Hanging with "Connected to PC..."

[harryo]

I can't believe this! I've been waiting weeks for this thing to arrive and I had it working for approximately 20 minutes and it's now not responding!

I was able to read content off a USB thumb drive, but not the SD card I bought specifically to use with it.

Anyway, I connected it to my PC, which recognised it. Started copying some files across to it, which was going OK until the PC lost access to it and the drive letter disappeared.

Now, the damned Iliad is saying "Connected to PC..." and no matter what I do (power switch, reset button, both at the same time) I can't get it to come back to life.

I've tried unplugging it from the PC, plugging it back in, everything I can think of, but no success. The problem with this electronic paper is you can't tell whether anything you're trying is having any effect, because the screen doesn't go blank.

Has anyone seen this problem ... any ideas how to try to resuscitate it?

I was just so excited to get this thing and now I'm simply annoyed! I really dislike the prospect of having to send it off for repairs, having waited so long for it !!

[ElaHuguet]

Have you tried charging it? It might have run out of juice...

[harryo]

Originally Posted by ElaHuguet

Have you tried charging it? It might have run out of juice...

Yes, I had that thought about 30 seconds after I sent the post

I didn't really think about that, because the battery indicator was on full when I turned it on initially, so I assumed it was well charged.

The problem is that I'm in Australia, so none of the power connectors that come with it are any use. I need to go and find a plug converter to allow me to plug it in.

Of course, it's now 6:30pm here and the various electronics stores will all be closed. Hopefully, I can find an adapter in a tourist shop somewhere.

Anyway, there's hope .

[ath]

Originally Posted by harryo

I was able to read content off a USB thumb drive, but not the SD card I bought specifically to use with it.

The signals are a bit confusing on this one: the last I saw was that iLiad supports MMC, and that that may include some SD cards -- the box mentions MMC and CF II only. (The user manual is even more odd: it says that the middle slot is MMC and the left slot is for SD, and doesn't even hint where you're are supposed to plug in the CF cards ...)

[ElaHuguet]

Hehehe...

Apparently, when you first receive the iLiad, the battery indicator isn't totally reliable, until after the first charge.

And ah! for Spanish hours, lol, at 6.30pm everything is open here ('cept banks and public admin/government offices). Hope you're lucky.

[harryo]

Originally Posted by ath

The signals are a bit confusing on this one: the last I saw was that iLiad supports MMC, and that that may include some SD cards -- the box mentions MMC and CF II only. (The user manual is even more odd: it says that the middle slot is MMC and the left slot is for SD, and doesn't even hint where you're are supposed to plug in the CF cards ...)

Yeah, it's a bit sad, because I literally bought that SD card this morning, because I knew the Iliad was on its way (UPS had left a card in my post office box saying they didn't deliver to PO boxes and I'd called them to arrange for it to be delivered to my work address).

In any case, I've realised that with over 100MB of memory on the device itself, I can fit everything I need on there. I have an old 96MB CF card around here somewhere, too, so I can stick that in too.

[harryo]

Originally Posted by ElaHuguet

Hehehe...

Apparently, when you first receive the iLiad, the battery indicator isn't totally reliable, until after the first charge.

And ah! for Spanish hours, lol, at 6.30pm everything is open here ('cept banks and public admin/government offices). Hope you're lucky.

Well, it's good news! I found a tourist shop in The Rocks (which is an area near the harbour and a favourite tourist haunt) that had an adapter that let me plug the European connector into my local socket.

Got it home, plugged it in and the LED came on red ... yippee!

I let it charge for a few minutes and pressed the power button. Sure enough, it booted fine and the content I'd been copying via the USB cable when it died was on there.

So, a happy ending :-).

I'll let it fully charge now before I connect to iRDS, grab the latest software and have a serious play with it.

Re the terrible shopping hours, yes here in Sydney, most shops close around 5pm. We only have one night a week (Thursday) where shops stay open later ... we called it "late night shopping" ... and, even then, it's only until 9pm.

Oh well, as I say, at least I was able to find what I needed. Good luck it was the kind of thing a visitor to Australia would need, otherwise I'd have to wait until tomorrow to enjoy my fantastic new gadget!

[ElaHuguet]

Great!! I'm glad it all went well. You can always leave the charger plugged in while it updates (I did, just in case, hehe)

My grandmother, who's English and lives in the UK, always used to make me laugh as a kid when she came over for a visit; at around 4.30pm she used to say "quick! let's go before the shops close!", and I'd have to tell her "Gran, they're not open yet!".

Nowadays, "siesta time" is not as prevalent as before (large shops/malls don't close at midday, some smaller shops too), but final closing time is still 7.30 at the barest minimum, more likely between 8 and half past, 9/9.30 for supermarkets. And if not... when would I shop? :P

[jamesarm97]

Originally Posted by ElaHuguet

Nowadays, "siesta time" is not as prevalent as before (large shops/malls don't close at midday, some smaller shops too), but final closing time is still 7.30 at the barest minimum, more likely between 8 and half past, 9/9.30 for supermarkets. And if not... when would I shop? :P

Man, I could not live with those hours. Supermarkets here stay open til at least 11pm and half of them are open 24hours a day. The major stores stay open til 9pm / 10pm. The only thing I have a problem with is needing something in the morning and the electronic stores don't open until 9:30 / 10am.

- James

[ElaHuguet]

Hehehe... we don't have too many 24-hour stores, but our major stores have the same sort of timetables as yours (and opening hours too, apparently). But I guess your supermarkets are open till later to allow for shopping after supper, since you guys eat so early.