Everydaygol

revised 2008-12-17

[Note: the latest versions of these programs can be now substituted. NetbookBootmaker 0.8.3 can be

Function Key Note: Please note that the F2 and F12 keys used in this guide are for two entirely different functions.
Recipe
1. Boot-up your Dell Mini 10v while hitting F2. Check the BIOS version (if its a new machine, it'll probably be A06 or A07).
- If you have A05 or lower, proceed to Step 2
- If you have A06 or higher, you need to downgrade the BIOS (detailed instructions & discussion at the MyDellMini forums here). You'll need a small USB thumbdrive, then do as follows:
a. Download the USBDOS tools here.
b. Unzip and run HPUSBFW with a 1GB USB thumbdrive plugged in. Select 'FAT32' and 'Create a DOS startup disk', and point the 'Using DOS systems files' to the folder where you unzipped the USBDOS zip file you just downloaded. Select 'WinMe' folder.
c. Download the A04 BIOS update utility from Dell (be sure to select DOS version--should be named 'R225278.exe', if not you have the wrong version!) here and save it to your USB stick (label this stick 'A04').
d. Turn off your Dell Mini 10v (if not off already).
e. Make sure your Dell Min 10v is plugged in (for the remainder of this entire project!)
f. Boot the Mini 10v from the 'A04' USB stick by inserting it in, then hitting F12 while turning on the Mini 10v. Make to to select to boot from USB when prompted.
g. Run the BIOS update utility by typing in the following command line exactly as follows:
R225278.exe /forceit /forcetype
h. The update will take 5-10 minutes, and the computer will repeatedly beep loudly in the process (this is normal!)
i. System will reboot itself. You now are downgraded to A04.
j. continue to Step 2
2. Insert your 8GB flash drive and the Retail Snow Leopard disk into your Mac.
3. Open Disk Utility (you should see your 8GB thumbdrive and the Snow Leopard Disk listed on the left panel [note: the Snow Leopard disk will appear as 'Mac OS X Install DVD'])

4. Select your 8GB thumbdrive (careful to select the thumbdrive itself--not a partition of it). Click on the 'Partition' tab, and select '1 Partition' from the dropdown menu. Name the partition 'OSX Install'. Click the 'Options' tab at the bottom of the screen, make sure 'Master Boot Record' is selected. Click Apply.
5. Now click the 'Restore' tab. Drag the Mac OSX Install DVD (in the left pane) into the Source field. Next, drag the OSX Install partition (you created above) into the Destination field. Click Restore. Process takes 45 min. ~ 90 min. depending on the speed of our Mac.
[Note: I discovered that on my first attempt to drag over from the left panes into the Source and Destination fields wouldn't work. So, I closed Disk Utility and re-opened it, and was able to continue.]
6. While you're waiting for that process to complete, download the following file Netbook Bootmaker 0.8.2 from here onto our Mac. Unzip it onto your desktop. [Note: a newer version Netbook Bootmaker 0.8.3here can alternatively be used.]
7. When your Restore function is complete (from Step 5 above), its time to run Netbook Bootmaker 0.8.2 by clicking on it and choosing the USB Partition named 'Mac OS X Install DVD'. Click Prepare Boot Drive and 10 minutes later you're ready for the next step. When done label this thumbdrive 'Hack OSX'. [note: this was the partition you previously named 'OSX Install', but now has been overwritten with the Snow Leopard installation files].
8. Again make sure your Mini 10v is plugged in and shut down. Be sure you've already downgraded the BIOS to A04.Insert in the 'Hack OSX' thumbdrive you prepared into your Dell Mini 10v, turn it on again while pressing F12 (to boot from the thumbdrive). Choose USB drive when prompted.
9. The next screen you see will be a dark grey Apple icon on a light grey field. Click 'English' when prompted for language.
Next, an Installation screen will pop up and display target hard drive(s), but notice they have warning '!' signs over them (meaning they unsuitable for Mac OS X installation), and that's because 'as is' they are formatted for a Windows installation.
To correct this we'll need to reformat (and possibly repartition--depending how your HDD was factory formatted) the hard drive. To do this click on Utilities, in the Mac OS X Installer Menu, then select Disk Utility. Select the Mini 10v's primary hard drive (HDD)--usually 160GB or 320GB--in the left hand screen, then click the Partition tab, choose 1 Partition, select the type 'Mac OS X Extended (Journaled)' partition, also be sure to click Options button (in the lower middle of the screen) and select 'GUID Partitions Table'. Lastly, be sure to Name the drive (e.g. 'hackbook', unless you want the drive to show as the default 'Untitled'). The formatting will be relatively quick, under 2 min.
Next return to the Install Mac OS X, and select the HDD that you just formatted and named (e.g. 'hackbook' in the example above'). You're on your way! The process takes about 1 hour. Be patient during this process, there will be time when you think the machine is stalling, but it just takes time. Whatever you do, don't start indiscriminately pressing buttons! Good things come to those who wait.
[Note: A disclaimer on the 'Good things come to those who wait' remark. It's been reported that on occasion, after the Mac OS Installation countdown has passed by the '0' mark, that the system upon reboot can 'hang' on the 'grey-apple-on-white-background' for-literally-ever! If, say, 30 minutes goes by after the '0' mark on the Install-timer and nothin's doin', then its probably safe to assume the machine has hung in this aforementioned manner. In this case, all is not lost, its been reported that a hard-reboot (unplug the power-cord and remove the battery, then replace both) and a power-up will reboot with upwards of 98% chances of continued success. Otherwise, its back to Step 2.]
Eventually, your install will complete, the system will reboot, and it'll start playing the Welcome to OS X video!
Complete the requested standard Mac OS X stuff (i.e. names, Apple account, WiFi settings, etc.). Once you get to the purple/pink Apple Nebula desktop, you're 1st & Goal on the 3 yard line, buddy!
There's going to be a few tweaks we have to do to fix a buggy Trackpad (you'll notice its awkward and less-than-perfectly-responsive) and Sleep function (hit or miss, sometimes causing OS freezes [if this happens, just drop the battery to perform a hard-reset]).
10. Download NetbookInstaller 0.8.3 RC4 (6MB zip, unzips to 16MB)here [Note: the newest (and final) version of the NetbookInstaller 0.8.3 FINAL can be substituted and found here.]. Open the program and select the target install Volume which is your HDD (primary hard drive). Do not mess with or toggle any other changes in the options menu.Reboot.
11. Download the Apple 10.6.1 OS X Update (71.5MB) here [Note: do not upgrade to 10.6.2 yet--you can decide a bit later down the road if you wish to go there.] Run the OS X 10.6.1 update. Reboot.
12. Run the NetbookInstaller 0.8.3. RC4 again. Reboot.
13. Next, open Terminal program, typed in the following (2) command lines exactly (being careful not to typo, and hitting the <enter> key after each line):
sudo pmset lidwake 0
sudo pmset hibernatemode 3
Now reboot.
[Note: The NetbookInstaller 0.8.3. RC4 has fixes for audio-loss resultant from updating to 10.6.2. I have personally chosen NOT to update to 10.6.2 yet. This update is completely up to you. If you do, I'm told you should NOT reboot after the 10.6.2 update, rather you need to immediately run the NBI 0.8.3. RC4 first, then reboot. Franky, I don't see the need to update and will wait until I'm 'forced' to.]

