[G4] was keyboards; now ejecting optical discs

[Wayne Clodfelter]

On Jul 16, 2006, at 10:13 AM, Richard Klein wrote:
>
> Going off on a tangent: I can eject the optical drive on my QS by  
> holding down F12 or dragging the disc's icon to the trash or by  
> using the context menu on the desktop.  Is there any button I can  
> push on the tower or anywhere to stick a paperclip to open the  
> optical drive?  I don't see any way to eject the drive if the OS  
> gets trashed.

There are several freeware utilities available at MacUpdate or  
VersionTracker that provide eject icons in the menu bar or elsewhere.
>
If all else fails, you can manually open the built-in optical drive's  
door by opening the hinged bay door (I can slip my fingernail in at  
the upper right corner, okay, rounded corner) to access the paper- 
clip eject hole in the lower front of the drive, itself (assuming  
YOUR drive has a hole).
Insert the paperclip and push until the drive tray partially opens.  
Then use the loop on the other end of your handy-dandy bent paperclip  
at the corner of the tray front to pull the tray out far enough to  
get a hand grip on it. It may take a restart before the eject key  
resynchronizes with the drive mechanism.

Also, from Mac Help:

Ejecting a CD or DVD when all else fails
If you've tried all the usual methods of ejecting a CD or DVD from  
your computer's optical drive, there are some other methods you can try.

First, quit all applications that are using files on the disc. Then  
try one of these alternate methods:

Open Disk Utility (in the Utilities folder of your Applications  
folder), select the disc, and choose File > Eject.
Choose Apple menu > Restart and hold down the mouse or trackpad  
button until the disc ejects.
If your drive has an emergency eject hole, put the computer to sleep  
and insert a large, straightened paper clip in the small emergency  
eject hole of the drive (the location varies, depending on the  
drive). Push firmly until the disc ejects.
If all other methods fail, you can try to eject the disk using the  
firmware. (This may not work on all computers. For example, it does  
not work on Intel-based computers.) The steps below describe how to  
start up and briefly use the computer with only the firmware loaded,  
not the standard Mac OS X interface.
To eject a disc using firmware:
Restart the computer.
When you hear the startup sound, press and hold the Command-Option-O- 
F keys. (The Command key has an Apple on it.)
Release the keys when you see a white welcome screen.
At the prompt, type:
eject cd
Press Return, then wait a few seconds. The disc drive should eject  
the disc, and "ok" appears on the screen when the action is complete.
Type:
mac-boot
Press Return.
Your computer starts up normally and you see the familiar Mac OS X  
desktop.



Regards,

Wayne Clodfelter
wayne at troutnc.com