Vista and Palm Pilot software (Vista)

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This one could probably be posted in Other OSes – Palm. Feel free to move it if necessary.

Background: I am preparing to move to Vista Ultimate and MS Office 2007. I am checking all of my software applications regarding compatibility issues. I currently have a Palm Pilot M515 and am running the Palm Desktop v4.1.4, HotSync and Chapura’s KeySuite v3.5.3. KeySuite is Vista and Outlook 2007 compatible but does require the Palm Desktop and HotSync to be installed. The Palm support site does not have any concrete information about the Desktop, HotSync, Vista and Outlook 2007.

My question: is there anybody running Vista, Outlook 2007, with the Palm Desktop and HotSync? I would be interested to learn of your experiences and whether there are any issues.

Cheers, Bob

P.S. My current O/S is Windows XP Pro with SP2.

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Bob,
I’m also running XP SP2 and about to migrate to Office 2007, but not to Vista. (Hardware requirements plus I’d rather install it on a fresh machine.)
So I’m definitely interested in any responses to your post.
FYI, I posted a question to Chapura about OL2007. They mention Keysuite being compatible with OL 2000+ , but I didn’t see anything official on Office 2007 support.
But I’ve grown to rely on KeySuite, so I’d like to be sure before jumping.
Mark

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Hi Mark,

I didn’t find anything official on their site and so I e-mailed them earlier this month asking specifically about Vista and Outlook 2007. Here’s their reply:

From: Chapura Support [mailto:support@chapura.com]
Sent: Wednesday, February 14, 2007 5:40 PM
To: Bob Archell
Subject: RE: KeySuite, Vista and Outlook 2007

Hello Bob,

Our products have been tested with and we do support Outlook 2007 and Windows Vista. Please note, however, that our software requires that the Palm Desktop and HotSync software be operational and functioning in order to sync the handheld to the computer.

I was also able to find this on their site regarding version history.

Cheers, Bob

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Time for an update…

I originally acquired Vista Ultimate at the beginning of his year but held off installing it since I needed compliant / compatible software and driver updates. One of the potential roadblocks was related to my trusty Palm Pilot M515. There was / is a serious lack of Vista support from Palm regarding that unit. I’ve had the M515 since February 2002 and was reluctant to toss it away for a shinier and more current model.

Given the Lounge’s recent downtime, I decided to make the effort to install Vista. I’m happy to report that the installation went well, and all my applications are running smoothly… including the interface with the M515.

For starters, the Palm Desktop 4.1.4E for Windows is required. This desktop software has limited functionality. For example, installing Palm software through the use of prc and pdb type files is not possible. In addition, there is limited functionality for sync’ing with Outlook files.

To get around the prc / pdb installation problem, I found PalmVista Simple Installer, at a cost of US$9.95. It does the job very nicely.

Interfacing with Outlook 2007 wasn’t a real issue as I already had Chapura’s Key Suite that is Vista compatible. It also works well. A few months ago, Chapura’s Pocket Mirror line of products was not Vista compatible. A check of their web site now indicates that that line of products is compatible.

I also use two other Palm desktop utilities that work well with the above software. The first is HanDBase (a database manager) produced by DDH Software and BackupBuddy For Windows by Nomad. Albeit that both items are a few years old, they do work well in the Vista environment.

I hope the above information is helpful for those who have the Palm M515 and are thinking of upgrading to Vista.

Cheers, Bob

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