[iBook] iBook G4 date/time issue

[Samantha Cornell]

Recently, I have noticed that the date on my iBook (G4 1.2 GHz,  
running 10.4.2) has reset, a number of times to 1969.  Is this  
indicative of a larger problem, or is it simply the result of the  
battery running down too far?  Has anyone else experienced this.

In a quite possibly unrelated incident, my latest power-on resulted  
in an odd tone, a few notes higher than the typical start up chime,  
which did eventually occur.  This is a new one to me.  Any ideas?   
What on earth did it mean?

Thanks!

Samantha