Suddenly Reader not recognized

KlondikeGeoff · 12-30-2006, 06:58 PM

Been using the CONNECT program to buy and download books as well as my load my own documents for some time now with no trouble.

All of a sudden when I connect the Reader via USB (it says "USB Connected" at the bottom), and start the software, it lists the books in Library, but is not recognizing the device.

I can connect to the Store, but can't see the files on the Sony Reader any more.

When I open Win Explorer, not finding it either. Checked Device Manager, nothing wrong there under USB or other folders.

I did a reset on the Reader and rebooted the computer (WinXP SP2), no joy. Also reloaded the software. It said it was already installed and asked if I wanted to re-install, so said yes.

I suspect somehow the drivers are missing or corrupt. In the Connect Drivers folder, there are three drivers listed.

I thought I might be able to reload them from the CD, but don't see any way to do that.

Naturally, this happened too late to call the techies today, and now they won't be available until next Tuesday.

Any suggestions?

KlondikeGeoff · 12-30-2006, 07:02 PM

Oh, yeah, went to the Sony site and to Drivers, but said no programs or drivers are available for that product. Big help!

KlondikeGeoff · 12-30-2006, 07:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KlondikeGeoff

Oh, yeah, went to the Sony site and to Drivers, but said no programs or drivers are available for that product. Big help!

Disregard these two posts, I got it fixed. Just wasn't thinking it through, I guess.

I put in the CD again, went to Control Panel's Add New Hardware, and it evidently loaded the correct drivers, as it works fine now.

too bad, missed the chance to talk to that nice techie in India!

Phebe · 01-01-2007, 05:37 PM

EXACTLY the same thing happened to me just before Christmas: sudden refusal of the Connect program to accept the Reader.

My Sony Reader stopped appearing on the Connect program when connected. It was fine for many days and I downloaded lots of books, but when I tried to download some family photos, the program crashed. It says "not responding" at the top.

Also, the program won't come up at all if the Reader is connected to the USB port. Any mouse click while the program is up, if the Reader is connected, inactivates the Connect program and it just hangs.

So far I have reinstalled the software after de-installing it; I have bought another USB cable (no difference from the one packaged with the Reader); and I have tried to get it to work on my husband's computer by installing the software there, but none of that worked.

The Reader does work --- I can read my books and also charge the battery --- but it won't connect to the program that allows downloads of new books and rearranging.

Once the program hangs, the computer must be rebooted before it will come up again, and the Reader must NOT be connected to the USB port or it won't come up at all.

Phebe · 01-01-2007, 06:35 PM

KlondikeGeoff said, “I put in the CD again, went to Control Panel's Add New Hardware, and it evidently loaded the correct drivers, as it works fine now.”

We tried that, and worked through the "add hardware" in Control Panel, but nothing. Then we did RTFM (Read The ...Friendly Manual) and pulled the back cover off and reset the Reader with a paperclip, and it DID reset, but the collapse of the Connect program continues: just can't connect to Connect no matter what.

I have had plenty of contact with the help staff ---- two chats and one phone call over several days and now I have a long e-mail in detailing the problem. They have all quickly shunted me to various other sites and numbers (But it was over Christmas and New Years

) --- the guy on the phone suggested it might be a bum USB connecting cable after I suggested that, and I went out and bought a new one for $30, but that was not the problem. Both cables do connect validly.

I tell you what I think: I think it's a bug in the program. Because why would the Reader work fine, but the PROGRAM suddenly refuse to connect and hang?

RWood · 01-01-2007, 08:01 PM

KG: I have not had any problems with the CONNECT software with my Reader. However, unlike my mp3 player, the Reader never shows up under Windows Explorer. The only way I can see the Reader is through the CONNECT software.

Phebe · 01-01-2007, 08:02 PM

No, wait! It can't be a bug in the program, because we installed the program from the original CD on the computer upstairs, and the Connect program still hung just the same: therefore it has to be the Reader itself. New install, new computer: the common element is the Reader.

QUERY: Earlier the day it went down I plugged in both the power cord (that recharges via the house current) and the USB cable to the Reader at once. (I don't know why I did that, but they don't say not to.) Could that have caused a problem?

