Thread
Dead PRAM and Mouse Speed Setting
I just cleaned out my Classic and installed a fresh copy of System 6.0.8L (or whatever the Classic-only version is). I've found that a Classic is bearable as long as you don't put 7 on it.
Anyways, the main problem is the dead PRAM abttery. Is there a way to automatically restore my Control Panel settings (Fastest mouse speed, 256k Disk Cache, Clink-Clank, etc) upon boot-up?
Anyways, the main problem is the dead PRAM abttery. Is there a way to automatically restore my Control Panel settings (Fastest mouse speed, 256k Disk Cache, Clink-Clank, etc) upon boot-up?
One simple way... buy a new PRAM battery 
I guess I'll pop the good PRAM battery out of my Centris 650...it has soft power so it maintains its settings if plugged in.
Some mud dobbers got into one of the screw holes and I can't seem to get the last screw out > :-( That's why I keep my Macs in my room now and not in the garage!
Some mud dobbers got into one of the screw holes and I can't seem to get the last screw out > :-( That's why I keep my Macs in my room now and not in the garage!
Unfortunately, when a PRAM battery goes bad, the Mac will lose most of its settings for the Control Panel. You will still have to restore the settings by hand. The date and time, mouse speed and such are no big deal, but other settings for memory management are lost and have to be reset by hand. So is life.
73s 8)
73s 8)
Yeah, I was hoping for some sort of modification... can ResEdit be used to alter the default settings?
Perhaps, but it'd be MUCH simpler to just get a new battery
Also, did you get that last screw out?
Except the fact that it's a CRT AIO and unlike the earlier Compacts, the battery is on the logic board, so you've got to face Mr CRT if you are to replace the battery... A naked Compact is just one of those things I find rather terrifying and would not want to have to contend with...Perhaps, but it'd be MUCH simpler to just get a new battery
On the Classic, all you have to do is pop off the back, disconnect a few cables that aren't near the CRT, and the logic board just slides out. You can take it miles away from Mr. CRT to replace the battery if you wantExcept the fact that it's a CRT AIO and unlike the earlier Compacts, the battery is on the logic board, so you've got to face Mr CRT if you are to replace the battery... A naked Compact is just one of those things I find rather terrifying and would not want to have to contend with...Perhaps, but it'd be MUCH simpler to just get a new battery
It would still scare me to take the back off a Compact and even see that thing at all though - I'm not ready to die yet!
There are shareware/freeware apps out there for managing PRAM settings as well. You can use one to reset them to your desired values when you start up. Slightly annoying, but better than having to go into the control panel. On my list of things to write is a simple INIT that will set the various values and the date to something reasonable - to avoid having to worry about the batteries on my non-frontline machines.
That would be brilliant - I'm sure most of us here have this issue. Is there any way of doing the screen brightness/contrast on PowerBooks that way, or can they only be changed using the buttons on the machine?
At least if you run one of the newer OSes, 7.5 up I think, the screen resolution and colour depth seems to revert to what you set when it starts up, as opposed to reverting back to B&W when the battery is dead.
I don't suppose you know how to make a Network Time control panel for 68ks (was it not until OS9 that this was introduced?) that syncs the clock when you start the machine up? I guess that would be difficult though. A way to get rid of that annoying dialog on OS9 that pops up when the desktop loads telling your clock is wrong would be nice though...
Wow, I'm wayyy younger then you and I just completely removed the CRT in my Classic today, very carefully of course.It would still scare me to take the back off a Compact and even see that thing at all though - I'm not ready to die yet!
