Need help with Modbus RTU over TCP communication

Hello!
I'm working with a project that involves communication between a LabView PC, a cRIO-9073 and a few Crouzet PLC's with XN05 modbus extentions. The issue I'm having is to get a stable and reliable connection between the units. The cRIO is communicating with the PLC's by Modbus RTU over TCP and I've created code that read and write to them in a sequential order to avoid possible ModBus conflicts. The LabView PC is sending a "ping" (boolean true) every second to the cRIO over UDP and the cRIO is then sending the "ping" to the PLC over Modbus/TCP. The PLC has a timer that waits for pings, if no ping has been recieved in 7 seconds the emergency brakes are applied and the system shuts down.
The main problems right now is:
* After a while I lose the connection between the LabView PC and the cRIO. "Connection with RealTime target cRIO-9073 has been lost".
- I also get either error code 56 or 66 on the TCP link.
* The second problem is that if I quickly pull a TP-cable from, let's say, a PLC and then directly plug it back in I want the TCP connection to quickly reestablish. However what happens is that the "pings" from the cRIO stops coming to the PLC for like 5-6 seconds (time to reestablish link?), which means the 7 second timer is almost full. One option would be to raise that timer value, but the drawback is that the system will take longer time to respond to an true error which could be bad.. My question is simply, does it really take 5-6 seconds to establish a TCP connection between a cRIO and a PLC? What affects the time?
I would greatly appreciate help or respons on this one. I attach a simplified version of the code I use (all variables and such has been replaced with constants).
Is this a good way to do a ModBus communication over TCP with 3 PLC's? Is there a better, safer, more reliable way? All suggestions on improvment is appreciated
Thanks!
/J
Attachments:
MB_TCP.vi ‏29 KB
MB_PLC.vi ‏28 KB

Dear J,
Check the state machine Architecture here.
1. In your acquisition if you got error in any system you close all TCP connections that is not right your other systems are working fine.
2. You go with parallel loop connection. For each PLC you run separate code with error handlers.
3. Check the attached VI for TCP Read. Same VI you can modify and use for your ModBUS operations.
4. In you Sub VI you are passing a constant cluster. I am not able to understand what is the use of case structure inside the subVI, In you code you are passing the constant so its always same.
As you done previously made 3 loops or VIs to read the data in a main VI. First try to made one VI with one PLC, remove your all bugs and errors and copy it 3-time with different-different configurations.
Thanks and Regards
Himanshu Goyal | LabVIEW Engineer- Power System Automation
Values that steer us ahead: Passion | Innovation | Ambition | Diligence | Teamwork
It Only gets BETTER!!!
Attachments:
Tcp Host.vi ‏28 KB

Similar Messages

I need help with Modbus Ethernet communication

I try to communicate with a Modbus RTU controller with a MOXA Ethernet to RS232 converter. I use DSC module to create a modbus Ethernet driver, and create a list of shared
variables that are bound to individual addresses in the modbus register.
I have tried for a long time to make this communication stable, but I lose communication after a couple of hours..
I read hex values from the controller registers, and they normally is from 100 to 140 depends.. But after a while some of my
registers drop to zero, and others up to 65408 for instance.. and some digital values hang..
When I restart my vi, it works again for some hours..
Maybe it is a communication problem true Ethernet, because I have tested shared variables in other ways, and it works fine..
I want to know if there is any specific rules how to put up a good way to communicate with my modbus driver true Ethernet.. I have enclosed one of the examples that I tried, and I have also tried to read values directly into while loops, but I lose communication after a while
Anybody… please I need help. I would be happy to see a good and stabile way to put up a communication example..
I also tried some of the modbus examples, but I didn't manage it to work.. I use one master controller and one slave, and I use ID 32 for
the master and ID 01 for the slave..
Thanks..
Very best regards from..
Benji..
Attachments:
test37.vi ‏83 KB

Hi.. and thank's for your answer..
Yes, I have downloaded and tried the modbus lib before, and it works, but I have to rebuild it to make it work good for my system..
Maybe that is the way to go.. But I also thought that when I have DSC installed, it would be easier to use that one..
In the mean time I've did some test's and, I see that the problem maybe is in my modbus gateway..
Anyhow.. thank's for your answer...
Regards from Benji..

Modbus RTU over TCP (Simex Transmitter and Advantech Server)

Hey Guys,
somehow i am not able to get a connection over TCP IP using RTU Mode (reading values) from a transmitter which is hooked up to an advantech EKI 1542 Server. The Port is configured as an RS 485.
i am using the modbus library and i tried to adjust the MB serial read holding registers vi to accept a TCP IP Socket input instead of an INSTR. Do you have any suggestions?
Thanks a lot for the forum support!

Hi Christo and welcome to NI Forums!
Is this the ModBus library you are using? If so, I'd recomend to check out the newer, object based library available here. It has a more straightforward setup, especially for using TCP connections. You'll find an example VI for using a master, as well as a slave device, and these you'll be able to use right away without much modification. The code'll look like:
Please test your device communication using this library.
Kind regards:
Andrew Valko
NI Hungary
Andrew Valko
National Instruments Hungary

Need help with moving sight over to Iweb

I would like to start using IWeb but I already have a website built that I used Frontpage to create. I want to make some changes to the sight so if I cannot convert some of the things I have, Im ok with adapting!
www.DarnGoodSeasoning.com
1st question: (Visit site above) if you hover over the links on the left they turn green Can I do that in Iweb? I figured out how to do it with font but not pictures. I have the .gif of each in yellow and green.
2nd When I have created pages in the past www.HeyRobi.com It changes the name in the address bar to http://heyrobi.com/Mac/HeyRobi.html Call me petty but I want it to say HeyRobi.com can I fix that?
Thanks in advance for any help or tips. If there is any advice or tips how to improve the Darn Good site I am always up for constructive criticism. BTW I am dropping the frames!
TIA HeyRobi

Welcome to the Apple Discussions. 1 - The rollover options are only available for text, not images.
2 - To get must HeyRobbi.com to show in the URL window you'll need to use standard domain name forwarding with masking. Then every page of your site will display only that. The downside to that is visitors will be able to only bookmark the first or entry page of your site. That may or may not be a problem for you. My tutorial site, toadstutorials.info, is setup with masking.
The following is a screenshot of how I setup my site with GoDaddy.com for forwarding and masking. Although every domain name provider is different your's will have a similar setup for you to set the masking for your domain name.
Click to view full size
OT

Need help with the hover over images from small to bigger

I read the tutorial about the hover over the small image shows a bigger image. I thought I would try it own my own but it did not work, do I need to make a link to the CSS file or do I need to do something different. Please help

Here is the tutorial link:
http://www.dreamweaverclub.com/dreamweaver-show-larger-image.php
This is a pure CSS Image Swap without the need for JavaScript behaviors.
It places the thumbnail image on a page with a "nolink" link or anchor so the CSS hover rule can invoke the appearance of the larger image inside an absolutely positioned division (APDiv) layer.
Paste the CSS code into the top of your page between the <head> and </head> tags.
<style type="text/css">
/**image to large**/
#picture {width:100px; height: 250px; background-color:#ffffff;}
#picture a.small, #picture a.small:visited { display:block; width:100px; height:100px; text-decoration:none; background:#ffffff; top:0; left:0; border:0;}
#picture a img {border:0;}
#picture a.small:hover {text-decoration:none; background-color:#000000; color:#000000;}
#picture a .large {display:block; position:absolute; width:0; height:0; border:0; top:0; left:0;}
#picture a.small:hover .large {display:block; position:absolute; top: 90px; left:150px; width:200px; height:200px; }
</style>
Paste the HTML code between the <body> and </body> tags:
<div id="picture">
<a class="small" href="#nogo" title="small image"><img src="small-image.jpg" width="125" height="83" title="small image" />
<img class="large" src="large-image.jpg" title="large image" /></a>
</div> 
Change small-image.jpg and large-image.jpg to your own.
Nancy O.
Alt-Web Design & Publishing
Web | Graphics | Print | Media Specialists
www.alt-web.com/
www.twitter.com/altweb
www.alt-web.blogspot.com

TS1424 Need help with netflix app over wifi on iphone 4

I have iPhone 4 which is 3G. I used the Netflix app on this phone. I recently got a new phone. I stopped the phone service and cell data plan to my iPhone 4. The netflix app still worked fine over wifi connection. Suddenly, I am unable to connect to netflix. I was going to try to remove and reinstall but I now cannot connect to iTunes store. I found something that said I need to set up the phone to sync with wifi on iTunes, which I did. synced again. App still won't work and still cannot connect to iTunes store from phone. My other iPhone 5 works fine but I need the netflix on the older iPhone 4 because of connection to tv.
any ideas????? I've tried signing out of netflix and back in on computer... can't get in to Netflix app to even sign out then in.

You can change the email address of an Apple ID without creating a new account. Apparently you didn't do this. You will need to Authorize the computer using the AppleID and password that the content was purchased with.
Try connecting the phone, but DO NOT SYNC. Go to the iTunes File menu and choose Transfer Purchases. This should put the apps and music purchased with the old account into the iTunes library. Launch of of the songs and you should be prompted for the password to authorize that account.

Need help with printer sharing over ethernet

I'd like to share the printer hooked up to my Mac Pro via USB with a MacBook in the same room. The MacBook is connected to my Mac Pro via ethernet cable (no router or switch; just a direct connection).
I have enabled "Printer Sharing" on my Mac Pro.
However, I'm not sure what to do from here. When I open up "Network" in System Preferences, and click on "built-in ethernet" it says "inactive". When I go to "Print and Fax Preferences" and attempt to add the printer connected to the Mac Pro, nothing shows up.
I know I'm not understanding a key point here. If you could help me out I'd appreciate it. The goal is to allow the MacBook to use Airport to connect to the Internet, but to have access to the USB printer connected to my Mac Pro via ethernet (long story why this is necessary, but it is.)
Thanks.

Thanks for your offer to help.
The printer is indeed connected to my Mac Pro via USB and is working perfectly.
As I stated in the original post, printer sharing is enabled in System Preferences on my Mac Pro. There is an ethernet cable going from the ethernet 2 port of my Mac Pro to the ethernet port of my MacBook.
The missing element was that I had not established a network connection between the two Macs. From the Macbook's Finder I chose "Go>Network" and then selected my Mac Pro. After I entered my username and password, I was connected to the Mac Pro.
At this point I was then able to see the USB printer connected to the Mac Pro in the MacBook's "Print & Fax preferences".
However, I still have one problem. When I add the printer on the MacBook, it chooses "generic postscript driver" even though I have recently installed the proper driver on the MacBook. Why would this be the case?

Need help with gradient mask over XML images

I have a file that works great in pulling images via XML
data. I want to create a gradient mask using flash CS3, but i can't
seem to get any sort of mask (solid or gradient) to react with the
XML driven images.
Download my FLA
and other working files
845 kb

granted i can see resizing the mask and now it responds...
however, take a look at this
Sample of alpha gradient mask:
http://www.devx.com/webdev/Article/29296#codeitemarea
i'm trying to this type of mask (static mask obviousl)

Need help with applet servlet communication .. not able to get OutputStream

i am facing problem with applet and servlet communication. i need to send few image files from my applet to the servlet to save those images in DB.
i need help with sending image data to my servlet.
below is my sample program which i am trying.
java source code which i am using in my applet ..
public class Test {
    public static void main(String argv[]) {
        try {
                URL serverURL = new URL("http://localhost:8084/uploadApp/TestServlet");
                URLConnection connection = serverURL.openConnection();
                Intermediate value=new Intermediate();
                value.setUserId("user123");
                connection.setDoInput(true);
                connection.setDoOutput(true);
                connection.setUseCaches(false);
                connection.setDefaultUseCaches(false);
                // Specify the content type that we will send binary data
                connection.setRequestProperty ("Content-Type", "application/octet-stream");
                ObjectOutputStream outputStream = new ObjectOutputStream(connection.getOutputStream());
                outputStream.writeObject(value);
                outputStream.flush();
                outputStream.close();
            } catch (MalformedURLException ex) {
                System.out.println(ex.getMessage());
            } catch (IOException ex) {
                    System.out.println(ex.getMessage());
}servlet code here ..
public class TestServlet extends HttpServlet {
     * Processes requests for both HTTP <code>GET</code> and <code>POST</code> methods.
     * @param request servlet request
     * @param response servlet response
     * @throws ServletException if a servlet-specific error occurs
     * @throws IOException if an I/O error occurs
    protected void processRequest(HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response)
            throws ServletException, IOException {
         System.out.println(" in servlet -----------");
        response.setContentType("text/html;charset=UTF-8");
        PrintWriter out = response.getWriter();
        ObjectInputStream inputFromApplet = null;
        Intermediate aStudent = null;
        BufferedReader inTest = null;
        try {
            // get an input stream from the applet
            inputFromApplet = new ObjectInputStream(request.getInputStream());
            // read the serialized object data from applet
            data = (Intermediate) inputFromApplet.readObject();
            System.out.println("userid in servlet -----------"+ data.getUserId());
            inputFromApplet.close();
        } catch (Exception e) {
            e.printStackTrace();
            System.err.println("WARNING! filename.path JNDI not found");
        } finally {
            out.close();
    @Override
    protected void doGet(HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response)
            throws ServletException, IOException {
        System.out.println(" in foGet -----------");
        processRequest(request, response);
     * Handles the HTTP <code>POST</code> method.
     * @param request servlet request
     * @param response servlet response
     * @throws ServletException if a servlet-specific error occurs
     * @throws IOException if an I/O error occurs
    @Override
    protected void doPost(HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response)
            throws ServletException, IOException {
        System.out.println(" in doPost -----------");
        processRequest(request, response);
     * Returns a short description of the servlet.
     * @return a String containing servlet description
    @Override
    public String getServletInfo() {
        return "Short description";
    }// </editor-fold>
}the Intermediate class ..
import java.io.Serializable;
public class Intermediate implements Serializable{
String userId;
    public String getUserId() {
        return userId;
    public void setUserId(String userId) {
        this.userId = userId;
}

Hi,
well i am not able to get any value from connection.getOutputStream() and i doubt my applet is not able to hit the servlet. could you review my code and tell me if it has some bug somewhere. and more over i want to know how to send multiple file data from applet to servlet . i want some sample or example if possible.
do share if you have any experience of this sort..
Thanks.

Need help with duplicate print jobs over network that I can't cancel

I have the Photosmart Premium All-in-One on my home network. My kids who each have laptop running Windows 7 and are connected via wireless to the printer via a DLINK DIR-655.
They hit the print button too many times and it keeps printing over and over again.
Is there a way to get the printer to stop printing these duplicates. I tried turning off/on but they just keep printing.
We're wasting paper/ink and I need help with a solution.
Please let me know. Thanks.
Angelo

There should be a button with a red 'X' on it on the front of the printer. This is the print cancel button.
Say thanks by clicking "Kudos" "thumbs up" in the post that helped you.
I am employed by HP

Need help with almost completed plugin engine project

Hi all,
For a while now I have been working on a plugin engine. After a few iterations, the engine is similar to the Eclipse engine, in that plugins use extension points and extensions to allow contributions. Unlike the eclipse engine I have added the ability for plugins to fire events through the engine and other plugins can add listeners, all through the plugin.xml manifest. Dependencies are mostly handled automatically at plugin load time (when extensions get resolved to extension points, and listeners get resolved to events). For the case where a plugin needs to use classes from another plugin, dependencies are also allowed to be declared. Like the eclipse engine, activation of plugins occurs the first time a class is used within the plugin's classpath, OR a plugin can be activated after it is loaded.
What I need help with is testing, working on examples to provide with the engine project, and feedback/suggestions before we release the M1 build. I am asking for those that are interested in this type of work to volunteer to help where applicable and possible. I want to provide a solid plugin engine to the java community, one that is easy to use, works well, and is pretty effecient in terms of resource usage and performance.
Of particular interest to me right at the moment is dealing with multiple versions. As I see it, the engine will be used within an application and as such plugins would be distributed with a specific application version. The plugin version itself is more of a notification as to what version a plugin is, although I imagine it will help when updating at runtime as well.
Just a few other details of the engine. It handles (or will soon) dynamic load, unload and reload of plugins at runtime. Plugins can be distributed in an archive file format, we call .par (Plugin ARchive), with additional plugin filename extensions configurable at runtime. The plugins can be developed and deployed in an expanded directory format as they are in Eclipse as well, or in the archive format. In the archive format they do not need to be unzipped when deployed, and they can contain embeded jar/zip libraries. The engine handles finding and creating classes directly out of the .par file at runtime.
Multiple locations to find plugins are configurable before the engine starts, and even after it starts more could be added to allow additional locations to find plugins. URLs are supported, and soon the HTTP protocol will be supported so that plugins can be downloaded and installed at runtime.
The project can be found at www.sourceforge.net/projects/genpluginengine. If you would like to get involved and help out, please sign up on the dev mail list and send an email to introduce yourself to the rest of the members on the list.
I'll also add that I am working on a Swing UI Framework built entirely from plugins. It provides a ready-to-launce UI application that developers can simply add their plugins to, extending various extension points of the framework to have menu items, toolbar buttons, status bar access, help and preferences dialog additions, file i/o choosers, tons of open-source components ready to use (or extend to add on to), and like Eclipse, hopefully... draggable window frames that can be dropped on any other frame to form a tabbed frame of windows. Some of this is a ways off, some is getting there now. Presently you can add menu items that do allow plugin activation when first clicked, so plugins can be loaded but not activated until needed. The Preference dialog works but is not completed, and a plugin that adds a plugin control panel to view all loaded plugins, activate them, load/unload/reload, view extension points, extensions, dependencies, etc is partially completed. The point is, to allow a ready to run UI framework in Swing with an easy path for developers to quickly build applications with. If you are interested in this, when you join the mail list and introduce yourself, indicate that you are interested in this as well, as we need help with plugin development for it and would appreciate more help here too.
Look forward to some replies.

