The Mac Manual: The Step-by-step Guide to Upgrading, Maintaining and Repairing a Mac (by Keith Martin, 2003)

This is a rare Mac Collection blog entry for a non-Apple product, but I consider its crossover appeal to warrant its own post. Many thanks to Tom for this gift that was purchased at the Haynes Motor Museum in Sparkford, Yeovil, Somerset, England.

For automobile enthusiasts worldwide, Haynes is instantly recognizable as “the worldwide leader in automotive and powersports equipment repair, maintenance and customization manuals, with over 150 million sold to date globally.” The publisher is based in the United Kingdom, and they note on their website:

“Haynes Publishing was founded in 1960. The main office is located in Somerset, England. The Haynes Manuals team is headquartered in Newbury Park, CA [USA] and is part of Haynes North America, Inc., which also publishes Chilton Repair Manuals in print and Clymer Repair Manuals in both print and online editions.”

Haynes Manuals are written by expert technicians and based upon tear-downs of each vehicle that they describe as a “step-by-step procedure for dismantling a vehicle or piece of equipment part-by-part. This is followed by the detailed rebuilding of the vehicle.” Hundreds of photos and videos accompany the tear-down process that are used in creating the manuals. They tout their manuals as “the ultimate DIY guide books for used, collector, and newer model vehicles and powersports equipment.”

In addition to automotive manuals, Haynes has offered manuals in their signature style in a variety of “lifestyle” categories. As of 2024 their website lists the following lifestyle options: Aviation; Maritime; Military; Motorcycling; Motorsport; Music; Rail; Space; Caravanning & Camping; Cooking, Food + Drink; Computing; Fitness, Sport + Wellbeing; Hobbies + Leisure Activities; Home, DIY + Garden; History + People; Pet & Animal Care; and Sci-Fi.

This Haynes tome is from 2003 and is titled The Mac Manual: The Step-by-step Guide to Upgrading, Maintaining and Repairing a Mac by Keith Martin (2023).

The back of the book provides the following description:

“This full-colour manual shows how easy it is to upgrade, maintain and repair a Mac – from a beige G3 to a flat-screen iMac. From adding more memory or upgrading the processor to installing a new DVD drive, it takes the reader through each stage using plain English and clear step-by-step photographs. Along with information on software and peripherals, this manual will save you time and money, giving a basic understanding of all areas of Mac hardware and installation – without blinding you with science.”

The author, Keith Martin, at the time of its publication was considered “an acknowledged Mac expert with a talent for debunking jargon and explaining how things work in plain English, is the full-time Technical Editor of MacUser, the UK’s most authoritative and best-selling Mac magazine. He lives in south-west London.” As of 2024, he describes himself as a “consultant, practitioner and lecturer in print and digital publishing, design, tech, and 360 virtual reality imaging.”

Sources: Haynes Motor Museum, Haynes (What We Do, About), Amazon, Keith Martin

Special Tools and Fixtures (Mac Pro, Late 2013)

This set of “Special Tools and Fixtures” are Apple repair components custom-designed to fix the Mac Pro (Late 2013). The parts are named and described in an Apple repair document. According to the document, the parts are named:

  • Core Cradle (made from a large block of black foam)
  • Core End Caps (2 identical parts made from clear acrylic)
  • CPU Riser Cover (made from ITW Formex)
  • Roof Alignment Fixture (made from a ring of black foam)
  • I/O Wall Stand (made from a small block of black foam)
  • Foam block (a small square block of black foam)

The parts are used in the following ways:

The two Core End Caps are inserted into the Core Cradle to support the Mac Pro core assembly, the triangular core of the computer. For some repairs, the Core Cradle is used without the Core End Caps.

The CPU Riser Cover is used as a protective spacer when performing certain repairs (e.g., installation of the I/O and power supply assembly).

The guide specifies that the Roof Alignment Fixture is necessary when servicing the logic board, inlet, and the roof of the Mac Pro core.

When the outer case is removed, Apple recommends laying computer on its side while removing and inserting DIMMs. Using the I/O Wall Stand keeps the inside of the Mac Pro from rocking.

The Foam Block is used when tilting the core assembly into the exhaust assembly or removing other parts of the core assembly (e.g., I/O and power supply assembly) to allow the parts to rest and preventing strain on cables.

Coincidentally, the company that made the Formex material of the CPU Riser Cover is ITW, Illinois Tool Works, based in Glenview, Illinois—a Chicago suburb close to where I live.

Source: Apple