sold my powerbook on ebay, how do I get it ready?

[jsova]

Hey guys,

I posted on the marketplace about a week ago listing my powerbook for sale. In any case, it sold on ebay and I was hoping somebody here could tell me how to get it ready for the next user. I've uninstalled the programs I added, how do I take care of the administrator password and stuff like that? I'd like it to be like the day I bought it, if possible.

Thanks!

 

[wordmunger]

Just change the password to something like "password"?

Make sure you deauthorize that computer for any iTMS songs you purchased!

Another option would be to do a clean install of the system using your original disks.

 

[Solafaa]

A clean install would be the best thing in my opinon, you will not forget anything and he will have a new laptop.

 

[mcarnes]

Definitely a clean install just to protect yourself. Remember, all your data could still be retrieved on that drive.

Do an "erase and install" of panther (if you have the restore discs or panther discs).

After doing that I like to write over the unused space, just to make sure everything is gone. This might be overkill for you but it's just what I do.

 

[emw]

An nice little application like iWipe will handle erasing your hard drive. You probably don't of to use the Department of Defense standard, but it has a nice option to overwrite all free space.

Like mcarnes says, even after a clean install, your old data is still there. Maybe not a huge deal if you didn't have personal information (like finance stuff) but still a good idea.

 

[Mechcozmo]

1. Insert Panther Install disk
2. Choose in Disk Utility to do a 8-way random write/erase pattern
3. Finish the Install.

 

[Nermal]

I'm going to be selling my Power Mac soon, and I have a question regarding reinstalling the original software.

The Install and Restore DVD that comes with the system will only install OS X when you boot from it. To install other software like OS 9 and iDVD, you need to run the Software Restore app from within OS X. However, if you've just reinstalled, it won't let you into Finder to run the app, until you've gone through the Setup Assistant.

Is there some way to skip the Setup Assistant (because I don't know what settings the purchaser wants) so that I can run Software Restore, then make the Setup Assistant reappear on the next boot?