The ol’ Palm OS grade-and-pave (or, how to clean your machine)
Ah, the new year. A fresh start whose arrival is greeted with fireworks, a hearty rendition of improvisational lyrics to Auld Lang Syne, everyone’s best intentions, and a baby wearing a top hat and strategically-placed sash.
Many of us who’ve used Palm OS for awhile use the new year as a reminder to do what I call a grade-and-pave. That’s when you completely wipe your phone, and then restore your applications and data from scratch (not from a backup).
Why?
Well, the best Palm OS software (like Kinoma Player) makes your phone’s overall reliability a priority. It follows all Palm OS software best-practices, making it very unlikely that it could ever cause problems — like crashes and unexplained slowdowns — with your phone as a whole.
Unfortunately, not all Palm OS software follows those rules. Even some popular Palm OS software hacks the OS to provide features that the OS itself doesn’t support, such as “fake” multi-tasking. Over time those hacks tend to accrue, conflict and cause system problems. Sometimes, just uninstalling the culprit(s) isn’t enough.
A grade-and-pave is a fresh start for your phone.
#1: HotSync
Check your HotSync Settings to make sure that the Backup conduit is enabled, and then do a HotSync to back up your phone.
#2: Wipe your phone
In Palm OS lingo this is called doing a “hard reset”. Palm has an article that shows you how to do it for your particular device.
Note: This will delete everything from your phone, including Kinoma Player!
#3: Archive your old data
If you simply restore everything that was on your phone before, there’s a good chance you’ll inadvertently restore apps or data that were causing problems.
To avoid that, move or rename the “user data” folder that Palm Desktop keeps your stuff in. I normally rename mine with the date and zip it, and then eventually delete it when I’m sure I’ll never need it again.
On Windows, your user data folder will be in in C:\Program Files\Palm, and will be named the first six characters of your HotSync last name plus the first characters of your HotSync first name. For example, Angelina Jolie’s user data folder is called “JolieA”.
#4: HotSync
Now, do your first HotSync just to make sure the basics are working.
Since you archived your old user data, you’ll be asked to create a new HotSync profile. You can (and probably should) use the same profile name that you used before.
#5: Reinstall Kinoma Player
To reinstall Kinoma Player, go to our lost key form and enter your registration email address. You’ll be send an email with a link to a fresh installer, which you can use directly from your phone.
Tip: You can just click the link on your phone to install Kinoma Player over the air, without a PC. I typically forward the link to my phone via SMS.
#6: Reinstall other apps, as needed
Rather than automatically installing everything that was on your phone before the grade-and-pave, install them as needed. And when possible, use your phone for at least a day or two between installations.
By following that advice, you’ll get a clear understanding of how different software affects your phone’s performance and stability.
#7: Enjoy!
A good grade-and-pave gets you a like-new phone experience without spending anything but a little time.
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