Fixing Mom's Mac's Modem

December 17, 2004 3:47 PM

Parental Computer (Mac) Assistance: Should I attempt to replace the internal modem or scour the web for suitable external modem for my mother's Powerbook G3? [MI]

This company www.pbfixit.com offers an internal modem complete with install guide, but I am afraid once I do this it will crap out like the other one did and I will not be there to rectify the situation for my mom. Plus, I am not too sure about opening up the guts of the thing.

[Yeah, it’s an old notebook, but she doesn’t use it for anything more taxing than email and is pretty computer-phobic, so buying her a whole new computer isn’t really an option owing to her comfort with this one and the parental thrift factor.]

posted by sillygit to education (5 comments total)

Yeah, I screwed up the link(s):
PBfixit
Install Guide
posted by sillygit at 4:01 PM on December 17, 2004

You should be able to get an internal modem for a G3 powerbook for very cheap, but they are a little bit of a pain to install if you've never done it before.

It would be better to find someone who just upgraded to a cable modem or DSL and may be willing to give you an external modem for free, or best of all someone who went wireless and has a spare PCMCIA modem, since then it will remain portable.
posted by milovoo at 4:08 PM on December 17, 2004

I think it looks straightforward enough to replace yourself. They have a 6 month warranty so you're protected if this one goes wrong.
posted by cillit bang at 4:24 PM on December 17, 2004

Another good place to look for a PowerBook modem is MacResQ.

I did a quick look around and they have a PCMCIA modem for $15; it should work fine with OS 9 or whichever vintage operating system your mom is using, since MacResQ specializes in oldish Mac hardware. And installing a PCMCIA card couldn't be simpler, you just push it!
posted by bcwinters at 7:46 PM on December 17, 2004

Thanks for the help/ideas! I had forgotten about the PCMCIA option owing in large part to not having the actual computer to put my hands on. D'Oh.
posted by sillygit at 10:52 PM on December 17, 2004