Need major HELP with laptop

[Cindy]

Got my Lombard and I'm not really having much fun with it. Not much software came with it. It's running on OS X. About the only thing I got to work so far is to import all my addresses over.
What am I trying to do.... I'm trying to download Firefox. It won't take it. Keeps saying Explorer can't recognize it and it keeps trying to open in quicktime. The download isn't downloading the installer either.
The Lombard didn't come with stuffit, so I downloaded that -- that downloaded fine but nothing is picking it up that it exists.
Next... I'm trying to drag some of the icons off the dock and it's not working. What am I doing wrong there?? There's no separate mouse on the laptop.
I hope all this made some sense.

 

[mkrishnan]

Hey, Cindy,

Bear with me here....

1) What version of OS X?

2) When you downloaded Stuffit Expander, did you *run* the installer? It should come either as an executable file that you can run, or as a disk image. If it came as a disk image, you will see a Finder window with an icon for Stuffit Expander. You have to drag that to the Applications folder.

3) Okay, about Firefox... Are you trying to download it from Internet Explorer? From this page, try to hold down the ctrl key and then press the "free download" link. This should pop up a context menu, which should include an option similar to "download linked file."

Firefox DOES NOT come in a compressed file, so you actually do not need Stuffit to handle the file that comes up. It is a disk image. When you save it to disk and it is done downloading, double click it, and you will get a finder window, as I described above. You then drag the icon of Firefox from there to the Applications folder.

If that doesn't work, post back; there is one more way that's more involved....

4) To drag an icon off the dock, drag it up vertically off the dock until it changes to a cloud of smoke, and then let go. The application cannot be running at the time. If that does not work, put the mouse over the icon, then hold the button down until a menu pops up, and click remove from dock in that menu.

I hope you love your new toy after you work out the little bugs!

 

[Cindy]

Hey, Cindy,

Bear with me here....

1) What version of OS X?

2) When you downloaded Stuffit Expander, did you *run* the installer? It should come either as an executable file that you can run, or as a disk image. If it came as a disk image, you will see a Finder window with an icon for Stuffit Expander. You have to drag that to the Applications folder.

3) Okay, about Firefox... Are you trying to download it from Internet Explorer? From this page, try to hold down the ctrl key and then press the "free download" link. This should pop up a context menu, which should include an option similar to "download linked file."

Firefox DOES NOT come in a compressed file, so you actually do not need Stuffit to handle the file that comes up. It is a disk image. When you save it to disk and it is done downloading, double click it, and you will get a finder window, as I described above. You then drag the icon of Firefox from there to the Applications folder.

If that doesn't work, post back; there is one more way that's more involved....

4) To drag an icon off the dock, drag it up vertically off the dock until it changes to a cloud of smoke, and then let go. The application cannot be running at the time. If that does not work, put the mouse over the icon, then hold the button down until a menu pops up, and click remove from dock in that menu.

I hope you love your new toy after you work out the little bugs!

LOL - and bear with me too I learn everything from trial and error and some of what you said below, I have no clue what you're talking about. But, I'll give it a try...
It's running on 10.2

2. Yes, I ran the installer. The stuffit is Stuffit EXP 7 OS X. And it says stuffitexpanderosx.sit as far as the end of the install. If that makes sense.
In the folder there is an image that says, stuffit EXP 7 OSX install. But I clicked on that and got the thing that says .sit

3. Yes, I'm trying to download from the page you meantioned. I can try doing what you suggested as far as holding down the ctrl key and see what happens.

That's how I did it on my eMac with no problems (downloading firefox) But, that's not happening with the Lombard for some reason. Let me try what you suggested and see what happens.

4. I have tried going vertically and nothing. What happens is a little window pops up that says, Show in Finder. And I've tried to do just that - go to the finder and remove it but nothing - it's still there in the dock.
Do I need a separate mouse? I wouldn't think so since I'm able to drag and drop other items.

 

[yellow]

2. Yes, I ran the installer. The stuffit is Stuffit EXP 7 OS X. And it says stuffitexpanderosx.sit as far as the end of the install. If that makes sense.
In the folder there is an image that says, stuffit EXP 7 OSX install. But I clicked on that and got the thing that says .sit

It shouldn't be a .sit.. because you need Stuffit Expander to expand that. Paradox! Try downloading it direcetly (free) from the source:

http://www.stuffit.com/mac/expander/download3.html

Make sure you change the OS to the proper selection (if it doesn't do it automagically). This should download a disk image and autoexpand for you to install properly.

