fails to install on iMac G3 DV SE (firmware 4.1.9)

[Stefan Güls]

Binary package hint: yaboot-installer

I repeatedly had to install ubuntu/xubuntu to the same machine (iMac G3 DV SE, 400Mhz slot loading). It initially had the original firmware (unkonwn) on it, and installing xubuntu flight 7 went smooth.

For being able to dual boot OS X, the Apple firmware 4.1.9 had to be installed. Neither ubuntu, nor xubuntu flight7 text mode install-CD'S were able to install normally after this . Installation process terminated abnormally with red screens, indicating yaboot was unable to install
(error: unable to install to /target)
 (1M newworld boot partition is present). After reboot, nevertheless yaboot was able to boot the newly installed system, but no user account was set up on the installed system, so only booting to Single-mode allowed setting up an account and logging in.

[Stefan Güls (sguels)]

.. someone please edit this 'malformed title to something sensible...

[Colin Watson (cjwatson)]

Please attach /var/log/installer/syslog and /var/log/partman to this bug.

[Colin Watson (cjwatson)]

Make that /var/log/installer/partman, not /var/log/partman. Sorry.

[Stefan Güls (sguels)]

Sorry, i'm no more able to supply that.

It was overwritten when i completely wiped the harddrive and repartitioned it, set up Mac OS 9 first and then _succesfully_ and _without errors_ installed from a Xubuntu-PPC-flight7 text-mode CD.(Espresso is a mess on PPC....).
So for some reason the yaboot-installer did not like the new-world boot partition from a previous install under a different firmware.

Sorry, I didn't have the time and skills to do proper forensic analysis, but i consider the textmode-installer to work under clean circumstances

[Niels Kristian Bech Jensen (nkbjensen)]

Colin: Is the request for /var/log/installer/partman, not /var/log/partman, general or just for this bug?

If it's general there is a typo in /usr/share/ubiquity/glade/liveinstaller.glade which says /var/log/partman.

[Colin Watson (cjwatson)]

It's called /var/log/partman during installation and /var/log/installer/partman after you reboot to the newly-installed system. (Thus, no bug.)

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

[Expired for yaboot-installer (Ubuntu) because there has been no activity for 60 days.]

[Chascon (chascone)]

My memeory is really foggy but this is what I recall from years ago ...

If you can't boot Gnu-linux after an Apple update, I think what we used to do is rerun ybin -v (to configure yaboot). But that doesn't help if you can't get into Gnu-linux, so I think I used to get in by selecting Gnu-Linux via Apple's redamentry bootloader, by pressing the "option" key (if memory serves) right after powering up. You see a few logos signed to each OS. Selct Gnu-linux's mascot with your mouse.