2008 macbook crazy slow

Hi everybody,

So I have a old 2008 macbook that I use for travel and let family and friends use for whatever. So basically it's my backup that I don't worry about.

It's running extremely slow and shuts down safari all the time. Rainbow wheel regularly. I also think it's been used to stream movies/tv shows from questionable sources, but I'm not sure. The fan constantly runs on it.

So I'm wondering what I should do to help it run better as it's pretty annoying to use when I'm traveling. I'd just use my regular computer, but I cross the border a lot and I've had friends have to give passwords over to their computers. So I bring a computer where there is nothing on it even if they get onto it. Not that I have anything crazy, but they don't need to be looking at my personal documents. Or moving stuff and deleting stuff by accident.

Here are the details:
System: Leopard OS X 10.5.8
Intel Core 2 Duo
2.2 GHz
1 processor
L2 Cache: 4 MB
Memory: 1 GB
Bus Speed: 800 MHz

There aren't any personal files on it. My desktop is empty, my folders are empty, etc... So I'm not concerned about losing anything.

Would a erase and reinstall help? Something else?

I'm pretty computer stupid, so speak slowly and in simple terms!

Thanks for any help.

Would a erase and reinstall help? Something else?

Click to expand...

You can certainly try that to see if it will help. As long as you don't care about the data you have on the machine as it will be erased in the process. Just make sure you have your original Leopard DVD that came with the MacBook to use. Also, it might be a good idea to test out the optical drive in that computer before you start. With a machine that old, the optical drive may not be working right.

If erasing and reinstalling doesn't help, then I would suspect the hard drive is failing and probably needs to be changed out - especially if it's the original that came with the MacBook.

I do have the original install discs. I just did the standard verify/repair bit. There are SO many files on that computer. I guess random things that have been downloaded over the years.

So if I reinstall, it's not going to make it worse, right?

How do you test the optical drive? I know the drive on that computer acts up. It used to always sound as if I were loading a disc into it. You know, the clunk clunk sounds that macs make. It would sometimes do it nonstop. So I figured out that if I just left a disc in there, it never did that. So for the past year or so, there has been a damaged copy of "shark Tale" in there. haha. I sometimes accidentally eject it and find that it will take more than one try occasionally to get the drive to accept it again.

Okay, so it's possible that the computer is just shot? I'm not sure I want to invest in a new hard drive for a backup computer. Maybe. It is the original as well.

And just a note on the fan, it's not the quiet fan that is always on. It's the loud-747-about to take off fan.

Head to iFixit.com, look up the tear down for a fan or drive replacement for your MacBook there.
Once you get the keyboard off, take a can of air and clean the thing out.
Spray through the back of the vents and the whole inside including the fan.
Also in the slot of the optical drive and hit 2-3 quick bursts in different directions.
Put it back together.

Just did that to my wife's '07 MB yesterday.

Would suggest printing the directions out and taping the screws to the corresponding picture where they came out.

You're going to need a little bitty phillips screwdriver set which you can get from most electronics and even the Home Depot type stores - often called "precision" set.

Put in a DVD - does it play properly?
Can you boot the machine to the Leopard disc?

Yes, if the problem is due to the drive dying rather than just being full &/or heavily fragmented, wiping the drive and doing a clean install can sometimes be just enough to push it beyond the point of return.

A new drive can be had for $50 or less.