SCSM Authoring Tool won't install

I've been tasked with designing the end-user side of SCSM at our company, including building the web page users will use to submit helpdesk tickets and build the workflows behind the scenes. So I went to install the SCSM Authoring Tool on my Windows 7 box, and every time it would break in the same spot, telling me "VS Shell 2008 SP1 is not installed". I followed the prerequisite list exactly and in order, yet it still told me this, even after rebooting. The solution? Thanks to HuguesDePayns's posting on TechNet, it finally worked. Here's what had to be done:

First, run the VS Shell 2008 SP1 installer found in SCSM_AuthoringTool_2010_SP1\CDImage\Prerequisites\VS2K8Shell\en\vs_shell_isolated.exe

When that's finished, open a command prompt (as administrator) and enter the following command:

msiexec /i "\CDImage\Setup\AuthoringTool.msi"

It runs quietly, showing the status as it goes, then suddenly it will stop. If there are no error messages, it's installed, and you'll see it in your Program Files under Microsoft System Center.

Enjoy!

Scott Guthrie returns to Arizona!

Just got the message, @ScottGu is returning to Arizona Friday, April 22nd. Details to follow, but save the date!

UPDATE: Registration form is to the right! Sign up today!

24 Hours of PASS registration open

Registration is open for 24 hours of PASS in March! Go to http://bit.ly/fMzarY to register.

This one is "Celebrating Women in Technology" and has some great sessions lined up, including discussions on T-SQL, SSRS, SSIS, performance, MDX, even Twitterdata in Azure! You don't want to miss this!

24 Hours of PASS - March 15-16 2011

The 24 Hours of PASS is returning March 15th-16th 2011, and they're looking for feedback on which sessions to include! If you'd like to participate, the link to the survey can be found here. I chose the ones I'd like to see, be sure to stop by and make your selections for your favorites! I'm looking forward to another great set of informative sessions! If you haven't done the 24 Hours of PASS yet, it's definitely worth attending! If you forward this link, be sure to include the tags #24HOP, #PASS.

Office Communicator custom presence in R2

I upgraded my Office Communicator 2007 to R2 last week, and my custom presence stopped working. Turns out R2 will assume default security for transport, which is set to High, and then requires your custom presence XML file to be an HTTPS URL. Even if you set your registry entry to be an https path it still won't work. The link to the articles that did help can be found here:

Defining custom presence states for Office Communicator 2007 R2
Communicator R2 custom presence not working?

Basically, you just need to create a .reg file and load it with this:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Communicator]
@=""
"CustomStateURL"="C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office Communicator\Presence.xml"
"EnableSIPHighSecurityMode"=dword:00000000

Just replace the path in CustomStateURL with the path to your local XML file with custom presence info, run the .reg file and restart Communicator. Enjoy!

USB to 5VDC wiring diagram

I can never remember what the pinout is to get 5VDC from a male USB-A connector, and being color-blind having a true wiring diagram helps a lot. Sure I could Google and Wikipedia search it, and combine the results, but hey, why not use my blog as a repository of stuff I've learned, right?

Here is a link to a PDF document including pictures and data polarity/voltages. Basically, you want pins 1 and 4. Looking at the male connector head-on, pin 1 is the far right, and pin 4 is far left. Pin 1 is your 5VDC (VCC) and the associated wire should be red, and pin 4 is GND and the associated wire should be black.

Now, gonna go make my girlfriend a USB-power cable for her new digital picture frame (it can only be powered by 5VDC power supply, no battery or USB...you believe that?)

Upgrading a Cliq XT...when Motorola won't

Like many Cliq XT owners (TMO), I got tired of everyone in the world getting a newer OS except me...even the Cliq owners got 2.1 this past month, but Cliq XT didn't. Yeah, well, enough of that crap. Here's how I rooted and upgraded my Cliq XT:

1. Root the phone - instructions here
2. Install Recovery image - instructions here
3. Download ROM zip file (leave as ZIP file!) and copy to root of SD card - instructions here
4. Boot the phone into recovery mode (power button + camera button)
5. Backup your current ROM - instructions here
6. Choose *** WIPE ALL *** (very important, this step must be done before the new ROM is loaded or it will continually try to restart itself.
7. Choose Install Zip option and choose the ROM you installed in the sdcard root
8. Choose Reboot system

After restart, was prompted to set up MotoBlur. Chose existing account, entered creds, and it said there was a problem with the clock, to contact customer support.

Restored backed up ROM and tried again, making sure to *** WIPE ALL ***, and it worked! There are many Cliq XT ROMs available, and not all work the same. I tried the Froyo build and it wouldn't load properly. I reloaded the 2.1 build and it worked fine, so I'm sticking with that one for now.

If you have a better way or have questions please add comments!

UPDATE 12/31/2010: If you use the Adlx 2.1 ROM, there's a known issue with the need to toggle the speakerphone on incoming calls. This is fixed by applying the patch found here. Follow these instructions to apply the patch:
1. Copy the AdlxMod2.1.54-SpeakerFIX.zip file to your /sdcard root.
2. Boot the phone in recovery mode
3. Backup your current ROM
4. Install the AdlxMod2.1.54-SpeakerFIX.zip file (DO NOT WIPE!)
5. Reboot the phone when it's finished.

I did this this morning and the speakerphone was successfully fixed. Enjoy!