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BoxCar Pro for MacOS Read Me
BoxCar Pro 3.5d2 for MacOS Read Me 5/13/98
This Read Me contains important information regarding BoxCar Pro 3 for MacOS, updates, and information not covered in the BoxCar Pro 3 Manual.
Contents
•Disclaimer
•Registration
•System Requirements (UPDATED 5/7/98)
•Known Bugs (UPDATED 5/7/98)
•Version History (UPDATED 5/13/98)
•Technical Support
•Differences with BoxCar Pro for Windows (UPDATED 5/7/98)
•FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
Cant Connect To a Logger
Excel and Lotus Time Values
Older Versions of BoxCar, LogBook & Windows Compatibility
Viewing multiple channels (HOBO H8 family)
Showing Both Time and Date in Spreadsheets
• Tech Notes
Hobo Pro Users (NEW 5/7/98)
AppleTalk and Serial Ports
PowerBook and PowerBook Duo Users
Serial DMA (for users of System 7.5.0 to 7.5.3 only)
Time Issues
Dividing Up Large Export Files
BoxCar Pro for MacOS is an unreleased application that has been made available on the internet in its current, untested form at the request of customers who wish to use Onset's newest logger models on their MacOS computers. We are uncertain when or if it will become an actual product. This software is used regularly in-house at Onset Computer Corporation but it has not been through the rigorous testing of our Quality Department. Therefore, there are no guarantees associated with using this software. It should not be considered a "Finished Quality" application.
This version of BoxCar Pro for MacOS is free. BoxCar Pro for MacOS is free but is not in the pubic domain. Do not distribute this software to any third party, place it on a software collection web site or similar.
To use this Mac BoxCar Pro with Onset loggers you need:
• A PowerPC running MacOS System 7.5.x or later with 2 Megabytes of free
RAM. 3 Megabytes is suggested.
• At least one free serial port.
• An interface cable (Onset part number: CABLE-MAC-HOBO) between the Mac and logger and additionally, the Optic Base Station (Onset part number DSA) for Optic StowAways, Tidbits and Tidbit XTs.
Installation
Installing the BoxCar Pro Application
To install the BoxCar Pro application, simply pick a folder to put it and drag the application to that folder.
Connecting a logger to your computer
The logger is connected to your computer with a Mac-3.5 interface cable. It is designed to connect directly between a MacOS computers serial port (Modem or Printer) and the data logger. The interface cable must be connected to a working and free serial port. If the serial port is used for a modem or other device, the port might still be configured as such. Some MacOS computers may only have one serial port. If you run into trouble, consult your computers user manual on working with serial devices (such as Modems).
Set your clock and start BoxCar Pro
Before starting BoxCar Pro, make sure your computer's clock is set to the correct time because the logger will use your computer's clock to set its own internal clock. The clock can be set by going to the Control Panels folder under the Apple menu and selecting the Date & Time control panel. After the clock is set and installation is complete, you may then double click on the BoxCar Pro application icon to launch BoxCar Pro.
Below is a list of known bugs and workarounds. There are no known bugs that will cause any form of data loss in Logger/Plot Data. Most problems are user interface issues with the BoxCar Pro. Check the web site download page for updates. Please review this list before submitting any bug reports.
• Printing Landscape Mode does not print correctly. Workaround: Copy the graph or Export it as a PICT file and print it out in another application such as SimpleText.
• Values sometimes do not display nicely on the plot, especially when dealing with partial seconds. Workaround: Zoom in or out slightly.
• Possible memory leak that may show up as an out of memory error after extended use. Workaround: Restart the program.
• Zooming in extremely close or zooming out extremely far in the graph view may cause the application to crash.
• Does not work on 68K Machines yet.
• Alarms appear reversed on some loggers (such as temperature loggers).
3.5d2 5/13/98
• Fixed a problem using version 1.0 of the Appearance Manager found in MacOS8 in which menus would not display in launch dialogs.
3.5d1 5/7/98
• Added support for Hobo Pros.
• Added support for the Appearance Manager (if available).
• Fixed a memory leak when opening new plots.
• Added data archiving retrieval mini utility.
3.0d6 12/8/97
• Fixed a bug where the preferences would get corrupt when opening a datafile by double-clicking on it. Exports would no longer export correctly and clicking on the export setup dialog would crash the program. Corrupt preference files are now corrected. And double clicking on a preference file will no longer corrupt it.
3.0d5 11/26/97
• First Internet Release
Currently, technical support and bug reports for BoxCar Pro specific issues can only be offered to users who have registered on our web site. If you did not register and wish to email a support question, registration information can found on the page where the BoxCar Pro for MacOS application is currently posted. Please check the Known Bugs section of this Read Me before reporting a bug.
