I installed the software update, Garmin Mobile PC 5.00.70, on Monday before I left for the week. So far, it's been stable for when I edit my route, BUT:

Now Garmin is randomly crashing while driving. The Garmin screen simply disappears. No warnings, no popups, no nothing - just no Garmin. the que.exe is still running in the task manager, but it doesn't work. I have to kill the process manually so that I can restart Garmrin.

I'm estimating that since Monday morning, and driving 1,000 miles or so, until this morning (Thursday), that Garmin has crashed at least 15 times. Because I normally run Garmin under Centrafuse, I thought I should try to limit the reasons for the crashes and ran Garmin solo yesterday and it crashed a few times.

The same here, malaki86. In two days, Garmin Mobile PC 5.00.70 has crashed on me three times at least. And I didn't travel as much as you have. I'm guessing Garmin will release a new updated/fixed software soon.

Just an update - 3 hours of driving (130 miles) and had 3 crashes already today. Looks like I'll go through the hassle of reinstalling the original and updating to the previous update.

No crashes yet, here. (Windows 7 64bit / GPS 10x)

When programs start crashing after an update, I generally do a full wipe of the program and reinstall the software. You may want to reinstall the program from scratch to see if the error goes away.

To do a full wipe:
1. Uninstall all Garmin programs from Add/Remove programs
2. Start --> Run --> %appdata% --> Delete the Garmin folder
3. Delete the c:\garmin folder
4. Delete the c:\program files\garmin folder
5. Start --> Run --> regedit --> Delete the following keys:
5a: HKCU --> Software --> Delete the Garmin folder
5b: HKLM --> Software --> Delete the Garmin folder
6: Start --> Programs --> Accessories --> System Tools --> Disk Cleanup --> Clean everything
7. Reboot

Finally, reinstall Garmin Mobile PC, run the latest update, and launch the program.

I've done this numerous times for video games. >.>

Hi Wells,

Thanks for the tips but it's worth noting that if anyone has any other Garmin stuff installed in addition to Mobile PC they will put themselves in a world of hurt if they follow those instructions.

If someone has Mapsource and/or Basecamp and one or more of Garmin's map products installed, your instructions will wipe out all of that, so they will all have to be reinstalled, too. That's a bunch of work and takes a long time.

Best to just use the Control Panel to uninstall Mobile PC and then run a good registry cleaner so that all stuff related to only Mobile PC is cleaned out. I use the registry cleaner in Advanced SystemCare (freeware version) for that sort of thing. There are others.

As a general rule, manual editing of the registry isn't really wise unless you know how to make backups of the registry files (not easily done), are very familiar with the registry and generally pretty technically competent. And have pretty good nerves.

...ken...

I think this thread is going in a totally unneeded direction. Removing and reinstalling Mobile PC is unlikely to solve the problems malaki is experiencing. I have seen similar problems in the past on my gutless UMPC so would be more concerned about horsepower. Do you have other programs running in the background that might occasionally take large doses of CPU cycles?

Terry

I have a few background programs running, such as my backup program, printer monitor (hp), etc. There's nothing running that pulls a lot of CPU time.

The latest crashes may be more related to the newly released version 5.00.70 than with anything else. I didn't experience crashes before, but after updating to 5.00.70 my Garmin Mobile PC crashes two or three times a day.

But other than Malaki86 and me, I haven't yet heard anyone else reporting crashes after installing 5.00.70, so I may be wrong.

I have had many crashes of Garmin Mobile PC also since updating to the latest. Last night I reverted back to the previous version and all is well!

If the program is crashing, not hanging, perhaps its error(s) would show up in the Event Viewer.

1. Click the Start Menu
2. Right click on Computer
3. Click Manage
4. In the box on the left, expand the Event Viewer folder
5. Click the Application item
6. Make a list of any errors occuring around the time of Garmin Mobile PCs crash

Maybe we can figure it out.

It doesn't crash all the way. The Garmin "window" completely disappears, including the tab on the windows toolbar. But, when you go to the task manager, it shows that it's still running.

