nosborn

This is my second attempt at a first post! Hope it is correct.

I have read almost every discussion on this board after owning my Axim only 2 weeks. VERY helpful. Thanks to all posters, you have made my transition to ppc painless.

Here is my question: I have learned to install programs to my 128mb sd card via active sync. I know to tell it not to install to default directory. Most programs are then sitting in the sd card on the Ax and I click to install. HOWEVER, they all seem to then install in the program files folder in the main flash memory and NOT to the sd card. When I click start>programs they are always there and work when clicked. No problems. However, this results in memory loss in the main flash. Many people in this group seem to advocate installing programs to sd/cf cards, and I would certainly like to take advantage of this extra space that I purchased (that's why I bought the sd card). How do you make programs STAY in the sd/cf card? Any detailed thoughts or instructions?

JakeRich

They probably are installed to the cards just fine. What you see are links (shortcuts) to the programs. Those links are very small, usually under 100 bytes, and act as shortcuts to the main files. Use the PC activesync explore function to see the file sizes in those folders to verify that.

That said, however, some programs insist on putting things in main memory, even if you select to install them on cards. In that case you have two options: live with it or delete the program.

Also, even though they are installed to the cards, they must run in Main memory, so when you start the program it loads into the Program portion of memory to execute. The analogy is that the CF card is the equivalent to your hard drive in the PC. The program is stored there, ready to run, but has to load into memory to do so.

Hope that helped.

nosborn

Thank you. That was a nice clarification.

So even though I created a "program files" folder in sd card, the programs are not there. They are all in "program files" in the my device portion of the flash. I gather from your comments that they must want to live there despite my hopes and prayers that they return home to live the sd card folders.

Sutek

Odd question for you nosborn - do you know what brand of installation program (if any) was used to install the files onto you PPC?

I do know that WISE installer is a right pain on the ***** for installing to anything other than main memory, since there is variable that needs setting before the installer can actually do so!
(I found out more recently this is a flaw in the way the CAB files, which actually contain the software, are created by WISE)

Erm...to my knowledge though (and it depends on how well you understand your PPC and Windows), if you copy those files to wherever you want on the CF card, then use Explorer to create a shortcut to those files which can be placed where you like.
Open ordinary Windows Explorer and select "Mobile Device" (with your Dell connected), then browse to where the files are and cut/paste as normal.

Of course, I may be wrong (but it should work in theory...will have to test it when I get to work tomorrow)

nosborn

Interesting. Let me give a very specific example of what I mean. Last night I installed the trial version of acdsee picture viewer for the axim. I ran the install on the desktop and told it to install to the sd card and not the default location. Then I used resco file explorer to find my device>sdcard. Under sd card folder (i.e. just under the sd folder and not in my docs or program files or any other file I have created them all seperately there) the .exe file was just sitting there. I clicked it. It did its majic and told me it was installing. Then acdsee ran as a program and it's great! Pics showed up and the app is very useful.

However, it is no longer located on the sd card. Using resco file explorer, it is now located in my device>program files under a newly created folder named acdsee mobile (the app created this file not me). It takes up 1 mb. All the thumbnails are there. My pictures that I transfered over are ofcourse on my sd card under a folder I created. This same thing has occured with all apps I have downloaded for trial version (too many to mention specifically). They either extract from sd card using .cab or .exe but eventually place their folder in my device>program files and NOT in my device>sd card> program files. So what is the use of installing programs to the sd card like almost everyone here advocates?

Thanks in advance.

Sutek

(dang, I wish I had "borrowed" a Pocket PC from work so I could fiddle with this)

Do you still have the ACDSee files in the SD card folder as well? Or just the main memory? Also, do you know if the exe file in the Program Files folder (of the main memory) is the same size as the one on the card?
What I'm driving at in this case is the possibilty of an installer than places a real installer onto the Pocket PC, allowing them to get round the awkwardness of trying to either:
a) use an installer creation program, which may or may not do what they want or
b) suffering the pain and torment that is manually creating your own .inf file (for making PPC CABs)

Quote:

the .exe file was just sitting there. I clicked it. It did its majic and told me it was installing. Then acdsee ran as a program

That sentence says to me that the exe you ran from the card was an installer, which was doing the ACTUAL installation of ACDSee. Without a test device here I can't check that out at the mo though.

Do you play any games nosborn? The only way I can REALLY test whether it works right is with a program I *know* should install to expansion card if told - http://www.astraware.com download a Pocket PC game and install it, tell it to install onto card as you normally do with ActiveStink and tell me where it goes before and after running the program.
I'm not trying to plug the games here, just test a theory! (moderators please don't hit me1)

nosborn

Now I'm confused. Here's the deal.

1. Downloaded diamond mine (a game) as diamondmine 1-24.exe.

2. clicked the .exe on my desktop. Blue screen, installing.
3. Desktop asked which directly to install, I said sd card.
4. Took ppc out of cradle.
5. Went to resco file explorer, my device>sd. diamondmine .cab was in the sd folder (not a subfolder).
6. I clicked the .cab file and it started installing. Then I returned to my device>sd and the .cab was gone. No trace of diamond mine on sd card at all.
7. Went to my device>program files. diamondmine-arm file was in this folder (not a subfolder)
8. went to start>my programs>games. There it was! I clicked it and it worked just fine. Interesting game by the way.
9. Went back to my device>program files and clicked file properties and it was 540kb in size.