Tech Support questions for BoxCar Pro for MacOS: macsupport@onsetcomp.com
Differences with BoxCar Pro for Windows
Feature Differences between BoxCar Pro for Windows and BoxCar Pro 3 for MacOS
• The Interfaces are different but functionally similar.
• Graphing is different due to different plotting engines.
• MacOS version doesn't show Point Location
• MacOS version doesn't have Window Arrangement Functions.
• MacOS version doesn't have Datafile Logs.
• MacOS version doesn't have a Serial Cable Test
• MacOS version doesn't have Multi-File Exporting.
• MacOS version doesn't have an online help menu. (the electronic manual is available, however).
• MacOS version has HOBO Shuttle Launch Options that are not currently implemented in BoxCar Pro for Windows
• MacOS version has No Blink settings for the H6 and H7 models.
Cant Connect to a Logger, No Byte or Invalid Byte Received
Q: When selecting Launch or Readout, the software gives a message such as Cant connect to data logger. Invalid Byte Received. or something similar. What's wrong?
A: This is probably a serial port problem:
1. Make sure that the interface cable is pressed all the way into the jack on the Logger.
2. Mare sure you aren't connected to something other than your logger. If your modem lights are behaving oddly and it is taking a really long time to connect to the logger, you may be trying to launch or readout your modem (which wont work).
3. Make sure that the interface cable is connected to a working serial port. If the serial port was recently used for a network or a modem, the port may still be configured as such.
4. If you are still having trouble, make sure that there are no port conflicts with other software packages. Many terminal and facsimile programs can take control of one of the serial ports. Also, if AppleTalk is on it may tie up the Printer port (check the Chooser). If problems still persist, restart the Mac with the shift key held until No Extensions appears , this should temporarily remove any conflicting extensions.
5. Check the Tech Notes Section of this Read Me.
Excel and Lotus Time Values
Q: When I use the Excel or Lotus time format to export the data, there are large decimal numbers in the first column, for example: 34436.4687037. What are these numbers?
A: Spreadsheet programs use numbers called serial numbers to represent dates and times. These need to be reformatted into a readable form. The part to the left of the decimal point is the number of days from some date in the past, often January 1, 1900, and the fractional part represents the fraction of a day thereafter. In order to format this column please see the section on Export as Text Setup in the manual.
Older Versions of BoxCar or LogBook and Windows Compatibility
Q: Can a Logger that has been launched with an another version of LogBook or BoxCar be read out by BoxCar Pro for MacOS?
A: Yes!! BoxCar Pro for MacOS can currently read out any logger launched or open any datafile saved by any previous release of BoxCar or LogBook for the MacOS or Windows.
Q: Can Windows datafiles be viewed on a MacOS? Can MacOS datafiles be viewed by BoxCar Pro for Windows?
A: Yes. The file formats for datafiles are cross-platform. For Windows they must named having the .DTF file extension. For the MacOS the must be of Type: 0HbO (zero at start, oh at the end) Creator: HBSH
Using the PC Exchange Control panel, Datafiles created in Windows can be viewed on a MacOS computer. To do this,
• Open PC Exchange (a Control Panel under the Apple Menu)
• Click the Add Button
• Type .DTF in the Dos Suffix
• Select the BoxCar Pro for MacOS as the Application Type
• Select the Bag and Stick Icon 0HbO as the Document Type
Now any file copied to the MacOS from a PC disk or network having the .DTF extension should automatically be converted to the BoxCar Pro file type.
Viewing multiple channels (HOBO H8 Family)
Q: Can Multiple Channels of a Multi-Channel Logger be viewed at the same time with BoxCar Pro for MacOS?
A: BoxCar Pro for MacOS can not graph more than one channel per graph, there are three options for viewing multiple channels of HOBO H8 logger's data. The first is to switch back and forth from the different measurements using the Measurement Selection menu in the graphs Toolbar. The second is to open multiple copies of the same file. The
third is to Export all of the measurements of a datafile into a spreadsheet program and use that program's graphing capability.
Showing Both Time and Date in Spreadsheets
Q: My spreadsheet program allows either MM-DD-YY or HH:MM:SS for the possible time and date formats. What can I do to get both date and time?
A: Use the insert command in your spreadsheet program to insert a new column in the spreadsheet. Copy the column containing the time serial numbers to the column you have inserted. Use the formatting commands on your spreadsheet to format one as date: MM-DD-YY, and one as time: HH:MM:SS.
Two steps are needed to export a file from LogBook. First choose Export as Text Setup from the File menu to define the output format, and then use Export under the File menu to actually create the output file.
Tech Notes
Notes on issues not covered in the manual.
