This page is here for helping to explain how to do the daunting task of a fresh, non-OEM WinXP Tablet Edition 2005 OS install on the Tecra M7.
I’ve seen a lot of traffic coming to my post about eventually writing a guide, and I haven’t had the time to produce one of good, publishable quality. However, since there is a demand for the information, I will be posting the following text which I wrote in about 1/2 an hour to someone who e-mailed me for help. It isn’t very well written, could be structured more logically, and include a few other helpers like screenshots / a summary download list / numerical listing of steps, however at the moment I have too many other things I need to catch up on for school. So, here it is in it’s unedited glory:
For basic tablet functionality, you don’t need anything more than the Tablet OS. In order to install a “clean” copy of that, you have to have the 2 CDs for it, which are only officially available to MSDN subscribers. However, you can obtain the files through several torrents. It took a few days for me to download mine, since there aren’t a lot of people getting these through torrents. If you have the time though, this is probably the most sure-fire and free way to get the install files themselves.
This is the torrent that I used to get the CDs:
http://tr.searching.com/view.php?id=169250&display=detailed
I couldn’t find any other torrents that have this install, however I’m sure they’re out there if this one doesn’t work out for you. I recommend using mu-torrent for the download process. It’s an efficient program and provides a lot of stats to look at.
Before you format your drive, I would recommend that you download BelArc Advisor. This program provides a complete profile of your computer, including the OEM Tablet OS key that you’ll need for re-installing (the key for install is in the parentheses part of the key, not the number/letter combination before it). There’s a sticker on the bottom of the M7 with a key as well, and is officially “your” key, but I went ahead and re-used the OEM key. Be sure to save the profile that Belarc produces in an .html or .mht file somewhere safe so that it can be referenced later for the key.
Once you have the install files themselves and a belarc profile for your key, use nLite to make a custom install. nLite requires the .NET Framework 2.0, which you can download here. The torrent that I downloaded contained all the install files in folders CD1 and CD2, so I didn’t have to extract them from an ISO image file. You’ll need the install files available in an unextracted folder in order for nLite to read them. When nLite asks for the install files, tell it to look at the CD1 folder. It will say that it is Windows XP Pro – don’t worry about that, because Tablet OS is actually an extension of XP Pro, and while not officially supported by nLite, it can work with it.
Also, you will want to burn the backup CDs / DVDs that you can with the Toshiba utility that contain a factory OEM install (which is just like when you turned it on the first time), and assuming you burn DVDs, the last disk contains all the drivers you’ll need.
From here, you’re pretty much on your own. Customize the OS as you like. I would recommend that you have nLite create an ISO of the install that it makes instead of burning directly to a CD. Make sure that you check the option for making the CD bootable inside nLite. Also, you’ll need to make an ISO of CD2 folder (not bootable) with whatever program you use for making ISOs / burning CDs. I used Nero Burning ROM 6, which is the only non-free software that I used in this entire process. I haven’t found a program that is comparable to it in terms technical ability, but for this job all you really need is something that is capable of burning an ISO or a few specified folders/files to CD.
Once you have the ISOs made, install Virtual PC 2004. It’s free from Microsoft. This is how you can test your ISOs to make sure that it will fully install the Tablet OS without actually having to format your drive. It’s definitely worth the time if it prevents you from having to re-install the factory OS and various software to try again, as I did several times.
In the Virtual PC, make one that thinks it is Windows XP. It allows you to point to an ISO as a virtual CD that the virtual PC thinks is in the drive. Point it to CD1 ISO, and start the “install” process. Since it’s virtualization software, this takes a while, and it requires you to intervene in a few places depending on how automated you made the install with nLite. If the install proceeds and eventually asks you for a second disk, then nLite worked right and it will install tablet functionality when you actually do the install on your M7. If it doesn’t ask for a second disk, then something’s wrong. The second disk contains the Tablet.CAB files and a few other things that are essential to the Tablet OS, so if it doesn’t install them then you will have a functional Windows XP environment in which your tablet pen won’t work. Also, after you have inserted the second disk as it asks, it will later on ask for the second disk again. This is a bit misleading, since it actually wants CD1 again, and you’ll have to point it to the i486 folder, and possibly the specific CAB file that it asks for.
I’m not sure what I did to get it to ask for the second disk, so this is where you’re kind’ve on your own as to how to figure it out. If all of the above works as described, then you should be set for the most part. You can use the 4th Backup DVD to install the drivers you’ll need. The first things I installed were the Nvidia drivers (since I have the Nvidia card.. I don’t know what you bought though), and the sound drivers. Most everything else is at your discretion. You should have a functional Windows XP Tablet environment with a working pen the first time you launch it, given that during the install process it asked for the second disk, which you then insert, and later the first CD again.
That’s about all there is to it in a nutshell.
