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Installation Tips And Gotchas
• File Doesn't Exist Error
• Files not Compatible Error
- Installation Tips from PalmOne

• Trouble with your TX?

Graffiti2
• Using the Graffiti 2 Writing System

SilkScreen Frequently Asked Questions:
• How do I deactivate SilkScreen?
• I can't get Virtual Graffiti to work
• Virtual Graffiti stopped working on a Treo 600/650

HotSync ID
• What is a HotSync ID
• How to Make a Usable HotSync ID
• How to Create a new HotSync ID

Problem: file doesn't exist error
A known Windows bug is that it loses track of files that are several folders deep.
Solution: The best solution here is to drag the zip archive to the desktop, create a new folder and expand the archive into that folder. Then either double-click the prc file or drag all installables on top of the Install Tool.

Problem: files not compatible error
The Palm OS historically used two file formats with the extensions .prc and .pdb. Any files of another type would be rejected. This has changed only inasmuch as other file types are allowed today if they are stored on a memory card and NOT in RAM. If you get an error like "This program does not contain compatible files", you tried to install the wrong file type or to the wrong location.
Using Windows can make things more difficult as Windows-centric developers often have the extremely bad habit of naming files of different types with the exact same name. As a result you could have 10 files named George if you decided to hide known extensions. Consult your documentation on information as how to always show file extensions (Folder Options/View).
Solution: Only prc and pdb files can be hotsynced to RAM. Everything else goes on memory cards. The most recent desktop software from PalmOne does this automatically.

Problem: TX resets on HotSync or crashes often
DataViz's office apps are known to cause this
Solution: Try this link and follow the instructions:

Problem: How do I deactivate SilkScreen?
Solution: Launch the application and tap the "OFF" button.

Problem: I can't get Virtual Graffiti to work
Solution: Do this step by step:
1.) Start SilkScreen and set it to ON.
2.) Go to the Keys tab and select Graffiti from the popup menu for one of the hard keys.
3.) Try it right then and there - pressing the key very briefly should switch on Graffiti and you should be able to write on the screen, although with no effect for now.
4.) Once you verified that Virtual Graffiti works in SilkScreen, again briefly press the button to turn it off and go to the MemoPad/Memos application.
5.) Tap the New button to open a new text file and then very briefly again press the hard button you have previously selected to toggle Virtual Graffiti. Start writing.

Problem: Virtual Graffiti stopped working on a Treo 600/650
You can still see the stylus being traced on the display, but there seems to be no input. In all likelihood you might have missed the remarks in the documentation and used an upstroke. The Treos 600 and 650 have Graffiti2 - not Graffiti, so there is no upstroke for shift. Instead an upstroke triggers a so-called punctuation shift, which means the device will wait until you enter an appropriate response.
Solution: Simply don't use upstrokes - a hard habit to break - or practise how to use them correctly. Punctuation shifts typically bracket the punctuation symbol: upstroke - symbol - upstroke. Unless this sequence is executed correctly the handheld just keeps waiting.

The HotSync ID
The HotSync ID (sometimes incorrectly called Palm ID) is the most important piece of information that is typically required when registring (i.e. buying) 3rd-party software for your device. Its original purpose is to identify your handheld to your desktop machine or a server, so that multiple handhelds can co-exist with different configurations. Lately that functionality has been extended as the HotSync ID is also used as identifier using bluetooth and wifi networks. In the following paragraph we put together some general rules for creating an effective HotSync ID for your device. You can always look up your current HotSync ID by going to the HotSync application

As you can see in the illustration to the right, the HotSync ID is often pre-filled in registration forms. This is basically done to eliminate errors in the registration process as many people have great difficulties with Graffiti.

Example of a Useless HotSync ID -
Here is an example of a totally useless HotSync ID that was taken from a real request. We obviously changed the first, middle and hyphenated last names but left the titles at the beginning, the numerical at the end and maintained the letter count:
Dipl.-Ing. Hansjörg Georg Schweißfuß-Klammheimlich III.

Making a usable HotSync ID
Keep it Short -
In real life your HotSync ID is similar to your email address. You will have to write it down often and so do others. Using the above HotSync ID you not only created a lot of work for yourself, but you also exceeded the maximum of 40 characters. The minimum for a HotSync ID should be 4 letters. Many developers will reject 3 or less letters.

