Palm Support "Does Not Support Network HotSync"

15 March 2003

I just talked to Palm support about there not being a "network" option as described in the helpfile and get this: Palm tech support is telling me that they do not support network hotsync. I even explained that all I was looking for was a component that is a part of everyone else's installation but seems not to be a part of mine.

Palm's website says:

1. Make sure that the PC is powered on and logged into the network.
2. Click the HotSync Manager icon in your System Tray and make sure that "Network" is selected in the pop-up menu.

OK, so on my computer (Windows 2000, Palm Desktop 4.1.0) I click the HotSync Manager icon in my System Tray, and there is no "Network" to select.

So of course, I called Palm tech support. My Tungsten is well within it's 90 days of free support. I explained very carefully that I was not looking for help setting up a network, I read from the pieces of literature that came with my Tungsten T that describe where the "Network" option should be (but isn't). I asked for clarification repeatedly to make sure that I was hearing correctly. She even asked her supervisor twice to make certain, and nope. Finding out why my HotSync Manager doesn't do what the documentations says it should is not part of 90-day tech support. All I got was "Network hotsync is unsupported".

Palm software not working? Call someone else. (Specifically she suggested I should speak with Belkin, who made the Bluetooth Access Point I own and who I can guarantee are not responsible for fixing bugs in Palm's software)

Way to piss off a customer, Palm. I can absolutely understand why they wouldn't want to support me figuring out netmasks and why the other end of the connection won't work, but this is Palm's end of it. I expect Palm to answer questions about everything that was included in the box with my Tungsten T.

Is that unreasonable?

—Steve