CF Panic!!!!

[Bobbyn]

I was using the audio player with music from the CF when I stopped the playing with the Jog dial and the the screen jst wouldn't stop flashing!!!!

I tryed soft resetting it and the reset with the up buttun and nothing happend. Then I had to hard reset it and lost ALL my data!!!!!...

some application this CF utility is... losing ALL my non-backup data from the Clie is something to think about next time you use the CF utility...

thanks a lot EruWare....

<@:-P

[ejanssen]

I routinely backup my CF also.

[OcellNuri]

You are using some pretty tricked out software. It is good practice to have a backup of your RAM that's pretty current. I have one that's automatically done every morning at 5am. Look into an app like BackupBuddyVFS to get the same ability.

Eruware did not make the driver hard reset your unit on purpose. It is obviously a bug in the driver. If you really want to help fix the problem, e-mail their support and tell them how you made the crash happen. This will not only help you get a better working driver (which you have already paid for) but it will also help all the rest of us avoid the same problems you had.

[stronggeek]

Me too (backup my CF), but it still could have been&nbsp;another program&nbsp;or even&nbsp;2 or more&nbsp;software conflicts.

Sorry.

Originally posted by ejanssen
I routinely backup my CF also.

[n2ifp]

Originally posted by OcellNuri
You are using some pretty tricked out software. It is good practice to have a backup of your RAM that's pretty current. I have one that's automatically done every morning at 5am. Look into an app like BackupBuddyVFS to get the same ability.

Eruware did not make the driver hard reset your unit on purpose. It is obviously a bug in the driver. If you really want to help fix the problem, e-mail their support and tell them how you made the crash happen. This will not only help you get a better working driver (which you have already paid for) but it will also help all the rest of us avoid the same problems you had.

It's all to easy to blame something. Remember when the system update patch first came out? People blamed everything under the sun because of it. Some even claimed that it gave them a flat tire, the reason the cat lost it's tooth and it caused the last major earthquake :).

[ayasin]

Originally posted by Bobbyn
I tryed soft resetting it and the reset with the up buttun and nothing happend. Then I had to hard reset it and lost ALL my data!!!!!...

You must have done the up arrow reset wrong because doing that does the following:
1. NO app receives a sysAppLaunchCmdSystemReset launch code and therefore no apps launch.
2. Even on a soft reset, the CF driver is switched off, you have to go into the CF Utility to switch it on (this was a safety feature added in early beta).

If you did a soft reset, the flickering of your screen was not caused by the CF driver.

[Bobbyn]

Originally posted by OcellNuri
You are using some pretty tricked out software. It is good practice to have a backup of your RAM that's pretty current. I have one that's automatically done every morning at 5am. Look into an app like BackupBuddyVFS to get the same ability.

Eruware did not make the driver hard reset your unit on purpose. It is obviously a bug in the driver. If you really want to help fix the problem, e-mail their support and tell them how you made the crash happen. This will not only help you get a better working driver (which you have already paid for) but it will also help all the rest of us avoid the same problems you had.

I did what you said and contacted the EruWare support...

After 3 and a half hours I managged to get all the softwares back into place and a parcial part of the contacts I had lost... because some of the softwares I used to use needed re-downloading...

Hopefully in the future this wont happen again...

[Unregistered]

how did you get the driver on your clie - hotsync or ms?

if by hotsync, then when you have an unfortunate hard reset - why don't you just hotsync back? you would have had a fairly recent backup then.

[GeekGod]

How is EruWare responsible for your failure to keep important data backed up?

And how did you get the data into your Clie in the first place. If you synced it in, then your data is still on your computer and it shouldn't have taken 3 hours to restore.

What you are saying makes no sense whatsoever.

If you are traveling and are away from your computer, then you should be using MS Backup (actually, you should be using that anyway).

Forgive my lack of sympathy, but people who complain about losing "important" data that they never bothered to back up have no one but them selves to blame. Sorry if this seems a bit harsh, but this is a big pet peeve of mine, because in tech support I listen to this crap all day.

