New update installed now mac wont start

Question

I installed new update and when the mac restarted all I get is the gray screen with the progress ball.I cant start in safe mode and when I start in single user mode I cant type any commands. It says something about no keyboard kernel dependency and eventdriver has no kernel dependency. I am not all that computer savy and I cant find my boot discs. I think I am screwed and need to buy new os discs.Any help would be great.

Answer 1

If you are having problems at this early a stage in the boot, having this happen after an update is probably coincidental since the OS software hasn't even started loading. Kernel panics are often hardware related, and I would say something happening at this stage is probably indicative of that rather than a software issue.
[I got a black screen telling me I had to reboot in many languages, what was it?|http://www.dslreports.com/faq/4970] Also has detailed description of what happens during a KP.
[Apple docs: What's a kernel panic? (Mac OS X)|http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=106227]
[Topic : kmosx: Kernel Panics? Don't panic too !|http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=121923]
[X-Lab: Resolving Kernel Panics|http://www.thexlab.com/faqs/kernelpanics.html]
[Tutorial: Avoiding and eliminating Kernel panics|http://www.macfixit.com/article.php?story=20060911080447777]
[Tutorial: An introduction to reading Mac OS X crash reports|http://www.macfixit.com/article.php?story=20060309075929717]
[12-Step Program to Isolate Freezes and/or Kernel Panics|http://macosg.com/group/viewtopic.php?t=800]
[Texas Mac Man's post on kernel panics|http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1723768&tstart=0]
I'd say you really, really need to find your original disc(s) that came with this computer. The disc contains tools that can help you with determining the problem and with your problem right now there is almost nothing you can do without them other than take it to a costly repair place. If you can't find your discs you can contact Apple Support and have them send you a new set at a nominal cost.
Of course, if this is under warranty I'd go to Apple first!
Incidentally, a lot of KPs at this stage may be related to bad RAM. Some people undertake the analysis and repairs themselves but that is up to you and requires you be able to run tests.
You should not use Leopard's tools to repair the drive on your other computer. Will the other computer even start up in Target Disk Mode to allow you to recover files?
[How to use FireWire target disk mode|http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=58583] includes description of hardware and software requirements.
[What to do if your Mac doesn't enter FireWire Target Disk Mode|http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=75414], also read about [Open Firmware Password Protection|http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/openfirmwarepassword.html] which can disable Target Disk Mode.