Might I suggest setting up a project at a known project-site? I've seen your progress and questions posted here from time to time, but one of the drawbacks is that you have to fill each post with the entirity of your vision to explain what you're doing. That's a lot of text to read - and most folks will skip right over it.
On the other hand, a well-crafted, good-looking project web-site, with appropriate links and docs and vision statements, diagrams, etc. will have more likelyhood of attracting volunteers. java.net and sourceforge.net are likely spots to set up shop. In addition, you get CVS and bug-tracking systems, which can be quite valuable in such a large-scale project where there are lots of pieces.

How do i send an array of clusters with variable size over TCP/IP?

Hi,
I'm trying to send an array of clusters with varible size over TCP/IP,. But I'm facing the following problems:
1) I need to accept the size of array data from the user and increase the size dynamically.
I'm doing this using the property node but how do I convey the new size to my TCP read?
2) I need to wire an input to my 'bytes to read' of the TCP read.
But the number of bytes to read changes dynamically
How do I ensure the correct number of bytes are read and reflected on the client side?
3) Is there anyway I can use global varibles over a network such that their values are updated just as if they would on one computer?
Will be a great help if someone posts a solution!
Thank you...

twilightfan wrote:
Altenbach,
... xml string. ...number of columns that I'm varying using property node s... I solved these problems by using a local variable as the type input ...o TCP read is creating a problem.... second TCP read gets truncated data because
its no longer just the first four bytes that specify the length of the data, it could be more as my array of cluster can be pretty huge.
Instead of writing long and complicated sentences that make little sense, why don't you simply show us your code?
What does any of this have to do with xml strings???? I don't see how using a local variable as type input changes anything. The user cannot interact with "property nodes", just with controls. Please clarify. Once the array of clusters is flattened to a string you only have one size that describes the size of the data, no matter how huge it is (as long as it is within the limits of I32). Similarly, you read the string of that same defined length and form the array of clusters from it. How big are the strings? What is your definition of "huge"?
Here's is my earlier code, but now dealing with an array of clusters. Not much of a change. Since you have columns, you want 2D. Add as many diensions you want, but make sure that the control, diagram constant, and indicator all match.
The snipped shows for a 1D array, while the attached VI shows the same for a 2D array. Same difference.
Message Edited by altenbach on 01-31-2010 01:13 AM
LabVIEW Champion . Do more with less code and in less time .
Attachments:
FlattenArrayOfClusters.vi ‏12 KB
ioclusters3MOD.png ‏25 KB

Need help with show/hide and layers moving

I'm more of a designer, so I don't know code or CSS well at
all. I'm doing an online portfolio for a class and need help with
layers not staying in place in different browsers. The portfolio is
created with a table, but I wanted to use the show/hide function
for thumbnails of work. Are layers the only way you can use this
function? I read layers don't work well with tables, so how else
can I make it so when you mouse over a thumbnail, the larger image
appears in another cell?

