This provides answers to frequently asked questions about software products. It covers installation and usage issues.
| ALL: Unable To Download | | Question | Looked as though it would be a great program, but after downloading it for an hour at 56k dial-up there was no way to open it. It looks like the file size should be 17MB but the file that is on my computer is only a little over 3.5MB. The message said it was "not a valid Win32 application". | | Answer | Try downloading from either Handango.com or Upload.com (you will have to do a search for Ultimate Car or nlpark. If you still have problems you need to file a complaint with your ISP. |
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| ALL: Unlock Code | | Question | I do not have the unlock/registration code anymore so how can I get another copy. | | Answer | Here is a link for you to get your code:
Instructions are on the link provided. |
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| Desktop: .NET Framework | | Question | I try to install the Ultimate Car Desktop for Windows and it won't install saying I need the .NET Framework. Where do I get this? | | Answer | You need to install the latest .NET Framework from Microsoft. You will actually need all versions, 1.1, 2.0 and 3.5. Here is the link:
.NET Framework Version 3.5 (contains all versions):
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=333325FD-AE52-4E35-B531-508D977D32A6&displaylang=en
If either of these links are bad (Microsoft always changes links around) then you can Google for the following keywords to find it: dotnetfx.exe 3.5 |
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| Desktop: Conversion | | Question | When trying to open a Tires item in version 3.2.0.0 the following message appears: Specified argument was out of the range of valid values. Parameter name '2' is not a valid value for 'index'. I think this used to be a Tire Rotation subtype. | | Answer | For Ultimate Car Desktop installations having no PDA to synchronize with (there are no Palm PDAs or Pocket PC PDAs to synchronize with the computer) the conversion utility failed to properly convert the data to the 3.2 format. There was no damage to the data and the conversion utility that shipped with v3.2.0.1 converted the data correctly. If you get this error message please follow these steps to remedy the situation:
1) If you haven't already, uninstall Ultimate Car Desktop for Windows v3.2.0.0
2) Install the latest version (at least v3.2.0.1)
3) Manually run the ConvertDB-2.exe located in the installation folder. You will need to search for it as there is no shortcut provided during installation (to launch it just double-click on it from File Explorer). |
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| Desktop: Data Location | | Question | How can I back up my data from Ultimate Car Desktop for Windows? I don't know where it stores my files. | | Answer | For a Palm PDA:
If your PDA has data in it and you have performed a HotSync at least once the PDA data will be stored to the computer in the "ulticar" folder underneath the PDA software installation. Mine is C:\Program Files\Handspring\ParkN\ulticar (because my PDA Name is Neal Park the folder Palm makes for it is ParkN, the PDA is a Handspring Visor and Handspring installs the Palm software to C:\Program Files\Handspring). Another way to locate the files is to do a search for main.db.
For no PDA or a Pocket PC PDA:
The data file (UltiCar.mdb) will be located in the Data folder underneath the Ultimate Car Desktop for Windows installation folder. By default this is C:\Program Files\Ultimate Car\Data. |
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| Desktop: Fuel Economy Graph | | Question | It appears that the Ultimate Car Desktop for Windows does not calculate and graph gas mileage. All points sit at zero on their dates even with your examples provided. | | Answer | The examples do not have the "Fill up" checkbox marked on the fuel items. No calculations for fuel economy can be made unless "fill ups" are performed when fueling. If you mark the "Fill up" checkboxes on the example fuel items then the graph shows points in the proper place above the zero line. |
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| Desktop: Installation | | Question | I would like to get the Desktop version for use with my Palm PDA but I have downloaded it three times and it won't install. The error message I get is:
Exception Eolesys error in module ucreg.exe a 00062639.class not registered
What do I do? | | Answer | If you have any previous versions of Ultimate Car installed you should uninstall them in the reverse order of installation. Reboot and try the installation again. Ultimate Car for Palm is what you should be installing for use on your Palm PDA. It does not come with a Windows version, only a conduit for use with the Desktop version. Ultimate Car Desktop for Windows is for your Computer and is now a separate product. Ultimate Car used to come with both the Palm and Windows versions but as of 5/7/2004 it has been divided into two separate products. |
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| Desktop: Measurements | | Question | The PDA Item Details show fuel and oil quantities in liters and the PDA vehicle mileage shows in kM but the Desktop shows gallons and miles instead. How do I get the Desktop to show the same measurements? | | Answer | Unfortunately, the PDA and Desktop versions don't communicate this information when they HotSync, but there is a way to get the Desktop to show the same settings. To change the Miles to kM (or vice versa) simply mark the "kM" checkbox appropriately in the Vehicle Detail screen on the Desktop. The Gallons to Liters is a little harder. You will need an INI file setting to get the Windows version to show metric information. It is based on the PDA User Name and has the format as follows:
[Neal Park]
MetricMeasurements=true
where Neal Park is the User Name that gets displayed in Ultimate Car Desktop for Windows. The INI file is located in the Ultimate Car Desktop for Windows installation directory (by default this is C:\Program Files\Ultimate Car) and is named ULTICAR.ini. Open the file in Notepad, put this information at the very end of the file then save it. The next time you start Ultimate Car Desktop for Windows it should display metric measurements instead. |
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| Desktop: No Entries | | Question | I can't get the Desktop to work. When I go into it I have no buttons available for use. Even after entering data into the handheld it won't transfer. What do I have to do to see entries? | | Answer | HotSync must be performed at least once for any entries to show up in the Desktop. If a HotSync has been performed and there are entries in the PDA but no entries still show up in the Desktop it could be for several reasons.
