OS X.3.8 killed my Tibook400

[sjjordan]

So, against my better judgment I went ahead and updated my powerbook right away and when I restarted ended up with an eternal blue screen after the boot.

I guess I'll archive and reinstall later this week.

Just wanted to warn others...Hopefully it's only me that had this problem.

 

[Toe]

Since you're posting, I'd guess you have another computer. If you're curious to know what happened, you may be able to mount the TiBook in target mode, then copy over /var/log/system.log or /Library/Logs/Software Update.log and see if there's anything comprehensible in there.

In my experience, when system updates hose the whole system, it is usually due to a hiccup in the installation, not to the update itself. For example, if something happens to interrupt the "optimization" after the installation.

In my experience, an archive reinstall usually does fix it up, as you surmise. Just a big ol' waste of time to sit through all that installing, updating, and reconfiguring.

 

[zimtheinvader]

on a similar note, installing 10.3.7(?) seemed to kill my fw hdd drive. sorry to hear about your tibook

 

[sjjordan]

on a similar note, installing 10.3.7(?) seemed to kill my fw hdd drive. sorry to hear about your tibook

You were right. It was just a "hiccup". I archived/reinstalled and redid the update with no problems. Just unlucky I guess.

 

[Littleodie914]

You were right. It was just a "hiccup". I archived/reinstalled and redid the update with no problems. Just unlucky I guess.

Glad to hear it's working again, sounded a bit scary at first! A blue screen on a Mac? Whodathunkit?!

 

[Mechcozmo]

on a similar note, installing 10.3.7(?) seemed to kill my fw hdd drive. sorry to hear about your tibook

You weren't supposed to have it plugged in when you updated, IIRC.

 

[Toe]

You weren't supposed to have it plugged in when you updated, IIRC.

Yup... this problem has been around for a while: http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=300570 which says:

Important: Please read before installing

• If you have a third-party FireWire hard drive connected, disconnect it before installing this update. Reconnect it and turn it back on after installation is complete and you've restarted.
  
• You may experience unexpected results if you have installed third-party system software modifications, or if you have modified the operating system through other means. (This does not apply to normal application software installation.)
  
• The installation process should not be interrupted. If a power outage or other interruption occurs during installation, use the standalone installer (see below) from Apple Downloads to update.

I would surmise that the first bullet is the cause of zimtheinvader's problem, and the third bullet may have been sjjordan's problem. Falling asleep or another process kicking in and hogging the processor both could count as interruptions.

In any event, Apple should make that a pop-up dialog on the installer, not just a part of the readme.