> I don't know code or CSS well at all.
That's unfortunate.
> layers not staying in place in different browsers.
Layers don't move. But the rest of your page does.
Before you get too wrapped up in layers, though, please read
this -
http://www.great-web-sights.com/g_layerlaws.asp
They are not good when be used as a primary layout method.
> I read layers don't work well with tables
They work fine with tables - but you have to understand both
tables and
layers to use them.
Why not show us your page, so we can see what you are
struggling with?
Murray --- ICQ 71997575
Adobe Community Expert
(If you *MUST* email me, don't LAUGH when you do so!)
==================
http://www.dreamweavermx-templates.com
- Template Triage!
http://www.projectseven.com/go
- DW FAQs, Tutorials & Resources
http://www.dwfaq.com - DW FAQs,
Tutorials & Resources
http://www.macromedia.com/support/search/
- Macromedia (MM) Technotes
==================
"Bobbi67" <[email protected]> wrote in
message
news:ertd9h$h3m$[email protected]..
> I'm more of a designer, so I don't know code or CSS well
at all. I'm doing
> an
> online portfolio for a class and need help with layers
not staying in
> place in
> different browsers. The portfolio is created with a
table, but I wanted to
> use
> the show/hide function for thumbnails of work. Are
layers the only way you
> can
> use this function? I read layers don't work well with
tables, so how else
> can I
> make it so when you mouse over a thumbnail, the larger
image appears in
> another
> cell?
>

Need help with a currently "in-use" form we want to switch to Adobes hosting service

Hi, I am in desperate need of help with some issues concerning several forms which we currently use a paid third party (not Adobe) to host and "re-distribute through email"...Somehow I got charged $14.95 for YOUR service, (signed up for a trial, but never used it)..and now I am paying for a year of use of the similar service which Adobe is in control of. I might want to port my form distribution through Adobe in the hopes of reducing the errors, problems and hassles my customers are experiencing when some of them push our "submit button". (and I guess I am familiar with these somewhat from reading what IS available in here, and I also know that, Adobe is working to alleviate some of these " submit" issues, so let's don't start by going backwards, here) I need solutions now for my issues or I can leave it as is, If Adobe's solution will be no better for my end users...
We used FormsCentral to code these forms and it works for the most part (if the end-user can co-operate, and thats iffy, sometimes), but I need help with how to make it go through your servers (and not the third party folks we use now), Not being cruel or racist here, but your over the phone "support techs" are about horrible & I cannot understand them or work with any of them, so I would definitely need someone who speaks English and can understand the nuances of programming these forms, to please contact me back. (Sorry, but both those attributes will be required to be able to help me, so, no "newbie-interns" or first week trainees are gonna cut it).... If you have anyone who fits the bill on those items and would be willing to help us, please contact me back at your earliest convenience. If we have to communicate here, I will do that & I can submit whatever we need to & to whoever we need to.
I need to get this right and working for the majority of my users and on any platform and OS.
You may certainly call me to talk about this, and I have given my number numerous times to your (expletive deleted) time wasting - recording message thingy. So, If it's not available look it up under [email protected]
(and you will probably get right to me, unlike my and I'm sure most other folks', "Adobe phone-in experiences")
Thank You,
Michael Corman
VinylCouture
Phenix City, Alabama 36869

