Chronic PRAM problem

I'm having two chronic startup problems, at least one of which seems to be PRAM-related.
The first problem is a pop-up that opens with my Start-up items. I don't have a screengrab, so I can't post what it says at the moment, but it's a "cannot launch Java application" type error. Sometimes a simple restart will fix it, other times not.
The second problem is my sound. If I do a normal restart, or I shut down and power back up, my soundcard no longer shows up in my Sound Preferences pane, and I can't output or input any audio.
I can fix this by flashing the PRAM on startup, but I have to do it every single time I restart the computer, which can't be good.
Any ideas what could be causing either or both of these problems? I'm concerned this is a sign of worse problems to come.
Thanks.

Hi, you neglected to say how much memory you have (RAM) Try using Remember to check your Ram. 3rd party Ram does not run very well with Leopard. The last thing I would do is revert back to Tiger. The Ram is easy to check with Remember, and I'd think you need at least 1Gb of Ram to run Leopard correctly. True, many run it with less, yet it depends on what you do. Careful zapping the Ram too often, it's a maintenance option, not to be run everyday. Leopard will be all right, keep following the forum and some of these top users will have many answers. Reverting to Tiger is the last thing you should do, trust me. Try repairing drive off your Leopard disk>First Aid after you chose a language. Also, remove all peripherals, battery, power-plug and hold the power button down for a full 5 seconds, put it back together, safe boot, restart, and see if your problems are gone. I know other troubleshooting techniques so post back.
Ray

Similar Messages

Post PRAM problems

Folks:
I zapped my PRAM today to see if perhaps that could be the problem with one of my USB ports (it wasn't -- the port appears to be dead).
I can handle that. What I can't handle is that I'm living in Giganto land, Mac-wise. All of my programs are outsized, askew to the left, the tool bar is in a font nearly half-again the size it was.
I tried monkeying around with System Preferences, but nothing seems to help.
So, as always, when I get myself in deep doo-doo, Mac-wise, I turn to you.
Please be gentle.

Hello,
Three things to check in Apple  menu > System Preferences...:
Displays > Resolution is 1024x768.
Displays > Geometry is correctly adjusted.
Universal Access > Seeing tab > Zoom is turned off.
Hope that helps.
mrtotes

After 13 years, can no longer recommend HP - Chronic MB problems on dv6t-7000 unheeded by HP support

I couldn't find anywhere else to voice this - my dv6t-7000 is just out of warranty and thus I don't qualify for email support. I have spent the past year in a back and forth battle with HP customer support and am finally calling it quits after 13 years of exclusively buying from them and recommending them to less tech-savvy friends and family.
I ordered this laptop around July 2012, eager to check out the benefits of Seagate's new 2nd-gen hybrid drives. Laptop arrived and was blazing fast, but starting getting some STOP errors (blue screens) pretty soon. Because this was coupled with hard drive errors, I didn't bother to dig too much into the problem and instead contacted HP, who (very quickly) shipped me a service box. I send them my laptop and get it back a couple of weeks later, but can't figure out what they changed (I later found out they just reflashed the BIOS).
Sure enough, I start getting the same errors again. Contact HP a second time and they recommend a replacement hard drive. Swapped the drives out and started fresh, but within a couple of weeks, the same errors popped up on the new drive. At some point around here, I was told I was being moved up to a Tier 2 support level, which didn't seem to make a difference in how much (or little) support seemed to pay attention to my own observations of the problem. Their process came across as (1) determine if support is needed and warranted (2) ship out prepaid service box (3) let the service department start from scratch to diagnose the issue.
I ended up sending the laptop to HP a third time, after clarifying the issue with the support reps I spoke with and giving them detailed instructions of the problems I had been observing, which seemed to point to a faulty hard drive cable or a related issue with the motherboard itself. The rep was very friendly and promised to relay this information to support before they got their hands on my laptop. Sent it in and again - no difference except a freshly installed operating system.
Before this third service call, I had freshly installed Windows 8, and if anything, the problem had gotten worse. I had run memtest with no errors on either sticks, ran SeaTools DOS with unspecified corruption errors, cleaned out the insides with compressed air, reinstalled WIndows 8 twice from scratch, ran dskchk and SFC countless times with unrepairable errors, run DISM a couple of times unsuccessfully, swapped out the CMOS battery, and was still basically experiencing a stop error every 1-2 days. I reinstalled Win8 after receiving my laptop back for the third time, and continued to have these problems. At this point I gave up trying to send it in to HP, because school was getting in the way of my ability to be without a laptop for 2 weeks at a time.
Currently, I cannot install Windows 8.1 and still experience KERNEL_DATA_INPAGE_ERROR and CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED stop errors every 2-3 hours. I had one while writing this post, so hopefully I haven't forgotten to include anything. I don't mean to lay all of the blame on HP, but I don't like not having my input listened to or considered. It seems counterintuitive to me - this process could have taken 2 weeks to resolve instead of multiple months to fail and lose a customer in the process.
I bought HP knowing fully well that I was paying for high-end parts and not necessarily build quality. That's never been a problem in 13 years of buying laptops and PCs from them, as well as recommending them to friends and family - we know how to take proper care of expensive technology. But I'm realizing now that when you do get a dud, HP support seems to do everything in its power not to have to replace your laptop even when it's warranted. I will use this laptop until it can no longer function (hopefully a couple of months at least) and then consider another company for the first time in a long time. On the desktop end - well, I've been meaning to build a PC for a while now.

