The cooling fan in my PowerBook G-4 keeps kicking on. What gives?

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

Normally this would be an inane question. It’s kicking on because the computer is getting hot. The question is, why?

I use a Podium Pad and so the underside of the laptop is never resting on a table. I haven’t been watching a DVD or playing a CD-ROM or doing anything else that would make the machine get hot.

It’s an older Titanium PowerBook G4. The monitor is only at 50% brightness. What would cause the cooling fan to keep kicking on? Is it indicative of component failure?

Cartooniverse

2

Do you have pets? Pet hair can get sucked into the air vents and collect inside your computer, causing it to overheat.

3

Not in the building where the laptop is used.

4

Open up Activity Monitor (Applications --> Utilities) and see if the CPU usage is spiking. I notice that my MacBook will start running quite hot when I’m using Flash (for YouTube, for example). You might be surfing to some CPU-intensive sites.

5

Oooooh VERY good. When I am on the laptop again, I’ll check that. That will be in Japan.