1) The BDE may not be properly installed. Check the HotSync log to see if there was an error during the Ultimate Car synchronization. If so, see the FAQ regarding Startup (BDE/ODBC Errors).
2) The Ultimate Car for Palm conduit may not have been installed correctly. Sometimes a backup folder may have been made of the HotSync files prior to the installation of Ultimate Car. When the Ultimate Car installation starts, it searches for the first HotSync.exe file it can find and installs all appropriate Ultimate Car files into that folder. If there happens to be another copy of HotSync.exe on the computer the installation may get confused and install the Ultimate Car for Palm files to the wrong location. The solution is to locate all "backup" copies of HotSync.exe and rename them leaving only the "valid" HotSync.exe in place. Uninstall Ultimate Car for Palm and then rerun the Ultimate Car for Palm installation. |
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| Desktop: No Entries (HotSync Errors) | | Question | After entering data into the handheld it won't transfer to the desktop. I get no error messages and there is no data in my Desktop. I do see the following text in the HotSync log after I sync:
ERROR (UltimateCar): syncStandard: openDesktopDatabase: ....... Interface mismatch. Engine version different
What is wrong? | | Answer | It sounds like the BDE has been installed in multiple places on your computer. There is probably other software that uses the BDE, CorelDraw uses the BDE as well as other popular applications. It is fairly complicated to correct this problem. First, perform a search on your computer's hard drive for all files named idapi*.*. Second, rename all folders having those files in them (i.e., C:\Program Files\Borland\Common Files\BDE becomes C:\Program Files\Borland\Common Files\BDE-). If any of these files are in a system folder (like C:\WINNT or C:\WINNT\SYSTEM32) then just rename the files, not the folder the files are in. Third, rename the registry key "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Borland\Database Engine". If you do not know how to do this then DON'T TRY THIS, you could damage your computer. Last, reinstall Ultimate Car. It should reinstall the BDE automatically. |
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| Desktop: Sharing PDA Information | | Question | I have a Pocket PC and my wife has a Palm PDA. I would like to get her data on my Pocket PC so I can track her mileage and repairs but I can't figure out how to do this. | | Answer | Through the Desktop you could do this in a round about way. It will allow importing from one PDA's dataset to another PDA's dataset. Once both datasets are in the Desktop you could then sync up one PDA with new stuff from the other PDA. It's kind of confusing the way I just explained it so let me try again.
PDA 1 has Car A in it. PDA 2 has Car B and Car C in it. The user of PDA 2 would like to have all items user of PDA 1 has been entering about Car A in their PDA.
PDA 1 is a Palm and they HotSync which puts their data into the Desktop. PDA 2 is a Pocket PC so they copy the data file from their Pocket PC PDA to their computer so the Desktop can use it.
Now they start up the Desktop and the PDA selected in the right hand corner is PDA 2 (the PPC). The vehicles in the list are Car B and Car C. They then go to File | Import from the Desktop menu and select Car A from PDA 1 to import. The import takes place and now the vehicles in the list are Car A, Car B and Car C.
They then take the Desktop data file and copy it to PDA 2. Ultimate Car for Pocket PC is started on PDA 2 and the cars listed are Car A, Car B and Car C.
