How to Troubleshoot a Palm OS PDA

If you've got one of the 20 million or so personal digital assistants (PDAs) that were sold with the Palm OS, then you've probably become addicted to having information at your fingertips. Suddenly losing that access can be a jolt. Better find out what the trouble is so you can get your life back.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Problems with HotSync synchronization

1. If you've never used HotSync Manager before, check the documentation that came with your PDA to see if there are known incompatibilities that might be affecting your system.

2. Check to make sure that the HotSync Manager application is running. In Windows, look for its icon (a red and blue circle with arrows) in the system tray of the Taskbar.

3. Make sure you have the right kind of connection, either serial or universal serial bus (USB), selected in HotSync Manager.

4. Quit HotSync Manager and restart it.

5. Lower the data-transfer rate by selecting SetUp in HotSync Manager's menu, then choosing the Local tab. This often works for laptops.

6. If you're using a serial connector, make sure the cradle is connected to a serial (COM) port that isn't being used by another device such as a modem or mouse.

7. If you're using a USB connector, make sure you have Windows 98 or later, and reinstall the PalmConnect USB system software to be sure you have the latest version. Also try removing other USB devices.

8. If you're using Mac OS 9.2 or earlier, go to the Chooser and make sure AppleTalk is turned off (Inactive). You should also disable any other software that uses the serial port.

Defective HotSync cradle contacts

9. Make sure that the System Sound is activated on your PDA. Go to Prefs in the Application screen and select General in the category list, then click the check box next to System Sound.

10. Inspect the cradle contacts to see if any of them look uneven.

11. Regardless of whether you can see any defects, place the PDA in the cradle and press it toward the connector.

12. With the PDA in this position, initiate a HotSync session. If HotSync now works (you'll hear the connection chime) and it previously didn't, then the cradle is defective and should be replaced.

You can't find your data after a HotSync session

13. Go to the Tools menu on your PDA.

14. Choose Users.

15. Make sure you have the correct username selected.

Other Technical Difficulties

16. Beaming doesn't work. Make sure the infrared ports are pointed at each other and between 4 inches (10 cm) and 39 inches (100 cm) apart. Try a soft reset of one or both PDAs (see How to Reset a Palm OS PDA).

17. Stylus stops working. Perform a soft reset (see How to Reset a Palm OS PDA). Go to the Prefs application on the PDA and select Digitizer from the drop-down menu.

18. PDA seems dead. Install fresh batteries. Wait several minutes after the installation before restarting the PDA. Try a soft reset and then a hard reset (see How to Reset a Palm OS PDA).

You've forgotten the user password

19. If you haven't recently backed up your PDA data by synchronizing, you may want to buy a Palm password-cracking program. You can find one on the Internet for about $30.

20. Otherwise, your only choice is to perform a hard reset and restore your data, if possible, by synchronizing with your PC (see How to Reset a Palm OS PDA).

Tips & Warnings

• If your PDA doesn't turn off with a single press of the on-off button, it's a sign that your batteries may be running down.
• If you leave the PDA in its cradle when you aren't synchronizing, you'll run down the batteries faster.
• If your PDA doesn't turn off with a single press of the on-off button, it's a sign that your batteries may be running down.
• If you leave the PDA in its cradle when you aren't synchronizing, you'll run down the batteries faster.
• If your PDA doesn't turn off with a single press of the on-off button, it's a sign that your batteries may be running down.
• If you leave the PDA in its cradle when you aren't synchronizing, you'll run down the batteries faster.
• If your PDA doesn't turn off with a single press of the on-off button, it's a sign that your batteries may be running down.
• If you leave the PDA in its cradle when you aren't synchronizing, you'll run down the batteries faster.
• If your PDA doesn't turn off with a single press of the on-off button, it's a sign that your batteries may be running down.
• If you leave the PDA in its cradle when you aren't synchronizing, you'll run down the batteries faster.
• If your PDA doesn't turn off with a single press of the on-off button, it's a sign that your batteries may be running down.
• If you leave the PDA in its cradle when you aren't synchronizing, you'll run down the batteries faster.
• If your PDA doesn't turn off with a single press of the on-off button, it's a sign that your batteries may be running down.
• If you leave the PDA in its cradle when you aren't synchronizing, you'll run down the batteries faster.
• If your PDA doesn't turn off with a single press of the on-off button, it's a sign that your batteries may be running down.
• If you leave the PDA in its cradle when you aren't synchronizing, you'll run down the batteries faster.