I am having problems with my serial port connection...

I need to upgrade Psiwin - is there anything I should know?

I'd like to connect Psiwin via infra-red, but am having trouble..

Can I connect Psiwin via USB?

Where can I buy serial cables and adaptors?

I'd like to make my own Psiwin cable, how is it wired up?

Resources for Macintosh users

Can I use my PC's internet connection?

I am having problems with my serial port connection...

Aren't we all ;o)

No, seriously though, PsiWin on the PC is a dodgy bit of software at the best of times, but can be made to perform with a bit of effort. I suppose at this point I should say I've never tried anything other than PC Windows connections, so I can't help anyone out with better OSes ;o>

Okay.. in order...

Testing the basic serial connection to PC

To test the physical connection, proceed as follows:

• First make sure all COM-port using programs on the PC are closed (including the PsiWin connection server).
• Open Hyperterminal in Windows. Its in Start.. Programs.. Accessories.. Somewhere down thereish depending on which version of Windows you have.
• For each COM port available perform the following procedure:
  • Open a direct cable connection to the COM port, using a baud rate of 115200 and leave the other settings at their defaults.
  • On the Psion, enable the Psion Remote Link (type Ctrl-L in the System screen) and select Cable and 115200 as the speed; you should start seeing a set of apparently garbage characters appearing repeatedly in Hyperterminal's window.
  • If you do, your Psion is working fine, and you have found which COM port it is using. If you don't, then either the settings are wrong on the PDA, its serial port is broken, or something is fundementally awry with your PC serial ports. Have you got a Dell?

If your connection passes the above test, then its Windows or PsiWin that's at fault. Here are some pointers:

• If you are using Windows 2000 or XP, make sure you are using PsiWin 2.3.3. It is the only version released since Windows 2000, and is reported to work very well with XP. If you need to upgrade from a previous 2.x release, you must completely uninstall the previous version. Honestly. To do this, follow the procedure described below.
• In Windows, a good general rule is to stick to COM 1 or 2 for a PsiWin connection. Neither PsiWin nor Windows has ever handled higher-numbered ports particularly well (do you *really* want me to go into the details? No, I thought not..). You change PsiWin by right-clicking My Psion and selecting Properties.. Connections tab. Even if you made a connection on a higher-number port in the Hyperterminal test earlier on, there's no guarantee it will remain working when under pressure.
• Delete C:\System\psiwin.ini on the PDA.
• Try dropping the connection speed to 57600 at both ends.

If none of the above has helped..

PsiWin utilises four separate programs (processes under NT/2000/XP):

PSConsv.exe, Elogerr.exe, Wprntsvr.exe, Copyany.exe

Try shutting down each of these. The only one you will need to restart is PSConsv.exe, which is the basic one that detects the presence of the PDA when the serial connection is made. You'll find it in your PsiWin program directory (usually Program Files\Psion\PsiWin or something).

On my two Windows 2000 installations (both SP2), I find that CopyAny.exe can often stay running when the connection is closed. The best workaround I've found is to unplug the cable before turning off the serial port on the Psion. If you close the connection at the Psion end, or let it auto-disconnect, then CopyAny.exe will stay running; another is spawned next time you connect, and you may eventually experience classic, unresponsive Windows behaviour, especially when shutting down.

It is possible to view logs of Psiwin's activity in order to track what's up. Simply run elogview.exe from your Psiwin installation folder.

I need to upgrade Psiwin - is there anything I should know?

Yes, you must uninstall the old version and clear all Psiwin's registry entries before installing the new version. Uninstalling will not delete all your PDA backups. To uninstall, proceed as follows:

• close down any of these processes that you see running in Task Manager:
  • Psconsv.exe
  • Elogerr.exe
  • Wprntsvr.exe
  • Copyany.exe
• use Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel to uninstall Psiwin.
• You must now remove all Psiwin's registry entries by downloading and installing this file (right-click it and select 'Install' from the menu). If 'Install' doesn't appear on the menu, I'm guessing you have Windows XP yes? If so, you will need to add an 'install' action to the .inf file type. To do this (assuming file type management is found in the same place as in Windows 2000) open Windows Explorer, go Tools.. Folder Options.. and go for the 'File Types' tab. Find the INF file type and click the 'Advanced' button. Once in here, click 'New..' under Actions, type "Install" as the name for the action, and enter the following string in the 'Application used to perform action' entry field. Note you should modify the path if Windows is installed on any other drive letter or in a folder other than Windows.
  
  C:\Windows\System32\rundll32.exe setupapi,InstallHinfSection DefaultInstall 132 %1
  
  Okay your way out to the Explorer window. From now on, when you right-click .inf files you should get an 'Install' option on the menu.

You're now ready to install the newer version.

I'd like to connect Psiwin via infra-red, but am having trouble..

Since Windows 2000, Microsoft have change the way in which IR is implemented. Mike McConnell explains it well.

Can I connect Psiwin via USB?

Yes, although not all USB-to-serial convertors work with Psiwin. The following ones are known to work with Psion PDAs:

• This one from Magic Control Technology of Taiwan, fortunately sold by Clove Technology in the UK.
• Psion's online store sell one from POD UK that looks very similar to the Magic Technology one...
• The Belkin F5U109 (their 'USB PDA Adapter').

Where can I buy serial cables and adaptors?

Psion will sell you a cable and a copy of Psiwin here. This site however sells leads for both PC and Macintosh and more..

I'd like to make my own Psiwin cable, how is it wired up?

Resources for Macintosh users

John Montgomery has written a Psiwin replacement in Java : http://website.lineone.net/~john.montgomery/psionlink/

Posted by bug_UK at the PsionPlace boards:

• http://www.geocities.com/lucanlord/
• http://www.foxpop.ndirect.co.uk/pc/mac_01.htm
• Translation of Psion Italy's page about MacConnect
• MacConnect OS9 upgrade

And Jan Borchers has written a utility to fix some of the bugs in MacConnect: http://www.stanford.edu/~borchers/personal/macconnector/

Page last updated: June 17, 2003