My macbook pro 2009, was stored in a Speck case and rubbermaid stoage tote that was left in a RV over the winter in WI that sat outside all winter. Is it ruined? will I be able to still use it and all my data? I don't currently have it with me.

my macbook pro 2009, was stored in a Speck case and rubbermaid stoage tote that was left in a RV over the winter in WI that sat outside all winter. Is it ruined? will I be able to still use it and all my data? I don't currently have it with me. I am just hoping that when I get it back it will work for me. Any tips, help, support would be helpful! Thank you!

Storage temperature is listed as down to -13º F
Line voltage: 100V to 240V AC
Frequency: 50Hz to 60Hz
Operating temperature: 50° to 95° F (10° to 35° C)
Storage temperature: -13° to 113° F (-24° to 45° C)
Relative humidity: 0% to 90% noncondensing
Maximum operating altitude: 10,000 feet
Maximum storage altitude: 15,000 feet
Maximum shipping altitude: 35,000 feet
So I would think you're OK . The battery will need a charge but I don;t see any reason why there should be a problem as long as there was no water involved.

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If I install a trial version of Aperture and don't like it, will I be able to still use my photo library in iPhoto?

I'm evaluating both Aperture and Adobe's Lightroom to decide which one meets my needs for the best price (got a deal on Lightroom 3 for $120 and I know Aperture 3 is $79 in the Mac App Store).
I have a few questions:
I currently use iPhoto '11 (9.1.3) and have Photoshop CS4, so I have tools for importing DSLR shots and making pro-type changes in Camera Raw, while also having iPhoto to organize my photo library and syncing Events and Albums with my iPhone and iPad.
I like that I would be able to maintain my iPhoto library data for Faces and Places in Aperture, but am concerned that when the iPhoto library is "upgraded" for Aperture, and I decide I don't really need that program, the upgraded library won't work with iPhoto anymore.
Will I still be able to use iPhoto to access and organize my library, or will it be forever converted for use with Aperture?
I'm considering Lightroom because I have been disappointed with the number of bugs showing up in recent iPhoto releases. I'm a bit weary of buying another photo management software product from Apple. iPhoto '11 crashed my old iMac very frequently (I wound up upgrading to a new iMac due to this and I was expecting to run out of hard drive space in a year or two anyway).
Recently, iPhoto bugs make Events show up multiple times in iTunes when syncing for iPhone and iPad.
If iPhoto management is this unstable, I would like to consider choosing a new method of organizing and syncing to iOS devices and abandoning the iPhoto library method.
Will I find a better user experience with Aperture, or does it also use the single file library and suffer the same struggles iPhoto users have been seeing lately?

I like that I would be able to maintain my iPhoto library data for Faces and Places in Aperture, but am concerned that when the iPhoto library is "upgraded" for Aperture, and I decide I don't really need that program, the upgraded library won't work with iPhoto anymore.
The iPhoto library isn't changed in any way by Aperture. Aperture will import the Library and you can choose to copy the files to the Aperture Library or reference them within iPhoto. As long as you don't delete files from the iPhoto Library via Aperture (which you could do if you choose to Reference) there is no impact on iPhoto
Will I still be able to use iPhoto to access and organize my library, or will it be forever converted for use with Aperture?
They are completely different libraries.
Recently, iPhoto bugs make Events show up multiple times in iTunes when syncing for iPhone and iPad.
Fixed in the 9.1.3 update.
Will I find a better user experience with Aperture, or does it also use the single file library and suffer the same struggles iPhoto users have been seeing lately?
Like iphoto, Aperture can use the "single file library" or it can use a Referenced Library (just like iphoto can). Note that using a Referenced Library offers not a whit more in terms of features or capabilities. It's file storage plain and simple. Nothing more.
No you won't see the "same struggles iPhoto users have been seeing..." because Aperture is an entirely different allication.
But you my see Aperture or Lightroom struggles
Regards
TD

I have a pc and I might have registered my ipad to it, I now want to but a MacBook will I be able to still use my iPad?

