2 logic board replacements and a very hot ibook!

Question

i just got my ibook back after apple replacing the logic board for the second time in 6 months. i barely squeaked in under the program, so i didn't have to pay for it, but if it happens again, i am out of luck.
i am hoping someone can tell me whether there are precautions, etc that i can take in order to prevent this from happening again? i really am not even sure what causes the logic board to fail, however the two things i have noticed about my ibook are that;
a. it gets extremely hot on the bottom (something i have found that a lot of ibook g3 users experience) but i'm not sure what to do to make that less of an issue. i try to make sure there is adequate airflow underneath and the fan does indeed work, but it still seems to run a lot hotter in general than it used to and the fan comes on quite a bit.
b. my battery isn't holding much of a charge anymore. it's the original battery(so it's about 3+ years old) and i realize i need a new one, but things have been a bit tight financially so i have been putting it off. i have mostly been using the computer while plugged in, but when i do use it on whatever charge the battery will hold, i always let it run until the battery is drained.
could either of these issues be part of my logic board woes? i have also heard some things about not having enough ram so the computer runs too hot. furthermore i have heard that the ibook running so hot could be a sign that my hd is going to die. any truth to that? can i prevent it?
anyways, i am really hoping someone can please help me figure this out before the logic board goes out again or worse!
thanks so much,
jess
ibook 900 MHz PowerPC G3   Mac OS X (10.4.8)   384MB SDRAM

Answer 1

Hi, Jess. Welcome to Apple Discussions.
The best suggestion I can give you to keep the logic board from going out again is to never pick the iBook up by its left front corner alone. If you pick it up in your left hand, as I often do mine, pick it up in the center, under the trackpad. Better yet, especially since it seems to be running hot, get yourself a laptop desk like mine, and pick it up, desk and all. I have this model, and I leave it folded in half. There is a metal rod that fits in slots and elevates the iBook to keep it cooler. My son bought mine for me for Mother's Day, and I thought I wouldn't use it, but I use it ALL the time, and I pick it and the iBook up together, so the case of my iBook never flexes (which is rumored to be the cause of the logic board failure).
Don't use the iBook while it is sitting on a soft surface like your lap, a sofa, or a pillow. Keep it on a firm surface, and make sure all four of the rubber feet on the bottom of it are intact. They allow for better ventilation, and let it run cooler.
You do not need to run the battery until it is drained. That used to be the advice with old nickel-cadmium batteries, which developed a "memory" if you didn't discharge them completely. The newer lithium-ion batteries in the iBook do not have that problem.
The typical lifespan of a lithium-ion battery is two to three years, no matter how well you care for it, so it's had a pretty good run.
You can read more about Apple's recommendations on how to best extend battery life and lifespan at this link:
http://www.apple.com/batteries/notebooks.html
You can keep your iBook running a bit cooler and save some wear and tear on your hard drive if you maximize your RAM with a 512 MB RAM module. You can find the best prices at <a href=http://ramseeker.com/scripts/sortModelDetails.php?modelId=1&sortSize=512mbramseeker.com
Douglas McLauglin, who buys RAM for the Macs where he works as well as his own personal computers says:
I have purchased RAM from 1-800-4-MEMORY and Crucial for myself at home. And we've ordered RAM from Data Memory Systems at work. They're all reputable dealers.
Be certain that whatever vendor you choose provides a lifetime warranty. It doesn't happen often, but RAM can fail.
Instructions for installing it yourself can be found in this Apple Knowledge Base article:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=111918
Once a portable computer is past three years old, it's a good idea to start saving for a new one. Technology moves so fast these days that you almost need to upgrade that often to keep up.
Good luck!