Well, thanks for writing back...just so you know...I started using Adobe products in 1987, ...yeah...back then...like Illustrator 1 & 9" B&W Macs ...John Warnock's Helvetica's....stuff like that...8.5 x 11 LaserWriters...all that good stuff...I still have some of it working on a mac...much of it was stuff I bought. some stuff I did not...I'm not a big fan of this "cloud" thing Adobe has foisted upon the creatives of the world...which I'm sure you can tell...but the functionality and usefulness of your software can not be disputed, so feel free to do whatever we will continue to pay for, ...I am very impressed with CC PS on the 64 bit PC and perhaps I will end up paying you the stipend that you demand for the other services.
So I guess that brings us to our problem.. a few years back and at the height of the recession and near bankruptcy myself, I was damn lucky and hit on something and began a small arts and crafts supply service to sell my products online to a very "niche market" ...I had a unique product and still sell that product (plus others) online...My website is www.vinylcouture.com...Strange? Yes...but there is a market it seems, for everything now, and this is the market I service...Catagorically, these are 99%+ women that use these "adhesive, sticky backed vinyl products" to make different "craft items" that are just way too various and numerous to go into... generally older women, women who are computer illiterate for the most part...and all this is irrelevant to my problem, but I want you to have every bit of background on this and especially the demographic we are dealing with, so we can get right to the meat of the problem.
OK...So about two years ago, I decided to offer a "plain sheet" product of a plain colored "stick back" vinyl... it is available in multiple quantities of packs ( like 5 pieces, 10 pieces, 15 pieces, in a packi & so on)...and if you are still on my site.. go to any "GO RIGHT TO OUR ORDER PAGE" button, scroll down a little...and then to the "PLAIN VINYL" section...you will see the Weebly website order process.) You can back out from here, I think,..but, anyway this product is available in 63 colors + or - a few. So then the problem is, how do they select their individual colors within that (whatever) pack?... .
So my initial idea was to enable a "selection form" for these "colors" that would be transmitted to me via email as 'part" of the "order process".. We tried getting our customers to submit a " a list" ( something my competitiors still do, lol, poor bastards)......but that..is just unbelievable..I can't even begin to tell you what a freakin' nightmare that was...these people cannot even count to 10, much less any higher... figuring out what colors to list and send me... well, lets just say, it wasn't working......I had to figure out a better way...Something had to be done.
So after thinking this all out, and yeah...due to my total ignorance, i figured that we could make a form with Live Cycle Designer (Now Forms Central)...(back then something that was bundled with Adobe Acrobat Pro), I believe, and thats what this thing was authored in... and it would be all good...LOL!
Well not so simple...as you well know, Adobe Acrobat would NOT LET YOU EMAIL anything from itself.....it just wouldn't work (and I know why, and all that hooey), but not being one to take NO for answer,.I started looking for a way to make my little gizmo work.. So I found this company that said they can "hijack" (re-direct actually) the request to email, bypass the wah-wah, and re-transmit it to the proper parties.....for less than $100 a year, I think...its called http://pdf-fillableforms.com/.
A nice gentleman named Joseph Silva helped us program the thing to go to his servers and back out. Please dont hassle them...I need them...for now..it basically does work...try it...you should get back a copy of the form that you filled out...good luck however, if you're on MAC OSX or similar...
I have included a copy of both of our forms (and feel free to fill it out and play with it)...just put test somewhere on it...(and you must include YOUR email or it will balk)..they are supposed to be mostly identical, except one seems to be twice as large....generating a 1.7 meg file upon submission, while the other one only generates a 600K file or so...thats another issue for another day or maybe you can advise on that also...
OK so far so good......In our shop, once Grandma buys a 10 pack (or whatever), Only then she gets to the link on her receipt page ro the relevant "selection form" ,(this prevents "Filling and Sending" with "no order" and "no payment", another early problem we had)... which they can click on and it will usually download and open up on their device if all goes well...Then our little form is supposed to be fillable and is supposed to ADD UP all the quantities, so grandma knows how many she is buying and so forth right on the fly, and even while she changes her mind..., and IT'S LARGE so grandma can see it, and then it TOTALS it all up for them, ( cause remember, they can NOT add).., except there is a programming bug (mouse-click should be a mouse-up probably or something..) which makes you click in the blank spaces to get to a correct TOTAL...about 70-80% of our customers can enable all these features and usually the process completes without problems for them especially on PC's running Windows OS and Acrobat Reader X or XI...at least for most... Unfortunately it is still not the "seamless process" I would like or had envisioned for the other folks out there that do have trouble using our form.... Many folks report to us the following issues that we know of. First of all it takes too much time to load up...We know its HUGE...is there anyway that you can see, to streamline this thing? I would love for it to be more compact...this really helps on the phones and pads as I'm sure you well know.
Some just tell us,"it WON'T work"....I believe this is because they are totally out of it and dont even have Adobe Reader on their machine, & don't know how to get it ( yes, we provide the links).....or it's some ancient version....no one can stop this one...
It almost always generates some kind ( at least one time) of "error message" which we do warn them about..., telling one, basically that "Acrobat doesnt even like this happening at all, and it could be detrimental to ones computer files", blah-blah...(this freaks grandma out really bad)...& usually they end up not even trying to send it... and then I get calls that even you wouldn't believe...& If they DO nut up and push the Red "Submit Form" button, it will usually send the thing to us (and also back to them at the "required email address" they furnished on the form, thats what the folks at the "fillable forms place" do) so, if it's performing it's functions, why it is having to complain?. What are we doing wrong?....and how can I fix it?...Will re-compiling it or saving it as a newer version of "FormsCentral" correct any of these problems ?
Ok, so that should keep you busy for a minute and we can start out with those problems...but the next thing is, how can I take advantage of YOUR re-direct & hosting services?, And will it get rid of the error messages, and the slowness, and the iOS incompatibilities ? (amazingly, the last iOS Reader version worked almost OK.. but the newest version doesnt seem to work with my form on my iphone4) If it will enable any version of the iOS to send my form correctly and more transparently, then it might be worth the money...$14.95 a MONTH you say. hmmmmm...Better be good.
Another problem is, that I really don't need 5000 forms a month submitted. I think its like 70-100 or less....Got any plans for that? Maybe I'm just not BIG ENOUGH to use Adobe's services, however in this case, I really don't care whose I do use as long as the product works most correctly for my customers as well as us. Like I said, If I'm doing the best I can, I won't change anything, and still use the other third party, If Adobe has a better solution, then i'm all for that as well. In the meantime, Thanks for any help you can provide on this...
Michael Corman
VinylCouture.com
(706) 326-7911

