Vista clean install on Motion LS800: docked issues

[segalsegal]

Motion Computing did anexcellentwrite-upof
how to do an upgrade install of Vista on theLS800 or LE1600. However,in many
situationsa clean install is better for programs to run properly and
quickly.I did a clean install of Vista Business on an LS800 and found that
theprocedure wentvery smoothly for the Tablet itself, butI encountered two
problemsusing the LS800 in the docked configuration. I am sharing my
experience to help makethe switch to Vistaeasier for others and also to ask
for help in resolving the two docking issues that I have not solved yet
(external monitor and external speaker issues detailed below).

The first step in moving to Vista is to make sure you have the current BIOS
(A09) installed. Although this is mentioned on Motion's page
of Vista drivers for the LS800, it is not mentioned in the current version of
Motion's Vistawrite-up(though the write-up may get updated to
reflect the experience of the early adopters). To determine what BIOS version
you have, use the "System Information" program (msinfo32.exe).

In adapting Motion's upgradewrite-upto do a clean install,
it was not clear how much software to uninstallbefore doing a clean
install.Iuninstalleditems specifically mentioned in the upgrade instructions
(Bluetooth, Motion Dashboard, OmniPass and Farstone virtual drive) anddid
notdelete the Nero CD / DVD writing software supplied with Motion's CD / DVD
drive since uninstalling CD / DVD writing software can sometimes disable a
computer's ability to read CDs or DVDs. It was also not clear whether Motion's
advice to run Windows Update, CheckDisk, and Defragment for upgrade installs was
as relevant for a clean install, but I did all three anyway.


To doa clean install of Vista you need tochoose "Custom" installation
instead of a "Upgrade"on the"Which type of installation do you want" screen.
A clean install removes your previous Windows installation, including removing
the Program Files folder, but it is not the same thing as reformatting the hard
drive; some folders may remain. You can do a clean install using a
Vistaupgrade DVD if you have eitherXP orVista installed on the computer, but
if you reformat the hard drive you need a full copy of Vista.


Motionrecommends installing (from their page of Vista drivers
for the LS800):
1. Motion Dashboard Driver: right-click on setup.exe and
choose "Run as administrator".
2. Graphics Drivers: theinstallation seems
to stall, but be patient. After re-bootthere aresecurity questions about the
drivers (igfxcfg.exe, igfxtray.exe, igfxpers.exe and hkcmd.exe).
3. Wireless
Drivers (Intel):iProDifX is the file to run.


Bluetooth driversnot available yet. Trial versions and below-list-price
upgrades are available for the the OmniPass security software and the Farstone
virtual drive, but I didn't test those. A below-list-price upgrade is available
directly from Nero for theirOEM Suite CD / DVD writing software bundled with
Motion's CD / DVD writer, and that worked fine, though I installed only the CD /
DVD writing features and did not install a huge amount of other functionality
offered.I don't know how the Nero software compares to the <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/windowsvista/features/details/dvdmaker.mspx" target="_blank">DVD
writing</a>available in Home Premium and Ultimate versions of Vista.


Aside from the Bluetooth support, which still awaits robust drivers, and the
SD card reader, which I've never used, everything on the Tablet itself seems to
work fine.Screen rotation works fine, despite the line in Motion's write-upthat "Vista does not allow screen rotation on LS800". The
Tablet buttons work fine. Wireless works, as doesInfra-red printing. Some of
the Motion Dashboard features are not hooked up yet, but all these features can
be controlled in other ways, except for Bluetooth, as above.


The two problems I've had are in using the LS800 in docked configuration:


1. Display resolution for external monitor is not set automatically when
docking: Whendocked, my LS800 drives a 22 inch monitor in1680 x 1050 mode,
and I keep the LS800 screen off. Using the Intel Graphics program, I created a
"1680 x 1050 monitor only" scheme, as I did in Windows XP, and when I undock the
LS800 it shifts automatically to the 800 x 600 resolution native to the LS800,
as expected. However, when I dock the LS800, the system starts in a
configuration with the LS800 screen on at 800 x 600 and the monitor on at 1680 x
1050. After about half a minute the external monitor shiftsto be on at800 x
600, mirroring the LS800 display, which stays on. To get the desired display
configuration all I need to do is choosethe "1680 x 1050 monitor only" scheme
that I made in the Intel Graphics program. However, I think one should be able
to do better:using XP the monitor wentautomatically to 1680 x 1050 upon
docking the LS800 and stayed in that resolution. I'm not sure whether something
isdifferent about the Vista drivers or whether I did something wrong in Vista
and right in XP. Either way, I'd be grateful if others have advice on how to
get dockingusing an external monitor to work as desired.


There were two quirks about graphics that may be relevant. In Microsoft's
automatic updates after installing Vista, an "Intel Driver Update for Mobile
Intel 915GM/GMS, 910GML Express Chipset family" update wasoffered, but
installation failed with error code 80070103, which means "Windows has
determined that the selected driver is not the best driver for your
machine".However, I think I downloaded the Intel Graphics drivers from
Motion's site before checking windows Update, so this message may
becorrect(the LS800's Vista "Display Settings" lists me as having a "Generic
PnP Monitor on Mobile Intel(R) 915GM/GMS,910GML Express Chipset").


