Digital Workshop

...I could get it to work.

Very simple, but extremely useful emergency notification system. Perhaps not for all, but our facility is small and doesn't have a good way to notify the local area of an evacuation...which is a real possibility in our industrial area. We send a person to each building with an air horn, but that is inconsistent and not as straightforward and reliable as one might like.

It occurred to me that a simple Opus background app could be written that could be set off or cleared from any computer. I've attached it so perhaps someone can tell me what dumb mistake is keeping it from working.

I was able to remote trigger successfully yesterday by SOME convoluted method, but failed to save whilst ahead (always a dumb Opus mistake) and cannot get it to work now.

What makes no sense is that the all copies are the same, and monitor the same directory for the variable via a ticker. It doesn't seem like it could fail, and perhaps that's the reason I cannot see why it isn't working.

I can watch the filed deleted and restored as I toggle the evacuate button, and the local copy responds, and I can monitor the directory on another machine and see the file come and go...but the ticker on the remote machine never seems to see the change.

This could be a VERY useful app. Any help would be appreciated!

Dave

PS - Update...have the remote trigger working and was a command sequence error, more "beginner" than "dumb" error. However, now I am trying to fix the "cancel' function which isn't responding. I expect the issue to be similar. Attachmend is updated accordingly and I am working on it. If you find it first, let me know as I am LAZY.

Okies, I have a working example for download. Improvements gladly accepted as I am sure there are better ways to do this. Our facilities safety supervisor just previewed and is totally PSYCHED.

Now, I'll be testing thoroughly and then figuring out how to expand such that the entire facility (fabrication shop, warehouses, and rig up yards) can be toggled collectively or individually. That won't be hard.

Then, add X-10 or RS-232 relays to sound horns.

Dave

PS - I am sure most here would understand this when looking at the code, but just in case make sure you understand you must create the directories and change the mapped drive path to whatever you want for this to work. It DOES work, so if you have a problem it's likely one of those issues.

Hi Dave,

Not sure if I'd trust my life to Opus but here are some ideas:

1. Store more data - such as the login name / machine name of the originating evacuate. This could be displayed on the other screen when the button is pressed thus alerting everybody to the source of the problem.

2. Hide the clear button until the evacuate button is pressed. Then you could either show it just on the station that triggered the alarm; and or log the data of the login / machine of the clear origin; and or include a master override.

3. Include a confirm button displayed when the evaluate is triggered. This would record user / machine / location where the confirm was pressed and alert others to which stations have not recognised the alarm.

4. Look at installing the program as a Windows service that restarts if terminated.

5. Look at a redundancy check that monitors the connection / active state. For example, have each client write back to the master file(s) every X minutes. The master program monitors changes and flags if a station is not up-dating data.

6. An INI or database would be better.



Mack

Thanks, Mackavi. I think all of your suggestions are excellent and will follow. As to trusting our lives to Opus it's more reliable than our current system of manual air horns...which remains if power or whatever fails. I am comfortable with it but several of your suggestions will make it even more reliable.

I have just paid for a pre-order for the Via APC board. Paul cautioned it might not have adequate power but the specs look more than adequate.

Anything in your list that would not be Opus Flash compatible aside from the Windows specific suggestions? While not a showstopper, as all freestanding computers here are running W7, I intend to use those Via APC on digital signage and want this to work there as well if possible.

That board is supposed to ship in July and I am anticipating it. One of my simple, but very useful sims, Refractometer, runs nicely on my Android phone and I don't anticipate anything more difficult than it for my digital signage app. AAMOF, I am thinking about beginning development of that app and using my phone to test while I wait. To be able to put up remotely addressable fully configurable signage at 150.00 or so per station is very exciting...

Dave

It's been a long day, but did I miss something - Opus Flex?

I'm afraid your project is not Opus Flex compatible at all :-! No reading and writing of files :-! And unless you're running in from a web server, local Flash has security implications for posting web data.

Like the look of the APC - though with a bare bones Q6600 lying idle, I'm not sure I should buy another board

Mack

Maybe I am having a "duh....drool" moment, but I don't follow you. Variables, read from disk, and such are available in flash and I'm not seeing anything I am doing as being beyond that. The notify via email function is only invoked by the originating station and that will always be a regular PC.

Minds been on other things today and perhaps I'm just not focused.

Dave

Hi Dave,

Maybe we're crossing wires, but the publication you posted uses the 'storage' set of actions to read / write data to disk - these are not available to an Opus Flex publication.

Mack

Yes, sir. Now that you rub my nose in it I see what you mean.

However, the main purpose of the Android experiment is digital signage and "write to disk" isn't an absolute requirment there...though it would make things easier.

As to triggering an alert to an APC, I remain optimistic there is a way to do this. One need not be able to trigger an alert from one of these signs, just have it reflect the condition and then cancel. The write to disk option was just one I used because it was the most straightforward way I could find to change a local variable, though I do not consider it "elegant" by any stretch. Once I have the APC in hand perhaps I can learn a bit more about it. As it has ethernet it must be capable of of some communication that can trigger an action.

Seems they are on schedule...I rec'd a preorder link today and did so.

Dave

Sorry 'bout the nose!

As it has an Ethernet connection, then you can try using Post Web Data to either use PHP to read / write server files or talk to a database.

Mack

Ah...I don't know anything about PHP but the talk to a database thing sounds promising.

Any reason Flex can't be set to watch a db and read from it on a change?
Dave

Yes, post web data would do that, though I've never had any call to use it with Flex, just Opus.

Mack

Sounds like the ticket. Will check it out when I have the time...

Thanks,
Dave

Database text input from remote PC to DB on network drive>text from DB to variables on Flex app>to formated text on running display

Is this viable?

I know it's simple, but so am I... .
Dave

You'd need a web server with a PHP / mySQL database combination....

Mack

If that's all, "POOF," its there... Any other issues?
Dave