Congratulations, you should now have a fully functional Mini Hackbook, essentially a $330 'mini Macbook'. Its not for heavy-lifting apps (e.g. video editing, CADCAM, etc.), but its a waaaaay better Netbook than any of the Windows versions I've seen and handled. Sh*t man, think about it, you've got a fully functional netbook (running faster than most 2yr old workhorse laptops) running S-n-o-w L-e-o-p-a-r-d OS X 10.6.1, the most kickass OS out there.
14. IMPORTANT!Make sure you go in the System Preferences, click on System Update, and deselect any Auto Updates! You do not want your system to update by itself to 10.6.2 (or higher)...that can only lead to sadness. Only you should decide when to update, and what fixes you will immediately run at that time!!
15. One final aesthetic touch-uptweak. There's a flashing-message 'Hibernation Image too old by XXX Seconds...' message that flashes upon the Mini Hackbook boot-up. It passes in a few seconds, and qualifies more as minor annoyance than anything else. To fix this:
Go into Terminal mode, and enter the following command lines (in bold):

sudo pmset hibernatemode 0
Reboot.
sudo rm /var/vm/sleepimage
Reboot.
It doesn't make the message disappear entirely, but afterward it flashes by so quickly as to be almost unnoticeable.
[Note: After all the tweaks above, there are occasional reports of Sleep-mode dysfunction (after being put in sleep-mode, and upon powering-up again you get only a black screen). Good news is the fix is simple. Reboot the system, hit F2 upon start-up to access the BIOS menu, find 'USB Legacy Support' and 'Disable' it. Hit F10 to save & exit. Voila! Sleep issue fixed for good.]
16. Finally, if you’re a heavy Trackpad user, you might want to know that in the Systems Preferences, you will find a “Trackpad” category.If you’re like me, you’ll want to enable “Clicking” and “Dragging” to facilitate drag-n-drops, and selecting buttons.
17. Add ons. The iLife ($79) suite is great for iWeb and iPhoto, but GarageBand and iMovie will be a little processor-intensive for your netbook's lightweight Atom processor.
Here are some freeprograms I'd recommend you download and install:
- OpenOffice.org office suite (compatible with Word/Excel/Access)
- Picasa (photo editing from Google)
- Pod-to-Mac (directly import your tunes from your iPod to your Mac)
- Camino -or- Firefox browser (from Mozilla.org...your choice, but Camino is optimized for the Mac OS)
- Dropbox.com (great file-transfer utility to move automajically sync files amongst different computers)

Good luck.