Edit: 2/4/2015
This thread is for the Original version of my software that I am no longer working on.The thread for the new version can be found here:
http://www.wxforum.net/index.php?topic=24359.0For the latest on whats going on check the new thread.
You can also visit the website for the new version:
www.addinwx.netThanks all,
Josiah
Hello WXforum,
About 3 years ago we purchased our first real weather station (an Ultimeter 2100 from PeetBros with pro sensors) and shortly thereafter started looking at software to interface to it. What we were looking for was something that would display the data in a nice/easy to read way while still having a few good features. We started with the "WeatherText Tools" software that came with the Station then moved to software (Of which i don't remember the name of) that was originally available at N3FJP's website back in 2010. We then tried "Weather Display" and "Cumulus" neither of which we liked. After that we tried 3 or 4 other pieces of software before finally giving up. Our biggest complaint with the existing software was that they either didn't display the Station data very well or the configuration was at best a complete mess.
Being relatively new to programing at that time I started working on my own software to interface to our Station and since then it has evolved into this (see attached screenshots).
Here is a rundown of some the features:
It supports the following Weather Stations:
PeetBros. Ultimeter models 2100, 800 and 100 (2005 and later)
Davis Vantage Vue, Pro and Pro2.
Other Features include:
CWOP and WUnderground Uploads.
Weather station Data Logging (Currently no way to see the logged data, waiting for a brain storm on a good way to display it.)
And a Text-To-Speech engine. (Activated by tapping the Space key.)
Networking: (You can have it connected to a weather station with one PC then view the station data from software running on other PCs connected via LAN, and I think it will work over internet assuming port-forwarding is configured. Haven't had a chance to try this though.) This has been temporarily disabled. (I want to rethink how I want it to function.)
I would like to add support for more stations but my budget doesn't allow me to purchase any more. This is where I need your help, I'm looking for beta testers, suggestions and any information you guys can provide me with to make this even better.
Here's a Download Link for those who want to give it a try.
https://app.box.com/s/1wmunmzt5awgyu18tl9wIt Does require the
Microsoft .NET Framework 4 Client Profile which can be found here:
http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=24872If your unsure of which version of the .NET Framework you have, Try this:
https://app.box.com/s/6y1g2zdjkv4pijq93iam Its a program that I wrote for Listing all the versions of the .net Framework that are installed on the local PC.
Just for those wondering if it will run on a Mac or Linux OS, I'm sorry but it won't.
I've been a Microsoft OS guy pretty much my entire life so that is the OS I'm developing on and for right now. Support for other OSes may come at a later date, however I'm not guaranteeing anything. For right now I want to focus on adding features, support for more WX stations, and bug fixes.
As a side note, please let me know what you think. For those who do give it a try, I would be very grateful to hear about any software bugs you encounter, anything you would like to see changed or added and what your experiences with it are. The more feedback I get, the better I'll be able to make it, and the faster I'll be able to fix bugs.
I decided to start posting a change log for those who want to see what has been done with it between each version.
Current major Bugs include: (These are ongoing problems that I've been working on resolving.)
SOLVED (version [1.3]): CRC checking still not functioning for Davis Stations.
SOLVED (version [1.3]): Software was receiving Bad Data at Random from Davis Stations.
Version [1.3] 7/31/2014
Changed a Few miscellaneous things relating to whats displayed.
Fixed the Dewpoint Uploads to Weather Underground.
Added the Solar Radiation and UV Index to the display.
Fixed the Altitude adjusted pressure for CWOP uploads. (New Formulas) Special Thanks to Steve Hatchett From SoftWx for the use of his Code Snippets.
Fixed a Bug in the "Tomorrows" Sunrise/Sunset times.
Version [1.2] 7/27/2014
So I've decided to set the barometric pressure for the CWOP uploads to use whatever the Console is set to output until I get this figured-out.
I've also combined the Heat-Index and Wind-Chill into the same box. The program will switch between the Outside Temp, Wind-Chill and Heat-Index as appropriate. The label will also update to show which one its currently displaying. (I did this because I wanted to free-up some space in preparation for adding the UV-Index and Solar Radiation. Also, you never need the Wind-Chill and Heat-Index at the same time anyway, so I figured this was the best way to go.)
I've fixed the Sunrise Sunset times so now they adjust properly for the local time offset.
Version [1.1]
Added an Option to choose what format the station Coordinates are entered in.
Fixed the Barometric Pressure for the CWOP uploads so it uses a Altitude adjusted pressure instead of the raw station pressure. (I'm still working in this one)
Added a Station Elevation Input. (ASL or above Sea Level)
Added an elapsed time since last data was received from the station.
Added CRC Checking on Data from Davis Stations.
Added Examples to the Station Location input.
Version [1.0] "The Davis Update" 7/21/2014
The connection error message will now clear when it successfully reconnects to the station.
mbar and hpa options for the Barometric pressure are now working.
Thanks to the debugging help from Forum users, dean.martin and Beaudog, Davis Stations are now supported. Vantage Pro2 and Vue have been confirmed to be working. Pro1 stations should also work but have not been confirmed.
Version [7.17.2014]
Added WUnderground Uploads.
BugFix another bug not allowing connections to Davis Stations Via TCP.
BugFix Program was throwing errors when attempting to load settings out of an older Settings file.
BugFix Program would throw error messages if the PC didn't have any Serial ports.
Serial Connection errors are now logged to a file.
Added a Connection Status Line to the Main Screen. (This was to prevent alot of message boxes from popping up and suspending program execution.)
There was also other small bug fixes.
Version: 7/14/2014
Moved The CWOP upload options are now set per individual station via the WX Station Editor.
Moved The Station Lat./Long. boxes are now on the WX Station Editor.
Change The Station Lat. and Long. Input boxes are now separate.
Added Davis Vantage Vue, Davis Vantage Pro and Davis Vantage Pro2 weather Stations connection via LAN Setting is now on the Station Editor Window.
Added Support for Davis Stations Connected Via Serial.
Moved Station Hosting Options are now set per individual Station.(Not Fully implemented yet)
Moved Station Logging option is now on the WX Station Editor.
Change The system for saving station settings to a file has been changed.
Added Support for using a HAM Callsign and password for uploading to CWOP.
Change The selections for the Displayed units are now in drop down lists.
Change Rearranged the Options window.
Added hpa is now an option for the Displayed Barometric Pressure Units.
Added TCP connection errors are now logged to a text file.
Added There is now a 2 second delay between LOOP packet requests from Davis stations.
Added If it encounters a Error while connecting to a Davis Station it will now wait 30 seconds before reattempting a connection. (This was mainly to prevent Message-box Spamming the user.)
BugFix Fixed a Major bug not allowing a TCP connection to Davis Stations.
BugFix Fixed a bug that would prevent Serial Connections to PeetBros. Ultimeter 800 and 100 stations.
For those who are reading this thread for the first time, You can probably skip over most of the posts. They are mostly conversations about bugs that have been worked on. Unless of course you want to take the time to read all 150+ posts.
If you are not interested in whats going on between software updates but still want to bring yourself up-to-date on whats been done, I would suggest keeping on eye on this post (The first post in the thread). I will try to keep this one updated whenever I release a new version.
However, these are only suggestions, so read whatever you like.Edit: 2/4/2015
This thread is for the Original version of my software that I am no longer working on.The thread for the new version can be found here:
http://www.wxforum.net/index.php?topic=24359.0For the latest on whats going on check the new thread.
You can also visit the website for the new version:
www.addinwx.netThanks all,
Josiah