MacBook Issues & Solutions

MacBook Issues & Solutions
By Matt@Smalldog.com

MacBooks seem to have two common defects: the widely publicized “Random Shutdown Syndrome”, and a failure to boot accompanied by crazy noises from the optical drive. The Random Shutdown Syndrome is related to a poorly engineered heatsink, and Apple now offers service providers a re-engineered heatsink to fix the problem.

The other issue is related to improperly seated and/or defective Apple RAM. Immediately after pressing the power button, the status LED comes on and stays on, and the optical drive makes eject noises over and over. The screen never lights up and the LED never turns off. If you’ve just bought a MacBook and have this problem, check your RAM before going through the return process. Reseat each chip and try again. If it doesn’t help, remove a chip and try again to narrow the cause down.

Instructions for self-installation of RAM in MacBooks can be found here:


http://manuals.info.apple.com/en/MacBook_13inch_Memory_DIY.pdf

By Matt@Smalldog.com

Similar Posts

  • Pairing Your Apple Remote

    If you have 2-3 Macs with Apple Remotes in your house, then this is a great tip for you. When you go to…

  • De-authorize your iTunes Account Before Hardware Repair or Sale

    Pretty much everyone has downloaded media from the iTunes store, but not too many of us know just how iTunes keeps track of computer authorization. Every device on the internet has at least two unique identifiers: a MAC address and an IP address.

    MAC is an acronym for Media Access Control. Many believe that Mac, the abbreviation for Macintosh, should be written with capital letters – this is incorrect. Likewise, iPod – not iPOD or IPOD; iMac – not iMAC or IMAC; etc. Network interfaces have MAC addresses; Macintoshes can be called Macs.

    Since your MAC address is completely unique, it’s the ideal way for iTunes to know that you’re authorized to play purchased content on any given machines. Trouble is, your ethernet port is part of the main logic board, which requires replacement in some repairs. With a new main logic board comes a new MAC address, which confuses iTunes and some other, generally high-end, software.

    You’re allowed to authorize up to five computers at any one time to play your purchased content, but replacing your logic board changes the MAC address. If you didn’t de-authorize before repair, you’ve lost 20% of your available authorizations. I made this mistake a few years ago when I had to replace the logic board in a Mac Mini hooked up to my television, and when I sold my iBook. I also lost an authorization when my two-week-old PowerBook G4 flew off the roof of my car at highway speed. Thankfully, iTunes allows you to de-authorize all computers on your account once annually.

    I only have one Machine these days, a 17-inch MacBook Pro, so this hasn’t been a problem of late for me. It’s a common question asked our technical support team, and a good fix to file in your troubleshooting arsenal.

    The full details from Apple can be found here: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1420

  • The Ease of Boot Camp

    Just yesterday I got to use Boot Camp for the very first time. My mission was to install Windows along-side the already installed…

  • Backing Up Your Data

    By Todd@Smalldog.com In our internet and computer driven lives our entire livelihood could exists as a string of 1’s and 0’s on a…

  • Upgrading to a New Mac

    While perusing the Small Dog K&B archives I came across this article in which Don was wishing for a nice, simple and easy…