Z4Root apk (z4.apk)
com.koushikdutta.rommanager_v4.3.3.0.apk (RomManager compatible with Android 2.1)
RomManager.apk (v 4.8.0.7 - compatible with Android 2.2+)
SUTLR_v1.7.0.zip (unzip to desktop (Win only) and run setup.exe to install)

2 folders
2.2 -
jellybean => JellyBean_Dalvick_Phone.nb0
cyanogenmod 6 => update-cm-6.1.2-Z71-signed.zip

2.3 -
cyanogenmod => update-cm-7.1.0-Z71-signed.zip, gapps-gb-20110828-signed.zip
SuperAOSP => SuperAosp-ST@-Boston-8.6-AW.zip

To root the Cincinnati Bell Blaze (Z71), install the z4root app via sdcard. Click the root button and let it do it’s thing. Viola – you have a rooted device. It will reboot and install the SuperUser app. Done with this step.

Assuming the Z71 is stock on Android 2.1, you need to install the rommanager apk that works with 2.1:
com.koushikdutta.rommanager_v4.3.3.0.apk.
Install this through the sdcard.

Once installed, you can flash ClockworkMod Recovery on the device. After it’s flashed successfully, move the ROM of your choice to the root of the sdcard. One of the Z71′s we have wouldn’t run the latest cyanogenmod 7 stable release – it installed fine, but the touchpad simply didn’t respond at all. The other device installed it and worked fine, except the battery would drain (even at idle) at the rate of 10% per hour. Unacceptable. Pity, too, because the ROM was very cool.

The first device was then flashed with theAndroid 2.2 version of Firetrap JellyBean and is running perfectly with an unreal battery lifespan. Really. Unreal.

The second device (mine) was flashed to the SuperAOSP 8.6 rom (Android 2.3.4), and everything went smooth except the network connection couldn’t be made, nor could the wireless. To get around this, it had to be flashed to JellyBean, then to SuperAOSP. Everything works great now and the battery life, like JellyBean, is unreal. It’s far superior to the CM rom on this device.

Instructions after root and RomManager have been installed:

CyanogenMod 7:
Copy the update-cm-7.1.0-Z71-signed.zip AND the gapps-gb-20110828-signed.zip file to the root of the sdcard. From the RomManager app, choose Install zip from sdcard. Select to wipe data/cache, factory reset, wipe dalvik cache (if it asks you). It will boot into clockworkmod recovery and install the rom. Device will restart and you’re done. I understand that flashing other kernels will help with battery consumption, which was my only issue, but I elected to choose another rom.

Firetrap JellyBean:
You’ll need to install the SUTLR software on a Win machine. Boot your device into download mode – hold red button + vol up + power. When you get to a black system screen and it is polling every few seconds, you’re where you want to be. Start the SUTLR software, locate the .nbo file, and select to wipe/reset data and click Next. All done. ROM is now flashed and you’re running Android 2.2 Firetrap JellyBean. You could stay here and be happy with excellent battery life and stability.

SuperAOSP 8.6:
I had to flash the JellyBean rom before I could install this one. It doesn’t take a long time, so to be on the safe side, follow the JellyBean instructions before doing this one. Use rommanager to flash SuperAOSP from JellyBean and let it wipe and clear everything. All done. SuperAOSP is what I’m running and the battery differences from cyanogenmod are like night and day. I really dig it, and everything works like it’s supposed to. I have only a few minor criticisms of the rom, but they’re mostly cosmetic and buried in the settings menus.

Adding more as I find out…

* Update 01.06.2012 *
Battery life is impressive. I’m not on my phone all day, but I get exchange email, gmail, sms,  mms, make/receive calls, and surf the web without moderation.

First, check that your internet connection is currently active.

If your connection is active, the following troubleshooting steps may resolve the issue:

Sign out and then back in to the Music Manager:

1. Click the Music Manager icon  in your system tray at the bottom right of your screen (Windows), menu bar in the upper right corner (Mac) or notifications area (Linux) to access the Music Manager.
2. Select the ‘Advanced’. tab
3. Click ‘Sign Out’.
4. On the sign-in screen that appears, sign back in to your Google account.

Restart the Music Manager:

1. Right-click the Music Manager icon in your system tray at the bottom right of your screen (Windows), menu bar in the upper right corner (Mac) or notifications area (Linux).
2. Select ‘Quit’.
3. Restart the Music Manager from your program list.

If the problem persists, restarting your computer or uninstalling and reinstalling the Music Manager may resolve the issue.

Lastly, you can manually start the process to add music and then use the Music Manager troubleshooter for additional information.