What does this mean. HELP please. Why won't "any" files install to my sd card and stay there? My mp3s, pictures (.jpg) and docs, powerpoints are all there, but I dragged and dropped them there.

Thanks ahead for any detailed advice.

JakeRich

OK, a test. From the Dell CD, install Resco Picture Viewer. Tell Activesync to install to the SD card. Leave the Ax in the cradle while it installs. Follow all prompts carefully.

Now with the Ax still in the cradle, open Activesync on the PC and use the Explore function to look on the SD card. The software should have installed into "Resco Picture Viewer" directory there. Look in that folder and see that the files are all there (Over a meg worth.)

Most of the time you don't need to tap on the .cab files, Activesync triggers that directly. I don't know the exact program you are referring to, but the Resco Picture Viewer is installed on my SD card, so I know that one will definitely intall there.

From your description, you may be removing the Axim from the cradle before the installation triggers the cab file. That's about the only thing I can think of. Cab files do remove themselves after installing, and they tend to install to Main memory. There is a utility around that lets you redirect cab files to other places, but I don't remember the name of it. You might search for cab files and see what hits come back from this board.

ikehiker

Quote:

Originally posted by nosborn 3. Desktop asked which directly to install, I said sd card. 4. Took ppc out of cradle. 5. Went to resco file explorer, my device>sd. diamondmine .cab was in the sd folder (not a subfolder). 6. I clicked the .cab file and it started installing. Then I returned to my device>sd and the .cab was gone. No trace of diamond mine on sd card at all.

nosborn,

This is a guess, but I think you keep adding an extra (unnecessary) step and (I think) in the process you are reinstalling the programs and they are then going onto the default. Except for a few programs which are provided by the authors as cab files, here is the process.

1. Download *.exe program file
2. double click the .exe on desktop. Install begins.
3. Desktop asks "Install to default?" Say no, select sd card. (often at the end of this process, it says to check your device to see if further steps are necessary but for most programs, there are no more steps necessary).
4. Take ppc out of cradle.

Now - here's where you go wrong - do NOT look on the sd card. Instead, tap on the upper left of your Ax to pull down the menu screen, tap on Programs and see if the new program is listed (it should be in most cases). If it is, tap on the icon to run the program. Exit the program and, if you want, look on your sd card, the program should still be there (but don't click on the exe or cab file).

Let me put a disclaimer here. I have not tried to duplicate the process that you listed, so I could be totally wrong about the reinstall occurring, but I do know on my system, newly installed programs, even when they are installed on the sd card, are listed on the start menu and activated from there (not by finding them on the sd card with a file explorer). If you want to activate them from Resco, look in Windows/Start Menu/ for the shortcuts (*.lnk files). You can also copy/move these *.lnk files to a launcher directory if you've added a program to put program icons on your screen.

I was typing this as Jake posted his response. He's probably right that you aren't giving the program time to finish the install process. Most programs tell you when it's complete and, as I said, you should see them listed on your program list (Start menu/Programs) regardless of where they are installed.

nosborn

Thank you all SO much for your help. However, still problems. Let me explain (sorry for taking so much of your time).

1. I installed resco picture viewer from Dell cd. I followed the instructions very carefully and my ax never left the craddle.
2. Active synce install asked which directory to install to, I choose sd. It then stated the usual, "check your ppc to make sure . . . ".
3. I went to active sync, explore. Chose sd from my device (on the desktop pc). There sits the .cab file called resco picture viewer (ofcourse it is a .zip like file on the desktop file explorer). There is NO folder called resco in the sd directory.
4. Then I removed ax from cradle, went to start>programs. No resco picture viewer there. Then went to start>settings>add/remove programs. No resco picture viewer there.
5. Then, on the ax, used file browser to go to sd card and there is the .cab file called resco picture viewer.
6. I have not clicked it yet (I wanted some more info first).
7. FYI, I also downloaded bugme for pocket pc, and repligo from handango on trial basis. I went to the webpages for both and read install directions carefully. They both said to click the .exe on the desktop and let the program intall to my location (I chose sd card). Both web pages stated that should be all that is needed. But they are both sitting in sd on the ax right next to resco picture viewer as a .cab file and neither are listed under start>programs.

I sincerly appreciate all your input. I will certainly contribute as much as possible in the future to help others out. This board is amazing.

JakeRich

Ok, I'm stumped. The install process is not completing for some reason. If you haven't installed a lot of stuff, you might try a hard reset. Or, you can reinstall Activesync before you try that just to see if some component of AS didn't install. AS should trigger the .cab and .exe install files to run. When you install, for most programs, as soon as the PC activesync says to check the Ax for additional steps, the Ax should show the progress bar for the installation process. You have never mentioned that, so my assumption is it's not happening.

Again, you might try reinstalling activesync on the PC, but if that doesn't work I'm stumped.

ikehiker

hmmm, I followed the procedure you outlined with Resco Picture Viewer to an sd card (I didn't have it installed previously) and, as Jake suggests, there is no .cab file left after the install but Resco is listed in the start/program list and it is a choice in the remove program list and there is a folder on the sd with the various program files.

I remember reading someplace that installation of programs actually use the main memory during the installation process. If there is not enough free memory, maybe the install aborts before it completes, leaving the cab behind. My other guess is that the sd card itself is defective. Certainly follow Jake's recommendation since I'm really a newbe myself when it comes to PPCs.

nosborn

Great advice. However, reinstalling act