"Hello Mr. So-and-so. I'm calling to let you know your computer is ready for pick up."

"Oh, you fixed it already. That's great. What was wrong with it?"

"Your hard drive had failed, so we had to replace it. The drive had a 3 year warranty so there was no charge for the hardware. Technically there should be a labor charge since the system only had a one year warranty, but the tech manager was in a good mood today and said I could wave the labor charge for you."

"Wow, that's great. I really appreciate that. So I have a brand new drive now?"

"Yes."

"And you were able to put all my data back, right?"

"No, I'm affraid not. Your drive was completely dead. There was no way to access your data."

"WHAT!!!! MY DATA CAN'T BE GONE! I HAVE IMPORTANT BUSINESS RECORDS ON THERE. AND ALL MY TAX RECORDS. AND CLIENT CONTACT INFORMATION AND LETTERS. AND CONTRACTS. AND FAMILY PHOTOS... MY WHOLE LIFE IS ON THERE! IT CAN'T BE ALL GONE!"

"Well, when was the last time you backed up your data?"

"Backup? Backup! Who the hell has time to back up data? You'd better tell me you can get my data back or I'm gonna sue your a** for big money!"

"Well, sir, I'm sorry you lost your data, but data backup is really your resposibility. It is your computer after all. If your data is really that important, there may be a way to get it back..."

"How?"

"We could send you drive off to a professional data recovery specialist. There is a good chance they can recover most, if not all of your data. But data recovery is not a warranty issue, so you will have to pay for the service."

"How much will that cost?"

"It will cost $100 for them to examine the drive to see if the data is even recoverable. You pay that fee regardless. Also, there is no garantee the data recovered will be completely intact. A failed hard drive will often corrupt data, but I believe in your case there is a good chance of getting your data back."

"Oh, $100 isn't so bad, I guess..."

"No. That's just to see if they can even access your data. If they can recover the data, it will run somewhere between $500 and $1500 for the actual data recovery."

"WHAT!!! ARE YOU CRAZY? I'M NOT GOING TO PAY THAT KIND OF MONEY TO GET MY DATA BACK!!"

"Um... I thought you said the data was important?"

"It's not THAT important!"

"Well then, I'm affraid your data is gone."

[explitive deleted] click.

[n2ifp]

Additionally, a reminder to all with the NX series Clie. Install the system update patch from Sony support. The Clie has a nasty bug in it which can cause a hard reset without warning when doing a soft one.

GG: Loved your story, I could picture the whole scenario :)

[jackho]

I love this story too. It reminds me about my job when I was a hotline technical support of an ISP... :)

[GeekGod]

I had one lady who had owned a Clie for several months (several months - keep this in mind), and then one week she went too long between charges and let her battery die. She came in complaining it wouldn't turn on. After checking it out and suspecting the battery was dead I put it on charge for a few minutes and turned it on. Sure enough, the cold start/digitizer screen came up.

I told her she had let her battery die and that she should let the unit charge for a few hours before syncing her data back in.

She was like, "What do you mean syncing my data back in?"

With a growing fear that I should just turn and run, I gently explained that a PDA will only hold data if it has power, and that if the power is completely drained the data is lost.

Her reaction was predictable. She started yelling at me and acusing me of selling her some kind of crappy, inferior product. She ranted and raved about how she had important appointments and contact information for SEVERAL HUNDRED people that she would probably never be able to recover.

So I told her that all PDAs worked that way, and tried to save the situation by explaining that every time she hot synced her Clie with her computer her data was backed up, and that all she had to do was charge her unit and sync it and everything from her last hotsync would be restored.

The look on her face told me it was a big mistake not to turn and run. :(

She told me she had never gotten around to installing the software in her computer, and had never hot synced it!

I asked her why, and she told me she didn't have the time. :rolleyes:

I asked her how she had gotten all that data in the PDA, and she said she had entered it all, IN GRAFITTI!

So she had time to enter SEVERAL HUNDRED CONTACTS, ALL IN GRAFITTI, but didn't have time to pop a CD in her computer and click [next] a few times.