Srgtfury · 01-06-2007, 12:17 AM

Hi All,

I had been able to use the Connect software to add books to the reader via my XP SP2 laptop, but now, despite reinstall of Connect software, the Reader is "USB device unrecognized. Can't see it in Device manager, at all. Reset the Reader, but no change. Battery shows 3 bars and has not previously discharged.

I put the Reader Connect software on a new XP SP2 desktop machine, which at leaset shows a rectangle icon on the Connect software's device dsiplay, but the computer hangs when trying to left or right click that icon.

Any help much appreciated.

Thank you very much

Fury

Phebe · 01-11-2007, 01:16 PM

Well, a hard reset didn't help the constant crashing of Connect on two computers no matter how many times I reinstalled --- the problem is clearly in the Reader itself.

Unfortunately, the hard reset did lose all content, and of course I can't connect with Connect to get it back. I'm going to try to get them to fix the Reader at Sony.

Phebe · 01-11-2007, 01:28 PM

They are letting me return the Reader for repair to California, and say it will be back within the week; I hope so! I'm reading Wild Fire on the computer screen instead and the bad guys were about to blow up four American cities and trigger a 122 city retaliation when I hard-reset my Reader..............

I know this is what people get for being an early adopter.

RSaunders · 01-15-2007, 10:17 AM

I have the same symptoms in CONNECT, but WinXP is happy with my reader.

If I run CONNECT Reader without the PRS-500 attached, it works fine.

When I connect the PRS-500, CONNECT Reader goes to "not responding".

If I look in Control Panels>System>Device Manager>USB Controllers, there is a Sony Reader. The driver is the Sony driver and the "device is working properly".

If I disconnect the PRS-500, CONNECT Reader comes back to life.

Everything worked fine last week.

Any suggestions before I call India??

/Randy

Leaping Gnome · 01-15-2007, 12:46 PM

Ouch, sorry to hear all you guys having problems! For people experiencing this on only one computer I would of course try to uninstall Connect completely, delete all the remaining folders and then reinstall it, then hard reset the Reader and finally if nothing else works update your USB drivers.

Phebe, this is happening on two computers for you so it's probably a Reader problem, but a hard reset did nothing.

Do you happen to have a memory stick/SD card in your Reader? What if you take it out and then connect it? How long have you let it sit connected to your computer waiting for it?

RSaunders · 01-15-2007, 01:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Leaping Gnome

Ouch, sorry to hear all you guys having problems! For people experiencing this on only one computer I would of course try to uninstall Connect completely, delete all the remaining folders and then reinstall it, then hard reset the Reader and finally if nothing else works update your USB drivers.
..{snip}

What happens when you do this "hard reset"? Does it clear memory? That would be an extreme step to take when you've lost the ability to reload the device. If it's just a "reboot", then it might me a more reasonable diagnostic technique.

What do I need to backup to keep my purchased books? I don't want to delete the books by mistake and be unable to reload them. I also pulled the Sony initial load off to make space, so that is in some files somewhere. The CONNECT Reader program seems to have it's own ideas about file naming and such.

BTW, having tried all the permutations of cable, memory stick, and cradle while all the software checks seem to be OK, the official Sony help desk response is that my problem "will require some research".

Leaping Gnome · 01-15-2007, 02:58 PM

Hard reset does clear your Reader's internal memory, so yes, if you cannot connect it to sync you will be stuck with nothing to read (I don't remember if the default samples get reloaded). As far as backing up the purchases, Sony allows you to redownload all past purchases at any time through the Connect store, so I wouldn't worry to much about that. It's under your account in the purchase history section.

NatCh · 01-15-2007, 10:40 PM

The default samples don't reload, but they are on the CD.

Your bought books are stored in one of the subfolders in the ConnSoft install, but you can export them by putting them on an SD with the ConnSoft, and then using Windows Explorer to copy them where ever. They do have really nasty filenames, but you can change that if you like without affecting the way ConnSoft sees them since it uses the embedded meta-data, rather than the filename.

And, of course, as LG says, you can re-download them from the ConnStore, but it gets to be a pain if you have more than a few of them.

