Archive for September, 2009

Running OSX86 in VMWare Server 2.0

Saturday, September 26th, 2009

For those of you who want to run OSX in a virtual machine, its not terribly difficult to setup if you’ve got the right instructions. If not, it takes a lot of experimenting and guess work to get it working properly. I tried to do it myself with limited success. I could get it to install 100% of the time but only once did I ever get it to reboot into the main OS. I wiped it out (thinking I had it down) so that I could try and fix the booting. I never got it to work on my own again after that.

I was fortunate to find a tutorial that worked perfectly for me the first time. I was then able to upgrade to OS 10.5.7 so that I could install the iPhone 3.0 SDK. Now when there’s a slow day at work I can develop for my phone without having to bring in my personal computer! Woot! The link to the tutorial is below. I’ll copy and paste its contents as well in the event that it ever goes down. My best advice to you is take VM snapshots along the way as you get individual portions working. Also note that you cannot boot the VM without the installation DVD mounted. If you forget to install osx86 tools, you can download it here.

Link to a direct download of the 10.5.7 update from Apple itself. Here are the upgrade instructions I followed.

VMWare configuration instructions courtesy of Bob’s Mental Moshpit. Thanks Bob. Note that this installs “Darwin-64.” You do not need to be running a 64-bit OS for this. It’s working just fine for me on Windows XP 32 Bit.

Installing Mac OS X 10.5.6 under VMware 6.5.2

One of the current “Holy Grails” of virtual machinery is getting a functional installation of Mac OS X into a VMware virtual machine. There’s a lot of Google talk out there about how to do it, but not everybody seems to be successful. I certainly wasn’t for quiet some time. However, I sat down today and decided to give it my best shot again, and this time I succeeded! Not only did I succeed with iDeneb 1.4 (which installs Mac OS X 10.5.6), I successfully upgraded that release to 10.5.7. Cool.

I’m documenting here the steps I followed (many times, just to make sure they worked for me) to achieve a successful Mac OS X 10.5.x install in a VMware Workstation 6.5.2 machine. There is no sound, but there is networking, which is far more important to me. If you find a way to get audio working, you might post it here.

Be aware that these steps worked for me, but YMMV. If you are not successful using them, there’s not much I can do to help you out. I had to experiment over and over to find these working steps; you will probably have to do the same to overcome your problems. For the purposes of this tutorial, I’ll be using the file “iDeneb_v1.4_10.5.6.iso”.

Here We Go

1. First, of course, you need to grab the iDeneb 1.4 distribution (Mac OS X 10.5.6). Google it, or use your favorite torrent search engine.
2. Mount the iDeneb ISO as a drive (using something like UltraISO or Virtual CloneDrive). Note the drive letter of the DVD.
3. Create a new virtual machine in VMware. The following sequence of screen grabs should show you all the settings you need to create for the new environment:


	Tell VMware that you will install the operating system later:

	For operating system type, Select “Other”, and then “FreeBSD 64-bit”:

	I named it “10.5″ because I will upgrade from the 10.5.6 on the iDeneb 1.4 image to 10.5.7. You can call it whatever you like, of course:

	Choose the number of processors to let the OS use:

	Allocate an amount of memory to use:

	Unless you know what you’re doing, select “Bridged networking”:

	Drive-type settings:

	Set the space available on the disc. The installation will consume 6-7GB, and the update will consume even more. If you need to do more on the drive, increase that size here:

	Don’t power on the machine yet:

4. Edit the machine settings, and set the CD/DVD drive to use the one that you noted earlier where the iDeneb 1.4 image is mounted:

5. Power on the machine. You’ll want to be sure you click in the window immediately so it captures the mouse/keyboard focus. When prompted to press “F8″ for startup options, press it. Then, at the “boot:” prompt, you can enter options you want for starting the installer. I use the following (’-v’ means show diagnostic messages; I recommend entering at least that):

6. Now, if you’re lucky, at this point you should boot into the iDeneb installer. When you get to the installation prompt, you’ll want to go to the “Utilities” menu, and launch “Disk Utility”. From this interface, select the VM disc, and then select the “Partition” tab:

7. Create a single-partition layout, leaving the volume type as “Mac OS Extended (Journaled)”. This volume type is important: I was unable to get the VM to boot with any other type:

8. Select the “Options” button, and change the disc to use a “Master Boot Record” partition. The other types failed to work for me:

9. “Apply” your partition settings, and exit the “Disk Utility”.
10. Proceed with the installation, selecting your VM disc as the target partition (it will be the only one, if you followed these instructions).
11. When the installation completes, you’ll be prompted to restart. Do so, but when the machine gets back to the boot prompt, “Stop” it immediately (don’t worry, this won’t harm anything) so that you are back to the VMware desktop and the VM is powered off.
12. Change the “CD/DVD” settings of the VM from the specific iDeneb drive back to “Auto”. DO NOT UNMOUNT THE DVD. You’ll want to leave the iDeneb DVD mounted in the operating system, because it seems to be the only way to allow the VM to actually boot correctly.
13. Shut down VMware.
14. Open the .vmx file of the new iDeneb machine (e.g., “Mac OS X 10.5.vmx”), and find the line that starts with “guestOS”. It should contain the entry “freebsd-64″. Change this to “darwin-64″, and save the file.
15. Re-start VMware, and power on the Mac OS X VM. Let the boot screen time out, and if the gods are smiling down upon you, you will boot into Mac OS X 10.5.6.

Post-installation Booting

Of course, things did not go this smoothly for me. It took me a couple of boot attempts to get the operating system to come up (boot-hang-kill-repeat). When it did, I did all the set up stuff, and it took me into the OS X desktop. Once I get everything set up that is boot dependent (like updates and screen resolution), I plan to simply suspend the VM so that I can unmount the iDeneb DVD, and then simply power on the VM whenever I need it.

Screen Resolution

There are two ways to control the screen resolution. You can enter it at the boot prompt (see the previous image), but this is cumbersome, and can typically lead to a failed boot. Or, you can change the com.apple.Boot.plist file to make the resolution permament (my preferred approach). Both approaches require a boot up sequence in order to be successful. You can read about implementing both approaches here.

Good Luck

If you’ve been looking for a successful way to create a portable Macintosh, I hope this approach works for you. Being a software engineer, it’s really fantastic to be able to carry Linux, Mac OS X, and Vista along with me on a single machine when I’m away from home.

iHackintosh Upgrade instructions:

Download AppleDecrypt.kext Click HERE.
Download IntelCPUPMDisabler.kext Click HERE.
Edit : AppleIntelCPUPM Disabler.kexts will be in /Extra

Open the terminal & perform following command’s without quotes.

”sudo –s”

*type password*

”while sleep 1;”

”do rm –rf /System/Library/Extensions/AppleIntelCPUPowerManagement.kext;done”

Open 10.5.7 Update Installer.

Run update BUT DO NOT RESTART.

Go back to your terminal and press Control C to end the script.

In terminal type:

”vi /System/InstallAtStartup/scripts/1”

Replace the line Dont Steal Mac OS X.kext with dsmos.kext if any exists.

Don’t restart.

Open osx86tools >>> Check repair permissions >>> Set kext permissions >>> Clear extensions cache >>> Restart.

Boot using -v to see if any errors.

Posted in Programming, Technology | 1 Comment »

JVC KD-HDR50 CD Receiver Pretty Nifty

Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009

I had some work done on my car a few weeks ago and they disconnected the negative terminal on the battery. This had the ultimate effect of disabling my car stereo. The factory Honda stereo wanted me to put in the activation code. I looked in the door jams, inside and around the glove box and even in the trunk. I couldn’t find this code anywhere. I was going to have to rip the stereo out or have the dealer do the same (the dealer themselves were unable to look up the code by VIN the one time I had dealer service done. Sure wish they would have given me the code when I asked THREE times).

With a thirty minute commute each way, I decided that I needed to do something about this fast. So, I looked around on Crutchfield and found this beauty. Built in HD tuner, USB port in the front and $20 off if I purchased with a Mastercard. It was an easy sell. Crutchfield shipped the receiver the same day that I ordered it and it was in my hot little hands two days later.

