Creating a bootable Lion install disc/disk and using it

Question

Hi all,
Below is a copy of a method ds store posted for creating a bootable Lion install disc. Some questions:
1. Is this a polished final version of the process, or are there other steps which could/should be added?
2. Are there any disadvantages to going this route instead of installing directly onto a Mac?
3. After creating a Lion install disc/disk via this method and using this saved dmg to install Lion on a Mac, will it set up the Mac exactly the same way it would by downloading/installing directly from the Apple Store (sounds like a "duh" question, but nothing would surprise me with Lion)?
4. Exact size of this dmg (in case I want to use a flash drive instead)?
I have been avoiding Lion, hoping it would shape up. I'm still not satisfied and will not run it on my main machines. (Of course ymmv; I'm not looking to be talked into or out of using Lion.) However, I am ******* (hmmm, I guess l-u-s-t-i-n-g is a bad word!) over a new Mac Mini, which will have Lion installed, with no chance of running SL on it due to the new hardware revision. Thus, I'm either going to have to make peace with Lion or forget about a new Mini. I guess I'll have to give Lion a try, but I still don't want to actually run it on any of my machines; thus, I want to run it from an external drive, playing with it as I have time/desire, leading to more questions.
5. Using the install disc/disk created above, will it set up Lion on a DVD, flash drive, or external HD exactly as it would on a Mac (Recovery Disk, etc.)?
6. How much space is needed on a destination disc/disk to install Lion?
7. Is it possible to boot from a different volume, mount this dmg, and install Lion from it?
8. Any advantages/disadvantages doing it this way (#7) as opposed to booting from the Lion install disc/disk created above?
9. Another method I'm thinking of using is to (after cloning my SL installation) actually install Lion on my MBP over my current SL installation (shudders violently ), clone it to an external HD, then erase/zero the MBP's HD and clone my SL install back to my MBP. Has anyone done this? Again, I'm concerned that Lion will do something goofy and leave some kind of footprint behind, like maybe messing with firmware; cloning my SL installation back to my internal HD would not reverse a firmware change.
10. Any constructive suggestions on anything related to any of these steps is welcome!
Yes, I've searched and read a number of responses, but I'm hoping much of the "discovery" phase is over, and there are some "solid"/refined answers by now. My bottom line is to be able to play with Lion without having to depend on it.
Thanks!
Backup Lion Bootable 10.7  Disk
Purchase and download Lion from the Mac App Store on any Lion compatible Mac running Snow Leopard.
Right click on “Mac OS X     Lion”     installer and choose the option to     “Show Package Contents.”
Inside the Contents folder     that     appears you will find a SharedSupport     folder and inside the     SharedSupport folder     you will find the “InstallESD.dmg.” This is         the Lion boot disc image we have all been waiting for.
Copy “InstallESD.dmg” to         another folder like the Desktop.
Launch Disk Utility and click     the     burn button.
Select the copied “InstallESD.dmg” as the image to     burn,     insert a standard sized 4.7 GB DVD,     and wait for your new Lion Boot     Disc to come     out toasty hot.
With this disc you can boot any Lion compatible Mac, andinstall10.7 just like you installed previous version of Mac OS X. Youcan even use Disk Utility's Restore function to image your Lion bootdisc image onto a external drive suitable for performing a cleaninstall on a optical-drive-less MacBook Air, or Mac mini server.

Answer 1

tjk wrote:
5. Using the install disc/disk created above, will it set up Lion on a DVD, flash drive, or external HD exactly as it would on a Mac (Recovery Disk, etc.)?
DVD: no, flash drive: if it's large enough, external hard drive: yes
6. How much space is needed on a destination disc/disk to install Lion?
Whatever Apple minimum requirements are.
7. Is it possible to boot from a different volume, mount this dmg, and install Lion from it?
possibly, never tried it, it is a dmg so it's a volume all to itself, except it can't install to the same media it's on and can only install to something formatted with GUID and a OS X extended format, like a flash drive or hard drive large enough.
DVD's can't be formatted with a GUID EFI partiton
8. Any advantages/disadvantages doing it this way (#7) as opposed to booting from the Lion install disc/disk created above?
Speed limitation of the media and bus your using, USB 1 is a slower than a hard drive with 7,200 RPM on a Firewire 800 port
9. Another method I'm thinking of using is to (after cloning my SL installation) actually install Lion on my MBP over my current SL installation (shudders violently ), clone it to an external HD, then erase/zero the MBP's HD and clone my SL install back to my MBP.
The problems come from installing Lion over a existing Snow Leopard setup that isn't quite pristine enough for Lions quirkyness, has tweaks or other software installed that breaks 10.7, requiring you to fix it.
You can try it, you've got the 10.6 clone to option boot off of and restore from.
Cloning back and forth is a performance enhancer, not a problem solver.
Ideally it's best to clone 10.6, disconnect, zero and install 10.6, same user name, then up to 10.6.8, then to 10.7, then install programs from fresh sources/copies and then files returned last from backup off the clone (no migration assistant or it brings trouble back)
This will ensure the best possible performance possible with the least trouble as everything is wiped and installed fresh. Only problem being your files it there is something wrong with them, which is easy to remedy to the cause as it's the only thing not pristine.
Once you've got a pristine system, then clone that twice, once for a immediate update other for falling back a week, two weeks or even a month back.
Has anyone done this? Again, I'm concerned that Lion will do something goofy and leave some kind of footprint behind, like maybe messing with firmware; cloning my SL installation back to my internal HD would not reverse a firmware change.
Firmware is hardware specific not OS specific, of course it's possible a old version of a OS won't work with newer firmware, like 10.5 for instance perhaps because Apple has dropped all work on PPC code.
10.6 and 10.7 are just fine with most all present firmware, however there will be a time where a new firmware update could disallow 10.6, likely when iOS X 10.8 Bobcat arrives.
10. Any constructive suggestions on anything related to any of these steps is welcome! 
Yes, I've searched and read a number of responses, but I'm hoping much of the "discovery" phase is over, and there are some "solid"/refined answers by now. My bottom line is to be able to play with Lion without having to depend on it.
Cloning only clones the Lion OS X Partition, not the Lion Recovery Partition.
A comptuer that is Lion capable will boot off a media with no Lion Recovery Partition.
You need to create a Lion Disk Assistant USB which copies your Lion Recovery Partition.
It's in my post.
https://discussions.apple.com/message/16276201#16276201