Has anyone checked the event viewer as Wells suggests, just out of curiosity?

...ken...

I haven't. Garmin Mobile PC 5.00.70 haven't crashed on me today yet, but the next time it does, and if I remember to do so, I will try to check.

Marvin, you don't need to check it right away. Just take note of the approximate time. All the entries in the event log are time/date stamped. If you know the time you're looking for, you can see what events got logged around that time, if any. My event log goes back for weeks.

...ken...

Just to chime in, the new version crashed on me on a trip today. The screen disappeared, but it would not restart. I'm guessing that some part of it was still in memory.

Hey Garmin - time to fix the program ....

Brad in Gold Canyon, AZ for the moment

Hi Brad,

My brother has been in Gold Canyon all month. They're packing up the 5th wheel this morning and heading slowly back north.

When Mobile PC dies like that you need to hit Ctrl/Shift/Esc to get the Windows Task Manager up. Click on the Applications tab, click on the Mobile PC task and click End Task.

Once it goes away in the Task Manager you can restart it.

...ken...

Task Manager can also be accessed from CTRL-ALT-DEL or right click on the taskbar and choose it from the list.

Terry

I didn't try to do much of anything with the laptop as I was cruzin' down the road in our RV towing a Jeep.

Good thing we knew where we were headed and my navigator has lots of paper maps.

Modern technology ....

Brad in Gold Canyon

I've left Garmin Mobile PC for near a year and my health rate became higher...
Continued the gps hobby with a Nüvi navigator and was near full happiness...No problem with transferring detailed maps,neither on drawing routes and transferring them with MapSource or registering full length tracks( over 35000 points with 1 seccond interval)...
Returning from my hollidays and about a near 3000 kmts doing wheel and well with it.
But heard about and tried the new 5.00.70 GMPC upgrade with such a long list of debugging items...
In the las 12 hours I`ve downgraded and reinstaled many times...
Crashes and no comunication with Mapsource(its transfers,the file its on GMPC directory but it doesn´t access to it...`Could not edit routes and it appears (zoom deppendant) multilines instead of one unique trace...

It is sounding bad... like that old song..."Killing me softly with this song..."

Good friends; my best wishes.Hope we meet again not to complain but to have a really sensation of pleassure with this soft...Its the same soft interfase 4 Nuvis... the difference is it is non funtional...!!!

Jucabras

Welcome back Jucubras.

I had the problem with no communication between Mapsource and Mobile PC. In one weekend I upgraded my laptop from Vista to Windows 7, upgraded Mapsource from 6.15.7 to 6.15.11 and upgraded Mobile PC from 6.00.60 to 6.00.70. I did it all at once instead of changing one thing at a time and testing.

That was probably not the smartest thing I've ever done.

Long story short, I have multiple map files in Mobile PC so when I go to the Map Info page there is a button at the bottom to launch Mapsource. When I pressed that button, Mapsource was launched and it was able to find and transfer to Mobile PC. That was a few days ago. Mapsource transfers properly every time now, even without having to run Mobile PC and launch it from there.

YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary)

...ken...

Just a quick question - has anyone reported this undocumented feature to Garmin Tech support? I did on Monday evening, but have not had a reply as of yet.

Will keep you posted..

Brad in Gold Canyon

To follow up - Have not heard from Garmin tech support yet.

I have been able to create the crash by running a route simulation.

No events were logged in either Application or System event logs.

When running the route, the CPU usage varies wildly from about 10 percent when the display update is jerky and about 90 percent when the display is smooth. Sometime the display is smooth for 10 - 30 seconds. Other times, it goes from smooth to jerky and back randomly.

When GMPC's display disappears, the application is no longer in the task manager's Application window, but the process (QUE.exe) is still running. It then is using about 1/3 of it's origional memory.

If you stop the process, you can the restart GMPC.

Just a FYI ...

Brad in Gold Canyon

Ok - gotta ask. What's the easiest way to downgrade to 5.00.60? Uninstall everything, reinstall the DVD, then upgrade to .60?