This in itself is a story worth a good laugh, but it gets better!

She had a MEMORY STICK in her Clie!

I asked her why she had never used MS Backup, and she replied SHE DIDN'T KNOW HOW!

Um... you click on MS Backup, and you click BACKUP!

Being a professional representing my company, I am forced to remain polite and apologetic and helpful in situations like this, but each time something like this happens it pushes me a little closer to the edge. It's only a matter of time before I become the next "Wordperfect help desk" story of legend (if you don't know what I am referring to look here (http://www.avolites.com/jokes/helpdesk.htm)).

[n2ifp]

LOL, yes, I remember seeing that story before :D!

Sometimes it certainly is tempting... :)

[jackho]

In ISP hotline is the same, sometimes I wanted to do as same as THAT "WordPerfect HelpDesk". "hold" and "mute" are very useful functions... :D

I remember a case that I needed to check the system configuration with a client.

"Are you in front of your computer?"

"Yes"

"Can you see "My Computer" on the desktop?"

"Yes, of course. I put my computer on my desk"

"..., I mean "My Computer" icon on the screen..."

"Oh, yes"

"Please right-click that icon. Can you see a menu? Bottom one should shows "Properties""

"No, it just opened with some icons such as "A:" and "C:""

"......., I mean "RIGHT-CLICK". Can you see there are 2 buttons in your mouse? Normally is use the left one but RIGHT-CLICK means you need to PUSH right button ONCE"

This is just one of those cases...

[Tixx]

Originally posted by GeekGod
I had one lady who had owned a Clie for several months (several months - keep this in mind), and then one week she went too long between charges and let her battery die. She came in complaining it wouldn't turn on. After checking it out and suspecting the battery was dead I put it on charge for a few minutes and turned it on. Sure enough, the cold start/digitizer screen came up.

I told her she had let her battery die and that she should let the unit charge for a few hours before syncing her data back in.

She was like, "What do you mean syncing my data back in?"

With a growing fear that I should just turn and run, I gently explained that a PDA will only hold data if it has power, and that if the power is completely drained the data is lost.

Her reaction was predictable. She started yelling at me and acusing me of selling her some kind of crappy, inferior product. She ranted and raved about how she had important appointments and contact information for SEVERAL HUNDRED people that she would probably never be able to recover.

So I told her that all PDAs worked that way, and tried to save the situation by explaining that every time she hot synced her Clie with her computer her data was backed up, and that all she had to do was charge her unit and sync it and everything from her last hotsync would be restored.

The look on her face told me it was a big mistake not to turn and run. :(

She told me she had never gotten around to installing the software in her computer, and had never hot synced it!

I asked her why, and she told me she didn't have the time. :rolleyes:

I asked her how she had gotten all that data in the PDA, and she said she had entered it all, IN GRAFITTI!

So she had time to enter SEVERAL HUNDRED CONTACTS, ALL IN GRAFITTI, but didn't have time to pop a CD in her computer and click [next] a few times.

This in itself is a story worth a good laugh, but it gets better!

She had a MEMORY STICK in her Clie!

I asked her why she had never used MS Backup, and she replied SHE DIDN'T KNOW HOW!

Um... you click on MS Backup, and you click BACKUP!

Being a professional representing my company, I am forced to remain polite and apologetic and helpful in situations like this, but each time something like this happens it pushes me a little closer to the edge. It's only a matter of time before I become the next "Wordperfect help desk" story of legend (if you don't know what I am referring to look here (http://www.avolites.com/jokes/helpdesk.htm)).

Wow. People are idiots. *LOL*:D

[Alistar]

I love that wordperfect story. It's hilarious and I know exactly what the guy went through. Its amazing how people expect you solve anything related to technology. (My mouse is on the left side of my mouse pad, but I still need it to go further left on the screen what do I do; and yes I have seen this one).
Ahh, computer illiterate people are a source of constant amusement.

