[robespierre]

The partition information looks fine. /unix is not a directory, it is the name and location of the kernel, on the root filesystem. Are you sure you aren't seeing any error messages, because the firmware should print something if it is unable to boot as instructed.
Did you execute resetenv after running the installation?

By the way, I am not that impressed with the love_guide.txt instructions. It has solecisms and non-standard uses of terminology and is misleading as a description of the maintenance procedure.
In particular, the instructions to "format the disk" are badly phrased. The fx format command is a low-level operation and should never be attempted during an install. To be fair, the SGI manuals are also deficient in this area.

The only fx commands that are normally needed are /label/create and /exit.

The instructions to "As a rule of thumb, use EFS for disks of 18GB or less, otherwise use XFS." are totally wrong, this whole guide is desperately in need of expert review. EFS is the filesystem used by IRIX 5.3 and below. It has no advantages over XFS and many disadvantages.