Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Installing Linux (Fedora 8) on Macbook Pro

I was trying to install Linux on Macbook Pro along with Mac OS X, because
it has Intel Processor, Intel chipset on Motherboard
and Nvidia 8600 GT graphics card. I followed steps
given in Debian Wiki (Mainly upto rEFIt part) and
in Mactel (for remaining part).

I would like to suggest some tips regarding installation of
Fedora 8 along with Mac OS X on Macbook Pro.

  1. Audio: Download the latest Linux kernel and compile it with Intel HD Audio drivers 82801H (ICH8 Family).
  2. Video: Boot into new kernel, and install NVidia driver, restart X server by logging out and logging in.
  3. Keyboard: Download pomme daemon, Compile and install it. Now Optical Drive Eject button will work.
  4. Backlight: Even after installing pommed, I was seeing very bright screen. I was not able to stare at screen for more than a minute. Later, after some tweaking of /etc/pommed.conf , I was able to decrease the backlit. I changed init = -1 to init = 1, as shown below:
# nVidia GeForce 8600M GT backlight control (MacBook Pro v3 & v4)
lcd_nv8600mgt {
# initial backlight level [12] (0 - 15, -1 to disable)
init = 1
# step value (1 - 2)
step = 1
# backlight level when on battery [6] (1 - 15, 0 to disable)
on_batt = 6
}

PS: Everything else should work as given in Mactel site. Feel free to write
comments. If you have any doubt, mail me at mitesh[dot]singh[dot]jat[at]gmail[dot]com

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