3. Yes, I'm trying to download from the page you meantioned. I can try doing what you suggested as far as holding down the ctrl key and see what happens.

If you have Safari installed (and you should), I'd go with that instead to download Firefox. IE just plain sucks. It's Waaaaaaayy out of date and more trouble then it's worth, as you are experiencing.

4. I have tried going vertically and nothing. What happens is a little window pops up that says, Show in Finder.

You're moving too slowly, clicking on the icon too long. You need to be quick about it. That's why the mini-contextual menu is popping up.

 

[mkrishnan]

2. Yes, I ran the installer. The stuffit is Stuffit EXP 7 OS X. And it says stuffitexpanderosx.sit as far as the end of the install. If that makes sense.
In the folder there is an image that says, stuffit EXP 7 OSX install. But I clicked on that and got the thing that says .sit

Hmmm... If you are running 10.2, Try getting stuffit expander 8. You should get a disk image file -- I went and checked. Here is the website:

http://www.stuffit.com/mac/expander/index.html

Make sure you select your OS version after clicking the download now button.

3. Yes, I'm trying to download from the page you meantioned. I can try doing what you suggested as far as holding down the ctrl key and see what happens.

That's how I did it on my eMac with no problems (downloading firefox) But, that's not happening with the Lombard for some reason. Let me try what you suggested and see what happens.

I think what is happening is that for some reason, Internet Explorer does not understand what a disk image (dmg) file is, and is getting confused about what to do with it. So you have to tell it you definitely want to download it. That's what ctrl-clicking is for.

4. I have tried going vertically and nothing. What happens is a little window pops up that says, Show in Finder. And I've tried to do just that - go to the finder and remove it but nothing - it's still there in the dock.
Do I need a separate mouse? I wouldn't think so since I'm able to drag and drop other items.

No, you don't need a separate mouse. When you try to drag the icon off the dock, make sure that you don't hold the mouse (trackpad) button over the icon too long before you start dragging. That might be why you're seeing the pop-up window that says show in finder. Make sure you start dragging it away right away.

When you choose the go to the finder thing, and then trash the item it reveals in finder, you are actually deleting the program -- not deleting the icon. So make sure that is what you want. Is "Show in Finder" the only thing that pops up in the window, or are there other options? There should be more options in that window. Unless you are on a managed account? Did you create the account yourself, or did the previous owner do it? Please go to System Preferences -> Accounts and see if there are more accounts listed than just yours, and whether it says "admin" next to your account.

Don't worry, MR will get you through this!

PS: Yellow can type faster than I can.

 

[Cindy]

I tried going slow, going fast, nothing worked. Just for giggles, I took the mouse from my eMac and connected it to the laptop and it worked. Icons came off with a puff of smoke. What gives with the internal mouse??
I have no idea where they went -- I'll look some other time. I really don't care right now. I just wanted them off.
I will trash the stuffit that I downloaded and start over with the link you gave me.
I can try safari - I didn't like it on my eMac and have really liked the firefox on the desktop. Do you have a link for safari. Or I can just do a search. But with my luck...
If I download safari, will my favorites on firefox be easily transferred over?

 

[mkrishnan]

Ahhh, I think I understand the trackpad issue. Go to your system preferences, and then the keyboard / mouse pane, and then the trackpad tab. Do you see a series of checkboxes that says something like:

Trackpad gestures
clicking
dragging
drag lock

?

If you do, uncheck all three of them. I think what is happening is that your drag using the trackpad is being misinterpreted....

Also, if you don't have Safari, I wouldn't recommend going to get it... go ahead with trying to get Firefox, since you are comfortable with it. What happened with the ctrl-clicking the link on the firefox page?

 

[Cindy]

Ahhh, I think I understand the trackpad issue. Go to your system preferences, and then the keyboard / mouse pane, and then the trackpad tab. Do you see a series of checkboxes that says something like:

Trackpad gestures
clicking
dragging
drag lock

?

If you do, uncheck all three of them. I think what is happening is that your drag using the trackpad is being misinterpreted....

Also, if you don't have Safari, I wouldn't recommend going to get it... go ahead with trying to get Firefox, since you are comfortable with it. What happened with the ctrl-clicking the link on the firefox page?

I went to the trackpad and none were checked to begin with. Not good news uh?

