Here's an idea/request for my particular situation: I'd like to be able to run the 1.1.1 OS -- jailbroken -- so I can run 3rd party native apps, but I don't need to unlock my SIM.

Is it possible to extract just the OS portion of the 1.1.1 update and install it in such a way that it can still be jailbroken?

Forgive my naïvety, but I haven't messed around with the internals of the iPhone... yet. But, I used to work as a chip designer, and have actually designed baseband chips before (albeit for crappy cordless phones which no one ever bought )

I'd be happy to lend my somewhat rusty hardware engineering experience to such an effort if someone could point me in the right direction to start. Besides, I think I'm getting laid off from my job next week, and will have lots of free time...

Anyone interested in such a project, or is this not any different from cracking the entire 1.1.1 update?

-vfxdude