Won't load to desktop

Question

Problem: Old power mac G4 won't boot to the desktop. By default it loads OS X. When it loads the apple and the spinning thing under the apple load. Then OS X begins to load with the status bar and message. Right after the message "waiting for network initialization" the desktop background and the cursor both appear, but no icons.
I have used disk utility and told it to boot up in OS 9.1 and it boots fine. Desktop icons show and everything.
I was told it could be a problem with the battery, refer to post: http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=4818372#4818372
If it were an issue with the battery, would OS 9.1 be able to load?
Could it be a problem with the computer recognizing OS X. or maybe an issue with the firmware? refer to: http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=86117
I am not entirely sure that it is a G4 PCI because it has a 450MHz processor.
Power Mac G4 (PCI ?) Mac OS X (10.3.9) also has mac os 9.1

Answer 1

The G4 PCI versions came in 350 & 400MHz versions. So it's not a PCI. Possibly an AGP. Look at the G4 spec pages. http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/powermac_g4/index-powermac-g4.html
Also look at : Power Mac G4: How to Differentiate Between Models
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=58418
Power Mac G4: How to Differentiate Between Models (Part 2)
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=42739
At startup, depress/hold the Option key. This will activate the Startup Manager. This will show you the available system startup options - OS 9, OS X, etc. Seems like it is set to startup from a network in OS X.
Once you determine what model Mac you have, boot up in OS 9 & go to the Apple System Profiler. Note the Boot ROM (firmware) version. Then check if your Mac requires a firmware (Boot ROM version) update. Mac OS X: Available firmware updates
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=86117 If an update is required, the update must be installed (using OS 9) BEFORE you install OS X.
 Cheers, Tom