Kernel Panic that I can't get past, plus unable to start up in safemode

The panic seems associated with the boot cache. This could simply be a cache corruption problem. If you can boot into safe mode, then download a utility such as TinkerTool System - VersionTracker or MacUpdate - and use it to clear all system, user, and font caches. Reboot immediately and see if this resolves your problem. If not, then you can do the following:

How to Perform an Archive and Install

An Archive and Install will NOT erase your hard drive, but you must have sufficient free space for a second OS X installation which could be from 3-9 GBs depending upon the version of OS X and selected installation options. The free space requirement is over and above normal free space requirements which should be at least 6-10 GBs. Read all the linked references carefully before proceeding.

1. Be sure to use Disk Utility first to repair the disk before performing the Archive and Install.

Repairing the Hard Drive and Permissions

Boot from your OS X Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Installer menu (Utilities menu for Tiger.) After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported, then quit DU and return to the installer.

2. Do not proceed with an Archive and Install if DU reports errors it cannot fix. In that case use Disk Warrior and/or TechTool Pro to repair the hard drive. If neither can repair the drive, then you will have to erase the drive and reinstall from scratch.

3. Boot from your OS X Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When you reach the screen to select a destination drive click once on the destination drive then click on the Option button. Select the Archive and Install option. You have an option to preserve users and network preferences. Only select this option if you are sure you have no corrupted files in your user accounts. Otherwise leave this option unchecked. Click on the OK button and continue with the OS X Installation.

4. Upon completion of the Archive and Install you will have a Previous System Folder in the root directory. You should retain the PSF until you are sure you do not need to manually transfer any items from the PSF to your newly installed system.

5. After moving any items you want to keep from the PSF you should delete it. You can back it up if you prefer, but you must delete it from the hard drive.

6. You can now download a Combo Updater directly from Apple's download site to update your new system to the desired version as well as install any security or other updates. You can also do this using Software Update.

Yes, you can run any diagnostic from another computer via TDM. Do not use TinkerTool, rather use TinkerTool System. They are two different utilities. It's the latter one you need to do cache clearing. There are other utilities that also do the same thing.

I would also be sure to delete the /System/Library/Extensions.mkext file which is just another cache file. The reboot after deleting caches assures that they are all rebuilt. If a cache is bad, then once deleted the OS will build a new one that is hopefully not corrupted. If this fixes your problem then you won't have to reinstall anything.

Be sure to use Disk Utility as well to repair the hard drive. You can do this also via the TDM hookup. Just use the DU on the active OS computer.

If you have any problems you could do the following instead:

Delete caches to resolve some startup problems:

Boot the computer into single-user mode. At the prompt enter the following commands pressing return at the end of each:

/sbin/fsck -yf

If you receive a message that says " *** FILE SYSTEM WAS MODIFIED ***" then re-run the command line (fsck -yf) until you receive a message that says "** The volume (name ofvolume) appears to be OK." If you re-run the command more than seven times and do not get the OK message, then the drive cannot be repaired this way. Otherwise continue as follows:

/sbin/mount -uw /
sudo rm -rf /System/Library/Caches/com.apple.kernelcaches

You will be asked to enter your admin password. It will not be echoed.

sudo rm -rf /System/Library/Extensions.kextcache
sudo rm -rf /System/Library/Extensions.mkext
sudo rm -rf /Library/Caches/com.apple.ATS
sudo rm -rf /Library/Caches/com.apple.LaunchServices*
reboot

I suggest you write down the above commands. Be careful to enter them correctly because in single-user mode you are the root user meaning you could erase the entire drive without so much as an alert.