I have an iphone 4s and an Ipad3 both of which I have at one time connected to my PC using Itunes for PC. Is it possible to use the iphone and ipad for backing up and updating if I buy a MacBook Pro. What will I need to do to make them compatible with the new Apple Computer?

You can use iCloud for syncing between your idevices if you wish or use the Mac in the same way as the PC. I believe you will need to authorize the Mac to be the main source for iTunes.

I have a operating system of 10.4.11 If i upgrade to 10.5 leopard,will i be able to still use my final cut pro 5.0.4

I want to upgrade my operating system from 10.4.11 to leopard 10.5 Will i still be able to use my final cut pro 5.0.4 on the 10.5 version once i upgrade?

angelfromklamath wrote:
So can i upgrade my final cut pro 5.0.4 to 5.1.4 ? O
Perhaps Kaz-k can say for sure what's involved in upgrading from 5.0 to 5,1. If not, I suggest you re-post that question in the Final Cut Studio forum. I'm sure that some of the contributors there have first hand experience with the process of that specific upgrade.
Russ

Bought a Macbook pro 2009 2.8 ghz used, how do I make the most? (it was not formatted)

bought a Macbook pro 2009 2.8 ghz used, how do I make the most? (it was not formatted)

The first thing to do with a second-hand computer is to erase the internal drive and install a clean copy of OS X. You—not the original owner—must do that. How you do it depends on the model, and on whether you already own another Mac. If you're not sure of the model, enter the serial number on this page. Then find the model on this page to see what OS version was originally installed.
It is not safe to use a computer with software installed by a previous owner.
1a. If you don't own another Mac
If the machine shipped with OS X 10.4 or 10.5, you need a boxed and shrink-wrapped retail Snow Leopard (OS X 10.6) installation disc from the Apple Store or a reputable reseller—not from eBay or anything of the kind. If the machine has less than 1 GB of memory, you'll need to add more in order to install 10.6. Preferably, install as much memory as it can take, according to the technical specifications.
If the machine shipped with OS X 10.6, you need the installation media that came with it: gray installation discs, or a USB flash drive for some MacBook Air models. For early MBA models, you may need a USB optical drive or Remote Disc. You should have received the media from the original owner, but if you didn't, order replacements from Apple. A retail disc, or the gray discs from another model, will not work.
To start up from an optical disc or a flash drive, insert it, then restart the computer and hold down the C key at the startup chime. Release the key when you see the gray Apple logo on the screen.
If the machine shipped with OS X 10.7 or later, you don't need media. It should start up in Internet Recovery mode when you hold down the key combination option-command-R at the startup chime. Release the keys when you see a spinning globe.
Some models shipped with OS X 10.6 and received a firmware update after 10.7 was released, enabling them to use Internet Recovery. If you have one of those models, you may not be able to reinstall 10.6 even from the original discs, and Internet Recovery may not work either without the original owner's Apple ID. In that case, contact Apple Support, or take the machine to an Apple Store or another authorized service provider to have the OS installed.
1b. If you do own another Mac
If you already own another Mac that was upgraded in the App Store to the version of OS X that you want to install, and if the new Mac is compatible with it, then you can install it. Use Recovery Disk Assistant to prepare a USB device, then start up the new Mac from it by holding down the C key at the startup chime. Alternatively, if you have a Time Machine backup of OS X 10.7.3 or later on an external hard drive (not a Time Capsule or other network device), you can start from that by holding down the option key and selecting it from the row of icons that appears. Note that if your other Mac was never upgraded in the App Store, you can't use this method.
2. Partition and install OS X
If you see a lock screen when trying to start up from installation media or in Recovery mode, then a firmware password was set by the previous owner, or the machine was remotely locked via iCloud. You'll either have to contact the owner or take the machine to an Apple Store or another service provider to be unlocked. You may be asked for proof of ownership.
Launch Disk Utility and select the icon of the internal drive—not any of the volume icons nested beneath it. In thePartition tab, select the default options: a GUID partition table with one data volume in Mac OS Extended (Journaled) format. This operation will permanently remove all existing data on the drive.
After partitioning, quit Disk Utility and run the OS X Installer. If you're installing a version of OS X acquired from the App Store, you will need the Apple ID and password that you used. When the installation is done, the system will automatically restart into the Setup Assistant, which will prompt you to transfer the data from another Mac, its backups, or from a Windows computer. If you have any data to transfer, this is usually the best time to do it.
Then run Software Update and install all available system updates from Apple. To upgrade to a major version of OS X newer than 10.6, get it from the Mac App Store. Note that you can't keep an upgraded version that was installed by the original owner. He or she can't legally transfer it to you, and without the Apple ID you won't be able to update it in Software Update or reinstall, if that becomes necessary. The same goes for any App Store products that the previous owner installed—you have to repurchase them.
3. Other issues
If the original owner "accepted" the bundled iLife applications (iPhoto, iMovie, and Garage Band) in the App Store so that he or she could update them, then they're irrevocably linked to that Apple ID and you won't be able to download them without buying them. Reportedly, Mac App Store Customer Service has sometimes issued redemption codes for these apps to second owners who asked.
If the previous owner didn't deauthorize the computer in the iTunes Store under his Apple ID, you wont be able to authorize it immediately under your ID. In that case, you'll either have to wait up to 90 days or contact iTunes Support.
When trying to create a new iCloud account, you might get a failure message: "Account limit reached." Apple imposes a lifetime limit of three iCloud account setups per device. Erasing the device does not reset the limit. You can still use an account that was created on another device, but you won't be able to create a new one. Contact iCloud Support for more information.

