Do I need an Apple keyboard to boot from CD?

Hello all,
I just got a PowerMac G3 (B&W Rev. 2) from my friend and was trying to install Tiger on it. However, whenever I try to boot from the CD drive (not the original one though..) the computer simply boots into Panther (10.3.9.. which actually now gives a kernel panic because I kinda screwed it up with XPostFacto so I can't boot into Panther too) without even trying to boot from the CD drive even though I press the C key. At first I thought it might be the CD drive, but I can't even boot into open firmware by pressing the Cmd + Opt + O + F keys on my windows keyboard. It's a wireless USB keyboard (some generic brand.. BenQ or something, I'm not aware if it's mac compatible or not) and the light on the USB controller only turns on after a couple of seconds after I start the mac.
So I was wondering... do I need to get a Apple USB non-wireless keyboard or something in order to boot from the CD drive so that I can install Tiger or is it just the computer (perhaps the CD Drive is the culprit)?

Hi Tom,
Thanks for the prompt reply. I really appreciate it. You're right, OS X does not recognize the wireless keyboard as apparently they are only loaded after OS X boots. I tried a little experiment with my MBP only to find that the wireless keyboard is only recognized after OS X boots completely. So it is unlikely that the boot ROM on the G3 would have the drivers to accommodate a wireless keyboard. The DVD probably doesn't even have the drivers anyway.
I'll try the CmdOption+ShiftDel combo with a proper apple usb keyboard and see if that works. I'm doubtful I'll be able to boot off the CD/DVD drive so I guess I'll have to use an external USB drive? It'll probably be slow but I guess that'll be the only way.
Thanks again for all your help!
Rishikesh

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Need an apple keyboard ?

Hey guys
Do you need the apple keyboard to work with Logic or can I use a regular microsoft keyboard ?
Also can you right click in logic ? because I also want to use my regular mouse...
I dont feel like dishing out 130 $ for a new apple keyboard and mouse....

jonnyboyman wrote:
Hey guys
Do you need the apple keyboard to work with Logic or can I use a regular microsoft keyboard ?
A regular MS keyboard will work but better yet is something like the inexpensive Macally iKeySlim. I use the Macally in combination with a Logitech "Trackman" + a USB switcher for both the Mac & the PC.
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Anyone know of a fix for this?
Thanks!

I tried putting in the Leopard disk and running setup.exe and that went through the motions of installing all of the drivers, but after I restarted the windows machine it still doesn't recognize my keyboard. This may be a system wide issue, because when I work in Windows it also tells me that I do not have a camera installed for video chat. At first I thought this was just part of the price I had to pay to have a Mac and use windows on it, but now I'm thinking that my drivers were not installed properly because I know a camera is installed internally (obviously - its a less than one year old iMac all-in-one).
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Hello,
The issue is this,
I have a Mac Mini G4 (M9687LL/A) and I am "trying" to install 10.5 on to a external firewire drive. The Drive is Acomdata 160GB Firewire dirve with a Partition Type of Apple Partition Map and is formated in Mac OS Extended (Journaled) So I boot off the Leopard install DVD and I install it to the firewire drive and all goes well. Then when I try to boot from this drive it will not boot off the FWHD. When I restart the mac and hold the option key to get the boot menu, I do not see the Firewire drive only the internal drive? So if someone can help me on this or is having the same issue let me know. Thanks

Welcome to Apple Discussions!
Unfortunately, Acomdata's record on the matter isn't quite clean*:
http://www.macmaps.com/firewirebug2.html
My recommendation, swap out the hard drive case and put another one in its place around the hard drive that is known to be compatible. The only two companies I know of are http://www.macsales.com/ and http://www.cooldrives.com/
There may be others you can write to on the above FAQ*. The problem is not all Firewire nor USB drives are bootable.
Another thing you may be running into is that if you want to use the keyboard to startup from an external drive, you may need an Apple keyboard to be certain the C or Option keys work. Option key should work if you have the right keyboard:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=106178
Finally, Time Machine is not a bootable backup, but does backup everything. Currently only Carbon Copy Cloner, and Apple's Disk Utility offer bootable backups of Leopard.
- * Links to my pages may give me compensation.

Booting from CD w/BT mouse and KB.

I am not sure if this is possible so I wanted some clarification on this, but I wanted to boot from my OS X CD to Verify and Repair Disk, but I only have my BT mouse and keyboard; I do not have a USB mouse and keyboard laying around. So if anyone knows if 10.4.6 will allow me to use my BT combo once booted from OS CD, please reply. I hate to carry a spare USB keyboard and mouse as it seems redundant to me and Apple Computers are far, far from any sign of redundancy, but if I have to, I guess I will have to. Also, while on the subject of Apple Bluetooth mouse, wouldn't it be nice, to have it incorporate a "touch-sensitive" up-down scroll feature built right into the shell of the mouse, not a scroll ball like that on the Mighty Mouse, because I will be honest, I hate that scroll ball, I love the design and elegance of the Bluetooth mouse shell, it is awesome. Although, the BT mouse would be cool to incorporate "touch-sensitive" right click like that on the Mighty Mouse, but not the scroll ball, it is not visually appealing. So, getting back to main point of this post, if we can use the BT mouse and keyboard after booting from OS CD please let me know, thanks in advance.