I can't get safari anyway, looks like it mostly only supports 10.3. I tried downloading the stuffit from the link and it says, "Explorer can't deal with it -- bascially. I tried holding down the ctrl key and yes, a window came up but nothing with download linked file. ARG!!! ok, now I'm getting real frustrated.
I'll try the ctrl on the firefox page... I'll get back to you.

 

[Cindy]

I went back to the firefox and tried holding down the ctrl key. A window came up and said: open link in new window OR download link to disk OR copy link to clipboard.
Nothing about download linked file... ARG!

 

[mkrishnan]

I went back to the firefox and tried holding down the ctrl key. A window came up and said: open link in new window OR download link to disk OR copy link to clipboard.
Nothing about download linked file... ARG!

Okay, I'll have to be a little more specific. You want the second option on that list -- "download link to disk."

 

[Cindy]

Okay, I'll have to be a little more specific. You want the second option on that list -- "download link to disk."

gottcha - see, I told ya -- I need the book - Mac for dummies

 

[Cindy]

didn't work. It downloaded into applications with one "page" that says, download.mozilla.org
I haven't tried downloading stuffit yet. But with this firefox, it should be downloading an install and it isn't. I have no idea what it's doing.

 

[Cindy]

Unless you are on a managed account? Did you create the account yourself, or did the previous owner do it? Please go to System Preferences -> Accounts and see if there are more accounts listed than just yours, and whether it says "admin" next to your account.

Don't worry, MR will get you through this!

PS: Yellow can type faster than I can.

I checked the accounts. I did create the account myself. It says my name and next to it it says, Admin. -- do I want it to have Admin.?

 

[mkrishnan]

I checked the accounts. I did create the account myself. It says my name and next to it it says, Admin. -- do I want it to have Admin.?

Yes, you do. So that's a good thing.

Two more options for firefox:

1) Does this powerbook have a CD-ROM drive? Can you download a copy with your eMac and burn a CDR?

2) In finder, click the Go menu, and then Connect To Server. In the box that pops up, paste the following text in there:

ftp://ftp.mozilla.org/pub/mozilla.org/firefox/releases/1.0.5/mac/en-US/

If you are asked for a username and password, use:

username = anonymous
password = guest

If this works, you should see a window with a disk image file in it (ends in .dmg). Drag it to your desktop. And then when it copies over, double click it to mount it, and drag the Firefox icon to your apps folder.

 

[Cindy]

Yes, you do. So that's a good thing.

Two more options for firefox:

1) Does this powerbook have a CD-ROM drive? Can you download a copy with your eMac and burn a CDR?

2) In finder, click the Go menu, and then Connect To Server. In the box that pops up, paste the following text in there:

ftp://ftp.mozilla.org/pub/mozilla.org/firefox/releases/1.0.5/mac/en-US/

If you are asked for a username and password, use:

username = anonymous
password = guest

If this works, you should see a window with a disk image file in it (ends in .dmg). Drag it to your desktop. And then when it copies over, double click it to mount it, and drag the Firefox icon to your apps folder.

yes the laptop has a CD/ROM drive. I was thinking about that earlier. I would have no clue how to do that task tho. Is it a matter of just dowloading onto the CD from my eMac and then just copying it onto the laptop off the CD?
I'll try the 2nd option you gave me first. I'll be back to let you know what happened.
Thanks for being so HELPFUL!! Keeps me from throwing the poor laptop out the window.

 

[mkrishnan]

Ahhhh, no problem, I can't sleep, and this takes my mind off the things I'd rather not be thinking about at the moment.

If the ftp option doesn't work, then to burn the disk, download the dmg file on the eMac, and then double click it once it's downloaded, or click it from the download window in Firefox. Then, put a CDR in the eMac. You should have a window showing the mounted firefox disc image, with just the Firefox icon inside, and maybe a text file or something. Drag Firefox itself from that window onto the icon for the CD on the desktop. Then drag the icon for the CD to the trash. It will prompt you from there to burn Firefox onto the disk. Then you just put it in the Powerbook, open it, and drag the firefox icon to the applications folder.

 

[Cindy]

well. the ftp didn't work. I thought it was going to. Everything went like you said up until the end... no window opened up with a disk image .dmg

talking about the applications folder --- I just looked through the HD folders and I don't see an applications folder anyplace. I'm wondering what I DON"T have on this laptop that I do need???