I have forwarded your post to the right people for their review. You should hear back from someone shortly via Private Message on this forum.
OrnahP
HP Support Forums Moderator
Clicking the "Kudos Star" to the left is a great way to say thanks!
When your problem has been solved, accept the solution by clicking "Accept as Solution" to help other members in the future!
Rules of Participation

Chronic FIOS Problem

My internet goes out randomly for times varying from 30 min to 9 hours. The internet does not completely cease, there stille exists a connection. The problem is the speed is slower than a terrible dial up connection. The ping averages easily over 1,000 when it acts up. Reaching at some points over 20,000 ping! The bandwidth also drops to a few kbps or less. This can act up a few times a day or not for a few weeks at a time. This makes it very difficult for me to troubleshoot since it corrects on its own at times.
This does not exist with just Vista and the Actiontech router, since I have read about these problems.This problem has persisted for months. I was going to call Verizon today and ask for help with troubleshooting, but it started working fine again.
Here is a list of our hardware connected to this home network:
Actiontech M1424WR
HP Photosmart C6180 Printer
2 towers,    wired to router,      running XP
1 tower,   wireless,    running XP
4 laptops,    wireless,    running XP
3 laptops,      wireless,                running Vista
1 Xbox 360 running Xbox live (recently added)
As you can see there are many people using the connection, but rarely all at once. Many of the computers are turned off a majority of the time. When it has acted up in the past I have turned off the router and turned it back on same with all the computers. I have tested the connection of each computer seperately when the internet acts up and the problem persists. I even have turned off all but the computer I test the connection on and the problem is still there.
It does not appear this is caused by any one computer since it doesn't matter which computers are connected when this happens.
Does anyone have an idea for the cause of this poor connection and how to fix it?

My guess is you are seeing the NAT table problem. your multiple computers have overflowed the NAT table in the router. One simple experiment. Whe n things are bad, try unplugging the router from the wall outlet for 30 seconds, and see what sort of performance you get when the router comes back up. That wipes the NAT clean. The size of the NAT (network address translation table) is apparently a problem for quite a few users with the Verizon supplied routers.
The fix is to either convince Verizon to increase the size of the NAT table in the router, our use another Router with a bigger NAT table.

Corrupt User - Permissions problem

I seem to be having a chronic permissions problem with my primary user account.
Each time I restart or turn on my machine, I cannot get Mail or Safari to start without first running the Disk Utilities - Permissions repair first (from another account). After running permissions repair, everything works fine until I shut down and start again.
Other, intermittent symptoms include last night the machine booted into console mode though no keys to do so were selected. (Don't know how to work in console mode but do know what it is.)
This problem only occurs with this account. All other appear to be fine.
I have run TechTools and passed all hardware tests.
Hoping there is a permanent solution. In the meantime, I'm starting to create a new (replicate) user and have begun a document transfer via the public folder to the new account.
Thanks!!
iBook G4 Mac OS X (10.3.9)

