My Mini MacBook at the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf

from ageage.multiply.com

I'm supposed to test the previous VoodooHDA 2.6 on Yahoo Messenger's voice conversation and see if the internal mic would work. I'm supposed to test it with my cousin but she apparently does not have the time to indulge my geeky caprice. And so I'm left with very little to do as I sat and sipped my iced café latte.

I have my Coffee Bean Swirl card and one of its perks, aside from amassing points each and every time I got my fix of caffeine at this particular café to get the discounts and freebies offered, is WiFi. Starbucks in the Philippines does not offer free as in speech and beer WiFi connection, I'm sad to report. And so I'm connected now. What to do with the decent WiFi bandwidth?

Hmm. I sip from my coffee (plastic) cup. Inspiration is fast turning into insipidity.

Then, perhaps through habit or muscle memory (yep, pointing the cursor using that nasty Alps trackpad to reach that smiling Mac Finder icon on the Dock can be likened to positioning my hands the violin's fret to produce D#), some diversion at long last!

my fellow Coffee Bean café-mates

And so it is true: the most pernicious that ever happened to computers are not viruses (virii? oh blame my college Latin and Italian in college for this) nor malware - it's the user.

Look at this dear little "baghag" who's been exposing himself/herself (I've a hunch it's a her because of the "bag"?) unknowingly, I bet. And she's on a PC too.

I tried getting into Eric's MacBook but no such luck; I couldn't connect.

My point here is neither the superiority of the Mac nor the utter scum-hood of PC's but the difference in the implementation of security control.

But thanks to it, I got a couple of Grey's Anatomy episodes to watch tonight when I get home:

Tsk tsk tsk. Great pics though.

I've just updated to VoodooHDA 2.7 courtesy of aikidoka25 and so far it's good - volume's decent. I'll update once I find a free wall socket, my Mini MacBook Pro is running out of juice.

Updates on the HP Mini 311 Darwin Project

And the big guys are back!
MowgliBook:

Hi everybody,

I've been extremely busy lately, but still I come with some good news... (not too good though)

The new FakeSMC with plugin support (on projectOSX) is getting really good, I'll edit the DSDT when I have time so that it'll report the TZ0 (Thermal Zone) and the Fan if I can.

For now we have the GPU, which is a good start.

There is a new VoodooHDA, nothing tremendous, still no HDMI (because of this bloody IDT codec) but it keeps the settings of the volume when you reboot etc. Mute button doesn't work but I guess it could be fixed quite quickly.

Maybe a more stable ApplePS2 set from prasys still some random KP though.

I'll come to this later, if I manage to get in touch with him, when I have my internet connection back at home.

aikidoka25:

welcome back mowgli, 

sometime ago i tried the fakeSMC plugin only got GPU temp, apparently the chipset was not supported.

as for the DSDT, is it possible for you to document the changes (something like d00d's X58 guide, i saw you were active there too)

today, i compiled the new VoodooHDA but it doesn't work, according to Slice most probably the code in svn is not up to date.

i am still thinking VoodooHDA coudl work with HDMI in our unit, but need to play with the pin config. However I must admit this is beyond my current knowledge.

I tried to read the guide but still don't understand how those config are created.

cheers

Office:Mac 2011

Fresh from uTorrent, I immediately transferred the .dmg file from our family MacBook6,1 (MSI Wind U100) to my MacBookPro5,1 (HP Mini 311-1001TU and installed Microsoft's latest release of its ubiquitous productivity suite which has been the standard for as long as I was old enough to be aware and care for technology:

Microsoft Office:Mac 2011

Go ask Captain Jack Sparrow out yonder the famous bay of pirates for a copy of this installer.

Doing what I do for a living, the very first app I checked was Word.

All I'll say is that 2011 starts faster than 2008. As for the rest - interface and new functionalities, I'll leave the following screencaps to speak for themselves.

iWork Pages '09 screenies are also available for your perusal. Let your inner Apple fanboy/girl loose and give the verdict this time.

AppleJack

Of course we love everything that is Apple! Drumroll for AppleJack, please. :D

Download AppleJack

What is AppleJack? 
According to its Source Forge page, it is "a user friendly troubleshooting assistant for Mac OS X. With AppleJack you can troubleshoot a computer even if you can't load the GUI, or don't have a startup CD handy. AppleJack runs in Single User Mode and is menu-based for ease of use."