 

[Cindy]

you asked me what happened when I used the ctrl with the firefox download page, I got a window that said save as: download.mozilla.org and under that it asked Where? I had to pick where, I just picked applications. Not the applications folder, just application. Does that make sense?
I downloaded and the same thing happened, no installer downloaded and then it tried to open up in quicktime and says explorer doesn't know what to do with it.

 

[mkrishnan]

Hmmm, no, it doesn't. I'm confused. If you double click on the hard drive icon on the desktop, the applications folder should be right there.

As for the ftp, I'm not sure why it didn't work. Did anything come up at the end, instead of the window with the dmg file in it?

You could try putting the whole address that starts with ftp: in IE and see if that works. But you'll probably still have trouble getting the file to save in IE. You might still have to do the ctrl-click thing.

I would probably go over to the emac and burn a CD.

 

[Cindy]

Hmmm, no, it doesn't. I'm confused. If you double click on the hard drive icon on the desktop, the applications folder should be right there.

As for the ftp, I'm not sure why it didn't work. Did anything come up at the end, instead of the window with the dmg file in it?

You could try putting the whole address that starts with ftp: in IE and see if that works. But you'll probably still have trouble getting the file to save in IE. You might still have to do the ctrl-click thing.

I would probably go over to the emac and burn a CD.

ok...there is an applications folder there that just has stuff like IE, stickies etc....I was thinking of an app. folder that has plug ins in it.
Nothing came up but a blank screen - no dmg file. I'll try it one more time and see if it changes.
I'll have to go buy an empty CD tomorrow. I don't have any on hand.
Why isn't IE accepting any downloads? Could the lack of memory have anything to do with it?
I ordered some extra RAM because this machine is running on very little.

 

[Cindy]

Well, good news! I think it has to do with the lack of RAM. I fell upon a site that offered 1.0.1 instead of 1.0.5 - I tried that and it worked. It did exactly what it was supposed to. I dragged the icon into the application folder in HD and it is here and working. Once I get the extra RAM, I'll try downloading the upgrade. Right now it's running painfully slow in Firefox. I'm not going to even try and import my favorites until I upgrade.
Thanks for helping me so much with all this.
The seller is insisting that it came with a battery. And I keep telling him that no, there isn't one. Up top next to the time and day there's a little battery "icon" thing and there's an X through it - meaning, no battery right?
On the left hand side of the laptop there's a little lever and when that is pushed it pops out (the lever) -- the battery should pop out right? Nothing in there.

 

[mkrishnan]

Hmmm.... Interesting. It isn't free, but you might try Opera instead of Firefox. Opera is designed to be relatively low in terms of requirements to run well. So it might run better on an older computer such as this one.

Also, just as a head check... how much RAM do you have? And when you click on the hard disk icon on the desktop (once) and then choose File->Get Info from the Finder menu, what is reported in the "Available" entry (the amount of free hard drive space you have)? This is more critical usually than RAM anyway.

I don't know anything about the battery, because I haven't used that generation of powerbook in detail, but what you say sounds reasonable.

 

[Cindy]

Hmmm.... Interesting. It isn't free, but you might try Opera instead of Firefox. Opera is designed to be relatively low in terms of requirements to run well. So it might run better on an older computer such as this one.

Also, just as a head check... how much RAM do you have? And when you click on the hard disk icon on the desktop (once) and then choose File->Get Info from the Finder menu, what is reported in the "Available" entry (the amount of free hard drive space you have)? This is more critical usually than RAM anyway.
.

Right now I'm only running on 64 MB. Available is 4.03 GB. I wanted to upgrade that too but I can't afford everything at once.
Don't tell me I should have gone for the HD instead of the memory first

 

[mkrishnan]

Right now I'm only running on 64 MB. Available is 4.03 GB. I wanted to upgrade that too but I can't afford everything at once.
Don't tell me I should have gone for the HD instead of the memory first

No, memory sounds like the right call. You can always delete things you're not using to get more hard drive space. And actually 4GB isn't too bad for such a computer. I only have twice that on a much newer one....

 

[Cindy]

No, memory sounds like the right call. You can always delete things you're not using to get more hard drive space. And actually 4GB isn't too bad for such a computer. I only have twice that on a much newer one....

There's alot that I don't want on there like iTunes etc. I'll start deleting one of these times.
Mostly I wanted the computer for emails and simple internet research. Nothing fancy. Something portable to take with me etc.
It doesn't have any kind of word processing on it yet. I plan to download AppleWorks once I get more memory. Since right now it can't read any of my saves that are done in Apple works. I thought applescript would be able to read it but I guess not.