Upgraded 10.3.x to 10.3.9 got spinning wheel of Death

Question

I have been getting messages to upgrade my original 10.3.something to 10.3.9 via the internet at the apple site. I finally did so but have now lost my desktop Icons and have a colored wheel of death spinning constantly. I can access programs via the toolbar but cannot access my hard drive etc. What happened? It almost seems the install was incomplete. Any help is greatly appreciated. Bo

Answer 1

Welcome To  Discussions jsmithbo!
Do you know how much free Hard Drive space, was available before you installed the update?
Insufficient available space, can cause performance issues, system corruption, and possible loss of data.
Depending on Mac system usage habits, it is a general recommendation, to keep 10% to as much as 20%, of the Total capacity, available at all times.
When in Disk Utility for your Macintosh HD, the Capacity:, Available:, and Used, should be displayed at the bottom of the screen.
THESE ARE THE STEPS FOR USING DISK UTILITY TO REPAIR YOUR HD, as Axl suggested.
1.Insert the System Install disk, Mac OS X CD-ROM disk, or Restore DVD disk, then restart the computer while holding the C key. Use the System disk, of the OS, that is currently installed.
2.Once started up from CD or DVD, on the Menubar at the top of the screen, choose Disk Utility from the Installer contextual menu.
Important: Do not click Continue in the first screen of the Installer. If you do, you must restart from disc to access Disk Utility.
3.Click the First Aid tab.
4.Click the disclosure triangle to the left of the hard drive icon to display the names of your hard disk volumes and partitions.
5.Select your Mac OS X volume, if necessary.
6.Click Repair. If DU reports errors it has fixed, re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported.
7.Repeat steps 5 & 6, but select the Hard Drive this time. It's usually the first listed with the manufacturer's model number. Make note of the S.M.A.R.T. status.
8.When finished, select Quit Disk Utility from the Installer menu.
9.Select Quit Installer from the Installer menu.
10.In the resulting pop-up window, choose restart.
11.After the computer has restarted, you can eject the CD.
ali b