creating bootable usb in macosx10.5.x

i am using command line diskutil to create a bootable usb with ubuntu on it;
i unmount the drive at /dev/disk3
then,
sudo dd if=/path of=/drive bs=1m
it finishes copying all of the files, then i eject and plug it into my eee pc with the n270 atom cpu
i start the eeepc and hitting f2 to enter bios settings and then escaping brings up a choice to boot from either the HD or my usb drive;
choosing the usb drive causes it to pause for a sec and then it starts loading XP
then after xp starts, if i try to look at the usb, it tells me it is not formatted;
i formatted in fat32 on both my macbook and on the eeepc itself and then tried to use the macbooks diskutil as stated above;
same result both times;
btw, i am using the eeebuntu distro 3.0 net book remix (it might be 3.01 i renamed the file);
any suggestions?

Reformat the drive again using Ubuntu, if it's still working on your netbook that is. I've been in your situation and started going insane trying to format within OS X to get a bootable drive. For some reason OS X doesn't always work when trying to format a drive to FAT 32. Then just use USB Image Writer, much simpler and easier than having to use command lines.

Of course once you do get it formatted again, you can use OS X, just make sure that you have a single FAT 32 partition and that you have it set as a Master Boot Record.



Hopefully you won't get the same error message as before. Good luck!

...

is "usb imagewriter" a program for ubuntu or osx?
imagewriter is a program i have on a desktop with ubuntu;
i am using it right now, but it does not look like the screen you posted;
all i can choose is an .img file and the device to write to;
i can only find an .iso for download, so i just renamed to .img because that is all the program would accept;
it is currently writing, will see;
i didnt have the option to make "mbr" or master boot record;
i also probably should have converted to .img instead of renaming;
i searched for "convert iso to img ubuntu" and every post indicates they are too similar or asked "an img for what?"
ridiculous, if they are so similar why wont this program accept an iso;
patience wearing thin...
thanks for the help tho, i am now using a desktop with ubuntu to try to create the boot usb instead of this expensive macbook

worked

yeah, had to format with gparted in ubuntu;
sorry mac friends;
after format in fat32, i used usb creator that came with ubuntu (under administrative tools)
booted up on eeepc with the weird workaround of f2 into bios, then esc when it is exiting bios;
(really i just would hit esc, then f2, then f10 at boot a couple times)
this was a very annoying process with the mac, this is really about the first time osx hasnt had a quicker workaround, but anyways...

Sorry, I should've clarified. Yes, Image Writer is for Ubuntu. I'm not sure if just renaming an .iso file as an .img file will work (pretty sure it won't). If it doesn't, reformat the flash drive by using Partition Manager in Ubuntu to make it FAT 32. Then repeat the steps you did for making it bootable through OS X.

It's really peculiar that your netbook recognizes the drive and boots from it but won't let you go any further. The fault may actually be with the .iso file.

bboyreason said:

yeah, had to format with gparted in ubuntu;
sorry mac friends;
after format in fat32, i used usb creator that came with ubuntu (under administrative tools)
booted up on eeepc with the weird workaround of f2 into bios, then esc when it is exiting bios;
(really i just would hit esc, then f2, then f10 at boot a couple times)
this was a very annoying process with the mac, this is really about the first time osx hasnt had a quicker workaround, but anyways...

Click to expand...

So did the installation work?

yeah

yes, after gparted format and the usblive creator;
booted up fine on the netbook, i am finishing up some upgrades as i type;
i foresee grub problems however;
do you think if i install a new version of grub, it will mess up my dual boot partition?

edit:
yes, i should have installed a new grub;
i am screwed i think;
udev is unconfigured
dropping to a shell
reinstall?

I can't imagine that it would, but I don't know as I haven't had a dualboot configuration on a netbook before and haven't messed with the grub loader. Maybe ask in the Ubuntu forums as they're more likely to know about dual booting Ubuntu/Windows. Glad the installation finally worked for you though.