Legacy Macbook Woes

I got the Macbook back in 2006, I believe.  It's pre-C2D and apparently doesn't support 64-bit OSs.  My wife's computer is C2D (mine is Core Duo), so her CPU is 64-bit...the motherboard probably doesn't support 64-bit, though.  I'd try to install Lion on it but she'd kill me.  It took her awhile to get used to Snow Leopard when I upgraded it without her consent (LOL).

So....

http://www.glitch.com/forum/general/11684/#reply-122479:

"The issue I experience with this is that I have one of the first intel core duo macs. This means that the max memory it can handle is 2 gigs. This means that the mac cannot handle running 10.6 even though it has 64-bit capable processors. This means that my mac is stuck at 10.5.8 until it breaks and I am forced to buy a new iMac (a few thousand dollars I do not want to spend until I have to since the iMac still does everything that I need it to). This is not a huge deal for me since I have 2 Windows machines and 1 Linux machine that run Glitch perfectly, but if anyone else has this issue and therefore is unable to use Flash 11, please post here so the devs have a better idea of usage statistics and can make a decision as to wether or not it is worth dedicating resources to allow people to play the game with Flash 10 with the caveat that it may not work right."

Yeah, I'm pretty much stuck in the same situation as the above, although a reply to the above hinted at a workaround:

http://www.glitch.com/forum/general/11684/#reply-122489:

Landar, first off your Mac will run *better* under 10.6 than 10.5, with the same hardware you have right now. I've done that with MacBooks and iMacs of that generation.
Second, almost all the C2D Macs can actually handle 3-and-a-bit gig (it's the usual Intel motherboard limitations) or even four, look up your system at www.everymac.com/systems/by... and click through to the details page.

So, there may be hope after all.  I'll need to look into this.

Core Duo Not Supported by Mac OS X Lion

So, I plugged my Macbook to the network, thinking I'd download and install Lion via the App Store (by going to Store --> Purchased (since I'd already bought and installed Lion on the iMac), but found that Core Duo machines aren't supported:

WTF...

It looks like my Macbook now has one foot in the grave.  I'll have to stick with Snow Leopard, but eventually, that will be unsupported.  It's not a huge deal, I guess, since Lion just came out.  I wonder when Leopard goes end-of-life (if it hasn't already)...

This is a rather large bummer.  The laptop isn't THAT old.

Well, there's one other Macbook in the house...my wife's.  It is a Core 2 Duo machine.  I don't even know if she wants the upgrade but it is available to her if she'd like to give it a shot.

It looks like I've a good excuse to buy me a new Macbook next year with whatever bonus I get.  If I do, I'll go Pro this time, more than likely...so I can game on it.

May as well back up with Time Machine since I've got it set up beside the iMac, though.

Software Updates - Sep 2009

While I was trying to back up my iPhone's data since I had to visit a local Genius Bar for a repair, I was prompted to install v3.1 of iPhone's flashcode. I believe this fixes that recent SMS vulnerability, but I could've sworn I already installed v3.1. I also had to update to the latest iTunes version, but I don't normally care too much about iTunes functionality, so I don't know what version is new and what functions and fixes apply.

Also, since I was at the Apple Store in Fair Oaks, VA, I bought the Family Pack of Snow Leopard. I installed it on my Macbook first and will do my wife's at a later time. I've not noticed any massive differences yet, but I only installed it last night (at 12AM). As a note, I don't believe this version will install on my PowerMac...it is for Intel CPUs only.


The visit to the Genius Bar wasn't all that stellar. The service was great, technical-wise, but my appointment was at 7:50PM. I wasn't seen until 8:30. My name wasn't called the whole time but I was showing as the next person to be seen. People kept coming in without appointments and just asking for adhoc help. I've no idea why someone wasn't telling those without appointments that they couldn't be helped because there was an established waiting list. The topper is that they called someone's name from the list (at 8:30PM) that was after me (and he wasn't even there...I guess he got tired of waiting)...I was like, WTF, I've been here the whole time and you're acting like I'm not even here. Then they immediately started to help someone that wasn't on the list and I had to yell that I'd been waiting 30 minutes without anyone calling my name.

Apple sent me a customer survey form and I informed them of these issues....wasted effort, maybe?

They did fix my phone, though. I had an issue with bubbles that I may have already reported on this blog already. Bubbles under the screen. I noticed this maybe 2-3 months ago. When I initially noticed the bubbles, there weren't all that many (4-5). When I checked earlier this week, there were 11. The Genius asked me if I'd been leaving my phone in the car. I told her that I work in an office environment and that my phone was always with me. They replaced the glass within 5 minutes. I didn't know the iPhone was modular in nature. I was assuming I'd get a new phone (LOL!). I'm just glad I got the issue fixed and hope it is not a repeat issue, as I've only had the phone a year.

[EDIT: The store manager called me today. I sort of expected it since they sent me a survey and asked if they could contact me for a verbal follow-up. I explained what happened and he apologized. I told him that I know things get busy and I also have similar experiences at work, but that a half-hour wait for a 5 minute fix was borderline unacceptable. He was also surprised no one was calling out names of the appointment holders. Hopefully he'll have a chat with his team and get things better organized. This is the second time I've had issues with that particular store. Last time it was them holding my Macbook for an excessive amount of time. Maybe I'll go to the Reston store next time...[9/14/2009]]

Mac OS X v10.6 Snow Leopard

http://store.apple.com/us/product/MAC_OS_X_SNGL

Mac OS X v10.6 Snow Leopard is now available for purchase!