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My BDL16's & PM4's are installed in an inconvenient place under the layout, so being able to configure them without having to crawl under and push buttons seemed like a good idea.

(Another) Bob

--
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Bob Jacobsen (Bob_Jacobsen@..., 510-486-7355, fax 510-495-2957)

Thanks, Bob. That answers my question about why one would want to program a
BDL16.

Mike,

I read your message earlier but when I went to respond, Bill had
decided to remove it from my Hotmail inbox. Because of this I find
it necessary to respond here. Hope that's okay with you and the list!

The BDL16 (or BDL162 as it's now being sold as) has a very limited
set of programmable features. Some of those which may be of interest
to you are;

- Set up for operation with direct home wired layouts or common rail
wired layouts

- Detection sections show occupied when zone power is off or no
forced occupied detection when zone power is off

- Allow this BDL16 to be the master or do not allow this BDL16 to be
master

- Use regular threshold sense DCC occupancy (approx 22 kohms
minimum) or high threshold sense DCC occupancy (approx 10 kohms
minimum)

- Make all option switches factory default

Hope this helps. If you wish more detail, please feel free to email
me off-list. Hopefully Bill won't object this time.

Bob

Bob,

No apology required. Like you, we all have many priorities in our
life. Sometimes those that rank highest aren't always the ones we'd
like to take on first.

Found a slight problem on the BDL16 Programming Screen. The buttons
are labelled "Read from PM4" and "Write to PM4" instead of "Read from
BDL16" and "Write to BDL16"

The Digitrax DZ121 appears to be listed in the wrong group? It has
BEMF, which cannot be addressed from it's current group. I've an
email around here somewhere that describes it's features. I'll try to
find it and post it for reference.

I've still a few other features to check out but so far so good.

Bob

First, my apologies for being so hard to reach recently. I've been pretty busy, and in the time I've got available for this project I've been focused on getting ops-mode programming done.

While working on some configuration tools, I uncovered some things that I really needed to clean up. That took a little time, but in the long run I thought it'd be clearly worthwhile. Those of you who're using the code directly should probably update from CVS.

I've uploaded a _test_ version of 1.0.7 that includes:

New PM4 and BDL16 programmers in LocoTools/JmriDemo

Fixes to the turnout icons, sensor icons in control panels

New Zimo, ESU decoder files courtesy Sip Bosch. Also, new
programmer format files for these form Sip. (It would be
good to merge them back with the Comprehensive panel
so we don't start to get too many formats. Any volunteers?)

Fix to configuration support to handle changing a port name.
Previously, if you move a config file to a machine where the
configured port wasn't present, you'd be unable to write a
corrected file.

Add proposed NMRA-standard items for max current, voltage, etc
to decoder file format.

LocoNet monitor now understands additional messages.

Ops-mode programing for LocoNet protocols via both the
"Simple programmer" and the DecoderPro paned programmers.


I ran into some problems with ops-mode programming on NCE and EasyDCC, and those will take a little more time. And there are two high-priority changes that did _not_ get into this update: (1) Smaller speed-table fonts for Macintosh and (2) change how the programming-mode selection looks. But this update is already 9 days overdue, and I wanted to get the ops-mode update where people could start to look at it over the weekend.

Even more than usual, this is a _test_ version. There are extensive changes to the underlying programming mechanism, and it's quite possible I broke something. Please keep an eye out for bugs and let me know (via the jmriusers group, if possible) when you find something broken.

The Windows installer is at:



A .zip file containing the update for use on Macintosh (X or classic), OS/2 and Linux is available at:



Please let me know if you want one for another machine type.

Bob
--
--------------
Bob Jacobsen (Bob_Jacobsen@..., 510-486-7355, fax 510-495-2957)

Thanks Jon & Robin for the explanation of PR-1.

Jim Hanna

Hi Jim. The PR1 is a Digitrax product that allows you to connect a PC
directly to a programming track. Basically what happens is PC software
generates the DCC waveform and the PR1 boosts it to the required voltage
levels. No command station required. I had one on my layout, but once
DecoderPro came along I stopped using it.

Robin

Robin Becker
Tucson, AZ
D&RGW Model Railroad Layout

Digitrax sells the PR-1 which is a hardware device that connects to a
computer. Others write software which will program an engine on a separate,
stand alone, track. Good idea that works some/part of the time. Works on
limited computers depending on their design. Works only with Windows OS.
The DOS software hasn't been updated in over a year and to my
understanding will not be.
The Windows software is part of another software system which I know
little about. It works alone but I have never liked it and compared to
DecoderPro is, well, ****!
It was a try at programming without a command station available.
Digitrax now has a statement that if you can't get it to work they will
refund the hardware (PR-1 plug) cost. It has driven a lot of really nice
guys nuts<VBG>.

Jon Miller
AT&SF
For me time has stopped in 1941
Digitrax DCC owner, Chief system
NMRA Life member #2623
Member SFRH&MS

Jon Miller
AT&SF
For me time has stopped in 1941
Digitrax DCC owner, Chief system
NMRA Life member #2623
Member SFRH&MS

Forgive me, but what is PR-1?

Jim Hanna
El Cajon, CA

Will Decoder Pro work with PR-1 yet<

No.

Jon Miller
AT&SF
For me time has stopped in 1941
Digitrax DCC owner, Chief system
NMRA Life member #2623
Member SFRH&MS

I know this question has prolly been answered before but I can't
seem to find it in the archives.

Will Decoder Pro work with PR-1 yet and if so are there instructions
on how to set it up?

Ken

Claudio:

Go to and click on "new manual" and it will answer all your questions.

Good Luck,

Jim Hanna
El Cajon, CA

Hi all:

I am new user of JMRI.