Hi, I am using macbook pro 2009 model.In that, there is wifi hardware is not installed. I am not able to use wireless networks. Anybody can help me out.

Hello,
I am using Macbook pro 2009 model. In that, when I tried to connect wireless network and wifi. I am not able to do. I have done R & D regarding this issue. Some them advice to do some below steps.
Restart your Mac.
upon start-up, hold down the Opt key until you see your drives.
click on the recovery drive (note: this will not affect or delete any files you currently have).
login if needed.
in the top right hand corner you will see the Wi-Fi icon (hopefully). Click the icon and then click "turn wifi Off" and then again click "turn wifi ON"
restart your Mac again and start it up normally.
recover from your near-heart attack.
I've followed your 1 to 4 steps & then after clicking on the wifi icon, I found Wi-Fi: No hardware installed just beneath the icon. That means no Wifi hardware is installed in this machine. Do you have any suggestion about installing it? I mean how can I get that hardware? Is it available on internet? Thanks a lot again.

Apparently you have tried everything except - take the monitor in question to the Apple Store along with your computer. If it works there, the mystery continues.

HT201180 What type of Fire Wire cable to use to connect MacBook Pro 2009 to tape-based Sony TRV720 camcorder

What type of Fire Wire cable to use to connect MacBook Pro 2009 to tape-based Sony TRV720 camcorder

USB is the slowest. Firewire is faster. eSata is the fastest (and will be superceded by Thunderbolt). The old Fire was 4 pin (Firewire 400 and is essentially obsolete), new is 9 pin, Firewire 800. All of the will transmit data, simply a different speeds.
For eSata connectivity, you MBP must have an express card slot (and the appropriate eSata connection card) and you external enclosure must have an eSata input. eSata cables will only transmit data, therefor it will require power by Firewire or USB cables.
Ciao.

Using Mini DisplayPort to VGA Adapter to connect Macbook Pro (2009) for a presentation via projector.

