBook as well.. I bought it like around August '04 and it has been in perfect working condition until recently, when it frozed a couple of times during the past few weeks.

Have you made any changes to it in the last couple of weeks?

 

[pdra05]

Have you made any changes to it in the last couple of weeks?

It was getting a little too slow to my standard so I formatted the HD.. I wonder if that's the reason why the iBook's been freezing..

 

[pdra05]

I think that we will hear a lot more about the "old" iBook in the following weeks. According to this danish site, it is defective by design :
http://www.forbrug.dk/presse/nyheder/pressekit/ibookg4/ibook-g4-english/

Wow.. I hope not! If that's the case then I guess I'll have to stop waiting till WWDC and get a new notebook or something, since I've intended to get a new one this year!

 

[mad jew]

Okay, so there's no new hardware or software... Do you have third party RAM? It's difficult to check RAM in most iBooks because there's only one stick to play with. If you have a stick in the loose slot, take it out and see how things go.

 

[pdra05]

Okay, so there's no new hardware or software... Do you have third party RAM? It's difficult to check RAM in most iBooks because there's only one stick to play with. If you have a stick in the loose slot, take it out and see how things go.

Yes I do have a third party RAM in my iBook, which I purchased well over a year ago.. I'll give that a try when it freezes again (so far, it's doing well). Thanks heaps!!!

 

[TigerShark]

Could it be some of the recent security updates giving us grief? I'm running 10.3.9 on my iBook.

 

[TigerShark]

I've also noticed it freezes sometimes right after I move it from one place to another - like from my lap to a table. I guess that would make it a mechanical fault.

 

[mad jew]

I guess that would make it a mechanical fault.

Definitely. Mate, take it to a technician and see what they have to say.

 

[Jasonbot]

I've also noticed it freezes sometimes right after I move it from one place to another - like from my lap to a table. I guess that would make it a mechanical fault.

That is exactly what happened to mine. The slightest jolt and it would freeze up, not even the mouse would move. And it progressively got worse and worse, reinstall didn't work, even a complete HD wipe. Nothing It was especially bad when using a CD.

Sorry to say it but your mac is *profanity*.

 

[shuflie]

Looking at the photos on that danish site it looks to be a really easy repair, just touch the broken joint with the tip of a soldering iron and the joint is as good/bad as new again. Nowhere near as bad as the G3 iBook's fault which was under a BGA chip. Its even possible to identify the area affected from one of the pictures.

 

[Macmadant]

i'm having a similar problem with my ibook, it will lock up after a certain period of use, and i can make it lock up after 2 minutes of playing WoW like clockwork, unless it instantly freezes at the login screen, when it does freeze and i use the power button to turn off i have to wait at least 10 minutes before turning it back on otherwise I'll get stuck at the blue start up screen, i thought i'd overheated after one day of playing WoW for a long time with it on my lap, every time it freezes it always feels hot, but the temperature is only around 40 C (104 F) so i'm guessing logic board aswell then ?

also that link to the clamp fix, i've taken my ibook apart and from what i remember that clamp would be putting pressure on the hard drive ? how does that fix the logic board, if anything i would want to keep the HD cause its a pretty good one (160 GB)

 

[mad jew]

Macmadant, do you have an external drive you could boot from? It might be a good idea to boot from one, run WoW for a while and see if you hit the same problems. Also, run the Apple Hardware Test that is on the CDs that came with your machine.

 

[catskill]

Me too

My iBook G4 12" locked up day after getting a new battery (Apple branded). After two lockups would only boot to blue screen. Removed Aircard and extra RAM chip, now it boots (almost) everytime to the OS, but will only work for 5-15 minutes or so until it freezes up again. Not video issue I dont think, because the screen still looks fine, its just frozen. Ran extended hardware test from CD, made it through without crash, no defects found. Also noted that if I boot to command line mode it will stay on much longer, but eventually will blink out to black screen, so am thinking some kind of hardware issue

Update - next day - I have been trying to get all files off this iBook, could not target disk b/c was ile vaulted... could not turn off file vault b/c 1. not enough disk space 2. not enough time before crash. I have been going in, copying files out of home into shared until crash, then target disk to new macbook, go back delete and move more files. Got all off, then was able to finally turn off file vault... AND IT HAS NOT CRASHED SINCE. Slept all night, been on for about 2hrs now without freezing up. Was it file vault all along?

Another update - finally got around to putting the airport card back in, and after a few minutes the iBook froze again. Reboot to blue screen. Pulled the aircard out and still blue screen. Was able to boot safe mode but froze again. wtf?

Update again - I realized that there were log files of use that were not in the crash section. In regular system logs there is an error for the ATI Radeon card. Something like a memory dump, along with the message 'overflow block' needed 6 have 5 or something.