powerbook g4 install discs same as clean install?

[orijinal]

what do people mean exactly by clean install? i read that there are no advantages to doing this too, but why do people do it?

 

[tag]

what do people mean exactly by clean install? i read that there are no advantages to doing this too, but why do people do it?

By clean install, people mean that everything on the Mac gets erased and formatted and then the OS is installed fresh and clean with no traces of the previous OS installation. Whereas if you just upgrade your system, you keep all your preferences and home directories (and apps I believe?).

Its really a preference is all on which you choose. I make sure to do a clean install since I back up all of my necessary data on an external drive. This way you don't have to worry that everything goes well and integrates perfectly with the new OS install. Truthfully why I do it is because it just feels cleaner doing a strait clean install, I don't like the thought of things from the previous OS hanging around. I'm a stickler for knowing everything on my machine, even if I have to manually reinstall all my apps and copy back all documents/pictures myself.

 

[orijinal]

well if you get a unit from the store isn't it already effectively 'clean?'

 

[mad jew]

well if you get a unit from the store isn't it already effectively 'clean?'

Yeah it should be. But if someone is posting with problems that generally warrant a clean install, then obviously something has been corrupted and the thing is no longer "clean".

It's not usually an issue on new machines so much as when you are upgrading the OS (say, from Panther to Tiger) many people will recommend erasing everything and starting from scratch as opposed to merely running an update. Many people consider it "cleaner" for a variety of reasons.

 

[Duff-Man]

Duff-Man says...whenever I get a new computer the first thing I do is a clean install - wiping the drive. Reason - Apple puts on a "generic" build of OS X...I like to customize the install, eliminating the extra language packs and printer drivers etc etc that I will never need. And of course, if it is before I have used the computer there will be nothing that I have lost...perhaps a bit of placebo effect but it makes me feel better....oh yeah!

 

[mad jew]

Duff-Man says...perhaps a bit of placebo effect but it makes me feel better...oh yeah!

Yeah, I think that's a big part of it for me too. I actually consciously didn't do a clean install on my new iMac and no problems so far. Still, if it makes us feel better, why not.

 

[orijinal]

for one to perform a 'clean install' do you have to purchase another copy of tiger?

im guessing when i ran my powerbook g4 install disks, it wasnt a 'clean install' huh?

 

[mad jew]

When you installed from your PowerBook disks, it probably was a clean install. All it means is that you have to format the disk and then install the OS over the top. This can be done from the restore disks since they have Tiger on them.

 

[tikibangout]

Duff-Man convinced me to do a clean install. Its only been two weeks since I first used my iBook. I barely have anything saved on there except for apps.

 

[orijinal]

well when i ran those install disks i still saw it had printer drivers and languages... seemed the same as when i first opened up my pb.

 

[mad jew]

When you reinstall, there's an option button that leads you to a panel that allows you to do all sorts of funky things with the install, such as leaving out printer drivers etc.

By default, it'll pretty much all get installed though (save for some developer tools that most people would never use).

Your PowerBook came from Apple with the default install settings (which includes the printer drivers).