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July 14, 2008
Crapple, the Drive Quit
Over the last few years I've used Apple's iPhoto - iMovie - iDVD software to produce DVDs of my photographs. Some of the DVDs I produced include a half a dozen of my 2-year-old nephew that I've given to my brother and his spouse, a niece's engagement party and subsequent wedding and some family parties. The photos are set to music and the DVDs have become a huge hit with family members.
My godchild was married last month, and I spent much of the time photographing the event with the intent to produce yet another DVD. I spent a Sunday afternoon and evening working on this project. When all was completed and ready to burn to DVD, I knew the final burning process would take a bit of time. I sat and watched as iDVD went through the handful of steps involved. Not long after, the final step of burning would begin.
And it did...
And then the laptop spit out the disk.
WTF?
After watching the completion of each step of the process, somehow, some way, the computer decided it wasn't going to burn the iDVD. I didn't use a new type of disk - the media was the same I'd always used so nothing was different. Unfortunately, there was no way to insert another disk and again attempt to burn the DVD. I'd gotten an error code of Ox80020022 which, upon searching for a definition, came up muddy and unclear. In utter frustration, I repeated the entire process two additional times only to experience the same exact result. The DVD drive on my laptop refused to cooperate.
My first thought was the most dire -- the DVD drive up and quit. Having experienced Apple hardware drives that suddenly stop working over the years, this was a highly unpleasant thought. The "WTF!" thoughts came fast and furiously given all the hardware failures in the past. The only Apple computer I've never had a hardware problem with and is still operational today is the Apple clamshell/Blueberry laptop. I think after that machine was built, Apple began inserting crapola drives in its machines, guaranteeing the demise of the drives and forcing its customers to spend more money replacing those drives or purchasing a new machine. This is the thanks I get for being a dedicated customer. They may have suckered me in at hello but after numerous drive problems, I'm about to say sayonara.
However, as distasteful as Apple has become in my eyes, it doesn't resolve the problem of the iDVD that needs to be burned. Though I have an external Lacie drive I purchased specifically for this kind of thing, that proved fruitless also. (I think) the final stage, the burning, is read from the hard drive of the machine (though I could be wrong) so that would prevent even the Lacie from working too.
Therefore... (insert extended *sigh* here) I can't burn anything -- the iDVD, files that need backing up, photos that are typically slapped onto Archival Gold. And to make matters worse, I can't take the laptop to Apple or TekServ because I need it to finish a freelance job. So I have two requests for info: the first is suggestions and ways to troubleshoot my MacBook Pro and the second is where to backup those files online. I don't want to lose all that data. I don't want to have to remake the planned iDVD (at least I have the entire project saved on my laptop.) Due to the inability to burn to disk, my laptop is expanding by the nanosecond and I really need to get these files off of it.
Help?
Cindy
Comments
Isn't there a way you could download everything onto a portable drive? That way you might be able to get it to run on something else.
Brain matter deposited by: The Gray Monk on July 14, 2008 9:45 AM
Did you try aiming a rather large gun at the drive and commanding it to work?
Brain matter deposited by: Da Goddess on July 14, 2008 9:17 PM
Pat - I don't think so, as my perception is that in order to do so, the data is pulled from the hard drive, and that drive isn't cooperating... or something. Since I tried to do that (burning the disk onto an external drive) and it didn't work, I don't quite know HOW to make it work. :-(
Joanie - heh :-) -- I wish.
Brain matter deposited by: Cindy on July 15, 2008 7:25 AM
so if you really suspect a hard drive issue you probably don't want to use a limited bandwith online backup .. especially if it hits a bad block or something on the way ...
I'd probably buy an external drive (they're around $150 or so) and then see if something like Carbon Copy Cloner can dupe your harddrive locally ...
if it does, then you should be able to burn off of the mounted external .. but then I would probably run the disk utility and have it do a scan through the system to see what is wrong .. and then perhaps let it try to repair it ....
if you use a usb drive, you could try and drag n drop the files you were writing to the dvd .. then
if you watch closely you'll see what file is bad and you can then just skip it and get the rest .. that will minimize the loss...
oh, and if you haven't rebooted in a while, try that .. there are some file system consistancy checks that they run on startup that might help ...
Brain matter deposited by: sdy on July 15, 2008 8:09 PM
oh, there is the other user tryable method ..
most of the newer laptops have easily accessible
panels on the bottom for both the memory and drives..
you could try re-seating the memory, and reconnecting the drive just in case some of your travels have loosened things ... just keep your one of your hands on the power supply or the shielding so as to not generate static ..
Brain matter deposited by: sdy on July 15, 2008 8:15 PM
Steve - I suspect a problem with the DVD drive first, the hard drive second. I ran Tech Tool Pro and it came up clear with no problems.
As far as online backing up, I'm sure there's some online storage place where bandwidth isn't as limited as you suggest. Surely something like that exists, don't it? ;-)
I tried the USB drag 'n drop and it didn't work with the Lacie, and I reboot at least once every week or two.
And for your second suggestion, you really don't want me trying to re-seat the memory. Nah uh, not me. No way no how. I'm a walking Murphy's Law, and I am well aware of my limitations. :-)
Brain matter deposited by: Cindy on July 15, 2008 9:45 PM
hmm, you indicated that you had a similar problem with an external drive (or were you always writing to the dvd drive?)
the bandwidth issue isn't the total storage at the destination .. its the amount of time it takes .. which translates into delayed IO from the harddrive .. if the HD is having intermittent issues, the longer it takes to try and finish the backup, the higher the risk .. if its a repeatable failure (bad block or file) then the result is the same ...
in general you should reboot right before you do the backup so you don't have a huge amount of cruft laying around .. although if you're really having HD problems then booting might eventually become an iffy thing too.
Brain matter deposited by: sdy on July 16, 2008 7:14 PM