Have a NCE System, lot of Digitrax decoders, some Lenz and few Zimo.

1) Some body tell me step by step how to use the software with NCE
system? Need use it on "Use program track" mode?

2) I heve 2 Lenz LE080XS, JMRI support this decoders?

Thanks in advance
Claudio Botello
Santiago, CHILE

--- In jmriusers@y..., jerry snyder <jerrys@c...> wrote:

Hummmm! There are some good ideas here, but I am having trouble
conceptualizing your configuration.

I think you have a box with the locobuffer inside and a piece of track on
the outside (top.) The PC has a serial cable to the Locobuffer and the
locobuffer has the telephone cable to the loconet. The loconet eventually
goes to the Command station. The command station has two outputs, one for
the running track and one for the programming track. I guess these two
outputs go back to your box the end terminals of a DPDT switch and the
center 'blade' terminals are wired to the track on the top of the box. So
do you have a serial cable, Loconet cable and two pairs of track power
wires going to your box?

I like that.

Yeah... but it won't work very well without a power input, too. <<grin>>

Since a picture is worth a thousand words... here's a photo of what it looks like:



(That's a REALLY long link - if it gets broken, just go to:



It's in the album there.

Hummmm! There are some good ideas here, but I am having trouble
conceptualizing your configuration.

I think you have a box with the locobuffer inside and a piece of track on
the outside (top.) The PC has a serial cable to the Locobuffer and the
locobuffer has the telephone cable to the loconet. The loconet eventually
goes to the Command station. The command station has two outputs, one for
the running track and one for the programming track. I guess these two
outputs go back to your box the end terminals of a DPDT switch and the
center 'blade' terminals are wired to the track on the top of the box. So
do you have a serial cable, Loconet cable and two pairs of track power
wires going to your box?

I like that.

At 07:07 AM 9/18/2002 -0400, you wrote:

Jerry-

I put mine in a box, too... however, I took a tip from the setup at the
club (Orlando N-Trak) and used the same project box as the PR1. There's a
piece of track on top, and it's wired to the LocoBuffer inside. I also
drilled holes for the LEDs, took them off the board, and wired them up so
they could be seen from outside the box. I also added a DPDT switch that
lets me go back and forth between "Program" and "Run" on the same track, so
I don't have to move the locomotive. It saves a lot of hassle, especially
when you're fine-tuning lighting effects... and when Bob gets OPS mode
programming working, it'll be even easier.

jerry snyder
Orlando, FL

Date: Mon, 16 Sep 2002 23:35:44 -0400
From: jerry snyder <jerrys@...>
Subject: Re: timeout on command station

Thanks for the troubleshooting advice. I got cute and installed the
locobuffer in a Radio Shack plastic project box. And the set up is at the
club layout. Tomorrow I will remove the box cover so I can see the LEDs
and I'll post the results.

Cheers

Jerry-

I put mine in a box, too... however, I took a tip from the setup at the
club (Orlando N-Trak) and used the same project box as the PR1. There's a
piece of track on top, and it's wired to the LocoBuffer inside. I also
drilled holes for the LEDs, took them off the board, and wired them up so
they could be seen from outside the box. I also added a DPDT switch that
lets me go back and forth between "Program" and "Run" on the same track, so
I don't have to move the locomotive. It saves a lot of hassle, especially
when you're fine-tuning lighting effects... and when Bob gets OPS mode
programming working, it'll be even easier.

Dave:

Mark G. has said it in a most comprehensive way that this is indeed an advanced type list and not especially useful to the casual observer or one who intends on staying in the DC operations mode. However, as one who is pretty computer "stupid", I can second Mark's advice that you "hang in there" and definitely go ahead with your plans to implement a DCC system, whether it be NCE or some other choice. As soon as you are up and going and program your first decoder, all this "stuff" will start to miraculously fall into place. And the best part of it all is that Bob Jacobsen and Mark G. and all these other guys can and do offer their help anytime you may need it. All of us users of the DecoderPro program are NOT the super computer literate types that you might expect and we do call on Bob et.al. when we have problems.

Good Luck,

Jim Hanna
El Cajon, CA

Thanks for the troubleshooting advice. I got cute and installed the
locobuffer in a Radio Shack plastic project box. And the set up is at the
club layout. Tomorrow I will remove the box cover so I can see the LEDs
and I'll post the results.

Cheers

At 07:53 PM 9/16/2002 -0700, you wrote:

A timeout error generally means that the computer (DecoderPro) is not
talking to the unit on the test track.
1) Is LED D1 on ON the LocoBuffer?
2) Is the DCS100 ON?
3) When you open the programmer and try a read does D2 on the LocoBuffer
flash as data is being sent to the programming track?

Sometimes I like to open the LocoNet Monitor under DeBug and watch the
traffic on the LocoNet.

Jon Miller
AT&SF
For me time has stopped in 1941
Digitrax DCC owner, Chief system
NMRA Life member #2623
Member SFRH&MS

jerry snyder
Orlando, FL

A timeout error generally means that the computer (DecoderPro) is not
talking to the unit on the test track.
1) Is LED D1 on ON the LocoBuffer?
2) Is the DCS100 ON?
3) When you open the programmer and try a read does D2 on the LocoBuffer
flash as data is being sent to the programming track?

Sometimes I like to open the LocoNet Monitor under DeBug and watch the
traffic on the LocoNet.

Jon Miller
AT&SF
For me time has stopped in 1941
Digitrax DCC owner, Chief system
NMRA Life member #2623
Member SFRH&MS

Jerry:
I'm having the exact same problem, please let me know what you did. I just built my locobufer from a kit and have not gotten it to read a decoder on the test track.

Bill