Feature Requests

[Baikal]

I know about the F11, it is still manual control and need a keyboard to the tablet pc
but it would be an option in the settings
for the start of the program in full screen

[fulup]

Would be nice to get MMSI filters to exclude some boats from CPA/TDA alarms.

• Filtering your own MMSI because with some AIS installation you can receive your own boat AIS position and it this obviously generate a collision alarm.
• Filtering friends MMSI that are cruising with you

On the perfect world those filtered MMSI should be connected to special alarms rules:

• you own MMSI would generate an alarm as soon as your boat versus the AIS position diverges. This is possible as soon as you have two GPS and one of them stop working. Such an alarm would monitor both GPSs guaranteeing that the AIS position you send out is accurate.
• friend MMSI would generate an alarm when the distance in between you and them is bigger than XXX miles. Allowing an automatic monitoring of a group of boat cruising together.
• AIS icons colour for those filtered MMSI should be different from others.

[daddle]

Might the GUI evert queue be flushed or managed so that when chart redraw is slow or delayed the keyboard or mouse events done accumulate and age?

Other plotters appear to cancel GUI events after a redraw so that, for example, zoom or pan does not 'run away' on extra clicks.

[HappySeagull]

daddle,
this sounds like a serious problem and not a mere feature request for a bell or whistle. If you are having a serious problem with this, be sure to push your point to the fore.

[daddle]

Originally Posted by HappySeagull

daddle,
this sounds like a serious problem and not a mere feature request for a bell or whistle. If you are having a serious problem with this, be sure to push your point to the fore.

What is "push your point to the fore"?

Perhaps this is an issue with the Mac GUI port of OpenCPN. Don't other users notice the poor GUI interaction on slow redraws (redraws longer than half a second, say)? The trackpad/mouse ZOOM is the worst offender. A short swipe may redraw several times over several seconds. If the user mistakenly zooms a bit more during redraw the zoom will be extended even longer. Often to some useless level far beyond the intention.

1. Other Mac chart plotting packages do not behave like this. Perhaps because they redraw much faster

2. Back in my programming days I recall (barely) that redraw might be interrupted. Failing that we would handle the event queue better - something like flushing it after redraw, or examining the age of events, I forget ???

OpenCPN 3.0.2 (Mac Intel)

Thanks

[fulup]

Now that OpenCPN has an NMEA multiplexer, it would be nice to sea Wind direction directly on the map, like on a tradition tracer.

[HappySeagull]

Originally Posted by daddle

What is "push your point to the fore"?

Perhaps this is an issue with the Mac GUI port of OpenCPN. Don't other users notice the poor GUI interaction on slow redraws (redraws longer than half a second, say)? The trackpad/mouse ZOOM is the worst offender. A short swipe may redraw several times over several seconds. If the user mistakenly zooms a bit more during redraw the zoom will be extended even longer. Often to some useless level far beyond the intention.

1. Other Mac chart plotting packages do not behave like this. Perhaps because they redraw much faster

2. Back in my programming days I recall (barely) that redraw might be interrupted. Failing that we would handle the event queue better - something like flushing it after redraw, or examining the age of events, I forget ???

OpenCPN 3.0.2 (Mac Intel)

Thanks

Daddle, I meant , start a new thread ie: "Redraw Issue in Macs!!!"
....assuming there's no help in the OpenCPN manual, or wiki or

"search in this forum" which might turn up the same issue solved or NOT solved, in which case, by all means, revive the thread and all the info that might be in it!

log on to opencpn.org and see who else has this problem...or
Get it into the buglist!


I'm not an Iperson and can't say if this applies there, but there is a way to fiddle with O's ram usage in the ini file for win userz.

[jackdale]

I occasionally use OpenCPN to draw plots as a teaching device. The Create Route tool is very good for this. There are times I would like to move waypoint created and have a dialogue box open to show the bearing and distance. When I left click to move a waypoint no dialogue box is present. That would be a feature I would quite like. It could be used for other functions as well. For example a bearing and distance off we be incredibly easier to plot.

