Uwatec dive computer & Apple Macintosh

I have both and am keen to get them talking. Does anyone have any experience
of doing this?
Can I use the Uwatec Datatrak under PC emulation or am I going to have to
settle for some Mac software?

Any help gladly appreciated.

Whizz Kid left this mess on Sun, 21 Sep 2003 18:00:43 +0100 for The Way to clean
up:
>
>
>I have both and am keen to get them talking. Does anyone have any experience
>of doing this?
>Can I use the Uwatec Datatrak under PC emulation or am I going to have to
>settle for some Mac software?
>
>Any help gladly appreciated.

VPC should work fine, unless you're running anything higher than OS X 10.2.4,
where the Classic
environment is no longer loading. That might be the problem. VPC hasn't got the
bugs out of that
emulator yet.

Tao te Carl

"It takes a village to have an idiot." - Carl (c) 2003

Whizz Kid <lazatek@hotmail.com> wrote:

> I have both and am keen to get them talking. Does anyone have any experience
> of doing this?
> Can I use the Uwatec Datatrak under PC emulation or am I going to have to
> settle for some Mac software?

First of all, please don't post in HTML.

Here is a link to what I have found on software for the Mac.

http://www.macintouch.com/scuba.html

Perhaps someone on the UK list would be able to add to these source.

Cheers,

--
Matt
matt@gol.com

devalois@nailedandused.com stopped playing nethack just long enough to say:
>
>VPC should work fine, unless you're running anything higher than OS X
>10.2.4, where the Classic environment is no longer loading. That might
>be the problem. VPC hasn't got the bugs out of that emulator yet.

Eh? I'm been running VPC 6.02 on a G4 tower (Dual 450) under OS 10.2.6,
with no problems to report so far. My son also uses it on his laptop
(700 MHz G3 iBook with the same software setup) for some of his
schoolwork, and he hasn't mentioned any problems either.

What "bugs" still need to be worked out?

-JimG

--
Jim Greenlee (jkg@cc.gatech.edu) Let the bridge computer speak
College of Computing LOAD YOUR PROGRAM! I AM YOURSELF!
Georgia Tech, Atlanta, GA 30332 No computer stands in my way

Jim.Greenlee@cc.gatech.edu left this mess on Sun, 21 Sep 2003 22:24:13 +0000
(UTC) for The Way to clean up:
>
>devalois@nailedandused.com stopped playing nethack just long enough to say:
>>
>>VPC should work fine, unless you're running anything higher than OS X
>>10.2.4, where the Classic environment is no longer loading. That might
>>be the problem. VPC hasn't got the bugs out of that emulator yet.
>
>Eh? I'm been running VPC 6.02 on a G4 tower (Dual 450) under OS 10.2.6,
>with no problems to report so far. My son also uses it on his laptop
>(700 MHz G3 iBook with the same software setup) for some of his
>schoolwork, and he hasn't mentioned any problems either.
>
>What "bugs" still need to be worked out?

Apparently, there have been some issues about the speed it runs at. Here's a
link to the discussion on Apple.com

http://discussions.info.apple.com/We...LD.2@.5999c360

Tao te Carl

"It takes a village to have an idiot." - Carl (c) 2003

devalois@nailedandused.com stopped playing nethack just long enough to say:
>
>Apparently, there have been some issues about the speed [VPC] runs at.

It's an emulator - of course it's slow. I don't really consider that a
"bug".

It seems to work for most things though (a situation whcih I expect
will change now that Connectix has been bought by Microsoft).

-JimG

--
Jim Greenlee (jkg@cc.gatech.edu) Bad: Play a Windows CD backward, and
College of Computing you get a satanic message. Worse: Play
Georgia Tech, Atlanta, GA 30332 it forward, and it installs Windows!

On Sun, 21 Sep 2003 22:24:13 +0000 (UTC), Jim.Greenlee@cc.gatech.edu wrote:

>Eh? I'm been running VPC 6.02 on a G4 tower (Dual 450) under OS 10.2.6,
>with no problems to report so far. My son also uses it on his laptop
>(700 MHz G3 iBook with the same software setup) for some of his
>schoolwork, and he hasn't mentioned any problems either.
(I take it that VPC is a software emulation as opposed to
a physical PC on a card for the following..)