12-30-2006, 06:58 PM	#1
KlondikeGeoff Wombat Aficionado Posts: 481 Karma: 733 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Arizona Device: Fire, Kindle1, Sony PRS-500 Reader, Rocket 1100 eBook	Suddenly Reader not recognized Been using the CONNECT program to buy and download books as well as my load my own documents for some time now with no trouble. All of a sudden when I connect the Reader via USB (it says "USB Connected" at the bottom), and start the software, it lists the books in Library, but is not recognizing the device. I can connect to the Store, but can't see the files on the Sony Reader any more. When I open Win Explorer, not finding it either. Checked Device Manager, nothing wrong there under USB or other folders. I did a reset on the Reader and rebooted the computer (WinXP SP2), no joy. Also reloaded the software. It said it was already installed and asked if I wanted to re-install, so said yes. I suspect somehow the drivers are missing or corrupt. In the Connect Drivers folder, there are three drivers listed. I thought I might be able to reload them from the CD, but don't see any way to do that. Naturally, this happened too late to call the techies today, and now they won't be available until next Tuesday. Any suggestions?

01-01-2007, 06:35 PM	#5
Phebe Connoisseur Posts: 85 Karma: 124 Join Date: Dec 2006 Device: Sony PRS 500 and Kindle 2 and iPad and iPhone	Connect collapses KlondikeGeoff said, “I put in the CD again, went to Control Panel's Add New Hardware, and it evidently loaded the correct drivers, as it works fine now.” We tried that, and worked through the "add hardware" in Control Panel, but nothing. Then we did RTFM (Read The ...Friendly Manual) and pulled the back cover off and reset the Reader with a paperclip, and it DID reset, but the collapse of the Connect program continues: just can't connect to Connect no matter what. I have had plenty of contact with the help staff ---- two chats and one phone call over several days and now I have a long e-mail in detailing the problem. They have all quickly shunted me to various other sites and numbers (But it was over Christmas and New Years ) --- the guy on the phone suggested it might be a bum USB connecting cable after I suggested that, and I went out and bought a new one for $30, but that was not the problem. Both cables do connect validly. I tell you what I think: I think it's a bug in the program. Because why would the Reader work fine, but the PROGRAM suddenly refuse to connect and hang?

01-01-2007, 08:02 PM	#7
Phebe Connoisseur Posts: 85 Karma: 124 Join Date: Dec 2006 Device: Sony PRS 500 and Kindle 2 and iPad and iPhone	No, wait! It can't be a bug in the program, because we installed the program from the original CD on the computer upstairs, and the Connect program still hung just the same: therefore it has to be the Reader itself. New install, new computer: the common element is the Reader. QUERY: Earlier the day it went down I plugged in both the power cord (that recharges via the house current) and the USB cable to the Reader at once. (I don't know why I did that, but they don't say not to.) Could that have caused a problem? Last edited by Phebe; 01-01-2007 at 08:04 PM.

01-15-2007, 10:17 AM	#11
RSaunders Groupie Posts: 162 Karma: 2054 Join Date: Jan 2007 Device: Sony PRS-500	Reader disCONNECTed I have the same symptoms in CONNECT, but WinXP is happy with my reader. If I run CONNECT Reader without the PRS-500 attached, it works fine. When I connect the PRS-500, CONNECT Reader goes to "not responding". If I look in Control Panels>System>Device Manager>USB Controllers, there is a Sony Reader. The driver is the Sony driver and the "device is working properly". If I disconnect the PRS-500, CONNECT Reader comes back to life. Everything worked fine last week. Any suggestions before I call India?? /Randy

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12-30-2006, 07:02 PM	#2
KlondikeGeoff Wombat Aficionado Posts: 481 Karma: 733 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Arizona Device: Fire, Kindle1, Sony PRS-500 Reader, Rocket 1100 eBook	Oh, yeah, went to the Sony site and to Drivers, but said no programs or drivers are available for that product. Big help!

01-01-2007, 05:37 PM	#4
Phebe Connoisseur Posts: 85 Karma: 124 Join Date: Dec 2006 Device: Sony PRS 500 and Kindle 2 and iPad and iPhone	EXACTLY the same thing happened to me just before Christmas: sudden refusal of the Connect program to accept the Reader. My Sony Reader stopped appearing on the Connect program when connected. It was fine for many days and I downloaded lots of books, but when I tried to download some family photos, the program crashed. It says "not responding" at the top. Also, the program won't come up at all if the Reader is connected to the USB port. Any mouse click while the program is up, if the Reader is connected, inactivates the Connect program and it just hangs. So far I have reinstalled the software after de-installing it; I have bought another USB cable (no difference from the one packaged with the Reader); and I have tried to get it to work on my husband's computer by installing the software there, but none of that worked. The Reader does work --- I can read my books and also charge the battery --- but it won't connect to the program that allows downloads of new books and rearranging. Once the program hangs, the computer must be rebooted before it will come up again, and the Reader must NOT be connected to the USB port or it won't come up at all.

