Subject:
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A New Year brings a new (simpler) way to load Vison Command on XP!
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.robotics
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Date:
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Tue, 31 Dec 2002 18:01:40 GMT
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Original-From:
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Rob Limbaugh <RLimbaugh@greenfieldgroup.com&spamless&>
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Viewed:
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888 times
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Hello everyone,
For the past month I've been working to streamline the VC installs for XP
and 2000.
I'd like to thank all of those that took the time to let me know their
experiences (good or bad) with attempting to perform the installations. The
two major issues were:
1) If the 50MB download fails, one had to start it all over again
2) Some of the instructions were hard to understand
Both issues have been addressed. In addition, I've also made things easier
by creating batch scripts to do the necessary file manipulation and execute
installers on the VC and RIS2 discs. This means:
1) Now only 14 steps to follow!!!
2) Core steps of the new XP install also worked on 2000
3) Pre-install packs are the same for either XP or 2000
4) Download is now split into five 10MB (or less) files
5) The files are all self-extracting
I haven't added a FAQ page yet, but here are some of what will appear there:
Q: Do I have to shell out $200 for a new RIS 2.0?
A: No. Buy RIS 2.0 Upgrade like I did. Item #3805 for $19.99 (US).
Q: Do I really have to have RIS 2.0? Why?
A: Yes, you do. The "Vision Command Updater.exe" file is only distributed
on the RIS2 discs. That file was actually intended to allow Vision Command
to work with RIS 2.0. By sheer dumb luck the VC executables contained in
the updater work under 2000 and XP. VC will not work without them. If you
don't believe me, skip steps 13 and 14.
Q: Does the USB IR Tower come with the RIS 2.0 Upgrade?
A: No, it's sold separately. Order item #W979783 from
http://www.pldstore.com for $29.00 (US).
Q: How come the old instructions were so long?
A: The original instructions were mainly composed from notes I took and
were a "rough draft" of sorts. Most of that detail has been scripted. If
you're
really curious, I created two batch files and a reg file that reside in the VC
directory (c:\Program Files\LEGO MINDSTORMS\Vision Command\) All can
be opened in notepad. They are in the 5th pre-install pack.
Q: What do you mean by <pick any one of the old, poorly worded
instructions>?
A: Doesn't matter anymore... the confusing parts have been scripted.
Q: What is needed to make a pre-install package on my own?
A: A second computer running Windows 98, Me, or 2000. You also need
a way to move the data from that computer to the final XP computer,
preferably via network or CD burner. I'll be posting the instructions soon.
Q: Why won't the original installer work on XP?
A: The original installer didn't consider future operating systems even though
pre-release versions of XP were out at the time for developers and beta testers
to work with.
Q: How long do you think it will be before LEGO releases an official fix?
A: Good question. All they really need to do is dig up the encryption info
for accessing the .CAB files on the VC disc and create a new Installer that
will work under 2000 and XP. Such a file could be posted on LEGO's support
site for download and would probably be less than 5 Megabytes. The data is
already on the VC CD, so that doesn't need to be re-released.
If you have any questions or problems, email me.
- Rob
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