Why is my iBook G4 so painfully crappy at browsing the net, and can I make it better? [more inside]
posted by lemonfridge on Jun 16, 2009 - 15 answers

The hard drive in my girlfriend's iBook (12" G4 late 2004) died, or at least that's what I think happened. I want to cover all my bases and I need a little advice on best practices. [more inside]
posted by clockwork on Feb 17, 2009 - 8 answers

Is my g4 iBook forked? [more inside]
posted by tylerfulltilt on Jan 12, 2009 - 13 answers

Please help get my old iBook to be as fast as possible! [more inside]
posted by Cantdosleepy on Dec 5, 2008 - 17 answers

iBook G4 battery is out of juice. Computer won't start up... even when AC adapter is plugged in. Is there something else going on? [more inside]
posted by kmtiszen on Jun 10, 2008 - 7 answers

A question about reselling an ibook g4 with a broken screen. [more inside]
posted by The Esteemed Doctor Bunsen Honeydew on Jun 4, 2008 - 4 answers

My iBook G4 is possessed! Please help perform an exorcism. [more inside]
posted by annabellee on Mar 7, 2008 - 6 answers

[Ohgodno!Filter] My iBook G4 has for months been making a weird sound when I move it, but today something in the vicinity of the hard-drive has started to make a sharp rhythmic whine/scrape when the laptop is tilted. Is there any hope other than bringing it into the shop? [more inside]
posted by Marquis on Oct 22, 2007 - 15 answers

My iBook G4 has lately been winking out, for no apparent reason, as I'm in the middle of something (I have to reset the date each time, among other things). The weird thing is that it only seems to happen when I'm on battery power. When I press the little button on the bottom, it seems to indicate full power. However, I was noticing a month or so ago I was getting weird battery warnings -- saying it was almost out of power, when it said there was 41% power remaining, etc. Has anyone had this problem, and might a new battery somehow be the solution?
posted by jgballard on Aug 17, 2006 - 5 answers

Can I use the OSX CDs that came with my iBook to upgrade a desktop G4 from OS9? [more inside]
posted by kmel on Oct 12, 2004 - 10 answers

When your iBook G4 loses faith in the idea that it has DVD drive, complaining of an error [-70012] when you stick a DVD in; when even firmware prompt commands like "eject" won't pop it out; when you realize that for purposes of style you have been deprived of a manual-eject pinhole; in such straits, friends, is there any hope of freeing your Digital Versatile Disc of "Spiderman" from the drive?
posted by inksyndicate on Jul 21, 2004 - 13 answers

As an extension of this previous thread: I've decided on an iBook. I have the opportunity to get a 14" 900MHz G3 refurb'd for $900. I can also get this discontinued model new for $1000. The comparable G4 iBook, which has almost exactly the same specs (save the processor, of course) is $1300. My $1000 could also buy me a 12" 800MHz G4.

I'm having trouble parsing the literature about the chips. I understand that, particularly with Macs, it's not just about the MHz, so should I expect the "slower" G4 chip to outperform the G3 I'm looking at? I expect to use this computer until at least spring '06, which seems like a long way off considering that the G3 chip is now technically obsolete. Also, there are obvious form factor issues; does anyone have a strong opinion about the old iBook design vs. the new? Has anyone been personally affected by the logic board problems I've heard about for the last-gen G3 iBooks? Any warnings about Apple-refurbished machines? [slightly more inside] [more inside]
posted by blueshammer on Dec 27, 2003 - 14 answers