[P1] palm won't connect

[George Slusher]

>>>Most of us who've been using Palms for several years have long accepted the
>>>fact that their USB sync cradles only work with PC's, and the only way we
>>>can use them is to get their non-USB cradles and add a serial to USB
>>>adapter. 
>>>
>>>It was true 5 years ago, it's true today.
>>>    
>>>
>>
>>I've been away for a while...did someone actually write this nonsense and
>>post it to the list? Or did the poster mean to say that USB sync cradles
>>only work with Macs? I help lots more PC owners try to make their Palms and
>>PocketPCs sync than I do Mac users.
>>  
>>
>
>Same here. It must have either been a complete idiot or a troll.

>From what I've been able to glean from the Palm website and others, early 
models (the Palm III series, for example), generally did use the serial 
cradle and a serial-to-USB converter. Recall that, 'way back then, USB 
was not common on PCs. However, later versions of the Palm devices use a 
"universal" USB cradle or cable.

As for:

>But my brand new Samsung
>cell phone, with built in Palm, has only been on the market for about 2
>weeks  now, and I had to order a special serial cable from Samsung to be
>able to sync the phone's Palm with my iBook.

It's important to differentiate "Palm OS" devices from those PDAs 
actually made by Palm Solutions--i.e., those that bear the Palm name and 
trademark. The hardware connections and the drivers to run them are 
usually designed by the hardware manufacturers. Just because a device 
uses Palm OS doesn't mean that it will connect with a Mac. Handspring has 
been good at maintaining Mac compatibility for its devices from the very 
beginning but some other manufacturers don't seem to care.


George Slusher/Eugene, OR
gslusher at rio.com