imac 233mhz cd-rom, on/off problems

[marategr]

i have a 1st gen biondi blue imac 233mhz (64k memory). i have updated the os to 8.6, including the firmware updates required. i have just purchased an upgrade to 9.2.2 (through 9.1.1), on my way to panther, which apple says will run on my machine. but... i have two problems. a) recenlty, my cd-rom has decided that all discs i place in it cannot be read, and offers me initialize or eject as the only options. this is one of those cheap, pop the tray open type of cd-rom drives. i have checked, and yes, the 2.0 firmware is indeed on there. anyone have ideas? problem b) many times, when i shut down, the computer shuts down, but the boot button remains green. in those instances, when i boot up my computer again, i hear the hard-drive whir, but nothing changes. when i shut down now, if the boot button remains green, i shut off the power source until the button goes dark, then flick the source back on. that ensures that my computer will actually boot the next time i want to use it. ??? i was hoping to max out the ram on this machine (256 is the max, no?) and use panther and squeeze more life out it. is this old imac a dead horse? help please, please, please help.

 

[marategr]

OOPS! One clarification: I am running 8.6, and intend to upgrade to 9.2.2 My fear is that the cd-rom drive will not accept those discs.

 

[Chamorro]

a) recenlty, my cd-rom has decided that all discs i place in it cannot be read, and offers me initialize or eject as the only options. this is one of those cheap, pop the tray open type of cd-rom drives. i have checked, and yes, the 2.0 firmware is indeed on there. anyone have ideas? b) many times, when i shut down, the computer shuts down, but the boot button remains green. in those instances, when i boot up my computer again, i hear the hard-drive whir, but nothing changes. when i shut down now, if the boot button remains green, i shut off the power source until the button goes dark, then flick the source back on. that ensures that my computer will actually boot the next time i want to use it. ??? i was hoping to max out the ram on this machine (256 is the max, no?) and use panther and squeeze more life out it. is this old imac a dead horse? help please, please, please help.

A) Can't say what the issue is, but it sounds like you'll need a new CD-ROM. MCE Tech. makes a CD/RW replacement drive..... otherwise you should be able to find a decent OEM replacement on eBay.

B) Sounds like your video/analog board is starting to go. More specifically, it's probably the fly-back transformer on the analog board. If you're handy w/ a soldering iron, you can replace the transformer. New boards run ~$125, a guy on eBay was selling some (working pulls) for $75. There are also a couple of sites that detail the replacement/repair procedure. I'll have to find the links later.

Max RAM is 512, don't let the "official" word fool you.

I just did the board swap and maxed out RAM, and upgraded to Panther recently. Was worth the money IMO. Good web, word proc., spreadsheet machine.

 

[marategr]

thank you very much.

i think it's time to let this little imac go and upgrade.