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I have a Powerbook G3 Wallstreet upgraded to OS 10.3.9. I first installed OS X on this system using XPostFacto. Everything seemed to work fine until I upgraded to Panther from Tiger using using a retail version of Panther. Going to 10.3, I can use the computer, but lost the ability to start up from CDs so I can't go back to the original system install disks or run programs like DiskWarrior, etc. I've tried repairing preferences in Disk Utilities and resetting PRAM and PMU, all with no luck. Can anyone suggest a possible solution to this. Thanks.

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A short, practical checklist for and anyone troubleshooting an older PowerBook that refuses to boot from optical media after a system change. Three focused areas cover most causes: media format and bootability, the optical drive and firmware/boot path, and alternative ways to boot or run utilities without relying on the internal drive.

Start with the media. Verify the disc is truly bootable by mounting it in the running system and inspecting its contents (look for an installer package or a System folder). Test the same disc on a second compatible Mac if possible. For burned copies, recreate the image with Disk Utility, choose a Mac-compatible image format, finalize the burn and use a low burn speed — commercial retail discs and burned media behave differently at firmware boot time.

Check the drive and firmware path from inside the working OS. Use System Profiler/System Information to confirm the drive is detected and model/connection look sane. Run the Apple Hardware Test for your model to rule out mechanical or laser failures. Try varied media types (manufactured DVD, CD-R, CD-RW) and a cleaned lens to spot an intermittent hardware issue. If the drive is recognized after boot but ignored by the firmware, the issue points at firmware/aliasing rather than simple media incompatibility.

If you cannot get the internal drive to boot, use alternatives: boot from an external FireWire drive or optical drive, or connect the PowerBook in Target Disk Mode and install or repair the internal volume from another Mac. These methods let you run DiskWarrior or reinstall without relying on the internal CD drive. As a last step, search Apple Support Downloads for any model-specific firmware updates and consider a drive replacement if diagnostics show failure. Back up data before any firmware change or hardware swap.

Member Avatar for groesi

Clarification: Repaired permissions, of course; not preferences.

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And 10.2 Jaguar, not Tiger. Too many felines and not enough zzz's.

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