Temporarily set the Music Manager to manually add music, then use the Music Manager troubleshooter:

1. Access the Music Manager and select the ‘Upload’ tab
2. Uncheck the box for ‘Automatically upload songs added to my selected folders’
3. Click ‘Upload’
4. After attempting to add music manually, feel free to return your upload frequency to its original setting.
5. Right-click the Music Manager icon  in your system tray at the bottom right of your screen (Windows), menu bar in the upper right corner (Mac) or notifications area (Linux)
6. Select ‘Run troubleshooter’

If none of the above solve the issue you are experiencing, you can work around the issue by temporarily removing the problematic songs from your destination folder so that the Music Manager can progress to the rest of your library.

http://www.google.com/support/androidmarket/bin/answer.py?answer=1144026

Well, it didn’t work. What did seem to do the trick was to go to Home directory -> Library -> Application Support and remove the Music Manager directory. Fired the software back up and it’s been cruising right along.

Also noteworthy is that my Android phone apparently doesn’t support the Google Music app, so it doesn’t appear in the Market. I located the .apk file on the interwebs and mailed it to my gmail account. From the native Gmail app, you can install the .apk from the attachment. It seems most (maybe all?) apps work like this. My phone runs the app just fine.

Final note: the support url above is one of the only url’s from Google that I’ve ever seen an extension on before. (python)

Way to fail, Beaconpush….way to fail.

After searching for an hour, I saw several people indicate that the wireless router must have been set to radius so the computer was searching for a radius server, blah blah blah. This didn’t apply. I also found that may people cleared this up by going to:
Start –> Programs –> Accessories –> Communications –> Network Connections –> Right-click your Connection and select Properties –> Click on the Authentication tab –> Disable / uncheck the option IEEE 802.1x authentication for this network.

I wasn’t able to do this because that box was not checked. After all of this effort and time, it hit me that I keep this Windows install clean and lean, and that it was running SP2. After jumping through the hoops and updating to Service Pack 3 (SP3), Windows immediately recognized the new network and connected.

Moral of the story is: Windows was unable to find a certificate to log you onto the network. MIGHT = You need SP3

What works for me is to always exit the gmail app by using the back key. No matter which screen you’re in, using the back key to get out will let you open gmail to the inbox, not the most recent message.

Naturally, you can name it whatever you want. Mine’s in the basement, so that’s it’s name.
All of this couldn’t be more straightforward until you go to print a test page using the default driver OS X selects for you (the HP 5si driver – seems right, yes?). When you print, you’ll get Post Script garbage and tons of blank pages until you quit the job.

To get my printer to work, I needed to use the Gutenprint v5.2.3 driver, which is installed with OS X.

It’s smooth sailing from here and now this beast of a printer can serve me well into the future…living under the stairs in the basement.

The Novak has a little shelf with a notch and 2 rear dots that must be lined up with the front sight to obtain a proper sight picture. In my opinion, it’s too much to look at for fast sight acquisition.

The 10-8, however, has a plain serrated rear with a U-notch. Looking at this sight, you can already tell it’s going to be faster as there is less to focus on and is a flat plane. The U-notch is a welcomed change for me, as I use a single white dot up front. Put the dot in the notch and fire. Easy…and accurate.

Shooting the dueling tree was where I realized I made the right choice. Shots were easy and I missed very little. The biggest disadvantage I had was mag capacity vs an M&P40 and the mud the tree was anchored in let it wobble. Aligning the the front dot in the rounded notch seemed very natural and was almost second nature. The sight itself is made very well and fit the existing Novak dovetail cut better than the Novak brand sight that was OEM on the gun. It is shaped with a ‘shelf’ to facilitate one-handed cocking of the weapon by leveraging the rear sight on a hard surface like a table, desk, etc. Like the Novak, it has 1 setscrew to lock it in place.

The sight is not cheap, coming in at $48.75 from the 10-8 website, but is worth every penny.

10-8performance.com

After removing the front of the dash and the 4 screws that hold the head in, I found something I wasn’t expecting to see. Evidently, Ford installs a silver box called TripTunes in lieu of a dedicated line-in. This acts like a built-in FM transmitter and as you can see, has a switch to select the frequency you’d like to broadcast on. (mine was set to 88.3 FM).

So…if you have an AUX hookup in the glovebox and the AUX button does nothing, try plugging in your device and tuning to 88.3 OR 87.9 to see if you can get any love from it.

At some point, something entered in values for the proxy and port settings in the APN.
Go to Home-> Settings-> Wireless and Networks-> Mobile Networks-> Access Point Names-> [Your WAP].
We had to clear the proxy and port fields, and presto! The stock droid browser works again on 3G. Wtf?

This is on the Cincinnati Bell network.
Proxy value was: 216.68.79.202 and port was 80.

I should also note that Opera mini worked, even when the stock browser gave up.