Stuck Mac Classic II Interrupt Button!

[Juliet Elysa]

Back in October I told the story of a little boy's first Sad Mac. If anyone wants to read it the link to the post is here.

Well, the story continues! In January the family acquired a Classic II, which the boy named Chip. From the outside everything looked good, but guess what greeted them the first time they turned him (I have trouble referring to named things as it, LOL) on. That's right... the same Sad Mac that traumatized the poor kid has returned to torment him!

His mom tried restarting several times, but the xx( wouldn't go away. She brought Chip over for me to take a look at... and I couldn't get rid of it either! I tried poking the button with paperclips, blowing compressed air at it, smacking the case... nothing! Has anyone else encountered this problem? I'm at a total loss as to what to do next.

None of us knows much about Chip's history. The mom found him at a thrift store and simply had to take him home with her. Thank goodness Chip is with people who care enough to put some effort into getting him working again. It would be a crime to throw a vintage computer away just because of a stuck button!

(Of course, it's very possible that Chip's old owner didn't know enough about vintage Macs to realize what the problem is and/or didn't have the time to spend trying to solve it.)

 

[unity]

How do you know the button is stuck? What is the code on the screen?

 

[Juliet Elysa]

The code is 0000000F 0000000D (the number of zeroes may not be right, too tired to count them all).

 

[unity]

Hmmmm... I may be wrong, but I think its having an issue with accessing the serial chip. I would pull the board and check the caps for leakage. Odds are they have been. Washing the board may temporarily resolve the issue.

 

[Juliet Elysa]

I'll definitely take a look next time I have a chance. How would you suggest washing boards? I've heard of several methods and it's honestly a bit confusing to someone who has zero experience with it.

 

[techknight]

Classics have to be recapped. Period

 

[unity]

I use warm water with a drop or two of dish soap. A paint brush works well for scrubbing. If you have hard water, best to rinse with distilled water. I use a hair dryer and space heater to dry it. Make sure you take a photo, then remove any chips that can pop out. Also the battery.

 

[Juliet Elysa]

I'll give that a try soon, though the family asked if Chip could stay with me for a bit since they're having a bit of a problem making room for him so my bondi iMac has become my first priority.

Something weird happened just now. I was moving Chip to a spot where the cat doesn't go very often, and I tripped! He got tossed fairly hard onto a recliner that was thankfully nearby... and now he boots! I'd be willing to be that my little accident didn't permanently fix anything, but at least it's something.

Though, now I don't know if/when the Sad Mac will come back, and it will undoubtedly take me by surprise when it does. I was traumatized by xx( as a kid too, so that thought raises my blood pressure and anxiety level.