01-01-2007, 08:01 PM	#6
RWood Technogeezer Posts: 7,233 Karma: 1601464 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Virginia, USA Device: Sony PRS-500	KG: I have not had any problems with the CONNECT software with my Reader. However, unlike my mp3 player, the Reader never shows up under Windows Explorer. The only way I can see the Reader is through the CONNECT software.

01-06-2007, 12:17 AM	#8
Srgtfury Junior Member Posts: 2 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jan 2007 Device: PRS-500	Hi All, I had been able to use the Connect software to add books to the reader via my XP SP2 laptop, but now, despite reinstall of Connect software, the Reader is "USB device unrecognized. Can't see it in Device manager, at all. Reset the Reader, but no change. Battery shows 3 bars and has not previously discharged. I put the Reader Connect software on a new XP SP2 desktop machine, which at leaset shows a rectangle icon on the Connect software's device dsiplay, but the computer hangs when trying to left or right click that icon. Any help much appreciated. Thank you very much Fury

01-11-2007, 01:16 PM	#9
Phebe Connoisseur Posts: 85 Karma: 124 Join Date: Dec 2006 Device: Sony PRS 500 and Kindle 2 and iPad and iPhone	Well, a hard reset didn't help the constant crashing of Connect on two computers no matter how many times I reinstalled --- the problem is clearly in the Reader itself. Unfortunately, the hard reset did lose all content, and of course I can't connect with Connect to get it back. I'm going to try to get them to fix the Reader at Sony.

01-11-2007, 01:28 PM	#10
Phebe Connoisseur Posts: 85 Karma: 124 Join Date: Dec 2006 Device: Sony PRS 500 and Kindle 2 and iPad and iPhone	They are letting me return the Reader for repair to California, and say it will be back within the week; I hope so! I'm reading Wild Fire on the computer screen instead and the bad guys were about to blow up four American cities and trigger a 122 city retaliation when I hard-reset my Reader.............. I know this is what people get for being an early adopter.

01-15-2007, 12:46 PM	#12
Leaping Gnome Evangelist Posts: 490 Karma: 1641 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Louisville Device: Sony Reader PRS-500	Ouch, sorry to hear all you guys having problems! For people experiencing this on only one computer I would of course try to uninstall Connect completely, delete all the remaining folders and then reinstall it, then hard reset the Reader and finally if nothing else works update your USB drivers. Phebe, this is happening on two computers for you so it's probably a Reader problem, but a hard reset did nothing. Do you happen to have a memory stick/SD card in your Reader? What if you take it out and then connect it? How long have you let it sit connected to your computer waiting for it?

01-15-2007, 02:58 PM	#14
Leaping Gnome Evangelist Posts: 490 Karma: 1641 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Louisville Device: Sony Reader PRS-500	Hard reset does clear your Reader's internal memory, so yes, if you cannot connect it to sync you will be stuck with nothing to read (I don't remember if the default samples get reloaded). As far as backing up the purchases, Sony allows you to redownload all past purchases at any time through the Connect store, so I wouldn't worry to much about that. It's under your account in the purchase history section.

01-15-2007, 10:40 PM	#15
NatCh Gizmologist Posts: 11,615 Karma: 929550 Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Republic of Texas Embassy at Jackson, TN Device: Pocketbook Touch HD3	The default samples don't reload, but they are on the CD. Your bought books are stored in one of the subfolders in the ConnSoft install, but you can export them by putting them on an SD with the ConnSoft, and then using Windows Explorer to copy them where ever. They do have really nasty filenames, but you can change that if you like without affecting the way ConnSoft sees them since it uses the embedded meta-data, rather than the filename. And, of course, as LG says, you can re-download them from the ConnStore, but it gets to be a pain if you have more than a few of them.

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