Also, security warnings appeared whenever the 4 Intel Graphics drivers
(igfxcfg.exe, igfxtray.exe, igfxpers.exe and hkcmd.exe).ran.Despite
un-checking the box about repeating the warnings, the warnings continued to
appear every time the drivers ranuntil I disabled User Account Control. I
needed to disable UAC because of its conflicts withother software, so this was
not a problem for me, but it may be a problem for others.
2. Speakers not working: Although I get normal sound from the built-in
LS800 speakers, I've been unable to get any sound from external speakers (at
least when plugged into the dock). External speakers plugged into the dock
worked fine in XP. The Sound Control Panel reports that the SigmaTel C-Major
Audio is working. There is a report of fixing other audio problems by installing the XP drivers under Vistabut
this sounds like an unorthodox approach and I haven't tried it. I'd be grateful
if others had advice on how to get the speakers working.

Overall, the clean install worked well except for the external monitor and
external speaker issues, but I don't know if thesewould have been any better
using an upgrade install. Having done a Vista upgrade on a desktop computer and
later re-done the Vista installation as a custom install, I am glad to have the
much smoother functioning that one gets from a clean install. Any advice on resolving the monitor and speaker issues would be most welcome.
Edited by: segalsegal

[CraigP]

Re: Issue 1 - I've not seen this issue. I did not install the Intel driver utils. I just run with the version from Windows Update, which is working for me just fine (though you don't get the GUI to allow you to create profiles)
Issue 2 - I've seen this and have a work around. You need to download and install the Windows XP version of the driver from Windows Update. From memory I think you needed to run the setup program in compatability mode for Windows XP SP2, but I'm not 100% on that so try it without that first and if it won't install then follow the instructions here to run in compat mode:
http://www.pringle.net.nz/Blog/Perma...7a735b80f.aspx
Also - there is a Motion kb article that confirms this as a problem and suggests the same work around, which I found when checking to see if they had a better answer
http://www.motioncomputing.com/kb/article.aspx?id=10133&amp;cNode=3S8P5P

HTH

Craig Pringle
Tablet PC MVP
http://www.pringle.net.nz/blog

[segalsegal]

I replaced the LS800's Vista Sigmatel audio drivers with XP versions from
<a href="http://www.motioncomputing.com/drivers/LS800/LS800-AudioSigmatelv11RN.htm" target="_blank">
http://www.motioncomputing.com/drivers/LS800/LS800-AudioSigmatelv11RN.htm</a> as
per Motion Instructions at
<a href="http://www.motioncomputing.com/kb/article.aspx?id=10133&amp;cNode=3S8P5P" target="_blank">
http://www.motioncomputing.com/kb/article.aspx?id=10133&amp;cNode=3S8P5P</a> .
No rollback option was available so I installed over the new driver running the
setup in XP compatibility mode. This got sound working from the speakers,
but the driver page also said to re-instal Intellisonic Noise Cancellation
Software from: <a href="file:///C:/Windows/Motion/KnowlesAcoustics" target="_blank">
C:\Windows\Motion\KnowlesAcoustics</a> but there is no such folder after a clean
install of Vista. Also, after re-boot a message appeared "StacSysTray: Error
initializing Sigmatel Control Menu: (11) Automation error". This went away
after de-activating StacSysTray using Microsoft's Autoruns utility.

How can one re-instal the Intellisonic Noise Cancellation
Software?

Is anything important missing by de-activating StacSysTray? I use a USB headset or a Webcam anytime I want to attach a microphone.

[segalsegal]

I'm having less success on the monitor issue.

When I use the Windows Display settings it offers me "Generic PnP Monitor on Mobile Intel(R) 915GM/GMS,910GML Express Chipset" for monitor #1, which offers my 1680 x 1050 resolution, and does not allow me to uncheck "This is my main monitor" and "Extend the desktop onto this monitor". However, when I click onto monitor #2 the designation changes to "(Default Monitor) on Mobile Intel(R) 915GM/GMS,910GML Express Chipset" and this does not offer 1680 x 1050 and it does not allow me to set "This is my main monitor".

Using the Intel Graphics program I am able to turn off the LS800 display and put the monitor into 1680 x 1050, but as described in the original post the setting needs to be chosen manually each time the LS800 is docked or restarted.

I see that Motion is still shipping LS800s with Windows XP. It would be good to know if Motion has this working yet.

[blademonkey]

This should really be in a Wiki format.

alot of good info.

[CraigP]

I remember seeing something on the Motion site that there is not a version of the Noise Cancellation software for Vista - you need to run without it.

HTH

[segalsegal]

This should really be in a Wiki format.

alot of good info.

Good idea. I've collected what we have so far at
http://mobilepcwiki.com/mpc/index.php?title=Motion/LS800/Windows_Vista_Clean_Install_Notes
Comments here or edits there are most welcome, particularly if people can help solve the remaining problems.
Edited by: segalsegal