The adapter kit that was supplied by Crutchfield worked perfectly. It was color coded and a snap to hook up. I used wire nuts instead of soldering and it took me about 10 minutes to splice them together and triple check my connections.

Thanks to the wonderful engineering at Honda, I had to take out the storage console between the two seats as well as a few screws in the center console to get at the two bolts holding the stereo in place. I didn’t bother to unhook the hazard lights or clock plugs so it took me a few extra minutes to maneuver the old unit out of the console and the new unit in. About 10 minutes later I was reattaching the battery cable to test this thing out.

Here’s a quick overview of my impressions of the stereo. The receiver is amazing. I am able to pick up stations that my factory radio could not. They don’t sound crystal clear but it has opened new options to me. The HD is very nice. Some of my favorite radio stations have talk radio in the morning and their secondary programming is good ol’ fashioned music. The display is easy to read and the 30,000+ color choices look phenomenal. The radio doubles as a charger for my iPhone, and will even play music off a FAT16/32 formatted memory stick or USB hard drive.

Pros:

USB port will charge any USB powered cell phone, even if it can’t play MP3s off of it.
HD reception is amazing. Crystal clear audio with secondary station offerings (My PBS station does NPR on channel 1, classical music on 2 and NWS on 3. Very nice for the crazy Florida weather)
Easy to install
Superior sound quality over factory stereo both from off-the-air sources and my iPhone.
Will play my MP3s off a memory stick, increasing my storage over my iPhone.

Cons:

Does not have preset buttons
Menu navigation is non-intuitive
Pain in the butt to preset hop without the remote (haven’t tried the remote yet)
Auto programming of the presets only does 6 presets at a time and selects the exact same stations when I try to do the next 6 presets
Auto programming of the presets seems to only look for HD stations
Will not play MP3s off my Creative Zen Vision: M. I was hoping to recycle the thing by leaving it in my car.
Crutchfield supplied mount kit is VERY cheap. I’m honestly a little worried about how well it will hold up.
Keeps switching from random songs to normal. Its somewhat awkward to switch back so this drives me INSANE!

Despite some serious cons, I do recommend this car stereo. I couldn’t find any that supported SDHC cards / iPod that did have regular preset buttons.

I’m excited to have music in my car again and I find myself fiddling with all the menu features at stoplights. Don’t worry, I don’t make people wait on me when the light turns green.

*EDIT* The stupid thing keeps taking it off of RANDOM for my ipod/iphone. So I have to turn it back to random probably every 30 minutes or so.

Posted in Automotive, Technology | No Comments »

Starcraft 2 Lead Developer Thinks You’re Crazy

Monday, September 21st, 2009

I know this is a little bit late (Blizzcon was almost a month ago) but I finally got around to reading the Slashdot interview with Blizzard. I didn’t even make it through the entire interview before I quit reading because I was deeply offended. Why you ask? Well, the lead developer said that I’m “are crazy and weird and living in a closet.” Don’t worry, I’m not using this quote out of context. You can find his exact response here.

So what makes me “crazy and weird and living in a closet?” I want to play Starcraft 2 on a LAN and I have high-speed internet access. But why on earth would anyone want to do that, you ask? Well I can think of several reasons. The first being that I don’t want to play on Battle.net, ever! It doesn’t interest me. I’ve never enjoyed playing RTS’s online with random individuals. I play them at home or a friend’s house, even in the library. I play with friends, acquaintances, and family. We bring our laptops and play until all hours of the morning. Sometimes we want to pause the game to get some pizza or because some really cute girls came over. Sometimes I’m playing with an 8 year old nephew who should not have to be subjected to the kinds of language, attitudes, and griefing he would almost definitely encounter online.

So, Mr. Dustin Browder, lead developer of Starcraft 2, I salute you. I salute you for strengthening my resolve to boycott your company. You guys can go ahead and lockout LAN play of your game. It will probably result in Starcraft 2 being pirated more than the record setting release of Spore. You won’t stop the people from playing LAN games, you’ll only drive people away from paying for your software. I may be crazy and weird Mr Browder, but at least I don’t treat people the way your corporation treats its own paying customers.

Posted in Rants and Raves, Video Games | No Comments »

This Nerd Heard…