Whatever the reason for a RAM pack getting an unexpected 'resize' and data loss, it's worth considering how to prevent it. The obvious advice of 'backup' is useless if the act itself causes the data loss! If the internal battery is too low, and the backup battery on the pack is also low (likely, given human nature, time, and circumstance), then power MUST be applied safely before any backup can occur, and plugging a pack to put the backup on it might be impossible without causing the event that triggers the data loss. If it does not, it might anyway the moment you try to write to a Flash or EPROM pack.
The risk is so complex, so hard to solve, and the stress of trying to avoid it is bound to hit when you most want that NOT to happen.
I've considered this at length, and come up with what I think is a definitive safe sequence of events.
First, consider a few things:
1. If RS-232 is plugged while powered, there may be damage, general advice is NOT to do this. Do not power any device till the line is firmly connected.
2. Even if damage does not occur, a PC will often cause a control line to wake up the Organiser the moment the link is plugged in. If the onboard power is very low, this might be enough to destroy RAM pack data.
3. Some Comms Links have 4 pins shorter than others, aimed at reducing risks like these during plugging and unplugging, but not all! Those based on new USB circuits and built into power adapters definitely do not have this protection.
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There is a safe sequence, and if it really matters to you, stick to this, rigorously:
Do NOTHING to the onboard packs. Leave them as they are.
With the Organiser AND the PC switched off entirely, connect the serial link. I doubt it matters which end first, but PC-end first gives you a system ground right from your first move. This could help reduce risk from small static discharges.
Connect power to the Comms Link, then start the PC. If this does not switch on the Organiser too, switch it on yourself from the keypad.
Launch ORG-Link and read the RAM pack to a file on the PC.
At that point you have safe salvage and can do anything you want with it.
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This was not just a plug for ORG-Link.
There is a specific reason for this advice. UNMAKE can only read a pack in Slot C. That sucks if your RAM pack is in Slot B because the LAST thing you want to do in this situation is swap packs, the RAM will probably die if you do that. As far as I know, ORG-Link is the only tool ever written that lets you choose the slot to read from. For critical salvage, that matters.