Welcome To Discussions tgiff101!
Creating a new account to replace the one you are having trouble with, is probably the easiest way to correct the problem. Good idea!
It is also more than likely, less time consuming, than trying to discern which files may have become corrupt.
But transfer as few as possible, of the .pref files located HD > Users > The Corrupt Account > Library > Preferences: HERE.
Good Luck!
ali b

Problems with 15" MacBook Pro (Sept 2011)

Hi,
I have had problems with my 15" MacBook Pro for several months which have worsened since upgrading to Yosemite (10.10.2). In October 2014 it was returned to an Apple Authorised Service Provider (AASP) under AppleCare due to video problems, i.e.lines no screen, blank screen plus shutting down unexpectedly with kernel panics. The AASP replaced the logic board and I had the RAM upgraded from 4MB to 8MB. It caused me no further problems until January 2015, when
the the same problems started again, i.e.lines across the screen, blacked out screen and restarts and shut downs with the dreaded kernel panics at least once or twice per day, plus the fans now often run at full speed evening if I'm just browsing the web. The restart/shutdowns occur spontaneously. As a Mac user since 1992, I believe that the new logic board fitted in October 2014 is faulty and should be returned to an AASP for checking. I am over 160 miles round trip from where I live, and being disabled due to MS, I can no longer tolerate driving or being driven this distance as I'm 74 years old and have chronic chest problems also.
I have spoken to the AASP who fitted the logic board in 2014 and they have agreed that it's possible that my logic board is faulty again and it should be returned to them under the MacBook Pro Repair Extension Programme see below copied from Apple's website:
Apple has determined that a small percentage of MacBook Pro systems may exhibit distorted video, no video, or unexpected system restarts. These MacBook Pro systems were sold between February 2011 and December 2013.
Apple or an Apple Authorized Service Provider will repair affected MacBook Pro systems, free of charge. See below for details on affected models and service options.
Symptoms
An affected MacBook Pro may display one or more of the following symptoms:
Distorted or scrambled video on the computer screen
No video on the computer screen (or external display) even though the computer is on
Computer restarts unexpectedly
Products affected
15-inch and 17-inch MacBook Pro models manufactured in 2011
I am currently waiting for a Senior Apple Support Adviser from Apple UK in Cork City to call me on Wednesday 8 April 2015 to agree to have it returned
to the AASP who fitted the new logic board. To be fair Apple UK did offer to do this earlier, as I thought I had resolved the problems by a combination of NVRAM and SMC reset, plus checking my files and components with Disk Utility, TechTool Pro 8 and Disk Warrior not to mention installing OS X 10.10.2 to both external USB 3 drive and Firewire 800 drive, but the problems remain the same. I've also tried as advised on Apple's support area which advises to shut down my Mac, then restart it holding down the D key, which is supposed to test the hardware but nothing happens.
Has any members had similar problems and been able to get Apple UK to have their MacBook Pro (early to late 2011) diagnosed and repaired under the MacBook Pro Repair Extension Programme ?
Many thanks,
Jim
Rural Cumbria, England.
Machine Profile: 15" MacBook Pro Intel Core i7 CPU 2635QM (built September 2011); OS X 10.10.2; 8MB RAM; 500GB HD

Thank you Kappy. I've been to the link you gave and copied part of it to my post. It just seems like despite what the link says, it's quite hard to get Apple UK to act on this once my AppleCare ran out. I was told by Apple Tech Support that I would have to pay a courier to collect my MBP and return it to the AASP at a cost of £36.00, plus a further £36.00 for diagnosis. Being a state pensioner £72.00 is quite a lot for me to pay. This is one of the options on your link, no mention of having to pay for it.
Mail-in
Call Apple and request a postage paid box to send your MacBook Pro to the local Apple Repair Center.
A technician will run a diagnostic test on your MacBook Pro to verify eligibility.
The repair process takes approximately 5-7 days from the time your MacBook Pro is received at the repair center until it is returned to you.
After it has been serviced, your MacBook Pro will be returned to you by mail.

Lightroom problem!!! Can someone help please???

Hi All,
Just bought a new computer 2 wks ago & installed Lightroom 3.0. I've used it only 3 times & when I went to open it to edit today I get the message "Opening Catalog:Img 2136_cr2.Ircat" then a window pops up saying that a problem caused the program to stop working. windows will close the program & notify you if a solution is availble." Can anyone help me with this. I'm new to LR . This is very discouraging ...maybe should just use PScs5 instead.
Any information would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks kimkl

First, I've not had any similar problems, which I know doesn't help you. But I think this isn't a chronic LR problem. Given that file name, I think you must have, at some point, exported a catalog (File / Export as Catalog on a PC). How that got set as your default catalog I'm not sure.
Anyway, try this:
Use your computer's search function to find the file in question. Delete it. Delete any other files in the same folder, EXCEPT for any image files, of course.
Now restart LR. It will come up with a message that says it can't find the catalog, and give you a choice of creating a new one, or selecting an existing one. If you really have only opened LR 3 times, and haven't done much editing, I'd suggest creating a new one. Otherwise, find the correct catalog file and choose it.
Where is the "correct" catalog? It should be in a folder named Lightroom, normally located in the folder where your images are.
Have you backed up your catalog when exiting LR? If so, you could follow the advice above, but choose one of the backup .lrcat files.
If worse comes to worse, find and delete ALL files that end in .lrcat and other files that are with them, then restart LR, and select the option to create a new catalog. Be sure to select the option, if it's presented, to always use that catalog when starting LR.
This tutorial isn't exactly about this problem, but it will show you where the catalog files are located and how the dialogs I reference are set up:
http://thelightroomlab.com/2009/05/how-to-get-your-lightroom-catalog-onto-an-external-hard -drive/
Let us know if this helps.

Powerbook G4 and Leopard Problems

I've had Leopard for over a month on my Powerbook G4. I went so far as to make a post here saying how smoothly the install went and that all was well. I spoke too soon. Yes, I rather like many things about Leopard and most things work. But little problems keep cropping up. I would guess that Apple did MUCH more testing with newer Intel machines before releasing Leopard, and much less with legacy machines like mine. Makes sense to put their resources where their new computers are.
Just tonight I found that iDVD does not work. It appears to load and I can create a new project, but nothing works beyond that.
Final Cut Pro works in almost all ways, thankfully, but Log and Capture will not work with HDV devices. Works fine with DV.
Leopard is very erratic about recognizing older Windows computers on my small office network. Does work perfectly with other Macs on 10.4 or later.
Before installing Leopard, I did backup all my data, of course. Should have done a mirror image so I could have gone back to very stable 10.3.9, but I did not. Going back is intimidating, especially since I cannot seem to find many of the old updater downloads on the Apple website now.
Are others having problems with Leopard on G4 machines?

Thomas,
I installed Leopard on my PowerBookG4 about a month ago. So far, so good.
All of my Adobe apps work fine; Office 2004 works just fine; mail is ok. For a while, I thought the chronic Airport problems had gone away but I still have to work with some of my network express units from time to time. (Unplug & replug="work with"...then they reestablish their respective connections). Dropouts with iTunes (AirTunes) have not happened with Airport under Leopard. This is huge!
My printer drivers acted up at first but seemed to have mysteriously worked out the 'bugs' on their own.
If I had to criticize Leopard at all, I would say the only real disappointment so far is with repairing permissions. It takes far longer than it should. Finder is not as snappy as it was in Tiger...connecting to the .Mac servers is a little slow. (iDisk)
But all in all, I really like the new OS. I rebooted a few times to my Tiger clone (Thank you *_a brody_* for all your advice on cloning drives) when I had some issues with the printer drivers, but those issues are now gone.
iDVD works ok for me as well.
Stick with it...Leopard is good stuff!
-Mark

Playback and export problems

Greetings,
I've just done a Leopard clean install on my Quad G5 (2.5 gigs RAM). So far, I've reformat my HD, install Leopard, install all apps from original CD's, the work!
I use STP as my main editor for a radio show. Normally, I import the music (AIFF), the voice clips (BWF) and do my editing without any problems. Since I've switch to Leopard, STP cannot playback any file without having audio dropout or glitches. It sounds like STP is not able to playback the imported files. And, btw, I'm having no problem to play those files in Quicktime, Audacity or Garageband. Perfect playback, without a glitch!
And if I try to export the project to MP3 or WAV, I'm having another problem with the resulting file: dropout and glitches at playback.
Anyone seen that?
Regards
MD.
Message was edited by: Michel D.
Message was edited by: Michel D.

