The backup battery keeps the time set on the computer when the computer is not on. does not affect power at all. could be lots of things, as simple as a bad power button.

[quote|matthewfrey]The backup battery keeps the time set on the computer when the computer is not on. does not affect power at all. could be lots of things, as simple as a bad power button.[/quote]

I currently have the case apart and have tested the the power switch it seems fine, I also have power with or without battery.

[quote|Soggymac]I currently have the case apart and have tested the the power switch it seems fine, I also have power with or without battery.[/quote]

so it just doesn't power on when on battery alone?

[quote|matthewfrey]so it just doesn't power on when on battery alone?[/quote]

It wont power on with either the powercord alone or the battery alone or even with battery in and powercord on. There are no chimes or hard drive noises.

[quote|Soggymac]It wont power on with either the powercord alone or the battery alone or even with battery in and powercord on. There are no chimes or hard drive noises.[/quote]

Change the PRAM battery it will start right up had 2 powerbooks and an old imac do the same thing changed the PRAM battery all of them started right up.

[quote|lousefer]Change the PRAM battery it will start right up had 2 powerbooks and an old imac do the same thing changed the PRAM battery all of them started right up.[/quote]

I had a similar problem, my powerbook like Soggymac's would not boot up. I installed another backup battery (PRAM) and it booted right up. However, every time I turn the computer off again it will not boot unless I unplug the PRAM battery and plug the cable back in again -- then it will boot up. I tried the reset by turning the computer on and holding down the Control-Option -R -P keys when it started until it restarted, but that has not helped. Does anyone reading this know what additional steps can be taken? (that is, besides never turning the computer off -- or re-plugging it each time I turn it on!)

[quote|RoyK]I had a similar problem, my powerbook like Soggymac's would not boot up. I installed another backup battery (PRAM) and it booted right up. However, every time I turn the computer off again it will not boot unless I unplug the PRAM battery and plug the cable back in again -- then it will boot up. I tried the reset by turning the computer on and holding down the Control-Option -R -P keys when it started until it restarted, but that has not helped. Does anyone reading this know what additional steps can be taken? (that is, besides never turning the computer off -- or re-plugging it each time I turn it on!)[/quote]

I have some more pieces to my puzzle, I managed to get my powerbook to boot up, it ran fine everything seemed ok, until I tried shutting down. Every time I shut the powerbook down it would restart completely on its own. The only way I could stop this was to remove the battery and the power cord in between shuting down and booting up. I then decided to restart and use disk 1 of the cds which I got with the powerbook, this allowed me to run a hardware test. I did the extensive test which took around 25 minutes the results came back fine especially the logic board test. I then used the powerbook for around half an hour and thought I would try to shut down hoping the cd might have repaired any software glitch's, The powerbook shut down great and hey presto did not boot back up. The only problem is it hasn't booted up since, I really don't know what to do I don't think my powerbook is dead yet and I'm sure it is fixable, just what to do next? Should I look at replacing the pram battery, or do I need to take it to the shop for testing, I guy said he can test the logic board for £60, can I test this myself? is there any thing else I can do my self before having it tested. Thanks for your help Mark.

[quote|Soggymac]I have some more pieces to my puzzle, I managed to get my powerbook to boot up, it ran fine everything seemed ok, until I tried shutting down. Every time I shut the powerbook down it would restart completely on its own. The only way I could stop this was to remove the battery and the power cord in between shuting down and booting up. I then decided to restart and use disk 1 of the cds which I got with the powerbook, this allowed me to run a hardware test. I did the extensive test which took around 25 minutes the results came back fine especially the logic board test. I then used the powerbook for around half an hour and thought I would try to shut down hoping the cd might have repaired any software glitch's, The powerbook shut down great and hey presto did not boot back up. The only problem is it hasn't booted up since, I really don't know what to do I don't think my powerbook is dead yet and I'm sure it is fixable, just what to do next? Should I look at replacing the pram battery, or do I need to take it to the shop for testing, I guy said he can test the logic board for £60, can I test this myself? is there any thing else I can do my self before having it tested. Thanks for your help Mark.[/quote]

I have now managed to get my powerbook to turn on again, I have tried to shut down but it just restarts on it's own. I have tried to put it in sleep mode but it wakes after about 30 seconds. Has anyone ever had this problem before or have any ideas I can try. Thanks Mark.

[quote|Soggymac]I have now managed to get my powerbook to turn on again, I have tried to shut down but it just restarts on it's own. I have tried to put it in sleep mode but it wakes after about 30 seconds. Has anyone ever had this problem before or have any ideas I can try. Thanks Mark.[/quote]