Now let's draw from that the most attractive parts for us OSx86 users:

1. With AppleJack you can troubleshoot a computer even if you can't load the GUI
2. AppleJack runs in Single User Mode and is menu-based for ease of use.

The 1st situation is what we all run into occasionally. Err, "But I can't even boot my HP Mini 311 up because it Kernel Panics!" you say. Remember the Golden Rule in troubleshooting? Ok, maybe I'm at fault for not stating that Golden Rule, but when you can't boot up your OSx86 machine, the first thing you do is:

• Boot in Single User mode

Yep, that's right. Moving on...

The logic behind booting in Single User mode is to access CLI (Command Line Interface) at least and from there, you can manually launch commands to hopefully sort out the issue. Most of the time, the root cause for Kernel Panics (at least for a stable hackintosh like the HP Mini 311) is permissions error. Try powering off your machine abruptly a few times in a row, sabotaging its natural shutdown mechanics and you're most likely to get a KP soon after.

But how does one launch Permissions Repair from CLI? Sure you can memorize or keep an index card with the command but why bother when there's a better way? 

That's exactly what AppleJack is all about. I don't think any "fsck blah blah blah" could ever beat simply typing "applejack" and then press Enter key.

Actually it does more than permissions repair.

Here's the menu you see when you launch:

And a better screenshot courtesy of AppleJack's page:

You can:

1. Repair disks
2. Repair permissions
3. cleanup cache files (clears system caches)
4. validate preference files (for errant applications)
5. remove swap files (which is now "cleanup virtual memory")

En somme, AppleJack is a utility that no Mini MacBooker should be without. :D

P.S. This isn't a paid advert. By now I assume you're used to reading non paid ad-like stuff on My MacBook Mini cause I just seem to love writing them! ;-)

Security Update 2010-006 for Snow Leopard

It was released last September 20 actually - I was late in running Software Update. Just thought I'd give a heads up to everyone:

Download the Security Update 2010-006 for Snow Leo at Apple's site.

Eureka!

Finally found out how to put the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle together. And they fit!

Package Maker is mine!!! ~Apple Pie, the white pomeranian/Japanese spitz (we're not sure what breed she really is)

Compiling Chameleon

In the frustration of sorting out problems with the file structure in creating an installer .pkg for the HP Mini 311 Darwin Project, I decided to take a breather and try my hands on another thing. Compiling Chameleon.

I took cue from the InsanelyWind forums and chose meklort's svn in the Chameleon project as basis. With XCode already installed beforehand on my HP Mini 311 running OS X Snow Leo 10.6.4, I fired up Terminal and launched the following command:

svn co http://forge.voodooprojects.org/svn/chameleon/branches/meklort/

It downloads the source code for meklort. For more details on the different versions, I encourage you to read the thread directly.

To cut to the chase, I ended up compiling 3 different builds of Chameleon.

1. meklort's r-150 - worked with Atom as expected. But my RAM was incorrectly detected:

2. meklort r-158 - latest version as far as I know, worked as well with Atom but slows down boot time considerably. Memory detection has also gone awry. Same as r-150 above.

3. Chameleon-v2.0-RC4 (with patches mentioned at InsanelyWind) - again, wrong memory detection:

Now, compare them to the correct memory clock. Uses Retail Pack 0.9's boot file:

Random Hackintosh Thoughts

I'm currently reading "OSx86 : Creating a Hackintosh" by Peter Baldwin. As he puts it in that book:

So many people deserve credit for making this book possible. Without them putting hoursand hours of their time into smoothing the path for others, this book would be impossible.It’s not something any one person could do.

When I first tried out OSx86 as a hackintosh noob about 2 years ago (MSI Wind U100), I was practically walking on a pathway full of roses already. Not that the installation could beat a real Macintosh installation at any given time but, for lack of other comparison, I'd say the process was already as normal as could get a typical Windows XP installation.

That aside, there's hardware compatibility - webcam, internal mic, WiFi card may not work etc. But that hardly spoils the game, at least for those who are logical and know what they are getting into. By knowing what it is OSx86 gets you in, we're talking not about getting a real Mac experience nor do we aim to replace real Macs, but rather it's the journey of acquiring knowledge about OSx86 or simply Mac OS X on a PC.