When I connect my Macbook Pro (2009 model) using a Mini DisplayPort to VGA adapter to display a presentation via projector, only the top-left portion of what is displayed on my Macbook Pro's screen is displayed on the projector, as though I zoomed in on that portion of my screen. The projector is on and the adapter and the cable that connects the adapter to the projector machine is correctly connected. Any suggestions on how to fix this problem?

Hi glraczon.support,
It sounds like the external display you are using (projector) operates at a smaller resolution than your MacBook Pro. You may want to configure the display preferences in System Preferences for the external projector.
Here is an article that may help you with that process:
OS X Mountain Lion: About the Display pane of System Preferences
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5369
Thanks,
Matt M.

I'm trying to reinstall Mavericks on used Macbook Pro. When I log in to my Apple ID, it says it was not the same ID used to purchase Mountain Lion. I need to change user/admin as a lot of the folders and apps are in Chinese!

I'm trying to reinstall Mavericks on used Macbook Pro. When I log in to my Apple ID, it says it was not the same ID used to purchase Mountain Lion. I need to change user/admin as a lot of the folders and apps are in Chinese!

The first thing you should do with a second-hand computer is to erase the internal drive and install a clean copy of OS X. How you do that depends on the model. Look it up on this page to see what version was originally installed.
If the machine shipped with OS X 10.4 or 10.5, you need a boxed and shrink-wrapped retail Snow Leopard (OS X 10.6) installation disc, which you can get from the Apple Store or a reputable reseller — not from eBay or anything of the kind. If the machine has less than 1 GB of memory, you'll need to add more in order to install 10.6. I suggest you install as much memory as it can take, according to the technical specifications.
If the machine shipped with OS X 10.6, you need the installation media that came with it: gray installation discs, or a USB flash drive for some MacBook Air models. If you don't have the media, order replacements from Apple. A retail disc, or the gray discs from another model, will not work.
To boot from an optical disc or a flash drive, insert it, then reboot and hold down the C key at the startup chime. Release the key when you see the gray Apple logo on the screen.
If the machine shipped with OS X 10.7 or later, you don't need media. It should boot into Internet Recovery mode when you hold down the key combination option-command-R at the startup chime. Release the keys when you see a spinning globe.
Once booted from the disc or in Internet Recovery, launch Disk Utility and select the icon of the internal drive — not any of the volume icons nested beneath it. In the Partition tab, select the default options: a GUID partition table with one data volume in Mac OS Extended (Journaled) format. This operation will permanently remove all existing data on the drive, which is what you should do.
After partitioning, quit Disk Utility and run the OS X Installer. When the installation is done, the system will automatically reboot into the Setup Assistant, which will prompt you to transfer the data from another Mac, its backups, or from a Windows computer. If you have any data to transfer, this is usually the best time to do it.
You should then run Software Update and install all available system updates from Apple. If you want to upgrade to a major version of OS X newer than 10.6, buy it from the Mac App Store. Note that you can't keep an upgraded version that was installed by the previous owner. He or she can't legally transfer it to you, and without the Apple ID you won't be able to update it in Software Update or reinstall, if that becomes necessary. The same goes for any App Store products that the previous owner installed — you have to repurchase them.
If the previous owner "accepted" the bundled iLife applications (iPhoto, iMovie, and Garage Band) in the App Store so that he or she could update them, then they're linked to that Apple ID and you won't be able to download them without buying them. Reportedly, Apple customer service has sometimes issued redemption codes for these apps to second owners who asked.
If the previous owner didn't deauthorize the computer in the iTunes Store under his Apple ID, you wont be able toauthorize it under your ID. In that case, contact iTunes Support.

I have a Macbook pro 2009 with Snow Leopard. Which system can I install without running into complicated problems which I will not be able to solveby myself? (Mountain Lion, Mavericks, Yosemite?)

I have a Macbook pro 2009 with Snow Leopard. Which system can I install without running into complicated problems which I will not be able to solve by myself- a person with limited problem solving abilities. (Mountain Lion, Mavericks, Yosemite?)

