.FLYINGHEAD PRODUCT REVIEW
.TITLE Housekeeping on the handheld
.AUTHOR James Booth
.OTHER
.SUMMARY Some of you may or may not know that many Palm applications create extra files and snippets as part of their ordinary operation. Sometimes, these little pieces are left over, cluttering up the memory when the application that created them is long gone. With this in mind, James Booth shows you a couple of applications that can help you clear out all this garbage, and keep it out, freeing up that vital memory space.
This article is intended to be a sort of follow-up to David Gewirtz’ article "How to start clean with a new Palm handheld" (at http://www.computingunplugged.com/issues/issue200311/00001131001.html) in the November issue of Computing Unplugged. What prompted this article is the comment David made about the garbage that accumulates on his Palm device. I turned him on to how I keep mine clean and he asked if I would be interested in writing an article about it. So here we are. Be gentle, this is virgin territory for me.
Some of you may or may not know that many Palm applications create extra files and snippets as part of their ordinary operation. Sometimes, these little pieces are left over, cluttering up the memory when the application that created them is long gone. With this in mind, I intend to show you a couple of applications that can help you clear out all this garbage, and keep it out, freeing up that vital memory space.
First, a little bit of background information on Palm OS files. All Palm OS files have a Creator ID that identifies the application that created it. For example, the Creator ID ‘HsBk’ corresponds to my Handspring Backup Module. In many cases, the Creator ID of one of these files, such as a User Preference file or a High Score file, will be the same as the application that it goes with. And in some cases, the Creator ID is different. When it is different, these pieces frequently get left behind when the parent application is removed and these will begin to clog up the memory.
Luckily for us, there is Roy Perry and Northglide Systems. Roy is the creator of Cleanup and Uninstall Manager/Hack for Palm OS, which he distributes through his company Northglide Systems (at http://www.northglide.com). Either can stand alone, but their real strength is seen when used together.
.BREAK_EMAIL Click here to read the full review of both products.
.H1 Cleanup
Essentially, what Cleanup, shown in Figure A, does is scan the RAM and Expansion Card, comparing the Creator IDs of the files with the installed applications and a Signature File, which is periodically updated by Northglide. Any IDs that cannot be matched or verified are flagged for your further inspection and removal.
.FIG A Cleanup scans RAM and and your expansion card, looking for little leftovers to remove.
A more thorough search can then be done on the individual files that were flagged so that you can see which applications, if any, are using that file. This more thorough search opens every single application on the handheld, looking for a reference to the file in question. This search will generally identify what application the file belongs to, if any. Once you’re satisfied the file is no longer being used, it can be deleted. The newest version of Cleanup, version 3.05b, even provides the option to backup the file before deletion.
If you install and remove a lot of software on your Palm device, like I do, those orphaned files will build up over time, clogging up and choking out your memory. The first time I ran Cleanup, it came up with twenty-something unmatched files. I was able to eliminate all but five of them and clear up nearly a MB of RAM. I really don’t have any complaints with Cleanup other than it can sometimes flag a file that it can’t find a match for, when in fact the file actually corresponds to a valid application. In all instances though, I was able to identify the file with the more thorough singular scan, or by the Creator ID itself. So overall, I’m very pleased with Cleanup and wouldn’t run a Palm device without it.
.RATING 5
.H1 Uninstall Manager/Uninstall Hack
These two programs work a lot like the Add/Remove Programs function in MS Windows. Their purpose is to seek out and remove all the associated files when an application is removed. Uninstall Manager, shown in Figure B, is designed to be used with Palm devices running OS 5.
.FIG B Uninstall Manager is designed for newer machines.
Uninstall Hack, shown in Figure C, is designed for devices running OS 3.5 and 4.x.
.FIG C Uninstall Hack designed for devices running OS 3.5 and 4.x.
Since Uninstall Hack is a ‘hack’, you will need a hack manager such as X-master or Hack Master, but it does come with a launcher so that you can run it from your Applications screen instead of having go through the hack manager.
There are some differences between Uninstall Manager and Uninstall Hack. Manager will work with the built-in Delete function of your Palm device, so that when you select Delete from the menu on your Application screen and choose a file to Delete, Uninstall Manager will activate to make sure all associated files are removed too. It also has a safe-installation area called the Sandbox where it will segregate a new installation for evaluation before releasing it into the main system memory. This is a great feature for anyone that evaluates a lot of software.
Otherwise, Manager and Hack function as any other standard software uninstaller. You merely select the desired application and choose Uninstall. You can remove any installed application and its associated files, or just specific associated files, from RAM or Expansion Cards, as well as check for and remove any leftover files.
I happen to use Uninstall Hack because my Palm device runs OS 3.5, but it’s never failed to do what it’s supposed to. It’s never even had any leftovers. I don’t have a single complaint whatsoever with Uninstall Hack, and I can only imagine that Uninstall Manager would perform the same way. It’s a definite must have.
.RATING 5
.H1 Northglide Systems
I don’t think I’ve ever had as good tech support as what I’ve experienced with Roy Perry and Northglide. Handspring Visors apparently have some kind of proprietary difference in their memory structure. This has caused problems in the past when Roy upgraded Uninstall Hack, but he was right on it as soon as I made him aware of the problem, and had it taken care of immediately. I’ve always had great communication from him and any questions or problems were always resolved in the quickest manner possible. You couldn’t ask for better tech support.
.H1 Summary
Whether you are a light, average or hard-core handheld user, you are going to have to do some housekeeping at some point. You can slog through it on your own, hit or miss, or take advantage of a couple of the best Palm applications I’ve come across.
Cleanup will help you identify and remove that memory clogging junk, and Uninstall Manager/Hack will monitor your installations and make application removal easier, to help keep that garbage from building up in the first place. I consider them as essential to my Palm device as the Norton Utilities I’d never run my PC without.
The price is too good to resist as well. Cleanup goes for $9.95 USD (United States Dollars) and Uninstall Manager/Hack for $14.95 USD. The best deal though is the Neat Freak Pack, both Cleanup and Uninstall Manager/Hack for $18.95 USD. Free and unlimited upgrades and tech support, the best I’ve ever encountered, comes with product registration. I hope this, my first product review, has been as informative for you to read as it was fun for me to write.
[We certainly liked it and have invited James to write lots more articles for Computing Unplugged. He’s already submitted a few additional pieces and we’re hoping that James will become a regular fixture in the magazine. Welcome, James! — Ed.]
.BEGIN_SIDEBAR
.H1 Product availability and resources
For more information on Cleanup and Uninstall Manager/Hack, visit http://www.northglide.com.
.END_SIDEBAR
.BIO James Booth is a self-taught PC and Palm device user that dabbles in graphics and photography. He can be reached at lizardworks@mchsi.com.
