Hello Michael,

  ML> I have a 1st generation iMac here, it refuses to run
    > the NetBSD loader from the CD. Loading the same loader
    > from a HFS partition and only the kernel from CD works
    > fine though.

This sounds like the same problem that I encountered on my
iBook.  I worked at it for some time and was eventually able
to make an HFS+ partition using tools from FreeDarwin but
could not persuade the iBook to boot from that partition
even once ofwboot.xcf and a kernel had been copied to it.

Are you able to boot NetBSD from your iMac's hard disk (with
no CD in the drive)?

- Andy Ball