Xbox One Controller loses sync to your console?

If you've tried everything that's listed in http://support.xbox.com/en-us/xbox-one/accessories/wireless-controller-disconnects and still can't seem to make your Xbox One Controller stay sync-ed to your console you might want to give this a try

1. Disable Instant-On mode.
2. Turn off console by holding onto the power button (the Xbox logo) in the front until the console shuts down completely.
3. Pull the power cable from the rear.
4. Wait over a minute.
5. Plug in the power cable and power on the console again.  Re-sync the controller to the console as necessary.

 I was really frustrated at my XBO after about half  year of happily gaming on it, that I had to keep re-sync the controller to the console, sometimes with the USB cable too.  I actually went as far as try to raise a case with Microsoft.  And I give them full credit on making it super easy to raise a case to get a console replaced, almost no questions asked.  I was a bit concerned that replacing the console was a bit extreme, so I decided to call their support line.  After explaining my situation, the support lady put me on hold for a minute before returning to give me the above hint, as it supposedly clears the "cache".  I guess she's referring to the CMOS cache.

I tried it and it seems to have worked wonders!  Xbox One now wakes 100% from the controller, I have zero sync issues between controller and console.  The support call lady told me this is a pretty reliable fix so I don't understand why they don't listed it in their troubleshooting page.  I have no idea how common this issue is as I did research for quite a while before deciding to contact Microsoft.  Maybe it's just me!

Importance of the Media Feature Pack for Windows 10 N / KN Editions

When you plug in Android phone into your Windows 10 computer, does it tell you it can't find driver?

Do you have issues trying to stream Xbox One to your Windows 10 via the Xbox App, where you can't get even initiate any stream test?

Try to view PDF in Microsoft Edge and it tells you're missing the Media Feature Pack?

You most likely are running Windows 10 N or KN Edition.  These 2 editions are commonly found in Europe or in South Korea, where the N stands for Not with Media Player.  With Windows 10, the N/KN editions actually lack a bunch of other features that you wouldn't normally associate with Media Player.  Such as the Android MTP mode missing driver issue, or Xbox One Streaming feature, or inability to display PDF in Edge.

To fix these issues, you will need the Media Feature Pack or MFP for short.  Yes it basically puts back Windows Media Player, but it also installs a bunch of other bits that Windows needs for some seemingly unrelated features.

Now to throw another wrinkle to the problem, there are actually 2 MFP installers KB3010081 and KB3099229.  KB3010081 is for vanilla Windows 10 N / KN and KB3099229 is for after November Update is installed.  Even if you had KB3010081 installed before applying November Update, you have to reinstall MFP of KB3099229 again after November Update.

Now in Microsoft's infinite wisdom, KB3010081 installer doesn't actually tell you it doesn't actually apply to Win10 w/November Update.  It lets you install and tricks you into thinking you've installed it.  Don't be tricked!  Just know after the November Update is installed, you will need KB3099229.

To verify if you have the November Update installed, click on Start > Settings > System > About and verify version number matches 1511.

UPDATE! Here is the new link if you have gotten the Windows 10 Anniversary Update: KB3133719.  Your system number should be 1607.

Nvidia's own driver for my GT650M!

I remember when I first got my MSI GE60 laptop, Nvidia did not provide drivers for the GT650M direct on their website.  Because my last laptop had ATI GFX card, I thought it was normal that I don't get drivers direct from the card vendor, but rather from the laptop vendor.  Boy was I wrong!

I was running 296.31 and on MSI's webpage, their latest driver is beta driver for 302.75.  It's been beta since September 2012... I googled around and found some people having issues with Apple not releasing updated driver for their MBP with the same GT650M.  There were some people putting links to try a beta version of Nvidia's driver (with lots of .inf file hacking).  So I thought, "Hey why not check out Nvidia's website?"  So 15 minutes later, I'm running 310.70 driver :)

So the moral of the story is... check out Nvidia's webpage!  I just checked and I see 310.90 is out...

Customizing MSI's Super-Charger for your mobile device

So I've recently made the jump from iPhone 4 to Motorola RAZR M.  One thing I missed is the Super-Charger that came installed with my MSI laptop.  It detects when iOS devices are attached and allows the USB port to provide more power so your mobile device can charge faster.  While that was nice when I was using iPhone, it didn't work at all w/my RAZR.

Before we proceed any further, please note that I am not responsible for what you do and what happens to your computer and smartphone.

Now that's out of the way, let's continue!

So I poked around a bit, and Super-Charger is just something that stays running in memory.  There isn't any options to set or configure, and nothing to set when installing software.  Further poking about and I found the following INI file

C:\Program Files (x86)\MSI\Super-Charger\Super-Charger.INI

If you are not running 64-bit OS, then you don't have the '(x86)' bit in the file path.  Opening this file, under the [FASTER_CHARGING_LIST] section, I found some device ID that seems to reference Apple iOS devices directly.  So I updated this section with my RAZR's device ID, saved the file, restarted Super-Charger, plugged in my RAZR, and nothing happened.  Hmm.  Maybe it needs a reboot.  But after a reboot, voila!  I got the notification that Super-Charger is active when I plugged in my RAZR.

Now whether or not Super-Charger actually works... I have to do a real test and compare the charging time with and without it...  Hopefully I'll update this post again if I do manage to test it.

So the keypoint here is how to find your mobile's device ID - it's not too hard if you know where to look.  Launch the Device Manager (see this link), find your mobile device, it might be listed under Portable Device or Universal Serial Bus controllers.  Right click, select Properties, click on Details tab,  and choose Hardware Ids in Property dropdown menu.  What you want is the VID and PID bits after the USB\.  For exampe my RAZR had these 2 values

USB\VID_22B8&PID_2E52\REV_0228

USB\VID_22B8&PID_2E52

So what I added 'VID_22B8&PID_2E52' under the [FASTER_CHARGING_LIST] section as follows

[FASTER_CHARGING_LIST]

1=Vid_05ac&Pid_129a;Apple iPad;

2=Vid_05ac&Pid_1297;Apple iPhone 4G;

3=Vid_05ac&Pid_129F;Apple iPad2;

4=Vid_05ac&Pid_12A0;Apple iPhone 4S;

5=Vid_05ac&Pid_12A4;Apple New iPad Wifi;

6=Vid_05ac&Pid_12A6;Apple New iPad Wifi+4G;

7=Vid_22b8&Pid_2E52;Motorola 201M;

The first 6 were already present, so I added 7th entry.  You may also need to play with upper/lower case.  Your mileage may vary.

Lastly, if you're running Vista and later, you will find you won't be able to edit this INI file directly due to UAC (you do have it turned on right?).  I suggest you copy file to desktop, edit the copied file, and recopy this new file back into its original folder.

So that's it!  Good luck!

Hello World

I've been doing some maintenance work on my home tech and have been successful in hacking a few random things that I couldn't find elsewhere on the web.  I thought it might be good for me to "contribute" back to the community.  Will post a few more stuff later.