Kinda crude, but that's how I keep track of my wife's stuff on my PDA. |
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| Desktop: Startup (BDE/ODBC Errors) | | Question | I get an error when trying to start Ultimate Car Desktop for Windows the first time (Possible error messages: "BDE installation incorrect: Main file does not exist." or maybe some other message pertaining to an ODBC driver) | | Answer | This sounds like a Borland Database Engine (BDE) installation problem. For versions of Ultimate Car Desktop for Windows equal to or greater than version 3.0 use the "Check BDE" tool found on the Start menu under Programs | Ultimate Car | Support | Check BDE Installation menu. Verify the filename specified in Config File Name information actually exists, as well as the information listed in the DLL Path field. If they need correcting then modify the information and click the Update button. Try restarting Ultimate Car Desktop for Windows to see if that clears up the problem.
If using older versions of Ultimate Car (prior to version 3.0) do the following instead.
Look for the ulticar.ini file located in the Ultimate Car Desktop folder (by default it is C:\Program Files\Ultimate Car), open it in WordPad or Notepad (just double-click on it in Windows File Explorer) and make sure it looks like the following (remove all lines starting with a semicolon (;) or just copy and paste these lines after removing all existing lines):
[BDE]
ConfigPath=C:\Program Files\Borland\Common Files\BDE\idapi32.cfg
BDEPath=C:\Program Files\Borland\Common Files\BDE
Overwrite=true
NOTE: Make sure the C:\Program Files\Borland\Common Files\BDE\idapi32.cfg (or idapi.cfg instead of idapi32.cfg) file actually exists. Sometimes the Common Files and Borland get swapped (as in C:\Program Files\Common Files\Borland\BDE\idapi32.cfg). Wherever you find it make sure the ini file matches the location found. This is extremely important, ConfigPath and BDEPath must be actual folders on your machine.
Also, if you are using an international version of Windows XP then "Program Files" will be the equivalent in the language being used on the computer. In any case, the ulticar.ini file entries must point to the actual location of the file. |
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| Desktop: Vehicle Report Is Blank | | Question | No matter what filter I use or vehicle I select to print, the report always comes up with just a heading and no items listed in the report. | | Answer | There appears to be something wrong/corrupted with oil grade information in some vehicle records. To fix it, bring up each vehicle and make a selection from the Oil list on the Misc tab then click the OK button. The report will work for each vehicle modified after that.
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| Palm: Conduit | | Question | I uninstalled Ultimate Car but it still appears in the Custom... window of HotSync and the HotSync Log shows "PDDirect: Problem initializing conduit from the registry. 09/12/2002 05:55:42 PM" on every HotSync after the uninstall. | | Answer | Older versions of the UCSetup.exe did not remove the Ultimate Car conduit from the HotSync conduit list. Download the UCUnreg.exe utility and run it once to correct the problem. HotSync will need to be stopped and then restarted for it to show the list of conduits correctly, since Ultimate Car will still appear until after the restart. |
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| Palm: Crash (Fuel Economy) | | Question | When I try to see the Fuel Economy screen I get a fatal error and my PDA crashes, sometime I have to do a hard reset. | | Answer | This was a bug in versions earlier than version 2.8.3 and has been corrected. It had a problem when displaying information on PDAs with Palm OS version 5.0 and newer, which is the majority of new PDAs currently being sold. If you have this type of PDA download the latest version to fix this. |
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| Palm: Crash (New Entry) | | Question | Everytime I make a new "interval" entry like Oil Change or Tune Up the application crashes when I tap OK. | | Answer | This was a bug in versions earlier than version 2.8.2 and has been corrected. It had a problem when trying the get the "next interval" information to put into the DateBook application. Download the latest version to fix this. |
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| Palm: Data Location | | Question | How can I back up my data from Ultimate Car? I don't know where it stores my files. | | Answer | If your PDA has data in it and you have performed a HotSync at least once the PDA data will be stored to the computer or at least backed up to the computer. The data should be in the "ulticar" folder underneath the PDA software installation. Mine is C:\Program Files\Handspring\ParkN\ulticar (because my PDA Name is Neal Park the folder Palm makes for it is ParkN, the PDA is a Handspring Visor and Handspring installs the Palm software to C:\Program Files\Handspring). Another way to locate the files is to do a search for main.db. Then you will find the folder where all files for Ultimate Car for Palm are stored on the desktop computer. |
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| Palm: Unlock Code | | Question | I have registered the software and have an unlock code but sometimes when I start Ultimate Car after a HotSync operation I am forced to reenter my unlock code. | | Answer | This is a bug with the release of version 2.0 of Ultimate Car and has to do with the way the registration code is stored on the PDA. It has been corrected with the setup utility dated 5/23/2002 and later. |
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| Pocket PC: .NET Compact Framework | | Question | I am trying to load the Ultimate Car for Pocket PC program and the error on my Compaq iPAQ is:
The .NET Compact Framework could not be found. Please install the .NET Compact Framework and run the installation again.
Can you help? | | Answer | There is a link in the Support Files section of the website that provides information about how to get this software. Only older PDAs need this installed since the newer PDAs come with this software from the factory. |
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| Pocket PC: ActiveSync Error | | Question | I downloaded a trial version of Ultimate Car for Pocket PC. I did like it, however, I removed it from my PDA for now until I make a decision. I did this using the Remove Programs applet on my PDA but it told me that I still had to remove the Folder manually, so I did using File Explorer and then did a soft reset as instructed. I also removed it from the Desktop PC.
Now after every ActiveSync operation, I get an error message in middle of my PDA saying:
Cannot execute \Program Files\Ultimate Car\synced.exe
I have verified that this folder and file is NOT on my PDA, searched physically and used the search feature. I have totally reinstalled and removed again, and re-installed ActiveSync but still get the error. Can you help me? | | Answer | It sounds like you may have not exited the program on the PDA properly before it was uninstalled. Reinstall the Ultimate Car for Pocket PC to your PDA and start it up. Now, select File | Exit from the menu instead of tapping the "X" at the top. You should now be able to uninstall the software and have a successful ActiveSync session. |
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| Pocket PC: How Do I Sync (part 1) | | Question | I finally got the software working on the PDA, now what do I do to get the PDA to sync with the desktop? The PDA has the sample data, not what I have entered on the desktop. I have restarted the PDA and reinstalled Ultimate Car Desktop for Windows. Ultimate Car does not show up in the list when I do a sync. | | Answer | On the desktop, locate the Tools | Synchronize Pocket PC menu option. If it is grayed out/disabled then you must uninstall the Ultimate Car for Pocket PC product and reinstall it. It must be installed after the Desktop product in order for all functionality to work. Any SQL CAB files or .NET Compact Framework CAB files will NOT need to be installed again. Once the menu option is enabled you can use the Synchronization tool to sync your data. |
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| Pocket PC: How Do I Sync (part 2) | | Question | I have successfully reinstalled and started Ultimate Car on the PDA. Ultimate Car is installed on the device, not the storage card. I have also shut down the PDA and restarted it. When Active Sync sees the device, it displays the synchronization panel but when I click on the Synchronize button I get this error: Unable to start monitor application on PDA.
| | Answer | In the Synchronization utility, when you select Tools | Options, what does it say in the PDA Installation area? By default it should be Default Folder and \Program Files\UltiCarPPC. You should be able to navigate to that folder using File Explorer and see files in it. If not, locate the proper folder and update the PDA Installation folder with the correct folder. On some of the newer PDAs it might actually install to \Program Files\Ultimate Car. If none of the options works for your PDA you may have to choose the Other option and manually type in the correct location.
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| Pocket PC: Unlock Code | | Question | I have just purchased an Ultimate Car for Pocket PC unlock code and cannot get the registration code to be accepted by the PDA software, can you offer some advice? | | Answer | Most Pocket PC users don't realize they can change their PDA name, the name that shows up when they perform ActiveSync, so it is left at the default setting of Pocket_PC. I would bet your PDA device name is still Pocket_PC. The "unlock page" on the website gives detailed instructions on how to tell what it is. If it is different than you originally believed you will need to send an email to support@nlpark.com and let them know so they can reset the website page, because once a device name is registered it cannot be changed by merely re-registering it. |
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| Pocket PC: Will Not Start Up | | Question | When I start the PPC version on my T-Mobile MDA device, I see a panel that says “Wait… opening tables” followed by this error message: Need to install SQL CE Mobile CAB file. Message: Can’t find PInvoke DLL ‘ sqlceme30.dll’. I downloaded and ran the file from the link provided on the nlpark.com web site, but it did not install anything on my PDA. How do I get the missing .dll file installed on the PDA?
| | Answer | Copy the sqlce30.ppc.wce4.armv4.cab file to the PDA using File Explorer and the Explore button in ActiveSync. Then on the PDA, locate and tap the CAB file to install it. On the Pocket PC platform, after installation the CAB file will remove itself from the PDA.
Note: Make sure the library is installed to the Main Memory instead of any Storage Card if an option is given.
If that still doesn't work (the same message appears) and the PDA has an ARMV4 processor then copy the sqlce30.zip file to your computer and unzip it to a separate folder. Then copy all of that folders contents to the PDA's Windows folder. |
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