Hobo Pro Users
The Hobo Pro has a few of extra features that the other loggers lack
High Resolution Sampling:
To use high resolution sampling for a particular channel, make sure that you select the channel you wish to sample IN ADDITION to the "Added Resolution" channel immediately below it. Both channels must be selected.
When the logger is read out, both the high resolution data and the standard resolution data are stored. Be sure to select the High Resolution measurement in the Measurement Selection Menu to view the high resolution data.
Datafile Archiving:
The H08 can store up to an 8 datafile history of data in its memory. To access datafiles older than the last datafile, use the Retrieve Hobo Pro Datafile Archive menu item under the logger menu. This will bring up a console that will step you through the process of retrieving archived datafiles.
AppleTalk and Serial Ports
If AppleTalk is on and the Printer Port is setup as the AppleTalk port, you will not be able to use the Printer Port to launch loggers. If AppleTalk is on, the Printer Port is setup as the AppleTalk port, and you only have one Serial Port, you will not be able to launch loggers until AppleTalk is shut off. Go to the AppleTalk or Network Control panel to make sure that AppleTalk is not Off. AppleShare will also turn AppleTalk on. Go to the Chooser to see if AppleTalk is on when
AppleShare is selected, if it is. Turn it off and you may need to restart the computer. If you are using AppleTalk over the serial port, you can not use the logger with that port until you shut off AppleTalk.
Note to PowerBook & PowerBook Duo Users
There have been some conflicts with BoxCar Pro and Macintosh PowerBooks. Some PowerBooks have internal modems which take over the Modem port. If you are having problems communicating with the Loggers via the Modem port, make sure the Internal Modem is shut off in the control panels folder, or try restarting your Macintosh with no extensions (hold shift down during restart until "Extensions Disabled" is displayed).
If you have a PowerBook or PowerBook Duo that shares the Modem and Printer Ports, Both the internal modem (if available) and AppleTalk must be turned off in order for the port to work with an Onset Logger. The serial port must not be used by AppleTalk, fax/modem software or any other hardware or software device. Please see your user manuals for
these devices to learn how to free up your computer's serial (Modem and Printer Ports) port(s)
Serial DMA (for users of System 7.5.0 to 7.5.3 only)
This disk includes an extension from Apple Computer that may fix some communication problems that have shown up on a few of our customer's Power Macs. We have only seen this problem on three machines and it appears to be a problem related to Apple's system software modifications to the serial drivers on older PPCs.
Installation Instructions:
You must be using system 7.5 or later to use the SerialDMA extension. Install the SerialDMA extension located on this disk and reboot your Macintosh. If it does not work (if you still have trouble communicating with the loggers), please remove the extension (drag it out of your extensions folder) because it may cause conflicts with other applications.
Time Issues
When you Launch an logger with BoxCar Pro 3, it will reset the Logger's clock according to the current time inside the host computer (a MacOS computer in this case). If you launch a logger on one machine and read it out on another machine, the time that the logger was launched with is used to create the plot -- not the time of the computer during readout. BoxCar Pro will also reset a Shuttle's clock after every Shuttle Readout (or after a launch for the HOBO Shuttle).
It is VERY IMPORTANT that you make sure your host computer's current time is correct when you launch a logger or readout a Shuttle (or HOBO Shuttle Launch).
No compensation is done for travel across time zones, daylight savings time, etc. Nor is this compensation done when you do a delayed start. The loggers that have the ability to do a delayed start do not know when to spring forward or fall back and they do not know when they move across time zones.
Dividing up Large Export Files
Some spreadsheets cannot load in more than 16384 points (Microsoft Excel is one of these programs). If you have a datafile of more than 16384 points you can use one of the following methods to streamline the data
Options for dividing up exports:
If 16384 points are getting in...
Excel seems to have a limit of 16384 points. For 2K, 8K and 16K datafiles this isn't a problem. For 32K datafiles the datafile must be divided up.
• Check the "Displayed Points Only" option in "Export Setup..." under the "File" menu in LogBook. Then zoom into the first third of the plot, export, then zoom into the second third, export, then the final third, export. The exports should end up being less than 16384 points and can each be imported into excel for manipulation.
-or-
• Export the whole 32K datafile and split up the export file by opening it with a text editor that can handle large files. Save sections of the export as separate files and bring each half into excel. BBEdit is one such large text editor. BBEdit Lite is free and can be downloaded from...
http://hyperarchive.lcs.mit.edu/HyperArchive/Archive/text/bbe/bbedit-lit...
If less than 16384 points are getting in...
• Add more memory to Excel by selecting the application doing a "Get Info" (Command I) typing in a higher value in the "Preferred Size:" field.
-or-
• Use the split up procedures above.
