VisorCentral.com (http://discussion.visorcentral.com/vcforum/index.php)
- How To / Troubleshooting (http://discussion.visorcentral.com/vcforum/forumdisplay.php?forumid=2)
-- Placing Visor into my USB cradle instantly shuts down my PC!!! (http://discussion.visorcentral.com/vcforum/showthread.php?threadid=2961)

Has anyone else experienced this problem? I just purchased a Visor Deluxe today and the upgrade from my Palm IIIxe went smoothly via he USB hotsync cradle and the device seems to be working fine.

However, twice in the past 6 hours a strange thing occured. After using the Visor Deluxe and returning the device to the cradle, as soon as the bottom of the Visor Deluxe comes in contact with the connector of the cradle, my PC suddenly shuts down! This exact thing happened twice. This is without hitting the hotsync button or anything...simpling putting the PDA in the cradle. I can't MAKE it repeat though I have tried, but it sure seems odd to have happened twice if at all. Subsequent hotsyncs have been ok, but this sudden shut down of my PC concerns me. Have you guys ever heard of this? I am not going through a USB hub or anything, the cradle is connected directly to my PC's USB connector. I have 5 different USB peripherals and have never experienced any problems like this before.

quote:

---

Originally posted by stuman74:
Has anyone else experienced this problem? I just purchased a Visor Deluxe today and the upgrade from my Palm IIIxe went smoothly via he USB hotsync cradle and the device seems to be working fine.

However, twice in the past 6 hours a strange thing occured. After using the Visor Deluxe and returning the device to the cradle, as soon as the bottom of the Visor Deluxe comes in contact with the connector of the cradle, my PC suddenly shuts down! This exact thing happened twice. This is without hitting the hotsync button or anything...simpling putting the PDA in the cradle. I can't MAKE it repeat though I have tried, but it sure seems odd to have happened twice if at all. Subsequent hotsyncs have been ok, but this sudden shut down of my PC concerns me. Have you guys ever heard of this? I am not going through a USB hub or anything, the cradle is connected directly to my PC's USB connector. I have 5 different USB peripherals and have never experienced any problems like this before.

---

John,

Thanks for the reply. I just downloaded the file and installed it, although it appears to all be the same version I had before. Glad to hear however that I am not the only one that has experienced this problem!

I have that update installed on my machine and I thought it had worked. But occasionally, not every time, it still shuts down my pc.

That doesn't sound like a software problem, but more a hardware problem. It sounds like your motherboard is getting shorted out. I did this with a PS/2 port when I was playing around on a homebuilt.
BEN

BEN may be correct on this. I have found that the "reset problem" tends to occur only when I drop the visor into the cradle without first orienting the visor to the same angle as the cradle. If I put it in straight up and down or twisted slightly, then it sometimes resets my (generic) windows machine. So, now I'm thinking that resets may be caused by accidently shorting the pins in the cradle with the contacts in the visor.

-z

I love PC's... C*ap like this would never happen on my Mac.
I think that there sould always be more then one platform... Where else can we get new jokes?

I beg to differ chrisfoster, I had this problem with a new Mac that I was stuck with at work. Putting the Visor into the USB cradle caused a short across the motherboard (due to a faulty USB port) and shut the thing down.

Current flowing through components on a motherboard works the same whether you have a PC or a Mac or any other electrical device, it's just basic Ohm's Law.

LuckyChuck, whilst I agree basic Ohm's Law cannot be argued with i have a few (maybe slightly off topic) points...

1/ The Apple mac platform first brought USB into common use, so i beleive the Mac OS probably has better support for it

2/ There is a huge variety of PC motherboard manufacturers, alot of them are very cheap and will not have the same standards, safe gaurds or insulation as platforms that use a common motherboard base (at present There are only 4 different versions of Apple motherboards)

4/ We are assuming that the problem with the PC shutting down is down to the short, but it is possible it is down to the driver, or windows itself.. so maybe a mac would not have this problem so much... or maybe more... who knows

Anyway, PC/Mac.... they both have there places and its a personal opinion over which is best.

Sorry, i double posted by accident. oops.
Edited all the text out.

[This message has been edited by Eddie (edited 06-21-2000).]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Eddie:
LuckyChuck, whilst I agree basic Ohm's Law cannot be argued with i have a few (maybe slightly off topic) points...

1/ The Apple mac platform first brought USB into common use, so i beleive the Mac OS probably has better support for it

2/ There is a huge variety of PC motherboard manufacturers, alot of them are very cheap and will not have the same standards, safe gaurds or insulation as platforms that use a common motherboard base (at present There are only 4 different versions of Apple motherboards)

4/ We are assuming that the problem with the PC shutting down is down to the short, but it is possible it is down to the driver, or windows itself.. so maybe a mac would not have this problem so much... or maybe more... who knows

Anyway, PC/Mac.... they both have there places and its a personal opinion over which is best.

---

quote:

---

Caveat Visor.

---

This is not a new problem as I can remember at least 2 other strings on this topic. I think the most compelling explanation for this phenomenom was static electricity, although I don't believe it reached past the conjecture stage.

I'd tend to agree with rtalain. The HotSync/cradle connector doesn't have power pins that would short to any adjacent ground pin; GND is bordered by HS1 (~300-ohm pullup to 3.3V) and D- (USB pin that can take GND inputs). VDOCK, the only other power pin, is bordered by D+ and TXD (both input pins that can take GND inputs).

The likely scenario is if you take the time to orient the Visor properly, you're giving more time for your static charge to bleed off to the cradle/desk/computer.

-WaC
Wayne