Update to AviSys Palm Support with J-File Version 5

This update will do nothing unless you already have AviSys Palm support installed. The installation facility will search your AviSys 5 or 6 installation for an existing copy of Palm Support.

For Version 5 users, this update requires a concurrent update to AviSys Version 5.00F or later. If you do not have 5.00F or later, after this update, click the "Miscellaneous Downloads and Updates" menu item on the home page of this site. You can install this update first or last, but they must both be installed to use Palm Support.

To be perfectly clear, if you use Palm Support:

Why Would I Want to Do This?

After this release, all initial shipments and updates of AviSys will be Version 6, and all shipments of Palm Support will be with JFile 5.65.

You are welcome to stay at AviSys Version 5, and Palm Support with J-File 4. But since the J-File developer has graciously offered to let us upgrade current Palm Support users to Version 5.65 free of charge, and since the AviSys 5.00F update is free of charge, there is no reason to not update, and every reason to update.

While, fundamentally, AviSys Palm Support will remain the same, there are significant advantages to the new J-File facility:

Support for the 5-way scroll devices on the newer Palm devices.
Better control during scrolling and paging with the stylus.
Alternating field background colors for better visibility.
Hi-res support -- multiple optional fonts, supporting better visibility, crisp text, and more records on the screen with the smaller fonts.
Instant switch between checklists.
Instant Go-To-Top and Go-To-Bottom icons on screen.
Attached keyboard support.
Advanced functions and options for non-AviSys-related operations.

Additionally the AviSys Palm Support facility and Version 5.00F/6 update offer:

Significantly improved ability to find the required Palm OS folders on your system when you install a new Palm device.
Improved prompting when creating a checklist in AviSys for Palm use.
Improved keyboard behavior during Find/Next operations on the AviSys main screen.
Improved Trip Log editing when changing the date of a trip record.

This new JFile functionality will also encourage current Palm users to update to more recent devices.

I have found that the improvements in screen image -- brightness and crispness -- have been tremendous, especially when used in the field on bright days.
The new backlighted screens make updating your list in the back of a van, or in the dim hours of the late afternoon or early morning, or even when owling, a no-sweat job.
Battery performance and behavior is significantly improved.
Device speed has made operations much easier.
For those who use other JFile databases, the improved function and feature will be welcome.
There are now hundreds of free JFile databases in a huge variety of categories.

More and more, using a Palm in the field is turning out to be a tremendous advantage. You WILL update your AviSys records after every single outing because it is now so much easier and quicker.

After using the new Palm devices, including the relatively inexpensive models (as low as $99 for models with beautiful, back-lighted color screens), I am now convinced that Palm Support with AviSys is the only way to go -- and I am now strongly recommending it. All the disadvantages of the older devices have gone away. And the JFile program is solid as a rock. We're sticking with JFile because it's so solid and functional, and we are sticking with the Palm Support functions as I originally designed them because they fit the task so well. We've improved that which needed improvement and we've not "improved" that which didn't.

And, by the way, Palm is still the leader in the hand-held device market. Pocket PC is successful only in the large enterprise marketplace where in-house developed and large-enterprise-related vertical applications are required. We have no plans to develop Pocket PC support at this time -- Palm fits the task, the market, and the pocketbook so much better.

So What Do I Do?

Before downloading and installing this update, we recommend that you delete all checklists from the AviSys Utilities | Palm Operations dialog, and from your Palm device. You will be using the new J-File 5 and will need to install all new checklists on your device after this installation.

Download the update file, palmupd.exe, using the link below. Save it as a file, preferably to your desktop if that is offered as an option. WATCH where it is saved.

Then, from your desktop, or using Windows Explorer, double-click palmupd.exe to run it. It will find your current installation of AviSys Palm Support and update it. (Note: the update will insist that J-File 5 be installed in your AviSys Palm folder, typically AVI5\PALM That is now a requirement.)

After this update, review your AviSys Palm Operations documentation. Install J-File to your Palm device by double clicking on the 'Palm Application' icon (the file JFile.prc) in folder C:\AVI5\PALM (or your equivalent) and synchronizing. You MUST then reset your J-File settings on your Palm device as follows:

  • Confirm Deletions
  • Edit in place in column view
  • Jogdial scroll by page
  • Do not search JFile in global finds
  • Extra Color (OS 3.5+)
  • (Right-align column #'s is already checked and has no effect on AviSys.)

The new Palm Support installation will also require that you run "Find Required Folders" from the AviSys menu, Utilities | Palm Operations dialog. The new facility does a much better job setting up links between AviSys and your Palm device.

Download the AviSys Palm Support Update