Apple 640 manual Sad Macintosh icon appears and the computer won’t start up

A disk icon with an X appears in the middle of the screen, and a floppy disk is ejected from the disk drive.

This icon indicates that the floppy disk you tried to start up from is not a startup disk. When you turn on your computer, it looks first in the floppy disk drive for a disk containing system software. If the disk in the drive does not contain system software, the computer ejects the disk and looks on its internal hard disk for system software.

Wait a few seconds. The computer should start up from its internal hard disk. Make sure you insert floppy disks only after the computer has begun starting up.

A “sad Macintosh” icon appears and the computer won’t start up.

This icon indicates that your Macintosh cannot start up because of a problem with the system software or the computer hardware.

Eject any floppy disks by turning off the computer and then holding down the mouse button while you turn the computer on again. Try starting up with the Macintosh Performa CD. (For instructions on how to start up your computer from the CD-ROM disc, see “Starting Up From a CD-ROM Disc” in the section “Repairing a Damaged Disk” later in this chapter.) If the “sad Macintosh” icon appears again, consult the service and support information that came with your computer for information on contacting an Apple- authorized service provider or Apple for assistance.

Troubleshooting in the Macintosh Environment 85