ipatchfreely wrote: I have spent a non-trivial amount of time looking at vmware.com and can not find vmware tools available for download (yet).
VMware Tools for VMware Player are not posted to be downloaded like VMware Player itself and that's why outside these forums you'll not see a download link/page for VMware Tools for VMware Player. They are meant to be downloaded in the background by the VMware Player program and silently installed. That said, over the last couple years I posted links and directions quite a few times because there have been several issue where even with Internet access available the VMware Player program has had issues downloading. Also if you had actually read this entire thread you would have seen the links that someone else posted! 
The link for VMware Tools for VMware Player 3.0 and later is: http://softwareupdate.vmware.com/cds/vmw-desktop/player/
Installing VMware Tools ISO Images on Windows Host, download to Host and untar then execute. This then silently installs the VMware Tools ISO Image into the VMware Player working directory. Then if VMware Tools will not install normally in the VM then manually assign the target VMware Tools ISO Image to the CD/DVD of the VM and manually install.
For installing VMware Tools ISO Images on Linux Host see information in my reply Re: WS 7.1.4 - Unable to download VMware Tools/Update. Then if VMware Tools will not install normally In the VM then manually assign the target VMware Tools ISO Image to the CD/DVD of the VM and manually install.