Troubling selecting boot-up disk

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Hi Folks... I have an old 2006 MacBook A1185 that I am trying to re-purpose b/c Apple no longer supports Snow Leopard and won't allow installation of a newer OS onto this hardware. So I am trying to install Linux from a DVD.

However, inserting the DVD, turning on, and holding down Alt doesn't bring up anything... the computer goes straight to the hard drive which is blank and so just gives a big flashing "?". Pressing 'C' or 'D' doesn't work either. Tried installing onto a USB stick via conversion to .dmg, but still same problem and no option to choose another boot target is presented.

Any thoughts / directions? How do I get the MacBook to boot from the DVD drive?

Thank you.
Paras.
 

chscag

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Actually, your MacBook can run Lion but nothing after that. And are you sure your DVD drive is working OK? And that the Linux disk is bootable?
 
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my mistake... it is an A1181 with Core 2 Duo, 1.83GHz, and 2GB RAM... and I believe you are right that it could be upgraded to Lion, but not after.

Yes the DVD drive is working properly.

The Linux was installed properly according to their instructions. However, installing the DVD into another Mac just says that the disk is not readable, so not sure how I would confirm it, but I believe it is installed properly. In any case, shouldn't I at least be able to see the DVD come up as an option by holding down Alt or 'C' during boot-up?
 

chscag

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It sounds like the Linux disk was not properly created. I would try burning the Linux ISO again to disk and then test it to make sure it's bootable. Which distro are you using? If the disk is properly created, you should be able to hold down your Option key and see the disk as a boot choice.
 
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OK, so I confirmed that the Linux installation disk works. I'm using Ubuntu 14.04.1 LTS.

I was able to boot off the Linux installation disk and use Ubuntu on my Mac Pro 5,1 off the disk. I was also able to install Ubuntu from the disk to an external HD connected via USB on the Mac Pro. However, when I then remove the HD from the USB enclosure and install it into the A1181 Macbook, Ubuntu does not come up.. what comes up is the blank screen with a flashing "?". Holding down Option during startup does not bring up the selection of boot drives either.... what comes up is just a blank screen with a mouse cursor arrow. I am able to move the cursor around via the trackpad on the Macbook.

Finally, reinstalling the original HD with Leopard still on it into the Macbook works normally. This drive is completely full, which is why I am interested to install another, larger HD with Linux on it.

Thank you.
 

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