Pluugging nuvi 3970T Into Laptop

I never fix things that are not broken.

At some point the 3790 did get disconnected from the PC without being 'safely removed' or 'eject' properly. The message your getting will continue to appear until you fix the problem causing the error.

There is no harm in selecting (1) "Scan and fix (recommended), believe me I have done it many times. This will correct the error in the file system, which in my experience results in a small 64kb file being written to the root of the Nuvi's internal storage.

The file that's created by the scan will be called FOUND.00X, where X is a consecutive number as there is a new file created each time you run the scan. You can use Windows Explorer to delete any and all FOUND. files as they are of no value to the operation of the Nuvi.

Once you let Windows do the scan and find the error the message will no longer appear when you plug the Nuvi into the PC, as long as you properly 'safely remove' or 'eject' the GPS each time.

Thanks for the help.
Greatly appreciated
Jim

I had the exact same situation. What happened in my case, like the op stated, I said go ahead and fix. From the pc perspective all was fine. BUT when disconnected and turned on the 3790 came up with a message that stated there was a problem with my maps. If I gave it an ok, the message did go away and I was able to access and use my maps. The only problem, for me, was that message coming up each and every time I powered the unit on.
Contacted Garmin and spent at least a couple of hours on the phone with 2nd and 3rd level support. They gave up and sent me a new one.
With the 3790 you, apparently, need to wait a bit after loading new poi's and then disconnecting (without using the 'safely remove' button). So doing that I now have the message when plugged into the pc about problem with some files. At this time I am gun shy and will just ignore it.

So, I cannot say what will happen with your unit, but that is what is going on with mine.

You have to remember that a NUVI is like having a PC with a hard drive. Take care of it and it will last.

I have to wonder if there's any functional difference between using safely remove HW vs ejecting HW.

On my 1690 with Windows 7/64, I've found that if I use safely remove HW and leave the nuvi connected via USB, the nuvi stays in data mode but disappears from Windows Explorer.

If I eject (right click and choose eject) the 1690, it goes into normal operation but continues to be charged by the USB cable. It also disappears from Windows Explorer.

Does the 37xx operate the same way? I wonder if you eject the 37xx if it will boot up to the standard operating screen like my 1690 does?

The 3790T just shuts off when you safely remove it. When you eject it, it disappears from Windows Explorer but the Nuvi screen does not change, it stays at the Garmin Logo with the Nuvi attached to PC. Pulling the cable at this point and the Nuvi shuts off.

Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit