Thanks for the tip on the "feature" . . . but if the apps were there, then clicking the icon for something, say a Word file, would still produce the program, yes? Five days ago the apps file was visible, as was my hard drive icon (though not after second Snow Leopard installation).
But the degradation got to the point where nothing would even mount.
All I got was a string of question marks in my dock, no apps file, and nothing would work. When I would click on a Word document or photoshop document, I would get a message saying: No application designated for this action (or something along those lines), so I would search, and no applications were available. After Time Machine restore at three different dates (one ten days ago, one three months ago, and one from the beginning eleven months ago--in that order) no apps, nothing would work.
DAta files, however, seem to be intact (unlike those of several friends who have lost everything). Except of course for iPhoto files which have disappeared.
Any other suggestions?
As you can see I"m a user, not a tech person, and I am sitting in Bangladesh, several thousand miles from able technicians in Singapore (in spite of the "authorized Apple reseller" here in Dhaka).
cheers,
teekayess
17" MacBook Pro, 2.16 GHz, 2 GB 6p67 MHz DDR2 SDRAM, etc.
(I have not read all intervening replies... )
It does sound as though the hard drive is going bad.
Since you say you have a first generation Intel (that would be from the April-October 2006 production range) you may still be in warranty but only if you bought the AppleCare 3-year option. Of course, the warranty will ONLY replace the drive if they determine it has gone bad -- they will not get any missing data back for you.
To recap, it seems you have access to most of your user data, except for missing photos library data.
It is paramount that you:
(1) get your user data backed up off the drive as soon as possible, by any means that works (flash 'thumb' drive, external hard drive, whatever).
(2) verify if you have your data on any other data backup storage.
(3) and thus be able to determine if there is any user data on the MacBookPro internal drive which seems lost and is not available anywhere else. Such as the iPhoto pictures you mention. If those photos are not on any backup, and still not visible on the MacBookPro, that data is either gone and not recoverable, or will cost a lot to get back.
(4) If you must get back the missing user data off your drive when it seems to be not there (or drive not working), you can use a drive recovery service. I have an affiliation with DriveSavers, they typically charge in the range of $600-700 (USD) and up range to get data off dead/malfunctioning drives. But they will do a free evaluation. And there are other similar drive recovery companies.
Send my a private message if you wish details on any of this.
Note, Hard drives do have expected life spans, ranging from 3 to 5 years typically. After that range, the drive may continue to perform -- or not -- just depends. Some drives last and run for many years. Some conk out after only a few. Notebook drives tend to last less, because of all the moving, bumping around, and sometimes higher heat level.