Upgrade and Drift Troubles

[brutuspa]

According to my read of the Palm web page, I should be shooting for OS 3.5.3, Desktop 4.0.1, and HotSync 3.1.1.

Well, my drift problem got so bad, that I couldn't get to Welcome or Prefs, and had to hard reset to force Welcome to run. Every time I re-sync, the drift returns.

The hard reset takes me back to OS 3.5.0. If I uninstall, dump my c:\Palm directory, and reinstall from the CD (Desk 3.0.1, Sync 3.0.2) all is good, though old. So I upgraded to Desk 3.1 and Sync 3.1.1, and it's still good. When I upgrade the OS to 3.5.3 and reset, the drift returns just as before - so bad that it seems only a hard reset will get things back.

Also, Desk 4.0.1 installs Sync 4.0, which doesn't seem right, per the web page. Installing Sync 3.1.1 over Desk 4.0.1/Sync 4.0 breaks InstallApp.

I read here that drift indicates hardware problems, but this seems specific to software versions.

Any clues?

[Steve T]

Originally posted by brutuspa
...

Well, my drift problem got so bad, that I couldn't get to Welcome or Prefs, and had to hard reset to force Welcome to run. Every time I re-sync, the drift returns.

The hard reset takes me back to OS 3.5.0. ... When I upgrade the OS to 3.5.3 and reset, the drift returns just as before - so bad that it seems only a hard reset will get things back.

...

I read here that drift indicates hardware problems, but this seems specific to software versions.

About the drift problem, it may be some combination of hardware and software. I ran 3.5.3 for a long time and never saw any significant drifting.

I'd recommend a free utility called 'DigiFix' which works to preserve calibration between resets and gives you easy-access to digitizer screen if you need it. You can launch it with a simple soft reset if thngs get bad.

Originally posted by brutuspa
According to my read of the Palm web page, I should be shooting for OS 3.5.3, Desktop 4.0.1, and HotSync 3.1.1.

... Desk 4.0.1 installs Sync 4.0, which doesn't seem right, per the web page. Installing Sync 3.1.1 over Desk 4.0.1/Sync 4.0 breaks InstallApp.

I agree the page is a little confusing. The page is actually listing upgrades that are available, not necessarily what you should be 'shooting for'. Installing 4.0.1 will bring sync to the latest version (4.0) which is fine.

An "other handhelds" user who *just* wants to update Sync and leave his desktop at 3.0 has the option of Sync 3.1.1, but if he upgrades the desktop then Sync will be upgraded automatically to be compatible with the desktop.

So in your case, install 4.0.1, let it install Sync 4.0, and everything's fine.

Cheers
Steve T