I guess I'm easily scared then! :I I don't know, I just find the idea of them really terrifying - I could certainly never touch one, as even if I had done whatever it is you're supposed to do to discharge them I would never be sure enough that it was completely OK and I wasn't going to get zapped. Also I wouldn't go near it in a working Mac anyway, as I think they are very easily broken - don't they implode and get you that way instead, if you knock the end off or something like that?Having already been inside little compacts at your age, I can see you taking on those 21" Apple Studio CRTs once you're my age
*shudders at the thought of his hand shaking a tiny amount, coming into contact with the Red Wire Of Doom, and going up in a flash of purple lightning* Just be careful everyone - we don't want any fallen soldiers now
The CRT"S are very strong, people have thrown rocks at them without them so much as cracking. 21" color CRT's, well, they're outta my range
Btw, I don't think CRT's "Get You"
Btw, I don't think CRT's "Get You"
If you slid the case of the Classic and looked at the internals, I don't think that you would be that intimidated after a while. You're not going anywhere near the CRT or the "Red Wire of Doom". I do remember being nervous the first time I cracked open my SE/30 but I had(!) to install the ethernet card. I just worked very slowly... and I'm still here today 
Consider this a battery liberation mission - you must retrieve the battery and replace it.
Consider this a battery liberation mission - you must retrieve the battery and replace it.
Bah, I got zapped by my Classic II's CRT a while back. It's surprsing, but not as bad as I thought.
I thought the other end ie not the glass end is very delicate though? Maybe knocking it off just kills the screen rather than making it implode though, I don't know.
I like your way of putting it!If you slid the case of the Classic and looked at the internals, I don't think that you would be that intimidated after a while. You're not going anywhere near the CRT or the "Red Wire of Doom". I do remember being nervous the first time I cracked open my SE/30 but I had(!) to install the ethernet card. I just worked very slowly... and I'm still here today
Consider this a battery liberation mission - you must retrieve the battery and replace it.
I'd still be scared of my hand slipping on to the dangerous bit, or something like that, though. Luckily I don't have a Classic, SE/30 etc so I don't have to worry about such things I probably would look into getting the full 4 MB in my Plus (currently has 2.5 MB) if I could open it though - 1 MB simms seem very plentiful these days and so it would be tempting, though it could be that you need a special rare type for them, I don't know. I think you need special screwdrivers and everything though, so I won't be trying it any time soon regardless! 4 MB does seem a great amount for such an old machine, especially when you consider that the minimum spec for Windows 95 all those years later was only 4 MB.Wow :O Did it hurt a lot? Have you opened it up since?
I've drawn ARCS from my 15" Apple MultiScan's red wire before! I'm not afraid of CRTs!
If I could just get that stubborn screw out...
If I could just get that stubborn screw out...
I remember when that happened to MF17, he was on IRC and he started "Screaming" lol, it was funny.
That's not very nice, he could have died then!
Those little compacts sure look sweet but they have a vicious bite if you get on the wrong side of them...
Your such a baby :
Bah, I was fine. It sucks to get stung by a compact CRT, but it's not horribly bad. My arm tingled for about an hour afterwardsThat's not very nice, he could have died then!
discharge the CRT
http://www.biwa.ne.jp/~shamada/fullmac/repairEng.html
You can do that with a BIG screwdriver and attach a big alligator clip to the pole of the screwdrive. If you hear a LOUD CRACK, it's that you have discharged the CRT, do it 3x to make sure you have discharged the CRT. after that, the only thing you have to worry about is knocking the back of the CRT killing the tube
http://www.biwa.ne.jp/~shamada/fullmac/repairEng.html
You can do that with a BIG screwdriver and attach a big alligator clip to the pole of the screwdrive. If you hear a LOUD CRACK, it's that you have discharged the CRT, do it 3x to make sure you have discharged the CRT. after that, the only thing you have to worry about is knocking the back of the CRT killing the tube
Macster,
I'd be more afraid of breaking the CRT than getting jolted. Most of the harmfull energy is disspated when you turn the computer off. If you let it sit a few minutes before unplugging power, it will be safe enough to work around without getting shocked. Another thing you could do is turn the brightness/contrast setting up all the way and unplugg the Mac. This will force all the electricity in the tube to drain off.