[maxhead]

NMEA ECRMC sentence

As the NMEA ECRMC sentence is built within OpenCPN and is broadcasted when a “navigate to” route or point is active would it be possible to send this information to another OpenCPN application running on a different computer over UDP like the option to send this information to an autopilot?

Thanks, Max

[rgleason]

There is an example of this and excellent writeup in the manual.
Data Connections | Official OpenCPN Homepage
I believe the answer is yes, but I'd read the manual first.
Also discussion and examples about use of various protocals
and the extensive filtering options for use with autopilot.

[dougwm10]

WEATHER-FAX OVERLAYS for OPENCPN

Would it not be possible to produce a PLUG-IN that enables weather-faxes to be shown directly on the charts in OpenCPN in a similar way that GRIB files are able to be shown.

The advantages for passage making are to my mind compelling since weather-faxes give world wide coverage and can be received anywhere through a standard SSB receiver with no additional equipment or membership requirements and connection costs i.e. Satellite or SailMail.

Receiving Gribs when on passage requires either a SATELLITE connection or a PACTOR MODEM attached to the SSB together with an annual subscription to the sending service. Both of these options are very expensive and require additional receiving equipment which adds to the complexities and is yet another item that can fail.

Surely we should be following the KISS rule – keep it as simple as possible and keep the equipment used as minimal as possible.

Does anyone know if a weather-fax viewer can be designed and incorporated as a Plug-in to OPCN ????

[maxhead]

rgleason,

thanks for your answer, i've read the manual 'Data Connections'.
I tried different nmea sentences but the second Opencpn application won't read/show the waypoint i sent.
May be there is more to do acting one OpenCPN application as a 'master' for other instances on windows based PCs.
Thanks and looking forward,
Max

[rgleason]

Max, I have not tried a master - slave Nmea0183 bus with two OpenCpn. However I know people helping will want more details about your problem before they can help. Under add a local connection, looking at the manual of the three protocols available TCP, UDP, GPSD, I would first try UDP probably.

UDP: This is an ideal protocol for local distribution of NMEA data, since it is non-connection oriented, so there is no notion of a client and server. It is just a stream of data, like NMEA. The messages typically repeat at reasonable frequencies, so masking any intermittent transmission errors.

If you look in the first illustration, there is a UDP connection using address 192.168.0.255 and the standard UDP port 10110, Output: Yes
I am not sure how the Opencpn on the other computer would be set up but I think it would be similar with Input sentences selected.

Perhaps others with real experience have corrections here?

At bottom there are NOTEs

• If you do UDP re-broadcasting, then you should set the priority of the "real" NMEA input to something higher than the UDP stream. If not, prepare for problems. The reason is that if you are broadcasting, then you yourself will get the UDP message as well, which again will be retransmitted...... Obviously, it duplicates the "real" incoming data. Thus we get source priority flip-flop on each message, since they have the same priority. For example set the UDP priority to "0" and real incoming connection to "1" or higher.
• When using an UDP... the UDP address is necessary only for output connections, and may be x.x.x.255 for broadcast. On input, it is strictly not necessary, but recommended, to specify an address. The port is necessary for both input and output, default is 10110.

[nohal]

Max

What exactly do you expect should happen on the slave instance when it receives the sentence? If you expect it to create a waypoint (and perhaps start navigating to it), this is not how it's designed to work.

Pavel

[maxhead]

nohal
I very much apologize for my request, but that it's exactly what i expect. Background behind the request: We are scientists/technicians going several times a year on different research vessels. Up to now we use a 'cruise assistent' which collects vessel data during station time. Also one PC works as a 'master' relating to waypoints. But the chart we use is only a poor coastline map. Using the excellent OpenCPN we are able to prepare our work before we are on station, we can also optimize the route.
Regards,
Max