INCROYABLE! But true!
I finally solved all my problems with Logic, Soundtrack Pro, GarageBand and tutti quanti. It's like having a new machine!
The solution? How did I solved it? It's right there, from an anonymous Applecare worker:
http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=6020837#6020837
) Emptied system cache (library folder) and user account cache (username/libraryfolder).
2) Shut down and unplugged my Mac for 5 minutes.
3) Held down option + command + p + r keys to reset the system pram.
Like the good ol'time. A PRAM problem. Fiew!
The champagne is on me! We'll probably never know that guy's name, but many thanks to him. He's my hero tonight.

Audio Inputs no longer work after upgrade to 10.4.10

Anyone else having trouble with audio inputs after upgrading to 10.4.10? Here's my deal:
MacPro dual 2.66, 4GB RAM, running 10.4.10 as of this morning.
Upgraded to 10.4.10 today and the mic on my Plantronics USB headset quit working. 'Phones still work. Here's what I did:
1. Tried multiple audio input devices. None work.
2. Tried all USB ports, problem persists.
3. Tried the 1/8" audio input, problem persists.
4. Zapped PRAM, problem persists.
5. Called AppleCare and they had me do an Archive and Install on the system software, which installed 10.4.7 and the problem went away. Then, at their suggestion, I let Software Update reinstall 10.4.10 and the problem came back.
6. Rebooted the system from a 2nd internal drive running 10.4.9 and the problem went away.
Seems pretty clear to me that this issue is with the OS, yet Apple's support staff insists the problem is "with the data on my boot drive". Thing is, the data on the "problem" boot drive consists of exactly the same applications on the other drives, and only those applications. There ** is no ** data on the boot drive other than the OS and some applications. Yet the other drive I can boot from that runs 10.4.9 and doesn't cause audio input issues contains all sorts of junk.
So, to reiterate, I'm booting from a clean boot drive with nothing but OS 10.4.10 and some pro applications on it and the audio input won't work. I boot from into any other Mac OS on this drive or any other and all is well. Yet this problem is supposedly with my data?
Is anyone else out there seeing issues like this?

I used a UVC-compliant USB Logitech camera (the
Fusion) driverless
under OS X 10.4.9.
FWIW, none of these devices are actually driverless. They rely on drivers either supplied separately by some company (not necessarily the vendor of the product) or bundled into the OS. Usually, the bundled drivers are based on open standards like UVC mentioned in the link. Apple writes a lot of the bundled driver code itself but some of it comes from outside sources like LSI or Intel.
An unfortunate fact of life is that open standards are not always as well defined as they ideally should be. Another is that certain companies sometimes set their own standards that aren't quite compatible with open ones, sometimes to implement real or imagined improvements on an open standard, sometimes to gain a marketing advantage.
The good news is that the market usually -- eventually -- favors the open standard. The bad news is that it often takes some time for this to happen, leaving users -- particularly Mac users, who still represent a smaller market force than those using Windows -- without a solution for an uncomfortably long period of time.
Your best or only recourse for now may be to downgrade to 10.4.9 until this gets resolved, but you should also take into account that not all users are having these problems so it may be something other than the update itself that is causing the problem. I just video chatted with a colleague using an Intel Mac mini who is having no problems whatsoever -- we are both puzzled why he is unaffected while others are.
Sorry this couldn't be of more help.

Hard disk not recognised - will not boot from cd & No FW Target Disk mode

hi,
some help would be greatly appreciated.
Some time ago i was switching internal hard drives around and wound up with a kernel panic of some sort (see my previous posts).
following on from this I have tried FW target disk mode with no success, and it will not boot from a retail Tiger install disc (this machine has tiger installed (i think!). I can't force a boot from the optical drive and i also can't even force it to eject the disc inside to try another install DVD/CD (I have panther discs lying around also).
when i start up with the c key nothing happens, but when i start up with the alt/option key i get a closed padlock symbol, password entry field and a "right facing arrow" button.
anyone got any clues with this? i'm guessing it could either and/or be an internal hard drive ribbon failure (i have swapped internal HDs multiple times in this machine, which can't be good for it) or the familiar PRAM problem (although why would it not boot from an install DVD if this was the case?). I have changed the power supply unit in the past due to having a power cable snap off inside the original one - damage to PRAM caused by this?
help would be muchly appreciated!
Jesse

Hi, Jesse. Remove the hard drive and its cable, then see whether you can start up from a CD or DVD. If that works, replace your hard drive cable.

