garmin350 (searching for device)

not too good at this either but the POI loader should find your device.Have you updated anything on it previously , in other words did it find device and work before and now can't find it or is this the first time you are trying to enter POI's or update maps

1) Are you using a Garmin USB cord?

If not and one isn't readily available, try some other cords, for a digital camera or exteral hard drive...

Some cords do not employ all of the same data pins as the unit expects and requires.

2) Does the Garmin (per its screen) say it is in Mass Storage mode? This would be another symptom of not using a compatible USB cord.

3) My 705 Series manual points out:

and

So... let us know if any of the above might be the issue.

Then, if not, we can do some more trouble-shooting.

no I never updated,today was 1st time I tried anything. Also what is this poi loader,& where do I find it?Thanks in advance. I used a usb from my canon camera.I have a dell comp. with windows XP its about 4 or 5 yrs.old

where do I find these drives?

Download poiloader at http://www8.garmin.com/products/poiloader/ this is use to download your custom pois to your gps unit.
To get latest updates for you unit run webupdater http://www8.garmin.com/products/webupdater/
Custom pois
http://www.poi-factory.com/node/25721

It's the main screen of your desktop, "My Computer" just as you would find your camera when you plug it in, or a jump drive.

The fact that you state "it says searching for drive" implies it knows you plugged something into the USB port but it's not communicating. That implies the cord isn't sufficiently wired, not using all the pins that the GPS needs.

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POI Loader is irrelevent until you get connected. There's nothing it does that makes the connection work. It relies on the hardware being correctly connected... as does registering the GPS with Garmin or getting updates, new maps, or any of the extras they offer.

I wonder if this is due to Garmin USB drivers not having been installed. Can anyone say if installing the drivers below will allow the nuvi 350 to be seen on a Windows XP machine?

http://www8.garmin.com/support/download_details.jsp?id=591

It also may be the OP doesn't have a critical service pack installed. Just a thought.

PS--on your Windows XP machine, go to Control Panel, then to Add or Remove Programs and look alphabetically down in the Gs. You should see Garmin USB Drivers listed. If not there, that may explain why you can't connect your nuvi 350. Installing the Garmin USB drivers may fix this. On my computers that can connect to my two nuvis, I do see Garmin USB Drivers listed as having been installed on my computer.

Can anyone confirm this? I don't remember ever having to install them, so for most folks this must occur automatically. As much as I think this will fix the original poster's problem, I'll feel better if someone can confirm this. So I guess I'm saying: install the drivers at your own risk.

I didn't need to do so...

My 765 came with a Garmin built/approved USB cord and it booted up right out of the box.

I'm still thinking patch cord. If it saw devices that required special drivers, (I think) it would ask if you wanted to search the Net for them. The fact that it "sees" the devices but can't connect leads me to that conclusion, though it may be any of the other mentioned causes (except needing the POI Loader.)

Good idea.

Got in touch with garmin & was told to put usb port into back of comp. not into port on monitor Thanks

and was it successful?

I'm wondering if the monitor has USB 1.1 ports? I didn't think of that... and "we" have seen that problem before... some Garmins require they be attached to USB 2.0 ports.

I suppose OP came back to post the resolution to the problem.

I've seen an external USB hard drive having problem with WinXP Home PC when plugged in to the front USB ports (any front port won't work). Problem disappears when it's plugged in to the back ports. Go figure. Btw, they are all USB 2.0 ports.

And many Nuvi models, including the 350 use USB 1.1

found my answer with garmin.com.I had the usb plugged into my monitor, they said to use the back of the tower to plug in.thanks for all the suggestions

Your monitor ports may be operating as a hub. Not all USB hubs pass all the signals including power.