TIPS & TRICKS: Install Firefox Extensions for All Users

Looking for a way to install helpful Firefox extensions across all users? Fortunately, Firefox has a command line tool to do just that. I've confirmed this works for Windows XP and Vista. I have not tried it on other OSs.

Here are the steps:

1. Download the extension to your computer (don't do an install from within Firefox).

2. Make note of where the extension is saved (it will be a .xpi file).

3. Start a command window (Windows XP: Start > Run > cmd; Windows Vista: Start > cmd; for Vista, you may need to run the command window as an Administrator).

4. Here's the command to type at the command prompt:
firefox.exe -install-global-extension "path"
(i.e. firefox.exe. -install-global-extension "C:\Temp\extension.xpi")
I found that if it doesn't work, then you may need to navigate to the folder where Firefox is actually installed. Also, note that there is a space between firefox.exe and -install..., but no spaces between the install and the next hypen or global and the following hypen. Finally, the quotes are necessary around the path name.

5. There won't be a prompt of any kind, but you should be able to test it by logging in as different users to see the extension installed.

This link was helpful in my original search for an answer:

http://www.tinsie.net/Recommended/?p=902

TIPS & TRICKS: Lost Sound on a MacBook

Had a student bring her MacBook to me and said that the sound just stopped working. I checked the OS X System Preferences for Sound > Output and found only the Digital Out option available. The built-in audio was missing, which also doesn't allow headphones to work. She was carrying a set of headphones on her.

Here's a list of symptoms I found:

- no sound
- audio controls on keyboard would bring up icon on screen but could not change audio levels
- missing built-in audio in System Preferences > Sound > Output
- red light coming out of the sound jack on the side of the MacBook

Macs have become more advanced. They used to only have analog output and many low-end Windows notebooks only have analog output (you get what you pay for). But, all the Macs now have the ability to convert to accept digital output connections.

In order to move between digital and analog output on the same port, there's a tiny switch in the port that recognizes the plug that is inserted. However, that switch will sometimes get confused and get stuck, which is what happened in this case.

THE FIX:

Something must be inserted into the port to make the switch move back to the desired position, in this case, analog. One way to do it is put the headphones' jack into the port and wiggle it around. This doesn't always work. I've found that a smaller tool in there would work better. I'm not too fond of sticking metal things (i.e. paper clips) into ports, so I used the straw from a can of compressed air. I inserted the straw into sound port and wiggled it around a little as I watched the window in System Preferences > Sound > Output. You should see it change Digital Out to Internal Speakers (Built-in Audio) and the red light, which indicates a digital connection, go off.

Hope this helps someone. Good luck.

By the way, I found this macrumors.com forum posting that had some other folks who experienced the same problem.

http://forums.macrumors.com/archive/index.php/t-237405.html

TIPS & TRICKS: Office 2007 installation fix

Here are the preliminary facts:

- Windows XP, including latest updates
- Office 2003, including latest updates

Error messages encountered:

- "Product: Microsoft Office (Version) -- Error 1704. An installation for Microsoft Office (Version) is currently suspended. You must undo the changes made by that installation to continue. Do you want to undo those changes?"
- After clicking Yes and waiting for awhile, this message comes up: "Error 1712.One or more of the files required to restore your computer to its previous state could not be found. Restoration will not be possible."

The real problem here was that the laptop that was running the Office 2007 installer to upgrade Office 2003 and the notebook ran out of juice (wrong power supply was used, which meant that it was running solely off battery). The installation process was interrupted and left in an unusable state. Office was no longer listed in the list for Add/Remove Programs. Running the Office 2007 installation did not recognize that we still wanted to upgrade, which meant that it didn't recognize a usable version of Office on the machine.

The Fix:

This involves a registry hack. As usual, editing the registry incorrectly could cause Windows to function incorrectly. Please make sure to backup your registry settings before making any changes. Ultimately, use these instructions at your own risk.

The registry key is:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Installer\InProgress

I deleted the key entirely, rebooted, then ran the Office 2007 installation again. If I had to go back, I would go in and delete all the files related to Office in Program Files and any installation files to create a clean environment for the new Office 2007 installation.

Nevertheless, this worked for me. Hope this helps someone else.