Startup Problems
What do I put after --debug?
The number after --debug indicates what kind of messages you want to see; 1023 indicates all messages. The exact numbers you can use are as follows:

Debug Values
Value	Meaning
1	List the name of *every* function called. Very tedious.
2	Major operations (⪚ Creating windows).
4	Minor operations (⪚ Adding visual elements).
8	All operations (⪚ Filling list boxes -- this is very tedious).
16	Major database operations.
32	Minor database operations.
64	All database operations.
128	Major sync actions.
256	Minor sync actions.
512	All sync actions.
Just add up the numbers of the kind of messages you want.
says Can't connect to pilot
This can have various causes. Check that:
The pilot device (usually /dev/pilot) exists and points to the serial port the is actually connected to.
To link the device to the correct serial port, you can either fill in /dev/ttySn in the Pilot Device field in the setup dialog or (preferably) link /dev/pilot to /dev/ttySn with the following command (as root): ln -s /dev/ttySn /dev/pilot Here /dev/ttySn is the name of the serial port; replace n with the correct number (usually 0 or 1).
Check that you have permission to read and write to the serial port. The permissions for the serial port should be such that you can write to it. This is most easily done by running the following (as root): chmod 666 /dev/ttySn
Try starting the daemon by hand before starting .
(For 7 systems) Check the system security level: settings higher than 3 prevent some forms of inter-process communication which are necessary for to operate correctly.
( security information courtesy of Jay Summett) To set your MSEC (Mandrake SECurity) settings to not block the socket (for connections to localhost) you can login as root and type /etc/security/msec/init.sh 3 Which will set your MSEC level to 3 (regular security). For more information about the various security levels, etc, see: the Mandrake reference guide.

Database Questions
This section answers questions commonly asked about particular databases and how they interact with .
Databases become corrupted after a sync, what should I do?
Certain databases (from third-party software manufacturers) appear not to follow the standard database layout. If you can find out what the creator id of the database is, you can add it to either the Backup Only: list or the Skip list in the settings dialog.
The following table shows which databases should be skipped or backed-up only:

Databases needing Special Treatment
Database	Creator ID	Action
Launcher (the 's main menu)	lnch	Backup Only:
Arranger	Arng	Backup Only:
(unknown)	PmDB	Backup Only:
AvantGo	avgo	Skip (Mostly because there's no point in backing up the news articles that AvantGo gives you)
Is there a conduit for Calendar?
No, there isn't. Neither are there plans to include support or write a conduit for Calendar.

Special HotSync Questions
This section lists questions about HotSync methods that differ from the usual direct serial link method.
How do I do an infrared (IR) HotSync?
First of all your has to actually support IR HotSyncs. This can be achieved through various means: 3.3 and higher include support for it; there is an IR enhancements package for older versions; IrLink from IsComplete apparently has the same capabilities. Check out the Palm web pages for more information.
Assuming your now has PC HotSync support and it is setup to do IR HotSyncs (in the HotSync preferences on the ), we can turn our attention to the PC you will be syncing with. It needs an IR port. For laptops, this is trivial, desktop PCs may require some extra hardware.
Your kernel will need to support IR and the IRCOMM protocol. For stock systems, the following command should setup IR support (as root):

# modprobe ircomm

Other distributions should follow the IR-HOWTO. Once IR support in the kernel has been activated, you need to make devices for the IR ports. The IR-HOWTO suggests (as root):

# mknod
/dev/ircomm0 60 64 
# chmod
666 /dev/ircomm0

Next we need to start some daemons for IR services:

# irattach 
/dev/ttySn
# irmanager 
-d 0

Here /dev/ttySn is the serial port the IR port is using. n could be 0, 1, or some other number depending on your hardware setup. Follow the instructions in the IR-HOWTO for assistance (for desktop machines, it's usually a setting in the BIOS).
Once you've gotten this far, just make /dev/pilot point to /dev/ircomm0 and you're ready!
The IR-HOWTO and other useful information on using IR may be found at http://mobilix.org/howtos.html and http://mobilix.org/software/irda/.
Can I do a with my (USB) ?
Yes, you can. I don't have definitive information, but postings on the mailing-list have stated that you can point /dev/pilot to the USB device and everything will work fine.
Is there any support for remote HotSyncs?
No, not yet. Maybe later.