I’ve been pretty busy, but I’m off for a few weeks! I’m working on a major overhaul, starting with reinstalling OS X from scratch (it’s been a while and needs cleaned up) so I’m starting there. Follow my twitter feed for any updates (I won’t blog most of them) Also, meklort has updated on his progress so go give that a read.
While nothing is necessary quite yet, meklort has released an updated NetbookInstaller to fix issues with the upcoming 10.6.3 update. You should install this newer version before installing 10.6.3 on your netbook.
View more information and release notes over at Meklort’s Blog.
I’ll update the guide once 10.6.3 is released (since I can’t test out a guide if I don’t have the software) and also any further updates to NBI that may happen before then.
Good news, folks! meklort has put together the 0.8.3 release candidate 5 for NetbookInstaller and NetbookBootMaker. Among the important changes in RC5 (compared to RC4) are a faster booting time, fixed dsdt.aml generator, temporary fixes for the Dell Mini 9 audio and 10v BIOS A06 issues, and rudimentary GMA 500 support for the Dell Mini 10 and similar netbooks. Remember, this is a release candidate, and not every bug has been squashed yet. But it is recommended that this be used in place of any reference to NetbookInstaller or NetbookBootMaker in any of the guides.
Learn more over at Meklort’s Blog
Since this will most likely be made into the final release for 0.8.3, I will be updating the guides this next week to reflect this change. I’m hoping to have them done by Christmas, but I can’t guarantee it so please be patient. Update: Please, please, please DO NOT contact me about bugs, feature requests or adding models to the software. I don’t do the programming!!!
Since some do not know about meklort’s site yet, I’m relaying some information he posted yesterday about the development of NetbookInstaller and NetbookBootMaker. From his blog:
I’ll be releasing NebookInstaller 0.8.3 RC5 no later than the 20th (or 21st) of december. If all goes well, NetbookInstaller 0.8.3 final will be released on Christmas day (after all, it’s Christmas, and it’ll be 6 months from the initial NetbookInstaller release).
I find this exciting, personally. Since the final will probably be the same as RC5 and might be released on Christmas day (“If all goes well”) then I will probably update the guides (all four of them!) hopefully in time for Christmas but no later than the new year. There’s a bunch of fixes waiting for us in the next release so the process should go more smoothly no matter which guide you use.
I finally got the NetbookInstaller 4 : Direct Install from Mac to SSD/HDD guide written and posted. I’ve also done a little rearranging on the guides page. There seem to be a few too many people trying to use the old methods, which is somewhat ridiculous considering that they are outdated and no longer supported. As such they are still at the same address but I have moved the links to a new page, which can be accessed from the Guides page. Now that I have the actual install guides updated from the DellEFI days, I have one more monumental task: the Windows-only guide.
Good news on that front, though: meklort has been working on making the NetbookBootMaker app into a cross-platform program that will run not only on Mac OS X but also on Windows and Linux. I will try to create a guide before then, but once that new app is out everything could change. No time table on the new version, and don’t ask me, I’m not directly involved in the development.
Well isn’t that nice! I was expecting tomorrow to be the release date for 0.8.2 final, but it’s out NOW! A huge thanks to meklort for his work. This release supports patching Snow Leopard, but I still don’t have it so my guide will be delayed two weeks or more. It has also been reported that 0.8.3 work has already begun.
Get it:
NetbookBootMaker Final
NetbookInstaller 0.8.2 Final
And just in time; I was going to begin rewriting the guides tonight! I’ll update the links in Method 1 first before working on Method 2. I also have an external DVD drive for tonight only, so that will be updated as well. Expect some changes on the site throughout the night and coming week!
Update: Within 24 short hours, many people from both MyDellMini and other sites contributed enough money to the fund for meklort to buy a Mini 10v from the Dell Outlet! Amazing work guys, the donation link has been left open at the original MyDellMini forum thread so that if you would still like to make donations to further development in the future you may do so. On behalf of myself, bmcclure937, meklort, and others, a huge thanks to all of you!
Original post: As some of my more experienced readers will know, I don’t actually program any of the software used in my guides. Except for a tweak here or there, I have no idea how to do actual programming. Fortunately, people like meklory, bmaltis, lnxneo, jayk and other members of the MyDellMini forums help out with a lot of that dirty work. meklort in particular has been an indispensable asset to the community, being the lead programmer and driver developer.
Currently meklort only has a Dell Mini 9, which is well enough for most users, but since it has been discontinued and many users are opting for the Mini 10v (such as myself) there are a few driver snags, such as the trackpad, that are still needing to be worked out.
bmcclure937, a good friend and fellow moderator at MyDellMini, has started a PayPal donation line that will go towards the purchase of a Mini 10v for meklort. I absolutely love this idea. There is no set donation amount, but if you appreciate his work and can spare a few dollars it will help a lot. I personally already donated to this fund, and if enough people donate just a few dollars we’ll have meklort a new Mini 10v in no time!
To donate, please see this thread over at MyDellMini.
Note: I am not in charge of this donation fund, but bmcclure937 is. I in no way get any of this money, and neither does bmcclure937. All money donated goes towards the 10v for meklort.
On Twitter: