HandyShopper FAQ

1. Does HandyShopper work on my device?

• HandyShopper works on any Palm-based device running version 2.0 or higher of the Palm OS. This includes, but is not limited to:
  • Palm Tungsten series
  • Palm III, IIIc, and V/VII series
  • HandSpring Visors and Treos
  • Sony Clies
  • HandEra
  • Garmin
  • Samsung
  • Acer
  • and etc.
• HandyShopper supports a collapsible Graffiti area on any Palm OS 5.3 or higher device, regardless of the screen resolution or size (if the device has a collapsible Graffiti area). Sony Clie devices with a collapsible Graffiti area also supported. The collapsible Graffiti area on other devices is not supported, and HandyShopper will behave as if the device has a normal Graffiti area.
• Tungsten T3: The T3 is a Palm OS 5.2 device, not a 5.3 device, and it does not seem to correctly support the official PalmSource API for collapsible Graffiti areas. It is necessary to install a patch before HandyShopper can take full advantage of the collapsible Graffiti area on these devices. As of this writing, Palm has not produced an official patch, but you can download a temporary patch from Red Mercury.

2. Will databases created with the HS2 Beta work with the final version?

• Absolutely! You won't need to do anything except install the final version.

3. It's really annoying to have to tap the little magnifying glass icon to use the Lookup mode.

• You don't have to! Just start writing graffiti (when there is no item selected).

4. The Contrast button doesn't work on a PalmV or PalmVx or m100, etc.

• You have discovered the "One-handed" mode. For more information, see the Instructions section in the Readme.txt file.

5. How do I get to the Preferences?

• Use the Actions popup (at the bottom, next to the magnifying glass icon). OR, use the menus by tapping the Menu circle (in the lower left corner of the graffiti area), then tap Misc, then tap Preferences.

6. I imported from 1.x, but it did not import my aisles.

• After importing, you turned on Per-Store Prices and Aisles. If you turn off Per-Store Prices, you will see your aisles again.
• When you turn on Per-Store Prices in the Preferences screen, it gives you the opportunity to copy the old "generic" price/aisle information to specific stores. To copy it to more than one store, use Copy Prices more than once (by turning Per-Store Price off and then on again).

7. I entered a bunch of aisles, but HS2 does not display them.

• You have turned on Per-Store Prices and Aisles. If you entered the aisles before turning on this feature, then see the previous question (above).
• If you have already entered separate aisles for different stores, then is the current store set to "All Stores"? HS2 cannot display an aisle when "All Stores" is active and Per-Store Prices are turned on (which aisle would it show??).

8. Using the Quantity field is very awkward; I don't care about decimal quantities.

• If you have the Calculator enabled (tap the calculator icon to toggle it on/off), it is no more awkward than in HS1. Just tap the number on the calculator. Although the calculator is still there, you can still tap elsewhere to do something else.

9. It is very awkward to pick an Aisle from the aisle dropdown; I have to scroll it a lot for large aisle numbers.

• Try writing graffiti. You can either write A-Z, or 3 digits (from 000 to 200). To select an aisle less than 100 you can either write "002" or "015", or you can write "2" or "15", and then write either dot dot or the newline stroke.

10. What happens when "Need" is hilighted and I tap it again?

• This switches to the "Not Needed" view.

11. What good are "multiple databases"?

• C'mon, use your imagination.

12. How can I import/export to a CSV file?

• This is not currently possible on the handheld device.
• You can do it on a Windows computer (or Windows emulator) using the HS2Convert.exe program. Several third party programs use this to enable editing HandyShopper databases on your PC.

13. I don't understand the symbols in the leftmost column. I would expect just a checkbox.

• In the All view:
  • BOX = item is Needed.
  • CHECKMARK = item was needed, but is now complete (for instance, you have the item in your shopping cart).
  • DOT = item is not needed (and is therefore not counted by the Total command).
• In the Need view:
  • BOX = item is Needed.
  • CHECKMARK = item was needed, but is now complete (for instance, you have the item in your shopping cart).

14. Is there a desktop version of HandyShopper?

• One user has written an Excel spreadsheet called HS2Edit, that can edit HandyShopper 2.x databases.
• Another user has written a Windows program called RatShopper that can edit HandyShopper 2.x databases.
• To find other programs, icon sets, and things related to HandyShopper, visit PalmGear and enter "HandyShopper" into the Search field.

15. How can I reset the items in the All view back to dots instead of checkmarks?

• You must use the Checkout command on the menus, or
• Use the Reset command (on the menus) which has an option to reset items to dots.

16. Why do I have to use the Checkout command? HandyShopper 1.7 did not require this.

• True, but HS 1.7 could not keep a running Total. HS2 remembers which items were Needed, so that it can sum them for the Total command. When you're finished shopping, you need to use the Checkout command to let HS2 know that you've purchased the items, so it doesn't keep trying to sum them in the future.

17. How can I purge (delete) only my completed items?

• The Purge and Reset commands only affect the items in the current view (unless you choose the Purge all items or Reset all items checkbox). For instance, if you Purge from the Not Needed view, then only completed items will be purged (tap the Need tab until neither the All or Need tabs are highlighted). Or, another example, if you Purge from the Need view while "Target" is the selected store and "Music" is the selected category, then Purge will only delete Needed items from the "Music" category that are connected to the "Target" store.

