Palm IIIc, OS 3.5.2 And Grafitti Problems?

SmackDown asks: "I am having trouble with my brand new Palm IIIc. After installing the OS 3.5.2 upgrade, it no longer correctly recognizes graffiti. The graffiti app displays my pen strokes as being jerky and nearly random. I have performed several soft/warm/hard resets each, and nothing works. Does anyone have any suggestions about what I should do?"

Massage the screen

[Bud]

The touch-sensitive layer in the Palm screen contains some kind of small balls floating in gel. The balls conduct electricity when put under pressure. Now if you write a lot in a certain area, the balls and gel will get thinner there and that spot needs less pressure to conduct electricity. So when you tap somewhere in the writing area, chances are that the "bald spot" will connect first, and the balls directly under the pen will connect only when you press harder or move the pen around. So you get an initial spike from the bald spot to wherever your pen is and this spike will confuse the Graffiti recognizer. Typical indications are that I will be recognized as a T, and N will become a W. You can see this phenomenon clearly using e.g. TealEcho.

The solution is to use a microfiber cloth to gently massage the screen starting from the top and working downwards, in order to spread the gel more evenly. You can also use ScreenWrite (?) or Jot or something similar that allows you to write elsewhere on the touch screen.

--Bud

Re:Massage the screen

[Bud]

Erm. So it's a brand new IIIc, you say? Sorry. Return it.

It'll take *months* before a Palm gets a bald spot.

--Bud

downgrade?

[whydna]

can you downgrade the os on a palm device?

worth a try

-andy

Re:ROM Fry - not true

[frog51]

As part of demoing kit, I usually reflash my palm devices every time I show them to customers. It's a good way of preventing them doing things they shouldn't.
So far no problems flashing the ROM and I have done upwards of 100 wipe/reflash cycles on one device.


Frog51

Why not Remove 3.5.2?

[jbuilder]

I haven't seen *any* problems on my Palm Vx with OS 3.5.2, but remember that 3.5.2 is just a patch. It resides in RAM and you *can* delete it. Here's how: Power on the device, hold down the UP button. While holding down the UP button press the reset button on the back of the IIIc. Wait for several seconds and then release the UP button. From there you should be able to go into the Application Launch, choose Delete mode (Command 'D') and then select the entry for Update 3.5.2.

After you delete it you'll need to again press the reset button on the back your IIIc, but this time leave the UP button alone.

Now that I think about it, see if the Graffiti problem goes away after the reboot I mentioned above. If it goes away, you may either have a problem with 3.5.2 *or* an interaction with another extention or a Hackmaster hack... You might want to try disabling hackmaster if you run it.

ROM Fry

[moofbong]

I read somewhere recently that flashing your Palm more than once can have disastrous consequences, such as complete memory failure. If this is your second or greater flash, you might want to look into that possibility.

Re:Uhm, Call Palm tech support?

[SmackDown]

Hey there! Tried that multiple times. Palm's phone maze is completely impossible to get a real human on. Their e-mail support is also generated by a 'bot and comes back with stuff you already tried like "Try flashing your palm." So, yes, I have tried contacting palm, and I finally got them to give me an RMA. I guess I will have to exchange the device. The box should be coming Airborne Express any day now... Thanks!

My IIIc did the same thing.

[SkubyDew]

I never flashed my palm but right out of the box it was difficult to write on, I thought it was just me but I let a few friends with Palms to try it and they all say it's wacked. I called Palm and they sent me a box that I used to ship the unit back to them for repair/replace, it's free under warranty. To avoid hassle you have to call tech support first to get like a DOA status or something otherwise you'll be like me and be on the phone for an hour and a half. -peace, Derek