My 1998 iMac G3 in Bondi blue finally booted after I swapped the PRAM battery last Tuesday.

I'd been convinced the logic board was fried from sitting in my damp garage for a decade, but the old timer at the computer recycling place in Spokane just shrugged and said, 'Kid, it's probably just the $4 battery on the motherboard.'

2 comments

2 Comments

matthewperry8d ago

That old timer at the recycling place knew his stuff. Did you have to clean any corrosion off the motherboard from the old battery leaking, or was it just a straight swap? I've heard those PRAM batteries can make a mess when they sit that long.

william9178d ago

You know, I always assumed a dead computer from that era was basically a lost cause. I'd see a machine not boot and immediately think it needed some crazy expensive part or a whole new board. But this kind of thing, a simple battery swap fixing a totally dead system, really shows how often the fix is stupid simple. Makes me wonder how many other old Macs got trashed over a three dollar part.