Just reinstall .60 upgrade .

No events logged when the new 5.00.70 crashes. I would reinstall 5.00.60, but Garmin doesn't seem to make older versions available for download, or at least I cannot find it. Hopefully there will be a patch for this soon.

Luckily, I kept the original update from .5, .6 & now .7.

It's been about a year since version 5.00.60 was released, and I no longer have the installation file in my download folder. I must have deleted it long ago.

But it doesn't bother me too much. I can (temporarily) live with the one or two crashes a day. If this is an issue that affects more than just a few of us, Garmin may release a new version soon.

I spoke with Garmin's tech support this morning about the new update crashing. They are aware of the issue and have duplicated in-house. So, they know what's causing it. They said they were already working on a new update for it, which should be out soon because it is a major problem.

Great news malaki86. Thanks for the update!

Terry

Very good news! Thanks much, malaki86!

I am a newbie that started a thread asking questions about Garmin Mobile PC. Well I was going to order the 20x tomorrow but now I'm reading about 5.00.70 crashing. I'm leaving on a month long trip and want to make sure this thing runs right, right out of the gate. I just ordered a new Dell laptop which should arrive in a couple of days. Main reason I purchased the laptop was for the GPS. So you can see my concern about it running correctly. Not withstanding any "normal" inherent problems that has been mentioned on the forum.

My question is: when I place my order with GPScity I wanted to make sure that it is the 2010 version I would be receiving and not the 2009 as I was told on here to look for. I was told that GPScity went the extra mile to check and tell the person what version it was that they were stocking and contacted him back to tell him the answer it was the 2010 version. GPScity confirmed the stock on hand was the 2010 version. NOW my next question. If I order the 2010 Version from them will it already have the 5.00.70 or the previous 5.00.60? Even if I ask them I don't think they could answer my question. Does anyone know if Garmin is shipping the bundle with the 60 or 70 version? Anyone know how I can BE SURE I get the 2010 with 5.00.60

I highly respect the info I receive from the members on this forum.

Thanks
Chuck

I can not guarantee that GPS City will have the 2010 map version but 5.00.70 was only released last month and is unlikely to be on the DVD version.

Terry

Hey Chuck,

As Terry said, it's nearly impossible that it would come with 5.00.70. But it doesn't matter. If by some incredible bit of magic it comes with 5.00.70 it's dead simple to install 5.00.60. All you need to do is run the 5.00.60 installer and it's done.

If you check immediately afer installation and discover it's 5.00.70 just holler and we'll make sure you can download the 5.00.60 installer from somewhere to revert it right away. I have every update installer Garmin has released.

...ken...

If you have trip coming up, isn't it time you just bit the bullet and ordered whatever program you've decided on. All this waffling is cutting into your time to get comfortable with the software. That is way more important than worrying about some minor problems which may (or may not) affect you!

Terry

Even if you *DO* get the .7 version, if it crashes, it's very easy to restart it. Simply kill the running que.exe process in the task manager and then run Mobile PC again. It'll pick up right where it left off. Takes all of a couple seconds. I even created a shortcut on my desktop to kill the process for me without opening the task manager.

If you need to do this, create a new .bat file, and add this line to it: taskkill /IM que.exe /F

Make a shortcut for that bat file on your desktop and you're set.

malaki86, I love that workaround! You should pass it on to Garmin.

Terry

heheh - it definitely comes in handy. when it takes a dump, simply do a quick double-click on the "Kill Garmin" shortcut, then restart it - takes all of a few seconds.

You've likely already ordered it but just letting you know that I received the Garmin Mobile PC with GPS 20x from gpscity.ca yesterday and it is still version 5.00.60. Came with the CN North America 2010 NT map data with a free update to .40. There is a month expiration date for the free upgrade download however.

I also upgraded to 5.00.70...opened it up and experienced just a black screen. Went back to version 5.00.60 after that....now everythings working great.

