I tried to make MacBook Air after 10 years as an active Chromebook with Chrome OS Flex

Chromebook with MacBook Air

　Google announced "Chrome OS Flex" on February 15. It is an OS that can make old PCs and Macs into Chromebook. The story I heard somewhere in the Mac list of the compatible product list? Yes, Nobuyoshi Koji is a column that says, "CHROMEBOOK and happy PCs abandoned by Windows 11." Kodera used a chromium -based OS created by a company called Neverware. "Chrome OS Flex" is the result of Google acquired this Neverware in December 2020 and has approached the Chrome OS over a year. It is still "early access" version, but anyone can download it for free and install it on compatible products. So, I decided to transform the compatible product that was sleeping, "MacBook Air (13-inch, mid 2012)" into a Chromebook. This is the member of Starbucks fashionable Nomad. I dispose of old PCs quite a bit, but my hardcore maker also preserves Apple products that are no longer used (Macintosh Plus also works when the power is turned on). The MacBook Air 10 years ago can be used enough. However, I was retired because I was out of the MacOS update on Big Sur. MacBook Air is required to make a Chromebook -MacBook Air (the person) -USB memory (capacity is 8GB or more) -Ctopting a USB memory (capacity 8GB or more) -Can flex USB can be downloaded. PC or Chromebook / (of course online connection environment) is charged immediately. a. Magsafe's AC adapter is hard to find. While having my husband search for an adapter, I look for a USB memory of 8GB or more to put Chrome OS Flex (Flex). Since the hand was only old and small, I decided to use a 64GB SD card to an adapter for inserting an SD card into a USB port. By the way, if you want to connect USB memory to an active PC .... The port of the PC ("ZenBook Flip" of ASUS) and Chromebook (this also ASUS's Chromebook "Detachable CM3") is USB Type-C There was no SD card slot and I couldn't insert the USB memory as it was. But I remembered that the predecessor Chromebook (Chromebook Flip C101) did not let go. This is the USB Type-A port. So I will charge it and revive it. The charging port is TYPE-C, so you don't have to look for a cable. The predecessor Chromebook woke up as soon as the cable was connected, so logged in with a Google account and set up in a few minutes. The good thing about Chromebook is that it is easy to set up from a clear state. Immediately go to Flex website and let's try. However, in order to proceed from this page, it was essential to enter the email address, the country or the name of the company, etc. (it was found later that this process was not necessary). Flex is originally a service for corporate users, so it is a collection of information for sales purposes. That doesn't mean you don't use freelancers like me, so enter honestly and click the "Try Chrome OS Flex" button. Click the "View the Installation Guide" button. This opens a very polite (but still English only) installation procedure page. Click this link to open without entering the information. And it was opened on the explanation page of the procedure, and the method of actually obtaining Flex was to use the extension of the Chrome browser. A little tricky. Probably this is also a conductor to attract corporate users. The actual procedure is as follows. Make Bootable USB PC (this time, Chromebook) Add Chromebook Recovery Utility from Chrome Web Store to active. Start the recovery utility and click the start button, select "Google Chrome OS Flex" in "Select the Manufacturer" in "CHROMEBOOK Identification", and select "CHROME OS Flex (Developer-Unstable)" in "Select Product". Click [Continue] to connect the USB memory and proceed according to the instructions to create a bootable USB (actually bootable SD). As you can see in the help page, the percentage that indicates the progress of the creation is "-207 %", but I don't care. It seems that the MacBook Air charging and resurrection have been completed while making a bootable SD (thank you husband). Remove the bootable SD from the Chromebook and insert it into a MacBook Air in a shut down, and press the Option Ne Key to select a boot disk. EFI boot is a bootable SD, so select this. If you watch over and watch, you will hear the sound of the familiar MacBook Air, so if you think "no good", there is a Chrome logo that shines brightly on the screen. Succeeded. I was told, "It's the only thing with CloudReady 2.0" (not with Chrome OS Flex). Because it is still an early preview version. You can try it with the OS in the USB memory as it is, but there is nothing to lose, so make the MacBook Air into a Chromebook (early access version is likely to cause problems. So, don't imitate an important Mac or PC). I forgot to measure the time it took, but I didn't wait so much. After that, if you log in with a Google account like a normal Chromebook, it will be a familiar environment (for Chromebook users). I haven't used much yet, but there are no particular problems so far. I wondered how to do it because it is a US keyboard, but it can be switched with command + space. I also liked the startup sound as MabBook Air. However, the speed of the boot, which is a chromebook cucumber, could not be reproduced at least with my MacBook Air. The time required from pressing the power button on the Detachable CM3 to the login screen is displayed in 13 seconds, and the MacBook Air takes 40 seconds from the time to display the login screen. By the way, the Mac mini equipped with M1 seems to be 14 seconds according to Kimiya Matsuo. As expected. As Koji -san wrote, there is a printer problem, but it seems that there is no problem with the nomad at the cafe. After that, it's a bit disappointing that I can't install the Android app. This will be possible soon. You can now do various things that CloudReady could not do. Google Assistant can be used, it has the same update cycle as Chrome OS, and you can do it with the official OS, such as nearby share and family accounts. I made it a buttle USB that I made, and I wanted to go to my acquaintance's house, "Would you like to revive the dead PC or Mac?" The installation was easy, so this would be recommended for corporate users. If you have a lot of PCs that cannot be upgraded on Windows 11, there is room for consideration. * This article is a column of "Google -san" that loosely chases Google's trends.

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