No Titles
As you are the person that is going to see your HotSync ID most of the time, let's make a deal - first name basis with yourself. Now you can skip your title(s) and also any Sr, Jr., numerical descriptors and such.

No Special Characters
Even if your name contains umlauts, or other accents, DO NOT USE THEM!. Take a look at your email address. You probably made a compromise with it, just to be able to sail along. Same here. The minimal character set used on the internet does not contain special characters and chances are that your ä or é or ç will look like gibberish after crossing several machines.

No Spaces - no Apostrophes
Using spaces in your hotSync ID can lead to problems with registrations. This is mainly because two spaces look very much like one. The apostrophe on the other hand is a very special character that has to be "escaped" on a lot of computer systems. What you send out as "Jack's Coolmaster" will often arrive as "Jack\'s Coolmaster". So the automated system assigns you an unlock code based on a wrong HotSync ID.

Punctuation - not Really
While some punctuation is allowed, some is not and as such it is much easier to remember to avoid punctuation.

Remember the ID Part
The person with the HotSync ID above has one big problem. His cell phone has the same name and so does his desktop machine. He is so proud of his name that, like George Foreman, he renamed everything after himself and now his WiFi network shows 4 identically named devices. Ouch!

Developers have no Sense of Humor
If you name your device to "krack master" don't be surprised if you will have problems registering software and/or find yourself with a lawsuit. Software piracy is a crime and not funny to a lot of people.

OK - Where Do All these Rules Come From?
Remember that for registering software you will most often send information via the internet. That means hundreds of computers between point A and point B. They all have somewhat different capabilities and software. Making your HotSync ID network-friendly is a very good idea and will save you work and aggravation in the long run.

How to Create a New HotSync ID
Changing your HotSync ID is unfortunately not as simple as it could be. Remember that most of your software is tied to your HotSync ID and you might have to contact these developers and have them issue you new registration information. You should also read the paragraph above regarding the creation of a useful HotSync ID.

Create a New User (aka HotSync ID)
First you need to create a new user on your desktop machine first - in the Palm Desktop" application. Launch the Palm Desktop application and select "Edit Users" (HotSync/User/Edit User) from the HotSync menu. In the Edit Users dialog click the "New User" button.

Backup your Handheld
HotSync your handheld to the old HotSync ID one last time.

Move your data
If you want to move your data into the new HotSync account, you need to copy everything from the Backup folder of the old HotSync ID to the Backup folder of the new one.
Location of the Backups folder Mac: Home/Documents/Palm/Users
Location of the Backups folder XP: C/Program Files/PalmOne/

Depending on how long you have used your handheld, you might have more items in the HotSync folder than fit on your handheld, as the Backup folder contains everything you ever deleted from your device. If that is the case, HotSyncing your new device will stop with a fatal alert once the device is full and you end up in a vicious circle.

So take a look inside the Backup folder of your new HotSync ID and remove anything that you don't need or have previously deleted from your device. You should focus on applications (files with the .prc extension). Removing databases (files with the .pdb extension) can cause problems as it is not always clear to which application a database belongs. If you remove the database of an application you didn't remove it might depend on it and crash once you launch it on your handheld.
Removing too much is better than not removing enough. Remember that you have all of these files in the Backup folder of the old HotSync ID. Once your Palm is up and running you can always HotSync missing files using the regular HotSync process.

Initiate your Handheld with the New HotSync ID
If you are happy with everything so far, then now comes the moment of truth ; )
Perform a "hard reset" on your handheld by holding down the Power button and while doing so insert the end of a paper clip into the reset hole on the back of your device. Upon success the screen should show a warning, that you are about to erase all data from your handheld. Confirm by pressing the "sroll up" button as indicated.
The last thing is to HotSync your Palm device and select the new HotSync ID when prompted by the desktop machine. The first HotSync operation will take some time and once done you should HotSync your handheld a second time. Now you're done ;)

If Things Go Wrong
If you ended up in the vicious cycle described above, because there is too much data in your new Backup folder you need to revisit the Backup folder in question and delete more items.