Patrickool93, do you remember what was said by MF17 when he was zapped? [
)] ]'>
73s 8)
I'd be more afraid of breaking the CRT than getting jolted. Most of the harmfull energy is disspated when you turn the computer off. If you let it sit a few minutes before unplugging power, it will be safe enough to work around without getting shocked. Another thing you could do is turn the brightness/contrast setting up all the way and unplugg the Mac. This will force all the electricity in the tube to drain off.
Patrickool93, do you remember what was said by MF17 when he was zapped? [
)] ]'>73s 8)
iMac600 grips anode cap and switches power on
Seriously, i've heard it's not as bad as first thought, but it can be, depending on the type of CRT.
Once I shoved a metal screwdriver in to my CRT just after it had been switched off to reconnect one of the ADB cables (ADB hub built in). Walking the thin line between life and death, let's say I successfully made the reconnection but the monitor died soon after from Analog Board failure.
Seriously, i've heard it's not as bad as first thought, but it can be, depending on the type of CRT.
Once I shoved a metal screwdriver in to my CRT just after it had been switched off to reconnect one of the ADB cables (ADB hub built in). Walking the thin line between life and death, let's say I successfully made the reconnection but the monitor died soon after from Analog Board failure.
I wuldn't think the shock from a Compact Mac's CRT would be that bad; the flyback transformer "only" supplies 15kV or so, compared to 30kV or more for a 15" color monitor.
I use insulated pliers to pull out anode caps. I've never seen anyone else use them, they're sort of my trademark when I do CRT work.
The PRAM battery on a Classic is easy to access. If you want a challenge try an SE.
The PRAM battery on a Classic is easy to access. If you want a challenge try an SE.
Knocking the back off a CRT won't make it implode, but it will render it dead. A friend of mine who works in an electronics store has the job of knocking the back off the CRT's of old TVs before they get sent to the dump, so they won't implode in transit. He has to deal with CRTs which are normally 20" and above in size!
Pete Resnick has written such a program, called Network Time. It is compatible with System 6.0.5 and later, through System 7.
From the author:
Download it here: http://hyperarchive.lcs.mit.edu/HyperArchive/Archive/comm/inet/network-time-201.hqx
Soldiers! This is an army, innit? You know. Danger. Risk. Bitey things. The remedy is to approach danger knowingly.
First know that the totally undeserved reputation of Classic monochrome AIO Compacts as marauders, killers and tax evaders is a furphy. If you crank up the brightness while the Mac is operating, and pull out the mains plug without turning the Mac off, the charge on the CRT goes pfffft! instantly. If you have an SE FDHD or later it has bleeder circuitry to achieve the same purpose after switchoff. This may not be working, however, so even leaving the Mac switched off overnight, but still plugged into the mains, will dissipate much of the charge on the CRT.
The constant injunctions about the CRT in the Service Source manuals are Apple's lawyer-talk, to protect not you, not the CRT, but Apple. When tomlee59 puts up his sticky about the amount of charge and the ways in which you can avoid being its groundpath from the CRT, you will be able to treat the compact Macs with knowledgeable respect, not fear.
You can believe that tomlee59 knows what he writes about, by practice and profession.
de
First know that the totally undeserved reputation of Classic monochrome AIO Compacts as marauders, killers and tax evaders is a furphy. If you crank up the brightness while the Mac is operating, and pull out the mains plug without turning the Mac off, the charge on the CRT goes pfffft! instantly. If you have an SE FDHD or later it has bleeder circuitry to achieve the same purpose after switchoff. This may not be working, however, so even leaving the Mac switched off overnight, but still plugged into the mains, will dissipate much of the charge on the CRT.
The constant injunctions about the CRT in the Service Source manuals are Apple's lawyer-talk, to protect not you, not the CRT, but Apple. When tomlee59 puts up his sticky about the amount of charge and the ways in which you can avoid being its groundpath from the CRT, you will be able to treat the compact Macs with knowledgeable respect, not fear.
You can believe that tomlee59 knows what he writes about, by practice and profession.
de