Hi, Omar and Chris!
I respectfully disagree.
My answer is a definitive "Maybe."
(1) I just tested, performing both a C-boot (to my Install disc) and an Option-boot into the Startup Manager to confirm what I'd recalled from experience. Yes, in both cases, my Apple Wireless keyboard worked. No, in both cases, my Apple Wireless mouse did not — which potentially makes your objectives quite difficult to achieve. [1] I have an eMac 1.42 that I ordered with CTO Bluetooth (internal module, K/M). My software and firmware are current — and my Apple wireless keyboard and mouse work flawlessly.
This result is consistent with what Apple's KnowledgeBase articles on this subject predict:
(a) Apple Wireless Keyboard and Mouse FAQs says: "Question 6: Can I use the Apple Wireless Keyboard to start up from CD, start up into Open Firmware, or start up in Safe Mode?
Answer: If your computer has built-in Bluetooth or the D-Link DBT-120 (Rev B2 or later) adapter, you can use the Apple Wireless Keyboard and Mouse to initiate most startup commands. See 'Mac OS X: Keyboard Shortcuts'.
Pressing the eject key as the computer starts up does not eject a disc from the disc drive the way a wired keyboard does. To eject a disc at startup, hold down the mouse button.
Note: In Mac OS X 10.4.2 or earlier, you can use a wireless keyboard to start up in Single-User mode or in Safe Boot mode, they will not work once the computer is started up in these modes. To continue in Single-User mode or in Safe Boot mode, use a wired keyboard and mouse. Download and install the Mac OS X 10.4.3 Update or later to be able to use an Apple Wireless Keyboard in single-user mode.  
If you find that you are unable to use key commands at startup, make sure you have installed the latest Bluetooth firmware update, and that you are using a supported Bluetooth adapter. See document 86493, 'Apple Wireless Keyboard and Mouse: About the Bluetooth Firmware Update'." I agree with this — as far as it goes. Note that the functionality of the wireless mouse under these special circumstances isn't mentioned. Also, please read Article 301282:Apple Wireless Mouse and Keyboard — Update firmware before upgrading to Mac OS X 10.4 in addition to #86493.
(b) About the Mac OS X 10.4.3 Update (Delta) notes that, among the "Other" improvements it implemented, "Allows Apple Wireless Keyboards to work in single-user mode."
In summary, my conclusion is that your Apple Wireless keyboard should work — provided, as Chris noted, that you have an internal Bluetooth module or a supported D-Link DBT-120, Rev. B2, B3, or B4 adapter and have installed Bluetooth Firmware Updater 1.2 [11/23/04], Bluetooth Software 1.5 [02/05/04], and the Wireless Keyboard/Mouse Firmware Update 1.1 [03/23/04]. If you're not sure, check in System Profiler »» Hardware »» Bluetooth. Depending on the age of your iMac G5, I'd expect to see Software Version 1.7.0f18 and Firmware version 2.XXXX or 3.XXXX reported if you're current.
(2) I can't urge too strongly that you must have a "backup" wired mouse handy, anyway. Although many of us didn't realize this when we first "went Bluetooth," KnowledgeBase articles Bluetooth: How to Set Up Your Apple Wireless Keyboard and Bluetooth: How to Set Up Your Apple Wireless Mouse say this clearly. Quoting from the latter, "Use a Wired USB Keyboard and Mouse During Setup
 During the setup process, you'll need to use a USB mouse before the Apple Wireless Mouse can work. Keep a USB mouse connected to the computer until you've completed setting up the Apple Wireless Mouse. After setup is complete, you can disconnect the USB mouse."In my experience, this will be necessary when for some reason (e.g., changing batteries), you must disconnect then re-connect your Bluetooth-enabled mouse. Although Article 86467 says something similar for your Apple Wireless keyboard, I haven't needed to use a wired keyboard in ~9 months.
Btw, from participating in numerous discussions in this forum, I'd be remiss if I didn't share that a number of users have had something less than the success with ongoing access to their Bluetooth-enabled keyboard that I've summarized above. (Yes, this is irony.)
HTH!
Warm regards,
Dean
[1] You may be interested to note that, under "normal" circumstances, you can manipulate most menu options using keyboard alone — if you have enabled "full keyboard navigation" and are aware of the necessary commands. I didn't test this in the "test runs" mentioned above, however.
[2] You may be able to "inspect" the functionality of your wireless keyboard to perform "pre-boot" startup keyboard shortcuts. Look in your system.log(s) with Console, focusing on a boot sequence (you can match the time stamps to a restart or start-up). The early logged entries involving "CSRHIDTransitionDriver" reflect temporal Bluetooth keyboard function (e.g., entering "C" immediately following the chime) while a startup volume is being sought.
I edited this message... But probably not enough!
[2,112 ⊥ 3,525]

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Could be the heart of the problem from the start. And using a friend's disk would be a EULA violation unless that system isn't currently installed on any of his computers.
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Do I need an Apple keyboard to boot from CD?

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