Hi all,
I got my Garmin Mobile PC pack last Monday with a GPS 20x refurbished, bought from eBay.
It came in version 5.00.60 but with City Navigator 2009. Registering my device on Garmin website I saw that I have a map update to 2010 for free.
Starting the update process, GARMIN told, my device is already registered and no chance for download
All the best Tom

Hi Tom,

:welcome: to Laptop GPS World.

Here's a similar story: http://www.laptopgpsworld.com/3121-refurbished-garmin-mobile-pc-any-good

Hi Marvin,

Thanks for the warm welcome.
In this case here I have used a workaround. In MapSource I already used the 2010 map, I saved the card to an USB stick and stored the GPSMAPP.img directly into the GMPC folder of my notebook. So it works and and I don't need the update from the Garmin Website...

Best regards
Tom

I'm on the phone with Garmin right now. They're telling me that there are no reported issues of the .70 version crashing, nor has there ever been any. They also said there are no plans for an updated .70 release.

It is very easy to reproduce. Just create a route and simulate it. Give it a large enough route to last for two hours and it will crash every time. I tried it over a month ago and reported it to Garmin via their email reporting system.
Sticking your head in the sand doesn't make it good or even usable software.
And we waited over a year for this UPDATE.
Keep it up Garmin and someone is going to come along and eat your lunch. Remember Lotus, Aston Tate, Wordperfect?

Brad in Moab, UT for the moment ...

Give Garmin a call on this - 1-800-800-1020, option 5 for Mobile PC support.

Also, they know about this exact thread as the tech guy I talked to told me he was reading it while I was on the phone with him - yet no one else has this problem...

I phoned Garmin Product Support about this yesterday. Received a very non-commital answer from the tech when asked if this was a known problem...

However..., I did receive an e-mail from him later saying that they are trying to get people to help them out by submitting the error log from Mobile PC.

If you would like to submit yours, here's what to do:
Start/Run and at the prompt, type in %appdata% Then click on the Garmin folder and open Mobile PC. You will see the ERRLOG file. Send a copy to productsupport@garmin.com c/w your contact info, serial number of product, version and a brief outline of the problem.

BTW, they are aware that this thread is running...

I just had a similar response from product support by email that they could sure use the error logs. So anyone who has had a crash please do email the logs to Garmin. It sounds like they could use all the data they can get on the problem.

Just to add a tip to the instructions in resophil's, when you see the ERRLOG.txt file you can easily email it by just right-clicking on the file, click "Send To" and click "Mail Recipient". That will pop up a new email window with the file already attached so you can just enter the address and the additional information.

...ken...

I've sent them about 50 error logs in the past week.

Great work, malaki86 . I'm unable to help, as I have reverted to the earlier version 5.00.60 because of this issue.

Arghhhhh - I wish they'd get this issue fixed...

Problem - I don't see a problem ...

I don't see Mobile PC on the screen either, but hey

Brad in Hill City, SD for the moment

This problem isn't limited to to .70, I'm running .60 on my Netbook and it does it too.

Never saw the problem (disappearing from the screen) on version .60, but I could reproduce to issue with .70 very easily. I'm back on .60 and have been for a while as I actually use GMPC when hurling down the highway in a 16 ton RV. Not a good time to be fiddling with my laptop trying to get my GPS to appear ....

Brad in Hill City, SD for the moment

My latest response from Garmin concerning the crashes/log submissions I've made:

This is my latest response:
It appears they have no intention of fixing this.

Brad in Hill City, SD for the moment

I recently took a 3600 mile trip and experienced this problem many times. First, I removed the .70 release. Running with the .60 improved things, but I still experienced the problem. Finally, I thought it might have ti do with the display power management. I kept increasing the time for the display to shut-off. Each time I increased it, MobilePC would keep working for a longer time. I then set it to the never option and could go for around 5 hours. This morning I upgraded to the .70 release and ran a 3 hour simulated route with no problems.
I am running windows 7. I think there might be a problem in how MobilePC interacts with the acpi power monitoring.

Hope this gives some insight to the problem. Maybe more of us should try increasing the display shutdown time to see what happens.

Dave E.

I've had power management disabled since day 1 on my laptop. That's definitely not what's causing the problem on my end.