It will make it easier to help you w/ your problem to know the size and RAM installed.
"Yesterday I couldn't update the maps on my Garmin because it said the OS I had wouldn't work"
What OS will your Garmin work with? Funny there was someone else that did that and upgraded to Yosemite and regretted it.
I'd say Lion if your Garmin is compatible.
Both Lion and Mountain Lion are downloadable from the Apple Store:
http://store.apple.com/us/product/D6106Z/A/os-x-lion
http://store.apple.com/us/product/D6377Z/A/os-x-mountain-lion
The OSs will get more resource hungry the higher you go.

I want to upgrade my Hard Drive to 1TB and more. What is the maximun Hard Drive I can install for a MacBook Pro 2009 Yesterday, I tried a SEAGATE SSHD but my screen was always a showing a QUESTION MARK (?). It's not the cable because when I put back

I want to upgrade my Hard Drive to 1TB and more.
What is the maximun Hard Drive I can install for a MacBook Pro 2009
Yesterday, I tried a SEAGATE SSHD but my screen was always a showing a QUESTION MARK (?). It's not the cable because when I put back the old original version, everything works...Any sugestion of brabnding or procédure to upgrade my hard drive?

The largest 2.5" dia SATA drives available are 2 TB in capacity.
Have you tried the Seagate SSHD connected externally to the MBP via USB? The drive itself may be faulty.
Ciao.
Here is a good place to start looking for a replacement drive:
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/hard-drives/2.5-Notebook/

Cannot play audio from macbook pro 2009 to tv using hdmi with adapter

MacBook Pro 2009. I cannot get audio from my my macbook pro to tv using an hdmi adapter

That is because the 2009 MBP does not support audio via the minidisplay port. You will have to tap the audio output port for audio and use the RCA audio input connections on the TV.
Ciao.

I have a 13 inch MacBook Pro (2009) & the "White Screen of Death" is present. Need help?

I have a 13 inch MacBook Pro (2009). Recently I bought an extended hard drive because I had used up the memory on my iDisk. As I was running the Time Machine back up on my new extended drive, the battery on my Pro ran out causing it to shut down. Once I hooked up my Pro to the power cord & logged in, the "White Screen of Death" appeared on the home display. Obviously the battery still works, my phone is able to charge along with the extended drive, I am able to adjust the lighting on my keyboard along with adjusting the brightness on my screen, but the "White Screen" remains. I need help in determining the cause of this issue & the steps I'll need to take in order to resolve this. I love my Pro, all my documents, photos & music are on it & the last thing I want to do is kill my wallet by buying a new Pro. So could someone on here please help me? It would be greatly appreciated & I thank you in advance!

Take each of these steps that you haven't already tried. Stop when the problem is resolved.
Step 1
The first step in dealing with a boot failure is to secure your data. If you want to preserve the contents of the startup drive, and you don't already have at least one current backup, you must try to back up now, before you do anything else. It may or may not be possible. If you don't care about the data that has changed since your last backup, you can skip this step.
There are several ways to back up a Mac that is unable to boot. You need an external hard drive to hold the backup data.
a. Boot into the Recovery partition, or from a local Time Machine backup volume (option key at startup.) When the OS X Utilities screen appears, launch Disk Utility and follow the instructions in this support article, under “Instructions for backing up to an external hard disk via Disk Utility.”
b. If you have access to a working Mac, and both it and the non-working Mac have FireWire or Thunderbolt ports, boot the non-working Mac in target disk mode. Use the working Mac to copy the data to another drive. This technique won't work with USB, Ethernet, Wi-Fi, or Bluetooth.
c. If the internal drive of the non-working Mac is user-replaceable, remove it and mount it in an external enclosure or drive dock. Use another Mac to copy the data.
Step 2
Press and hold the power button until the power shuts off. Disconnect all wired peripherals except those needed to boot, and remove all aftermarket expansion cards. Use a different keyboard and/or mouse, if those devices are wired. If you can boot now, one of the devices you disconnected, or a combination of them, is causing the problem. Finding out which one is a process of elimination.
If you've booted from an external storage device, make sure that your internal boot volume is selected in the Startup Disk pane of System Preferences.
Step 3
Boot in safe mode. Note: If FileVault is enabled, or if a firmware password is set, or if the boot volume is a software RAID, you can’t do this. Post for further instructions.
Safe mode is much slower to boot and run than normal, and some things won’t work at all, including wireless networking on certain Macs.
The login screen appears even if you usually log in automatically. You must know your login password in order to log in. If you’ve forgotten the password, you will need to reset it before you begin.
When you boot in safe mode, it's normal to see a dark gray progress bar on a light gray background. If the progress bar gets stuck for more than a few minutes, or if the system shuts down automatically while the progress bar is displayed, your boot volume is damaged and the drive is probably malfunctioning. In that case, go to step 5.
If you can boot and log in now, empty the Trash, and then open the Finder Info window on your boot volume ("Macintosh HD," unless you gave it a different name.) Check that you have at least 9 GB of available space, as shown in the window. If you don't, copy as many files as necessary to another volume (not another folder on the same volume) and delete the originals. Deletion isn't complete until you empty the Trash again. Do this until the available space is more than 9 GB. Then reboot as usual (i.e., not in safe mode.)
If the boot process hangs again, the problem is likely caused by a third-party system modification that you installed. Post for further instructions.
Step 4
Sometimes a boot failure can be resolved by resetting the NVRAM.
Step 5
Launch Disk Utility in Recovery mode (see Step 1.) Select your startup volume, then run Repair Disk. If any problems are found, repeat until clear. If Disk Utility reports that the volume can't be repaired, the drive has malfunctioned and should be replaced. You might choose to tolerate one such malfunction in the life of the drive. In that case, erase the volume and restore from a backup. If the same thing ever happens again, replace the drive immediately.
This is one of the rare situations in which you should also run Repair Permissions, ignoring the false warnings it may produce. Look for the line "Permissions repair complete" at the end of the output. Then reboot as usual.
Step 6
Reinstall the OS. If your Mac was upgraded from an older version of OS X, you’ll need the Apple ID and password you used to upgrade.
Step 7
Repeat step 6, but this time erase the boot volume in Disk Utility before installing. The system should automatically reboot into the Setup Assistant. Follow the prompts to transfer your data from a Time Machine or other backup.
Step 8
This step applies only to a Mac Pro tower, not to any other model. A dead logic-board battery can cause a gray screen at boot. Typically the boot failure will be preceded by loss of the startup disk and system clock settings. See the user manual for replacement instructions.
Step 9
If you get this far, you're probably dealing with a hardware fault. Make a "Genius" appointment at an Apple Store to have the machine tested.

Can I install only Windows on my Macbook Pro 2009?

Hello All,
For reasons far outwith my control. i.e. I am in the middle of borneo, needing desperatly to get on a full windows machine... I need answers to the following?
I have full gen versions of Windows 7 and MS Office 2010. I want to run these on my 13" MacBook Pro 2009. I know, boot camp, VMware etc are all great. But i can't at this time get those working.
I think, the best option is to just buy a HDD, remove the old one, install fresh copy (of win) onto new HHD.
However, my question is - will this work?
Thanks
Craig

As TheSmokeMonster indicated, you'll need to use either virtualization or BootCamp. BootCamp prepares your system to allow Windows to be installable on it (it also provides the drives for some of the hardware which may not be found elsewhere). Virtualization runs in OS X, so that should be a non-issue. Keep in mind, all firmware updates are only via OS X, so you would not be able to update your firmware unless you have a functioning bootable external OS X volume.
BootCamp does basically give you a full Windows machine... it just allows dual booting between Windows and OS X.

MacBook Pro 2009 new hard drive install results in very slow function and freezing

I just wanted to post my resolution to a problem that I had trouble finding an answer to on these forums.
Short version:
I replaced the hard drive in my 2009 MacBook Pro because the computer froze and upon reboot the Disk Utility said it was corrupted, but with the new hard drive the computer ran very slowly and often showed the spinning rainbow wheel. I replaced the SATA cable that connects the hard drive to the motherboard and it works perfectly once again.
Long version:
Recently my MacBook Pro (2009 running Snow Leopard) froze up and I performed a hard reset by holding down the power button. When I turned the computer back on it would not boot OS so I ran disk utility from the Snow Leopard install DVD. The test said the hard drive was corrupted, and since the computer is way past warranty I decided to change the drive out myself. I bought a 500GB Seagate Momentus 5400 Drive from Amazon, opened the computer and replaced the existing hard drive with the new one. When I first booted from the OS install DVD, my computer was not recognizing that any hard drive was present. I read somewhere on these forums that sometimes the formatting on new Seagate drives can't be read by MacBooks and they need to be reformatted using another computer, but I tried simply taking the hard drive out and putting it back in a couple of times thinking maybe I had just not plugged it in correctly. After the 4th attempt the hard drive magically showed up, and I was able to reformat the drive and install OS and even Windows XP on bootcamp.
Everything seemed to be okay but applications were running slowly considering this was a fresh drive and OS install. Over time, the computer started to hang more and more. In OS I would get the spinning rainbow wheel even when doing something as simple as opening a browser window in Chrome or trying to type into a text field. When I tried to use Windows it would simply freeze after only a short time and I'd have to do a hard reset.
I went to the Genius Bar at the Apple store which was unhelpful, so I continued searching through these forums to try to figure out the problem. I noticed a lot of people had trouble with the SATA cable that came with the computer because it's quite thin and delicate, and would get damaged when changing out the hard drive. However most of these people seemed to experience a question mark when starting up the computer, whereas mine would fully boot and be functional for a time. I thought it unlikely that a damaged cable could possibly leave the computer partially functional. Finally though I gave in a dropped the $26 for a new SATA cable on Amazon. As soon as I installed it the problem was fixed, and the computer runs as fast as when I first bought it. I don't know if I damaged the cable changing the hard drive (I was extremely careful) or if my original hard drive was not actually corrupted and the cable was already damaged. I mentioned the possibility of the cable being damaged at the Apple store and the representative said that often times they fail because people carry the laptop with one hand, and because of the way this model was designed this puts a lot of pressure right on that thin cable. Regardless, if you do plan on changing out your hard drive in your MacBook keep in mind that the SATA cable is sensitive, and that if you experience problems with a fresh hard drive and OS install the SATA cable is a likely culprit.

If you think you have either a hard drive or a cable problem, to the best of my knowledge the only product that can help isolate both of them is Scannerz. You can check it out at:
http://scsc-online.com/Scannerz.html
I think that's the correct link. If it isn't and you're interested and that's wrong, just google it. I'd also check out their downloads section, especially the sort of short document on using path isolation to detect and isolate problems.
Scannerz can detect both errors and irregularities. It uses the surface scan progress as a reference. Cable problems never show up at the same location because they're typically intermittent. Surface problems always show up at the exact same place. That's the only product (at least commercially available) that can do that.
I don't know if this information is of any value to you because it sort of sounds like you've already solved the problem, but it might be of use if you have problems in the future.
In any case, I've seen several posts on several different sites where people were reporting insulation break down on some of the SATA cables. Apparently the insulation breaks down and the cable starts shorting to the case.

My macbook pro 2009, was stored in a Speck case and rubbermaid stoage tote that was left in a RV over the winter in WI that sat outside all winter. Is it ruined? will I be able to still use it and all my data? I don't currently have it with me.

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