Re: Pilot synch issues

[Andrew Greig <algreig bigpond net au>]

> Date: Tue, 28 Aug 2007 20:04:13 -0400
> From: "David A. Desrosiers" <desrod gnu-designs com>
> Subject: Re: Pilot synch issues
> To: "The PalmOS&lt; tm&gt; integration pacakge"
> 	<gnome-pilot-list gnome org>
> Message-ID: <1188345853 11125 247 camel localhost localdomain>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
> 
> On Wed, 2007-08-29 at 09:41 +1000, Andrew Greig wrote:
> > I was not too fresh at the time, but I did wake up to it for the last
> > message, I realised I was root and so switched back to $ as you see
> > below.  I wrestle with this problem for hours.  Frederic Crozat says
> > he has no problem using libusb under Mandriva to synch his Palm.  I
> > have had no success, and only limited success when reverting to the
> > visor script method. 
> 
> I think you're trying too many things at once, without determining the
> cause of the core problem. If using the visor module works, stick with
> that. 
> 
> Once you get the visor module working 100% of the time, you can try
> converting to using libusb, but jumping from "My device doesn't sync,
> let me try libusb..." is going to just result in frustration and much
> lost hair as you pull it out trying to figure it out. 
> 
> Crawl, stand, walk, run. We're still at the crawl stage. 
> 
> Here are a few ground rules to help:
> 
> 	1. You can't have one daemon listening for connections on the
>            port, and then try to communicate across that same port with
>            another tool or application (like pilot-xfer or jpilot). It
>            would be like trying to receive a fax, and use a modem on the
>            same telephone line. 
Hi David,

Thanks for your comprehensive reply. My history with Palm usage goes
back over several years to when I had a Palm iii and a serial port.  I
had to create a symlink etc.  jPilot always worked, Evolution (Gnome
Pilot was flaky) but the best I ever got was in Evo 1.8. The LifeDrive
is the main thing apart from an occasional camera hookup.

> 
> 	2. You *ABSOLUTELY MUST* hit HotSync on the Palm device before
>            you launch any client application (like pilot-xfer, jpilot,
>            etc.). Hitting the HotSync button makes the electrical
>            connection from Palm to desktop that causes visor to load,
>            udev to wake up, and other magical things to happen. You
>            can't get light out of a lamp until you pull the chain to
>            begin the flow of electrons. The Palm over USB is the same
>            way. 
Under jPilot I always hit the hot sync on the Palm first, and then 2
seconds later hit the sync button on the app.  Rock solid.
In Evo I would select Edit>Synch Options> (highlight my username)>and
close.  This would run the gpilotd and then, when pressing the HotSynch
button on the cradle it would synchronise. Now it seems to synch under
the visor module UNLESS you have the todo conduit enabled.  When I had
the visor module system running in this version of Mandriva it would
crash the gpilotd upon reaching that stage of the synch. 

> 
> 	3. Have you identified the proper set of udev rules to
>            CONSISTENTLY create the pseudo device in /dev/ every single
>            time you hit HotSync on your device? 
When I connect the LifeDrive to the computer it is detected and can be
seen in "lsusb". Here is what is in /etc/udev/rules.d/50-mdk.rules
(snipped)

# Misc permissions:

# pilot/palm devices
KERNEL=="pilot",                NAME="%k", GROUP="uucp"

and in 60-dynamic.rules
[root localhost rules.d]# cat 60-dynamic.rules
# Dynamic rules for udev

KERNEL=="video[0-9]*",          RUN
+="/etc/dynamic/scripts/webcam.script"
KERNEL=="usb/rio500[0-9]*",     RUN
+="/etc/dynamic/scripts/rio500.script"
KERNEL=="ttyUSB[13579]*",     RUN+="/etc/dynamic/scripts/visor.script"
KERNEL=="lp[0-9]*",             RUN+="/etc/dynamic/scripts/lp.script"
[root localhost rules.d]# 

I wonder, if this visor line should be commented out? Could this be a
clash with libusb? Since trying to get libusb running has led to the
removal of the visor module, perhaps this rule is initiating a search
for it and tying up the bus?


> 
> 	4. The timing between pressing HotSync and the device wakeup (to

            see comment above
> 
> 	5. Forget trying to get gnome-pilot (gpilotd) to talk to your
>            Palm device and sync, until you know you have working
>            hardware and a _consistent_ connection between Palm and
>            desktop. The easiest and lowest-level way to do that, is to
>            use any of the tools in the pilot-link package (which I
>            maintain).
> 
>            Once you know your connection is consistent and solid, THEN
>            you can begin configuring gnome-pilot to communicate using
>            that same port and timing interval. 
> 
> I don't mean to sound condescending or preaching, but I've helped
> literally thousands of people with their Palm device connection issues
> over the last decade using these tools, so I have a passing familiarity
> with debugging these kinds of issues.

I have not found your tone condescending, on the contrary, I appreciate
your considerate approach to my dilemma. The archives had stacks of
messages from me over the years lamenting the flakiness of
Gnome-Pilot(Evolution Pilot), and remarking on the stability and
reliability of jPilot.  But at the moment, both are out of action. This
is a mission critical issue for me because I have been running my
business under Evolution and OpenOffice for the past 6 years, and when
the computer and Pilot will not synch it is back to pen and paper - I am
not good at paper based stuff, it's too easy to misplace.

Many thanks
Andrew Greig