I have a powerbook G3 OS 9 and can not restart it - I have tried using the reset button and then restarting, I have unplugged all of my externals as well as holding down the shift key when starting up and now I'm down to using the system boot disk. It asks me if I want to initialize my hard drive (aka format my hard drive and start over.) I would like to know before I do this if there is any way to recover the files that were on there. MOST of the files I have backup copies of but there are some that were created today that were not backed up and I would like to make sure I have everything from other days - I can only wait about 12 hours for a response so time is of the essense (this is my business computer.) I am looking for information on cnet and other sources as well. Thank you!
Please e-mail mindog@angelfire.com with responses.

I found this at http://www.drivesavers.com/
Here is what I have found (though I'm down to trying the install system without initializing the hard drive so I may still need help):

The flashing question mark appears during startup

If the floppy disk icon and question mark appear, the Macintosh cannot find the startup hard disk, or any disk with a System Folder.

Use the Disk Tools floppy disk or a system software CD-ROM to start up the Macintosh and look for the missing hard disk's icon on the desktop. If the disk appears, run Apple's Disk First Aid program to check it. If no problems are found, reinstall the system software using the Apple Installer program.

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TIP: Use SCSIProbe, (Robert Polic's excellent freeware utility) to identify SCSI devices on the chain and verify that the startup disk is attached and recognized on the bus. Note that SCSIProbe will not identify IDE type drives installed in many new Macs.

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If the hard disk does not appear on the desktop, you can try resetting the Macintosh's Parameter RAM (PRAM) by holding down the command, option, P and R keys during start up. The Macintosh should chime at least twice before you release the keys. This action will reset the Macintosh to its factory defaults and may help the computer locate the startup disk.

As a last resort you can attempt to rewrite the device driver using a hard disk formatting program. Apple includes their HD SC Setup or Drive Setup programs for just such an occasion on the Disk Tools floppy, or System Installer CD-ROM. If you have a non-Apple hard disk you must use a third-party formatter such as FWB's Hard Disk ToolKit or CharisMac's Anubis. Use the "Update" or "Install driver" command in the formatting software but be careful not to press the "Initialize" or "Format" buttons.

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The Sad Mac icon appears during start up

The Sad Mac icon can mean one of two things: Either the disk's device driver software is damaged, or a more serious hardware problem exists. In the case of the former you can attempt to rewrite the driver with the software that was used to format the disk.

Formatting software is typically bundled with new drives purchased through a reseller. If your drive was manufactured by Apple, use the HD SC Setup, or Drive Setup program on the Disk Tools floppy, or System Installer CD-ROM to "Update" the driver. CAUTION: Do not Initialize or Format the disk! You must also completely remove any security programs such as DiskLock, Empower, or FolderBolt before updating/installing a new driver.

If the drive was manufactured by a third-party, use the floppy disk that contains the formatting software. You can also use a commercial formatter such as FWB's Hard Disk ToolKit or CharisMac's Anubis program to replace and update a damaged device driver.

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An Error Message: "The Disk is damaged do you want to Initialize?" appears
An Error Message: "-127 error disk could not used/found" appears

The directory structure of your disk is damaged and cannot be accessed in its current condition. Damage like this typically occurs when a Mac freezes in the middle of a program and must be restarted, or if the computer is not shut down properly.

The UnErase program in Symantec's Norton Utilities can be used to recover drives with these symptoms. It is important that you recover the data to a completely different drive, NOT the crashed disk or one of its partitions.

CAUTION: For the best chance of a full recovery, do not use the "Disk Doctor" program on a crashed disk. It is an excellent tool for preventative maintenance but is also capable of "fixing" problems that render your data unrecoverable in the case of extreme or severe corruption.

Keep in mind that there are many cases when software utilities are not capable of recovering a crashed drive. These can include problems with the Master Directory Block and severe Catalog damage. In situations like these your best chance for recovery is to send the drive to us at DriveSavers.

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A removable cartridge doesn't mount on the desktop

If a removable cartridge (Zip, Jaz, SyQuest, or magneto-optical) refuses to mount, the device driver or the media may be damaged. Try another cartridge that is known to be good. This will help you identify if the problem is with the cartridge or the drive mechanism. If the same problem occurs with another cartridge check that your SCSI cables are firmly attached and the termination is correct. You might also isolate the drive on the SCSI bus by disconnecting other devices.

If the problem is specific to a single cartridge you can rewrite the device driver with the software that was used to format the disk. If you do not have formatting software you can use a commercial formatter like FWB's Hard Disk ToolKit or CharisMac's Anubis program to replace or update a damaged device driver.

©1997 DriveSavers, Inc., 400 Bel Marin Keys Blvd., Novato, CA 94949
Phone: (800) 440-1904 -- (415) 883-4232 -- Fax: (415) 883-0780

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WARNING: Tampering with a damaged disk may cause data loss. DriveSavers, Inc. makes no guaranty to the accuracy of this information, and takes no responsibility for the loss of data as a result of suggestions offered in this document.

Well, it depends. If the disk is actually
daaged, you may need to reformat.. But if
the files are just corrupted (i.e. The
System Files) you can use the Recovery
CD to boot. Hold down C to boot from CD
on startup. This will use the CD as the
main HD and your internal HD should
appear on the desktop underneath. If it
does, that's good. Just find a file that I'm
guessing is called "iBook HD.img" on the
CD in a folder called Configiurations
which is an image of the original HD.
Mount that image file by double clicking it.
Then browse into the System Folder of
the newly mounted HD image and copy
over just the main files for now:

System
Finder
Mac OS ROM (Just for safety reasons)
and any other file you feel might help.

Reboot the computer afterwards.

If the Mac OS boots up regularly, it
worked.. If not, you will need to try a
recovery. Don't worry. As far as I know the
Recovery CD has an option to copy all the
files back over but make backups of files
overwritten so you will need to do some
fiddling when that's done.

If the HD doesn't appear on the desktop
in the first place, it may be broken.. In that
case contact the nearest place that can fix
this. Luck for me, I've got an Apple
Specialist right next door. You may not be
so lucky though. So try Apple.com for
information.

Hope that helps.

There was a design feature in OS 9 that cause a problem with the disk wrapper. This leads to the computer now longer being able to Boot(startup) from its HD. You need to go www.apple.com/swupdates and get the DiskFirstAid update.

can i factory format my hard drive once againe