Windows keyboard -- Command key not recognized at startup

I know the Command key maps to the Windows key on Windows keyboards. But it only seems to work once the Mac has started up. In other words, it can't be used to issue special startup commands, such as to zap PRAM.
Does anyone out there successfully use the Windows key as the Command-key at startup?
Background:
My brother is a switcher with a Mac mini with a Windows keyboard. He has a startup problem that has been diagnosed as a potential PRAM problem. But he couldn't zap his PRAM. In fact he hasn't been able to do any startup functions that require the Command key. He uses the Windows key as command key during normal operation, but it isn't recognized at startup. He tried many times, and I'm certain he was holding the keys down at the correct time. Afterward he borrowed a Mac keyboard, and was able to zap the PRAM with it with no problems.
Do all Windows keyboards have this problem?
mini Mac OS X (10.4.6) 1 GB RAM

Yes, using various keyboards including generic Dell models, a Logitech, and an early IBM USB device. There is a possibility though with some keyboards - perhaps those with a number of extra function keys - that MacOS doesn't recognize the keyboard and waits until it is told what the device is by the usual 'keyboard not recognized' dialog/assistant. In those instances I would imagine the keyboard would fail at modifying boot options because in effect the system would have to be booted fully and go through that recognition sequence first!

InDesign 5.5 on Mac OSX 10.8.2 crashes - XML-related?

Hi all,
One of our compositors has had repeated problems with InDesign CS 5.5 crashing. Our workflow generally entails importing well-formed XML for book designs, and it usually works fine. On occasion, this one compositor has experienced frequent crashes, by which I mean InDesign closes and generates an error (I don' t know if this forum permits attachments, I have a long problem report file I could upload). Once this problem starts with a given file or set of files, it's almost impossible for him to work on them for more than a minute or two without InDesign completely bombing out (it doesn't hang, it disappears instantly). We've subsequently tested these files on other systems with different OS versions, but the same version of InDesign and the crash occurs there as well. So it seems that once the problem starts, it's associated with the file itself, and not necessarily the specific system in started on.
We've tried saving these files as IDML and working on them in that form, but the same problem occurs. We've tried many things to resolve this (new system, new OS, reinstall CS), and we're at a complete loss for how to finally fix it (though I just bought some paid support incidents with Adobe, so I guess we'll turn there next). I was hoping that someone in this forum may have experienced and resolved this sort of issue before and can shed some light on it.
Any help will be very appreciated.
Greg

