Resurrecting the 2009 iMac

Got hold of a 2009 21.5" unibody iMac.

Powered it on and was greeted by the startup chime and the Apple logo. Looking good so far. Progress bar steadily moving all the way till the end. Waited for more than 10 minutes, but still not loading the OS. It's most likely a really old CPU, but this is too long.

Suspecting a corrupted OS, I booted into macOS Recovery using Ctrl-R. There's a 1TB hard disk with 1.3GB used. Doesn't look like there is a proper OS on this thing though. Ran the Disk Utility to erase the disk - said "Unable to unmount disk". Chose the Install macOS option, but the 1TB hard disk does not show up as an option. First Aid reports the hard disk to be fine.

My guess is that because I'm running the recovery image from the HDD itself, Disk Utility is not able to unmount the disk. So the next step is to build a bootable USB stick, and run the erase/install from there. 

Downloaded a bunch of DMGs and APPs, tried TransMac and command-line, but the USB sticks either won't be detected during boot-time, or getting a forbidden sign as soon as selected, or won't even get created by the createinstallmedia utility.

Another option is to replace the hard disk and try Internet Recovery, which bypasses the hard disk altogether. However, this requires me to open up the iMac, which doesn't look easy (if you don't have the right tools).

So I simply took the easy way out. Created a bootable installer of CloudReady (now ChromeOS Flex) and boom! Mission accomplished.

Reinstalling Windows on Lenovo IdeaPad Miix 320-10ICR

My wife has been using the Lenovo IdeaPad Miix 320 for many years for one thing and one thing only - watching videos on KissAsian and YouTube.

It's a neat little tablet that does the job well. She doesn't even need to have the physical keyboard attached. Any typing required is done on the onscreen keyboard. The only complaint is that it's starting to get a little bit sluggish. All those Windows updates have used up all the free disk space, and the thing can't take any more new updates. The 32GB eMMC wasn't much to begin with.

I've always reinstalled the latest Windows 10 Pro to get around the updates issue, but looks like I need a more permanent solution. Given that the tablet is only used for media consumption, I've decided to just install Windows 7 on it. No performance degradation as there are no expected Windows updates. Turns out Windows 7 won't install as it's missing/asking for some device driver that it can't find.

Bumped it up to Windows 8.1. The operating system installed just fine, but the touchscreen does not work. Same goes for Peppermint OS. Need the touchscreen to work, so that we won't need to have the physical keyboard attached.

Looks like my only option is to just install Windows 10, then disable Windows Update. Version 21H2 didn't work. The ISO booted just fine, but the screen was all garbled. I can move the mouse and see something moving, but no way to complete the install. Then I read somewhere that Version 2004 and up won't work on the Miix 320. Tried Version 1909 and that one installed just fine. Took a looong time to set up though because every time I tried to create an offline account and set up the password, the system would switch to the "Just a moment..." screen then power off or hang.

I reckon this is because I've already set up the wireless network and it's trying to install drivers, while I was finishing the setup. After what felt like a dozen forced reboots, I managed to log in to Windows and set up my account. As for disabling Windows Updates, lots of tutorials out there, but none of them supposedly work anymore. Will just just reinstall the latest Windows the next time it slows down again.

Field of Mars Reserve and Buffalo Creek Reserve

Field of Mars Reserve is a protected bushland reserve in East Ryde. Best way to start exploring the reserve is to use the main entrance along Pittwater Road. There's ample free parking when you get off the roundabout. There is a Visitors Centre nearby, which is open during weekends.

From the reserve entrance, you have a choice of four walking trails. The shortest is Doyle Loop, which 1.2 kilometers, 45 minutes return with a grade of medium. Next shortest is the Warada Loop - 1.9 kilometers, 60 minutes return, easy grade, which is the one we tried. You can find the walking trail map here.

We found the track (relatively) slow-going, and the kids didn't like the occasional spider web. So instead of taking the return loop, we pushed on north and took the Cressy Road exit. From there, we took the long way to the parking lot. If you intend to do the same, there is a cafe called Fox and Bird along Moncrieff Drive, in case you need some refreshments along the way.

Across the street is the Buffalo Creek Reserve. Had to give this a visit, as the kids spotted the shaded playground. Further beyond is a walking/bicycle track around a cricket oval. We almost missed it as we walked around the oval, but I knew what I was looking for.

On one side of the oval, you'll find access to The Great North Walk, which goes from Sydney to Newcastle. Of course, no 250-km. walk for us. We took the mangrove boardwalk loop and headed back to the oval.