[Daghis]

I just wanted to add that I saw the exact same behavior as Bobbyn a couple nights ago. I was checking my playlist and skipping through tracks in the AudioPlayer. It then wedged up. Upon pressing the reset button, it went into strobe mode where the entire screen alternated between solid white and black.

Whenever I pressed the power button, it immediately prompted me for a hard reset. I tried doing the soft reset a few times before giving in.

I did the hard reset and then restored my files using BackupMan (thanks to my daily backups!).

[rob_squared]

It works both ways for me. Once, just to have fun with MediaOne tech support I asked them if I had two operating systems on one computer if I could still connect to the net. Mind you I knew the answer, I just wanted to see if this guy did. He first said no, it wouldn't work, then he said I'd have to buy a special hard drive switcher to have more than one OS. :D

Then of course there was a person who I worked with who didn't know how to move a window around the screen... *cringes*

[OcellNuri]

Originally posted by GeekGod
How is EruWare responsible for your failure to keep important data backed up?


That's exactly what I ment to say in my post, but I think my message lost focus. It is YOUR OWN responsibility to keep your data backed up. If you keep it backed up, you will not have to spend 3.5 hours restoring programs, and you will not lose any data at all.

[n2ifp]

It's best to practice safe computing and backup you Clie. Otherwise it's like practicing unprotected sex and putting yourself at high risk!

[BettyE]

Originally posted by GeekGod
I had one lady who had owned a Clie for several months (several months - keep this in mind), and then one week she went too long between charges and let her battery die. ...

I didn't want to quote the whole thing but regarding this story...... I don't want to be mean, but some people get what they deserve. (If I ever lose anything due to not backing up, I know I am the only one to blame.)

[Unregistered]

God, I love being in the company of such perfect people :).

[n2ifp]

I never said I was perfect, far from it, I only try to give good advice!

[rob_squared]

Nah, we're not perfect. We just realize when when we're dumb and try to avoid repeating ourselves. :D

[Eddy]

only one word....BACKUP:D

[Unregistered]

Hi all, I have been reading through the recent posts about the driver (still weighing pros and cons) and it seems that you have a few people that are not happy with it for reasons other than having anything to do with the driver. I have read posts that it isn't working with hardware that they think it should, that it doesn't work with a card that they thought it should. Now it isn't holding all the "important data in backup that is lost from a hard reset". I am not a computer literate person, nor do I see myself as perfect but even the most basic computer classes start with a rule... if you don't want to lose your data then do a routine backup. I do however like to watch people and how they act or react to others. Bobbyn, is there something other than the driver that is bothering you? I don't need an answer here, instead I suggest you ask yourself this and find a way to solve it. Geekgod, a person with your patience is worth their weight in gold, you are most assuredly underpaid and under appreciated. Ayasin, it is commendable that you are trying to expand the use of the driver when it was only meant to read/write and expand memory using a cf slot that was before so limited. Sony, I could say a lot about you but you don't seem to be listening anyway. ;)

[cliener]

The previous post was from me, my new keyboard (gel rollup) is not registering me. Apologies to all for that. Cliener.

[n2ifp]

Originally posted by cliener
The previous post was from me, my new keyboard (gel rollup) is not registering me. Apologies to all for that. Cliener.

That's what they all say...:D!

[stronggeek]

This thread may have started out about question with the cf and audioplayer, but has basically turned into a " you better back up before you install any new piece of software and you better being doing it on a regular basis" thread!

Bobbyn, most of us, actually all of us have probablyl ost some valuble data because we didn't back-up.

I lost a term paper years ago that I was 2.5 hours into on a late night (early mourning) because my pc froze up and I was not saving on my own and had no auto-save option.

It was already 2am and I had to start over just because I wasn't saving.

I've also lost important data and actually more timts on my palms than on my PCs. :(

In both cases I was not saving nor was I backing up.

I learned the hard way, so I back up at least once a day and just after entering data.

Here's hoping that others learn from all our mistakes. :)

But hey, has anyone other than Bobbyn and Daghis had this experience with the cf and the audio player?