Hi, I'm the "compositor" ("desktop publisher") mentioned above as having the chronic crashing problem. Since our production department of nine InDesign users has not yet upgraded from 5.5, we don't get official tech support, but we hope to find some answers to our questions here.
If the "bad link" suggested above in relation to "AGM" appearing in the first lines of the problem report is referring to links between text frames or to placed images, that's an area that's too highly controlled and routinely checked too often to be suspect. The crashing problem has been too persistent for too long (over a year) to have been triggered by something as relatively detectable and easily fixed as that. (Perhaps you're referring to some other kind of link?)
When a crash happens, it seems to occur spontaneously (seemingly "out of the blue") when in the middle of working on a job -- since we publish books, usually in the middle of a "chapter file," and (here would seem to be a clue) only in a file into which text that has been converted to "clean XML" has been imported. No problem with any other kinds of text imports -- but XML is what we use.
What happens is the sudden appearance of the "spinning beach ball," which can last for quite a few seconds at first, but there is no way out, and no going back -- inevitably the job disappears from the screen, the program crashes, and the "problem report" appears on the screen, giving you the choice of clicking on "reinstall" (automatically sending the report to Adobe) and "restore" the file to the screen; or "OK," which closes the report and requires you to open InDesign again manually. I usually end up restoring, to save lost time, but the more I reopen the program, however I do it, the more frequently the crash happens again. At first it might take a relatively "complex" procedure (e.g., moving a text or art frame from one page to another, or just navigating from one page to another) to cause the crash. But the more times it happens, and with increasing frequency, the less it takes to do it (e.g., cutting and pasting, or deleting), until finally just opening the program precipitates another crash, by which point it's impossible to get anything done.
If you regard it as a kind of "grand mal seizure" or "convulsion," you could compare the initial signs of a crash about to happen -- e.g., a bar of color overlaid on a running head at the top of a page, to indicate its being "tracked," will suddenly extend off the page and to the edge of the screen, and presumably beyond -- to the "aura" or feeling of impending doom experienced by a victim before being seized by a convulsion. That's a fairly invariable visual foreshadowing of a long series of ever more frequent crashes that can then be counted on to continue happening throughout the file structure of an entire book.
Much theorizing has gone on about the root cause of this incredible waste of production time, but no one as yet has been able to attribute it to anything that can be "fixed." Instead, the crashes come and go at will -- sometimes lying dormant, often returning with a vengeance, and lingering perniciously until a book finally gets produced, at a cost of several times the amount of production time that it ordinarily ought to take.
Does this sound like some kind of "viral" behavior? At this point that's my best guess.
Thanks,
William
(CUP_DTP)

To buy or not to buy now......

I need to buy a new laptop since my sons is on it last leg. I was trying to hold off til Sept when they announce the new models????? I think! After reading the posts I'm unsure of buying now since there still seem to be so many unresolved issues. I know that things inly get better and cheaper buut the need is here! Let me know how your experience has been and any thought that you have. Thanks for your help! Jim

No doubt other MacBook Pro owners will contribute their opinions, but I'd like to set a bit of perspective for you. These forums are intended for people to come here and post their problems, so by nature what you're going to see will indeed be problems. The many thousands of MBP owners who are having no troubles have little reason to post to a technical support bulletin board, so just reading here will give you a skewed perspective on the issues. Quoting another regular contributor to the Discussions, "Trying to judge Macs by this forum is like trying to judge the health of a community by looking at the hospital ER".
There can be problems with any system and yours could fail at some point. The strong likelihood, though, is that you'll have no problems with your system whatsoever, particularly if you take care to give it a proper environment - low static, high quality power protection (no $15 hardware store special surge protectors), etc. - power problems are the number one cause of chronic computer problems. I've owned at least eleven Macs since Macs first appeared, and have only had a hardware problem with one (a bad hard drive in a Mac SE more years ago than I care to admit).
As to future revisions, there's no guarantee that there will be any revisions to the MacBook Pro in September. There have been rumors, but most rumors are found to be false.
So make your decision based on what's available, not what might appear at some point in the future. If you need a new system now, get one of the current MacBook Pros. The odds are that it will give you no problems at all.

Spyware???

one of the reasons im considering switching to mac is due to my current systems spyware infestation...will the imac be vulnerable to the same malware???
thanks,
Justin

Hello, Lucifuge.
No doubt other Mac owners will contribute their opinions, but I'd like to set a bit of perspective for you. These forums are intended for people to come here and post their problems, so by nature what you're going to see will indeed be problems. The many thousands of iMac owners who are having no troubles have little reason to post to a technical support bulletin board, so just reading here will give you a skewed perspective on the issues. Quoting another regular contributor to the Discussions, "Trying to judge Macs by this forum is like trying to judge the health of a community by looking at the hospital ER".
There can be problems with any system and yours could fail at some point. The strong likelihood, though, is that you'll have no problems with your system whatsoever, particularly if you take care to give it a proper environment - low static, high quality power protection (no $15 hardware store special surge protectors), etc. - power problems are the number one cause of chronic computer problems. I've owned at least eleven Macs over the years, and have only had a hardware problem with one (a bad hard drive in a Mac SE more years ago than I care to admit).
As to reasons to switch, here are a few (all of which come standard with any Mac):
Mac OS X
iMovie
iPhoto
iDVD
iWeb
GarageBand
Automator
AppleScript
No extant viruses or worms, and only a couple of trojans
No spyware

Chronic PRAM problem

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for