You should really update to 1.9
Follow instructions in main post.
A lot of things have been fixed since then
To SSH you need to reset as root: reboot the mini, as soon as the green light starts flashing you need to slide the power button multiple times then wait for diagnostics system to start up. Then go into reset options -> reset as root.
The Kobo will present itself as an usbnetwork device with default IP 192.168.2.2