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robo94

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Dec 28, 2008
17
0
I have a Powerpc g4 mac tower running 10.3.9 with a dvd drive that I know works because it can play dvd movies.Yet when I put the tiger install dvd in it it eject it in about 10 seconds I tried firmware updates but got nowhere. Any suggestions?:confused:
 
Full retail version of Tiger (black), or a system restore disk (grey)? The latter would be machine-specific. I think your G4 would have had Panther disks with it originally. If the Tiger disk is a retail version, then it should work, so check the disk carefully for smudges or scratches, especially nearer the centre of the disk.
 
grey dvd says powermac g4 software install and restore 1 of 1.
 
Full retail version of Tiger (black), or a system restore disk (grey)? The latter would be machine-specific. I think your G4 would have had Panther disks with it originally. If the Tiger disk is a retail version, then it should work, so check the disk carefully for smudges or scratches, especially nearer the centre of the disk.

grey dvd says powermac g4 software install and restore 1 of 1.

hughvane was asking about the Tiger DVD you were trying to use. The grey Power Mac G4 restore discs won't be for Tiger because the latest OS any G4 Power Mac shipped with was Panther.
 
grey dvd says powermac g4 software install and restore 1 of 1.

In haste ... check Mactracker http://mactracker.dreamhosters.com/ for your model of G4 to see which OS it shipped with. The grey disks are meant for a specific model of Mac and no G4's shipped with Tiger, therefore the grey disks *probably* will not work. They were meant for a different model of Mac that shipped with Tiger originally. But if you can get Disk 1 to work, best of luck!
 
i believe some of you think there are two dvd's,am i right?

well there is only one that says all of this: Powermac g4 software install and restore 1 of 1
mac os version 10.4
disc version 1.2
 
Just caught this ... what you appear to have is one of what would normally be two disks. Okay, so we've got that clear. But then, in addition to Software Install, it says 'Restore', and that tells us that the disk (grey) is for restoring the OS X on the computer with which the disk came - and, unfortunately, it isn't your G4. That's why the disk is being ejected. You will need a black-colored retail Tiger disk to install OS X 10.4. You may find one in a Buy/Sell on various Mac forums, or eBay, maybe Amazon.
 
Ditto on whats above. The discs are machine specific, as well as revision specific. So even though your discs say powermac g4, the disc probably does not match your revision and thusly won't work.
 
Pirated Power Mac G4 Software install and restore disk 1 of 1

Bought a disk on Amazon, had a bait and switch from the black box with the X to a gray "educational" Tiger install disk to this disk detailed below. I assume it is a pirated copy because the label smears with water; it is dull gray with not sharp printing: a home made job. It reads in full:

"Power Mac G4
Software install
and restore disk 1 of 1


Mac OS Version 10.4
Disk version 1.2
2Z691-5259-A

©2004 Apple Computer, Inc.
All rights reserved, Apple,
the Apple logo, iMac,mac,
the Mac logo, and Mac OS
are trademarks of Apple
Computer, Inc. registered in
the US and other countries.

To start up from this
disk, hold down the
C key as the computer
starts up.

(There is the Apple logo at the top, and on the right hand side, the Mac Logo, with a "1" with a circle around it to the right.)

The seller has offered a full refund (~$50). I wonder if this is only TIger. Anyone have the proper files and sizes, or a way to check? I've found that the Apple Sore will sell Tiger on the consumer side ($129). I've ordered it there. When I installed this smeared disk, it kept asking me for my email password. That makes me nervous. I posted this story last night, previewed it, and submitted the reply, and it disappeared. Let's see if this one makes it.
 
A tip for anyone who runs into this problem in the future: you can still use system-specific discs to install the os on any Mac. It just takes a bit of creativity.

One way is to use a firewire cable and Target Disk Mode on the on the machine on which you want to install OS X. Insert the disc in the "proper" computer and it will let you install it to the connected drive.

The other way is to do the same but to use an ethernet cable and do a network install.

I've done both and they work. You would need another operating Mac, of course, one that can run the grey disc you are trying to use.
 
copy?

So if I find frequent ads for Tiger and Leopard in my town on Craigslist, what's this about? scam? Is it a copy and won't a copy fail anyway?
 
Gray "Tiger" disk

Bought a disk on Amazon, had a bait and switch from the black box with the X to a gray "educational" Tiger install disk to this disk detailed below. I assume it is a pirated copy because the label smears with water; it is dull gray with not sharp printing: a home made job. It reads in full:

"Power Mac G4
Software install
and restore disk 1 of 1


Mac OS Version 10.4
Disk version 1.2
2Z691-5259-A

©2004 Apple Computer, Inc.
All rights reserved, Apple,
the Apple logo, iMac,mac,
the Mac logo, and Mac OS
are trademarks of Apple
Computer, Inc. registered in
the US and other countries.

To start up from this
disk, hold down the
C key as the computer
starts up.

(There is the Apple logo at the top, and on the right hand side, the Mac Logo, with a "1" with a circle around it to the right.)

The seller has offered a full refund (~$50). I wonder if this is only TIger. Anyone have the proper files and sizes, or a way to check? I've found that the Apple Sore will sell Tiger on the consumer side ($129). I've ordered it there. When I installed this smeared disk, it kept asking me for my email password. That makes me nervous. I posted this story last night, previewed it, and submitted the reply, and it disappeared. Let's see if this one makes it.
I purchased a similar disk and installed it on my old G4 using a laptop in Target mode as input, and it does work; however, since then I have been receiving messages from a competing seller insisting that the disk is counterfeit and that I should demand a refund. I'm inclined to believe him because of the water soluble paint and the number on the disk, when googled, leads to a Panther install / restore bundle. Does Apple have any way of detecting phony software during the registration process?
 
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