6.02.003 niggles and Network Freezing

[RichyV1967]

Hi all,

Longtime SBS-1/Basestation  user (10+ years) and, knowing the software wasn't being updated (along wit Active Display due to the sad demise of its creator)  was looking for an alternative and was told Airnav do offer a Micro receiver which is very cheap.

The dongle is indeed as sensitive (if not more so!) than my SBS-1 and, better still, the Radarbox software offered me most of the info I get from both Basestation and AD all in one package - great.

I do have a couple of niggles though...
 1)When the software extracted and installed, the silhouettes mostly did not show - which turned out to be the name of almost 2/3 of them had been appended with '(1)' which isn't going to work, so I had to go through and manually delete the extra from the names.
 2)You cannot 'click' on aircraft in the radar screen to select the info of it.
 3) There doesn't seem to be a way to view the aircraft details list which will stop if from jumping all over the place each time the list is updated (there's no 'tracked time' which would keep newly found aircraft at the top and move those previously found down the list).

These are all just slight niggles though compared to the fact that I cannot enable the 'network' function. As soon as Radarbox downloads online aircraft data the whole application will hang (Not Responding) for about 15 seconds every 30 seconds. Neither the cpu or disk are maxed out and the rest of hte PC and applications respond fine - it's just Radarbox and, looking at Resource Manager (it occurs as soon as the 30 second download of online data completes.

If anyone has any pointers on the above, I'd be very grateful.

Using it offline is fine, but I'd like the option of using the online data if poss...

Over all I'm happy with the purchase as it was really so cheap, if I'm honest!

Thanks!
Richard

[Runway 31]

Hi Richard

I recommend that you downgrade to  V6.00.02.  The only difference with 6.00.03 is that it introduced the ability for the X-Range receivers to connect.  In doing so it introduced the bug responsible for 2).  You can get 6.00.02 here http://www.airnavsystems.com/download/ANRB/ANRB60002Setup.exe

No idea why you would get 1)

For 3 Clicking on the available Column header gives different option from standard.  For example as a database editor I look for aircraft with no details.  Clicking on Aircraft once bring all the aircraft with no ICAO code to the top and sorts the codes Alphabetically downward.  Clicking on it again sorts it from ZZZZ downwards.  I would imagine  Changed or Tracked may do what you require but try it out to see.

Regarding Freezing this is the software contacting the server every 20 seconds for updates and while it is contacting the server and downloading the new data for the network aircraft you can do anything until it has got the data, the plots and screen  details turn white during this time.  Seems it cant continue while it is downloading and processing the data at the same time, quite frustrating but after a few years you get used to it.
  You can see the counter counting down from 20 seconds beside the green network light.

Are you aware that the database is updated each day with all additions/deletions and amendments made during the previous 24 hours.  You can get it from File/Database Explorer/Database Update tab, tick all the tables then click Update all Records then Start Update.  The database downloads and is then part processed and when the processing is finished you as told to close down and restart and on restarting the processing is finished before start up is completed.

Hope that helps

Alan

[RichyV1967]

Hi Alan,

thanks for the explanations and the link...

I'm genuinely surprised users have put up with an application that hangs regularly, eventhough at no time does it take up 100% of any resources. But hey, it does work - it just means you cannot interact with it for several seconds out of every 30.

So, after installing the 'older' version (interestingly, it installs version number 6.01.001, not 6.00.002) this is what I've found:

1) the application now allows selection via mouse on the radar screen (as you said it would) - yay!

2) I now have a 'vertical height' indication screen below the radar screen that would not appear on the newer version I had!

3) I have now lost my ability to download live flights, and they are delayed by five minutes (i thought I had a years' free subscription to this by purchasing hardware?).

4) The 'Not responding" time is definitely shorter on this version that it was on the newer one.

Thanks again for the help - do Airnav still actively support (update?) the software do you know?

Cheers!
Richard

[EK01]

Afternoon Richard and welcome to AirNav.

If you want to get rid of the Vertical Height Indication Screen' that you mention in '2', click on Map, scroll down and untick Vertical Tracking View. By doing so you can reveal more of your map.

Ian

[Runway 31]

Hi Richard

Regarding a future upgrade, I expect there will be but who knows when, its on the to -do list

Its not hanging as such, just contact the server every 20 seconds for updates

Regarding the network flights, I have no idea if they still give that for the first year, [email protected] can advise

Alan

[RichyV1967]

Hi Alan,

no, definitely hanging - immediately after the update is sought and downloaded, that app completely hangs, for 10 seconds or so, with no interaction available ('Not Responding appears' in the title strip and mouse becomes 'busy' - only within the app though, not the pc itself).

It's definitely less time in the older version you sent the link to though.
This older version also has a working Vertical Indicator panel - the new one is just completely blank when applied.

Maybe the newer version just doesn't indicate the 5 minute delay then? The older version warns me, but not the new...

The subs are stupid-expensive, so that was always going to be a non-starter anyway.

As i said previously, coming from Basestation I had no network-based info anyway, so I'll be sticking to local data with these issues, it seems...

Thanks again,
Richard

[Runway 31]

I know that when you bought the original Radarbox you got a years subscription to the 5 min delayed network but no idea with the stick

I don't have any problem doing other things when it is busy with the download. 

Alan