I've got this problem since I started using Gpsgate and a wired GPS. I wonder if that's the issue, seems to be no problem with Bluetooth.

Mine's got so bad now that I've gone back to 5.00.30. It has drawing problems, but at least it doesn't crash.

Why did you go back that far? I only went back to 5.00.60.

...ken...

Main reason is it's reliable.

I called Garmin 2x this week about the crashing. The first tech I spoke to knew nothing about it crashing. The second one said he had heard of 1 or 2 people having this issue, but didn't know if it was being worked on or not.

This is after how many months?

My first report was in early March 2010...

Brad in Rapid City, SD for the moment

I forget when I made my first report, but I know it was within a couple of days of the update being released.

Hey All,

I am about to purchase the x20 pack as I need a permanent installation in my vehicle now.

Has the issues with .70 been sorted? I just upgraded my software only version to .70 and immediately Mapsource would not see GMPC anymore. So I make the .img file to thumb drive and copy it to the GMPC directory which gives me the maps on Garmin Mobile PC but as soon as you start browsing the map or zooming it freezes and you have to kill GMPC.

Can't get it to work at all

What version of Mapsource is best to use?

Cheers,
CRV.

Garmin has done nothing regarding any of the problems reported in 5.00.70. I did a followup with Product Support last week, asking for a status update on the trouble reports I've submitted. The response was, "Nothing new to report."

I also asked when we might expect at least a bug fix release, if not a real upgrade. Same response.

The only solution is to go back to 5.00.60.

The "best" version of Mapsource to use is probably the current release, 6.16.2 unless you have specific issues with something in it that would make an earlier version better for your particular needs.

...ken...

This info is for who is using GMPC 5.00.60 software only with 3rd party gps receiver (USB Serial or BT). 5.00.70 has a better and faster gps detection. so if your having trouble with slow gps detection you can use the dll files from .70 with .60. I had a problem when i downgraded from .70 to .60 with my gtop33 bt receiver, .60 would not detect it. The procedure is to copy these dll files from .70 to your .60 install.
QueApi.dll, QueBlue.dll, QueBluecom.dll, QueTosh.dll, QueBlueUSB.dll, QueBlueWin.dll. I am not sure if this would work with the hardware version of GMPC.
Hope this helps others as it did for me.

I can't see that 5.00.70 hardware version is any better at finding its GPS than 5.00.60. They both appear to have the same problem of scanning attached every second start up regardless of knowing I have a BT GPS. Testing it previously, I noted that the Disable and switch to BT worked with the software version whereas 5.00.60 ignored this request.

With the hardware version, the easiest way to get it to switch is select Disable then Enable.

Terry

Ignore my previous comments. We have just determined the Bluetooth detection problem we were experiencing with the hardware version of Mobile PC was due to our upgrade path. It probably doesn't affect normal users of this product.

If you use the hardware version of Mobile PC with a BT 10x GPS and do experience slow GPS detection often, check the registry at HKCU\Software\Garmin\Que. If there is an entry called 'Comport', delete it.

Terry

I'm starting to think that Garmin won't be releasing a patch for their obvious problem...

Hi my GMPC (5.00.7) does not crash and close, but instead if I zoom in too fast, or move the map too fast, it hangs. It shows than in the Task Manger not responding. Did any one experienced something similar?

Hi Varsrusks, and welcome to the forum. Your best bet is likely to just stay with the previous version of 5.00.60, which works just fine.

P.S. What maps are you using with your Garmin Mobile PC?

Hi!

I'm having the same problem. I just did a 6,000 km trip form Canada to Mexico, and Garmin Mobile PC cashed every 2-3 hrs. Anywhere I could find version 5.00.60?

Thanks

You can download it from here.

...ken...

I am using T4A maps, as well as Garmap SA.

Thanks

Thanks Ken

I have the same problem. Too bad this company can't take responsibility for their product.

People of the thread, thanks for all your hard work and also the download link for the 5.00.60 revert update. I will give that a shot. I'm going on a long road trip soon all across the US pulling a 35-foot trailer. If I have to deal with the constant crashing I'm going to mail their software back to them with a big **** included in the box. HAHA!

Here is an idea Garmin, how about when you come out with a whole new software build you mail it to us for free. Since we had to be your guinea pigs throughout this whole ordeal?
Ahhh only in an ideal world…

What would Ghandi do? lol

F350, the earlier version (5.00.60) is very stable (at least on my laptop). I don't recall a single crash, and I use it almost daily. But, yes, stay away from the current 5.00.70.

After my last discussion with Garmin support, I wouldn't expect to ever see this issue resolved. They basically told me that they've only had 1 or 2 complaints about it. Oh well - I just put CoPilot 8 on my laptop. I'll be putting it through it's paces starting next week. If all goes well (which I expect it to do), I'm done with ANYTHING Garmin. I won't even bother with their standalone products. If they can't support 1 product, why should I think they would support any of them.

Strange comments malaki86, after what you went through with ALK. Oh well, each to his own.

Terry

I know. It surprised me as well. But, when a company flat-out ignores major problems like this, well, it makes the other side not look as bad as they used too.

I know I am biased (a plethora of Garmin hardware and no less than 5 copies of GMPC) but I think you are concentrating on a minor issue. I also would like Garmin to come out with another stable version but really would like a new program altogether. Garmin is concentrating on the hardware line because that is where the money is so I'll wait.

Just like ALK had its sights elsewhere for all that time. Good things come to he who waits!

Terry

Well, it looks like Garmin has fixed THEIR problem without fixing ours.

They have discontinued Mobile Pc.

So how do I remove 5.00.70????

Just do a normal program uninstall for Windows. The 5.00.70 update is listed in the installed applications along with the normal installation of the non-updated full program.

Well, I just uninstalled v 5.00.70, and reinstalled v5.00.60, and all is running well now. Thanks for all your help on this matter.

Glad it worked for you and thanks for updating us on the status. It's always nice to know whether something works or not for the next time someone has a similar problem.

...ken...

I am running the software-only version of MobilePC 5.00.60g as provided on my installation disk. Was reading the changelog for 5.00.70 and there's a long list of bug fixes and improvements, so I'm thinking about giving it a try and test my luck.

If I upgrade and then later want to downgrade to my original version, what will be the easiest path? Can I just remove the program and re-install from DVD? Will that cause any issue with my product key, since the software version only allows installation on one machine?

Hi Boyd,

The easiest path would be not to install 5.00.70.

Haha, yeah you are probably right. I had actually forgotten that I was running 5.00.70 on my desktop machine in demo mode just to play with my own maps before purchasing. It does crash often, but I thought it might have something to do with not being properly installed from an original disk (you can run the update software by just extracting the files).

Nevertheless, I'd still like for someone to answer my question, in case I am foolish enough to try anyway.

As long as you just do an uninstall using Windows, the pertinent file for licensing will not be removed. It is located in the Users...Roaming...GarminMobilePC folder (Vista Win7) which is not touched during a Windows uninstall of GMPC. I can't remember which one of the NVM files it is though. You can then reinstall 5.00.60 from the DVD. Also, your license can be reused in 3-6 months even on another computer!

Terry

Fascinating - could you expand on that? If I get another computer, can I just install from the original DVD and use the same activation code? Can I also install on my desktop machine? What are the limitations of this, and does it involve contacting Garmin support or something?

The original license stated it could be installed again after 6 months ( I believe). I assume this was to cover moving the product or a failure of the computer. In my experience (I have 2 software licenses and multiple computers) this time frame seems to vary considerably. I have seen it as short as one month! It is based on when the Garmin database is reset and I don't know how that is determined.

You don't have to contact Garmin if it works. If it doesn't, Garmin will sometimes reset the database but I would assume this would effect other computers you have it on. I have never tried that. YMMV.

Terry

You don't have to completely uninstall Mobile PC to get rid of the update. Just go to the Add/Remove Programs and uninstall the update.

It's that simple.