18. How can I make sure my databases are backed up when I HotSync?

• Use either (or both) of these approaches:
  • Make sure the "System" conduit in the HotSync settings is set to "Handheld overwrites desktop".
  • Use BackupBuddy (I highly recommend it, and am not affiliated).

19. How can I make a copy of an entire database?

• Follow these steps to do it via HotSync with your PC:
  1. Important - see FAQ #18.
  2. HotSync.
  3. On your PC, find the database and double-click on it to queue it for installation on the next HotSync. The database on your PC will have the same name as on your Palm, plus a ".pdb" extension.
  4. Rename the database on your Palm device (not on the PC).
  5. HotSync.
• Follow these steps to do it via infrared beaming:
  1. Beam the database to another Palm device (or a PC/laptop with an IR port).
  2. Rename the database on your Palm device.
  3. Beam the database from the other Palm device (or PC/laptop).

20. How can I find other commands in HandyShopper? Is there a menu?

• Yes, as with most applications written for the Palm OS, you can pop up the menus by tapping the lower left circle next to the Graffiti area.

21. Is there a way to beam a database to another device?

• Yes, use Databases... command on the menu to open a screen listing all the databases. From there you can tap the arrow next to a database to pop up a list of actions that include Beam. Devices with Palm OS 4.0 or higher include a Send action instead, which can send a database via infrared beaming, SMS, Bluetooth, or etc, depending on the capabilities of the device.

22. Can I share a database with my partner, so we can merge the list?

• No, there is currently no way to do this with HandyShopper. I hope to add a feature to merge databases via infrared beaming (or Bluetooth). Like many other users, my wife and I want to share a shopping list and merge our Need lists when one of us is going to the grocery store.

23. The Total is incorrect.

• The Total command looks at the Needed items, and for each item multiplies the Quantity by the Price. For taxable items, it also adds tax based on the tax percentage in the Preferences screen. Usually the reason the Total does not have the expected result is because some of the items have 0 as the Quantity. You may have turned off the Auto-quantity feature; go to the Preferences screen, select the DB tab, and make sure the box is checked that says Automatically reset quantities.

24. I lost my data! How can I restore my HandyShopper databases? Are they backed up on my desktop computer?

• See FAQ #18. As long as they have been backed up to your desktop computer then it's easy to reinstall them.
• The backup copy of the databases are named the same on your desktop computer as they're named on your handheld, plus a ".PDB" extension. Databases that were created/renamed using HandyShopper build 2811 or higher have a "HS2_" prefix in front of the name, to make them easy to find.
• Search your computer for the database files (on a PC they are probably in a C:\PALM\USER\BACKUP directory) and double click on them to make the Palm Install Tool queue them for installation during your next HotSync.

25. I installed the latest version of HandyShopper, but it still shows the old name in my Launcher.

• Some 3rd party launcher programs don't notice when apps are upgraded, and these launchers don't update the application icon or name. Check the launcher's documentation to find out how to make the launcher refresh the app icon and name.

26. Why does HandyShopper limit me to only 15 categories? I need more.

• The Palm OS allows apps to have up to 15 categories in their databases. You'll find that ToDo, AddressBook, MemoPad, etc share this limitation.
• Some app authors do not use the Palm OS categories, and instead design their own categories feature. This takes more development and testing effort, and makes the app bigger. In the future, it is possible that HandyShopper may someday stop using the Palm OS categories feature and use a custom implementation instead.

27. If I want to enter different prices or aisles at different stores, do I have to copy all the items? Can I have multiple prices and aisles for the same item?

• Each database has a per store prices and aisles option. You can turn it on from the Preferences screen, on the DB page.

28. (Obsolete)

29. Does HandyShopper work on PocketPC devices?

• No, Palm applications only work on Palm devices.
• There is currently no version of HandyShopper for PocketPC devices.
• However, I have switched over to using a Pocket PC (iPAQ h2215), and I am slowly working on a version of HandyShopper for the Pocket PC. At this time the only information I can provide is that it will definitely be able to import v2.x databases. There are no estimated dates, but it's unlikely there will be anything ready before Q3 2004 at the earliest, and it could take longer or even much longer. There is no further information I can provide at this time. Please do not send me emails asking for more information; instead do a search in the HandyShopper User Group to see if any further information has been posted there. Please refrain from posting questions about progress on the Pocket PC version until after June, 2004, and then please first do a search using the keyword "HS3" to see what information is already available. Thank you for this courtesy to the other group members.

30. Shouldn't the UnitPrice column be Price / Quantity?

• No, and here's why not. Price is the amount on the item's price tag, and Quantity is the number of items you want to buy. For example, an 8-pack of batteries might cost 4.99, and you might want to buy 1 of them. So the Price is 4.99, the Quantity is 1, the Units is "8-pack". The UnitPrice is intended to show you the price of one unit (one battery, in this case). It's not possible to find the price of one battery by dividing the Price (4.99) by the Quantity (1). You get the price of one battery by dividing the Price (4.99) by the number of units (the 8 from "8-pack").