Then after that, I noticed something that most OSx86 noobs with no prior Mac experience fall into this trap: lack of OS X know-how. Sometimes people would tell me that such and such don't work on their hackintoshes and then just resign with the thought that nothing can be done because "Hey, it's OSx86, what did I expect?".

A perfect example would be connecting external displays to your Mac Netbook. Someone would say: "VGA port on the HP Mini 311 under OS X Snow Leopard does not work at all!".

Or my own story when I first had Leopard on my MSI Wind. Just a while ago I had Yahoo! Messenger and then now it's gone!!

In the first example; it's just that you have to check System Preferences > Display and then click on Detect Displays to configure that humongous new LCD monitor of yours.

As for Yahoo! Messenger, I was running the app from the USB flashdrive and so of course, after unplugging the drive, the app was also gone - I should have copied app to my Applications folder or anywhere in my disk where I can always access it. I was simply ignorant of how applications behave and/or are installed differently in Windows than in Mac OS X which I was then completely unfamiliar with.

So I'm not all surprised, in fact I'm even in all agreement with Mr. Baldwin, in that 3 chapters of his book was about, well, educating the reader on how Mac OS X functions.

Sometimes we forget that our hackintoshes are Macs too, after all -- well that is, in a way. Oh there's a ton of realizations waiting to dawn upon us if we only get the time to know Mac OS X outside of all the OSx86 detailed technicalities of installation and as an OS for everyday use, first and foremost.

Thus I invite you to read:

• OSXDaily
• CultOfmac's 100 Tips (for Snow Leopard)

Figuring Things Out

The 10.6.5 Mac OS X Update is looming in the horizon and although I've the confidence to say that the current configuration will give no major issues for HP Mini MacBook 311 users (I'm talking about HF6RC4 which is based on the wonderful work of the HP Mini 311 Darwin Project team, all I did was package the nice stuff), there still will be people clamoring for an install package.

But I'm having issues with the latest Package Maker; somehow I can't figure out why the whole project file system is messed up in the end.

Gotta figure this out. Gotta figure a way out. In my little hackintosh office.

P.S. You might notice the tall glass in the pic. It's filled with some coke and the Isopropyl alcohol in the background? Maybe I can use that as substitute for vodka or whisky. Not that I'm into the biz of frying my liver, but I dearly love a good joke. :D

Electrocute!

Nah-uh. Not that "Electrocute" song. Whatever its real title is.

I noticed that I get mild (how do you call them again?) electric shocks when the HP Mini 311 is charging  - I touch the sides and I think it's the USB, VGA, HDMI ports that I get the mild shocks from. But I also get it when I brush my hand's upper side (whatever you call that side of your hand that is opposite your palm?) agains the strip of metal that houses the speakers.

Is this normal or should I get worried (perhaps our power outlets are frying my Mini 311's innards?)?

Because A Geek Is A Geek

Update. Yep.

Disk Test

Sometimes, specially when experimenting with stuff on your HP Mini MacBook Pro 311, you get a KP (kernel panic) during boot.

While you can always just opt to force shutdown the Mini 311 and restart again in verbose mode or safe mode, it causes issues with the Mac OS X file system, i.e. orphaned files. Permissions Repair via Onyx or Disk Utility can easily solve the problem and regularly running this maintenance activity can save you from a big headache.

HP Mini MacBook 311 Accessories : Wireless Mouse

iTunes 10

I am rarely, perhaps even never, excited with iTunes updates. Other than that I'm as geek as geek could be (at least in my own opinion, that is) which means I'm destined to grab that new update, I wouldn't update. To be specific, the reason I always update is just so that I can laugh that triumphant laugh when the built-in Software Update returns this:

switchtoamac.com

New iPod Touch

Call me an Apple fangirl. Or make that a strange Apple fangirl. Nope, I even urge you to go the entire full mile and call me a strange, ridiculous, pinned-up, Ms. Prissy Apple fangirl. Because I just have to say this:

It bothers me that some people call the iPod Touch "iTouch".

No matter how hard I look at the Apple Store and replay Steve Jobs, Phil Schiller keynotes (I'm still looking for instances where Tim Cook, Jonathan Ive, etc. talk about the iPod Touch) and I haven't heard them call the "iPhone that doesn't have phone functions" device as an "iTouch".

I know I should probably schedule an appointment with the local shrink pronto; this might be symptoms of insanity.

image from cultofmac (but maybe they got it elsewhere: gadget?)