Troubleshooting Autodial in Windows Cardfile

• Microsoft Windows operating system versions 3.0, 3.0a, 3.1, 3.11
• Microsoft Windows for Workgroups versions 3.1, 3.11

SUMMARY

This article provides troubleshooting information for the Autodial feature in Microsoft Windows Cardfile. Autodial allows you to dial a number listed in a card by choosing Autodial from the Card menu or by pressing the F5 key.

The following topics are discussed:

• Configuring Cardfile
• How Cardfile Looks for the Number to Dial
• Dialing a Number with Fewer than Four Digits
• Maximum Length of a Number You Can Dial with Cardfile
• Telephone Number Formats That Cardfile Recognizes
• Picking Up the Phone Causes Disconnect
• Cardfile 3.0 Does Not Save Use Prefix Setting
• Cardfile 3.1 Saves and Uses Only the First Four Characters of the Prefix
• Cardfile Autodial Displays the Incorrect Phone Number When Using Go To
• Cardfile Err Msg: Unable to Dial Number
• Cardfile Err Msg: Cannot Dial the Number

MORE INFORMATION

Configuring Cardfile

If your modem does not make a connection when you use Autodial, there may be a problem with the COM port configuration settings. Try the following steps:

1. From the Card menu, choose Autodial.

2. Choose the Setup button.

   The settings should most likely be set to:

         Data Bits-8, Parity-None, Stop Bits-1
   

         -or-
   

         Data Bits-7, Parity-Even, Stop Bits-1
   

   If the COM port setting is 7 data bits and no parity, Autodial does not work. The only time parity should be set to none is if 8 data bits are being used. (To correct this setting, see step 3, below.)

   Autodial uses the Modem= and Prefix= settings in the [Windows] section of the WIN.INI file. For example:

         Modem=Com1,T,3
         Prefix=9-
   

   The Modem= parameters are COM(#) port; (T)one or (P)ulse; and Data Rate setting as follows:

         Setting    Data rate in bits per second (BPS)
         ---------------------------------------------
            0           110
            1           300
            2          1200
            3          2400 (default)
            4          4800
            5          9600
            6         19200
   
      The Prefix= setting is used for phone lines that need an external
      access number to dial out.
   
   

3. If the settings in the WIN.INI file are correct for your hardware but you still cannot make a connection when using Autodial, check the COM port settings in Control Panel:

   a. Run Control Panel.

   b. From the Settings menu, choose Ports.

   c. Select the appropriate COM port and choose the Settings button.

How Cardfile Looks for the Number to Dial

With Windows 3.0 and 3.1, when Cardfile autodials, it looks for the first number in the card with four or more digits. If the card contains a numeric entry with four or more digits that precedes the phone number entry, Cardfile attempts to dial that number.

To force Cardfile to dial the number you want, you can either put the phone number as the first line in the Cardfile data area or put the phone number in the Index.

Dialing a Number with Fewer Than Four Digits

Autodial does not recognize a phone number with fewer than four digits. This prevents it from detecting a portion of an address as a phone number.

If you want to use Autodial to dial a number with fewer than four digits, you can substitute hyphens for missing numbers.

For example, to dial a person in the same building whose phone number is 123, place the number in the card as -123. Autodial ignores the hyphen and dials the three-digit number.

Maximum Length of the Number You Can Dial with Cardfile

When using Autodial in Cardfile version 3.0 and 3.1, the maximum length of the number you can dial is 33 characters. The prefix cannot exceed four characters. If your number exceeds the character limit, try eliminating hyphens.

To dial a 33-character number, place the first 4 characters in the Prefix text box and the remaining 29 characters on the first line of the Card data area. Both the Prefix and Number should not contain non-numeric characters such as hyphens and parenthesis except those required by the modem, (a comma[,] for a pause).

Telephone Number Formats That Cardfile Autodial Recognizes

The Cardfile Autodial feature does not accept the following characters as separators in a telephone number:

• "/" (forward, or front slash)
• "\" (backward, or back slash)
• "." (period)
• " " (space)

Examples:

In the following format, Cardfile's Autodial ignores the area code:

   555/555-5555

Autodial also dials the following numbers incorrectly:

   555-555/5555