Time domain problems exist with the datatrak software, less with
the new memomouse interface, but many users like the DIY cable
which requires using the old DOS version, which depends heavily on
timing loops. The memomouse version is full up Win32 API application
made with Borland Delphi. I don't know what VPC includes but it
needs a Windows Win32 OS for a start if it's going to run DataTrak.
If you are going to run the DOS version, very precise timing is
necessary, as well as perfect emulation of 8250 UART, 8259 PIC, and
probably the 8253 timer. Byte sex problems may appear, since the uwatec
products stream data in big-endian order, but with the bits in
backwards order.

A secondary issue for "Macs" lay in the serial port. I don't know diddle
about new macs, but old ones had DIN connectors instead of DB-9 and
converters can't supply missing signals. Beyond that, Win32 API apps
communicate with a virtualized 16550 UART device supplied by the
device driver which manages the real hardware. Configuring that, by
itself, in time-critical applications is tricky enough in a multi-threaded
environment...Add a layer of emulator emulating the x86 platform, and WinOS
virtualizing an emulated physical device and the road to ruin has a
map.

"bug" is probably not the word for it.

IIRC, nobody has had much luck in this endeavor.

safe diving,

bullshark

Got DotDet? http://www.go-mono.com
You *will* be assimilated, resistance is futile.

In article <5t4umvs92hg1r0d7ffb6qasd17pnlcefci@4ax.com>, bullshark
<bullshark@scubadiving.com> wrote:

#On Sun, 21 Sep 2003 22:24:13 +0000 (UTC), Jim.Greenlee@cc.gatech.edu wrote:
#
#>Eh? I'm been running VPC 6.02 on a G4 tower (Dual 450) under OS 10.2.6,
#>with no problems to report so far. My son also uses it on his laptop
#>(700 MHz G3 iBook with the same software setup) for some of his
#>schoolwork, and he hasn't mentioned any problems either.
#(I take it that VPC is a software emulation as opposed to
#a physical PC on a card for the following..)
#
#Time domain problems exist with the datatrak software, less with
#the new memomouse interface, but many users like the DIY cable
#which requires using the old DOS version, which depends heavily on
#timing loops. The memomouse version is full up Win32 API application
#made with Borland Delphi. I don't know what VPC includes but it
#needs a Windows Win32 OS for a start if it's going to run DataTrak.
#If you are going to run the DOS version, very precise timing is
#necessary, as well as perfect emulation of 8250 UART, 8259 PIC, and
#probably the 8253 timer. Byte sex problems may appear, since the uwatec
#products stream data in big-endian order, but with the bits in
#backwards order.
#
#A secondary issue for "Macs" lay in the serial port. I don't know diddle
#about new macs, but old ones had DIN connectors instead of DB-9 and
#converters can't supply missing signals.

All G4 and newer Macintoshes don't use serial ports. All of the
functions of the serial port and apple desktop bus have been taken over
by USB ports.



Beyond that, Win32 API apps
#communicate with a virtualized 16550 UART device supplied by the
#device driver which manages the real hardware. Configuring that, by
#itself, in time-critical applications is tricky enough in a multi-threaded
#environment...Add a layer of emulator emulating the x86 platform, and WinOS
#virtualizing an emulated physical device and the road to ruin has a
#map.
#
#"bug" is probably not the word for it.
#
#IIRC, nobody has had much luck in this endeavor.
#

Agreed. If you really want a downloadable profile of your dive (along
with a decent log book) and want to stay in the Mac world, the best
solution is Reefnet's Sensus.


Alan

On 21/9/03 6:00 pm, in article BB9397CB.20314%lazatek@hotmail.com, "Whizz
Kid" <lazatek@hotmail.com> wrote:

> I have both and am keen to get them talking. Does anyone have any experience
> of doing this?
> Can I use the Uwatec Datatrak under PC emulation or am I going to have to
> settle for some Mac software?
>
> Any help gladly appreciated.
>
>

Well thanks to you all for the advice.

It's been about a year, and since then the Gods at Uwatec have updated the
DataTrak software to a 32 bit environment. This had passed me by.
Using a Keyspan high speed serial adaptor I had and Virtual PC I
successfully downloaded everything from my Air Z Nitrox.
How happy am I?

VERY

Thanks all.

Happy diving.

JKB