S7 to 7Book Upgrade = Advice Please

[Conkers]

I've just purchased a netbook ROM from expansys and downloaded the OS so I'm going to upgrade my S7 to a 7Book.
I have backed up the S7 C drive to both my home PC and the CF Card I keep in the D drive. I intend to put the OS on a separate CF card when I do the upgrade.
I need some advice on one or two points, which despite searches I can't seem to find:
1) Will any of the settings (for e-mail and Internet for example) be able to be transferred from the S7 backup files to the upgraded machine (rather than having to write them down and enter them manually)?
2) Does the CF Card with the OS need to be in the machine or once it is installed should I keep it safe on a CD in case of future problems?
3) Will any of the files from my S7 be readable on the upgraded 7Book (Word and Sheet documents, Contacts, Diary etc)?
As regards other things I need to know I have made a search and am confident that the upgrade will be a good move.
Next stop WiFi my machine!
Thanks in advance for any replies

[donkeyontheedge]

As this is effectively going to become a different machine running a new OS, I recommend that you start from scratch with it.

Manually transfer your mail and internet settings over (it's a good excuse to tidy things up!) and manually re-install all of your applications from their SIS files.

All of your data will be readable on the 7Book, and you can recover your email data etc once you have everything running as you want it - there are plenty of posts on these forums about how to do this.

If you have another CF card, I would recommend you copy just your data files from the old card to the new one, and then using the new one in the 7Book - that way if anything goes wrong, you still have your original card intact and can try again.

Congrats on the upgrade, you will not be disappointed.

John

[Conkers]

Did what you said and bought two cheap(ish) CF Cards as most of the CF cards I have are specifically for my Photos.
I did read your WiFi write up - I do have one question - I have the main and Kids computers linked on an ad-hoc network. Would I be able to use the Buffalo Lucent PCMCIA card which you suggest in the other thread with my present system?
Apart from that thanks for the advice.

[donkeyontheedge]

Depends on the AP you get for the network, but I can't really see it being a problem.

You should be able to FTP to any machine on your LAN via the IP addresses etc.

If you have any problems, post back and myself or one of the helpful horde should be able to sort you out :D

John

[netBookBabe]

Hi Ian

I'm pleased to hear that you got the upgrade module for your S7 - like John, I'm certain you will not be disappointed.

Just to clarify, once you have loaded the OS from CF (which takes only a few seconds) you can take out the CF and store it somewhere safe until such time as you need to do a hard reset. Personally, I keep a 16MB CF just for this purpose.

However, if you have a fairly large CF for your day-to-day work, and have room to keep a copy of the OS there as well, then it's a good insurance policy. I had occasion to be glad of having done this when my netBook spontaneously hard-reset when I was away on business one day! The people I was meeting with were astounded that I didn't panic, and even more amazed that it only took me a few minutes to get more or less back to normal. :cool:

Remember that the OS file you download must be renamed to "OS.IMG" and must be located in the root of the CF. It's also probably a good idea to make this the first file you put on to your working CF, before adding any others.

As for WiFi, I have the Buffalo card and have found it to be excellent. I know it can support adhoc (peer-to-peer) networks, even though I personally haven't used mine that way, so you should be OK.

Enjoy your 7Book and let us know how you get on. :)

Julie

[MartinG]

FYI on this subject, you can also make the OS.img file hidden (i.e. change the file properties) if you wish. Then - assuming that you don't normally have hidden files viewable - it's an invisible insurance policy. I do exactly that with my 512Mb card - an 16Mb invisible file is a small price to pay...

Martin

[wanman]

Just out of interest for any other 7series owners out there looking to upgrade, there are quite a few netbook modules being sold on ebay at the mo...current prices are 99p !! There is also the odd 32mb dimm upgrade too !!

[Conkers]

Isn't that just Bl**dy tipical!:mad:
I obtained mine from Expansys, and the Post Office tried to deliver it today but brecause we were both out, I've got to collect it on my way to work in the morning. So I'll report back once I've done the upgrade.

[wanman]

Ok let us know if you get stuck although I think you will be surprised how easy it is to do ;) There are quite a few threads reporting detailed instructions for upgrading so all the help you are gonna need is right here

[Conkers]

Got the upgrade working brilliantly. Had to download the Contacts update from the Psion site, as the contacts folder kept showing as corrupted, but otherwise all working.
Couple of Questions:
1) Do I need to download the Java update that I put onto my S7 or has that been sorted with the netbook OS?
2) I had the message store for the S7 on the D Drive, so can I access them from the S7 backup disk along with saved SMS messages? If I can how do I put them into the e-mail folders that I created?

Yes it is quicker, and I'm impressed by the Opera browser, and I am glad I've done the upgrade. I'm going to keep the S7 Module safe in case I need to re-install for any reason, and I've backed up the files and settings in a safe place as you never know....
Thanks for all the advice and help so far, it is much appreciated.

[wanman]

Originally posted by Conkers
Got the upgrade working brilliantly. Had to download the Contacts update from the Psion site, as the contacts folder kept showing as corrupted, but otherwise all working.

Fantastic news !!!! Knew you could do it.


Couple of Questions:
1) Do I need to download the Java update that I put onto my S7 or has that been sorted with the netbook OS?


No need if you have the latest NB OS as this already contains Java. To check if you have the latest version press ctrl+h and you will see the version/release numbers v1.05(450) r158.


2) I had the message store for the S7 on the D Drive, so can I access them from the S7 backup disk along with saved SMS messages? If I can how do I put them into the e-mail folders that I created?


Assuming you have not done too much to your email application apart from set up your old accounts (that you had set up on your 7) then all you need to do is move your message store to the drive you want (C is default or D). Then enter the system folder and rename the Mail folder Mail1. Copy across original Mail folder from your 7 backup in it's entirety. Open email and your old settings and messages should be restored.


Yes it is quicker, and I'm impressed by the Opera browser, and I am glad I've done the upgrade. I'm going to keep the S7 Module safe in case I need to re-install for any reason, and I've backed up the files and settings in a safe place as you never know....
Thanks for all the advice and help so far, it is much appreciated.

Yes it surprised me too how much faster the netBook was. Definitely keep the 7 module as if you need to send your 7 to psion for an emergency repair, you can pop the old 7 module back in just for them ;)

Let us know if you need any other info.

Regards

Si

[Conkers]

Thanks for that - It worked and I now have all my saved messages restored.
Having read the thread on WiFi I think that might be my "end of season" treat for me. I see Expansys have the Buffalo cards in stock.........:D

Thanks once again to everuyone who helped.

[netBookBabe]

Good to hear that you had a trouble free upgrade, Ian - great stuff! Definitely treat yourself to the Buffalo card - it is the ultimate icing on the cake. Might be worth a look at ebuyer for that - when I bought mine they were slightly cheaper than Expansys and processed my order very efficiently.

http://www.ebuyer.com

Julie