I need help with shooting in my flash game for University

Hi there
Ive tried to make my tank in my game shoot, all the code that is there works but when i push space to shoot which is my shooting key it does not shoot I really need help with this and I would appriciate anyone that could help
listed below should be the correct code
//checking if the space bar is pressed and shooting is allowed
if(evt.keyCode == 32 && shootAllow){
    //making it so the user can't shoot for a bit
    shootAllow = false;
    //declaring a variable to be a new Bullet
    var newBullet:Bullet = new Bullet();
    //changing the bullet's coordinates
    newBullet.y = tank_mc.y + tank_mc.width/2 - newBullet.width/2;
    newBullet.x = tank_mc.x;
    //then we add the bullet to stage
    addChild(newBullet);
listed below is my entire code
import flash.display.MovieClip;
    //declare varibles to create mines
//how much time before allowed to shoot again
var cTime:int = 0;
//the time it has to reach in order to be allowed to shoot (in frames)
var cLimit:int = 12;
//whether or not the user is allowed to shoot
var shootAllow:Boolean = true;
var minesInGame:uint;
var mineMaker:Timer;
var cursor:MovieClip;
var index:int=0;
var tankMine_mc:MovieClip;
var antiTankmine_mc:MovieClip;
var maxHP:int = 100;
var currentHP:int = maxHP;
var percentHP:Number = currentHP / maxHP;
function initialiseMine():void
    minesInGame = 15;
    //create a timer fires every second
    mineMaker = new Timer(6000, minesInGame);
    //tell timer to listen for Timer event
    mineMaker.addEventListener(TimerEvent.TIMER, createMine);
    //start the timer
    mineMaker.start();
function createMine(event:TimerEvent):void
//var tankMine_mc:MovieClip;
//create a new instance of tankMine
tankMine_mc = new Mine();
//set the x and y axis
tankMine_mc.y = 513;
tankMine_mc.x = 1080;
// adds mines to stage
addChild(tankMine_mc);
tankMine_mc.addEventListener(Event.ENTER_FRAME, moveHorizontal);
function moveHorizontal(evt:Event):void{
    evt.target.x -= Math.random()*5;
    if (evt.target.x >= stage.stageWidth)
        evt.target.removeEventListener(Event.ENTER_FRAME, moveHorizontal);
        removeChild(DisplayObject(evt.target));
initialiseMine();
    //declare varibles to create mines
var atmInGame:uint;
var atmMaker:Timer;
function initialiseAtm():void
    atmInGame = 15;
    //create a timer fires every second
    atmMaker = new Timer(8000, minesInGame);
    //tell timer to listen for Timer event
    atmMaker.addEventListener(TimerEvent.TIMER, createAtm);
    //start the timer
    atmMaker.start();
function createAtm(event:TimerEvent):void
//var antiTankmine_mc
//create a new instance of tankMine
antiTankmine_mc = new Atm();
//set the x and y axis
antiTankmine_mc.y = 473;
antiTankmine_mc.x = 1080;
// adds mines to stage
addChild(antiTankmine_mc);
antiTankmine_mc.addEventListener(Event.ENTER_FRAME, moveHorizontal);
function moveHorizontal_2(evt:Event):void{
    evt.target.x -= Math.random()*10;
    if (evt.target.x >= stage.stageWidth)
        evt.target.removeEventListener(Event.ENTER_FRAME, moveHorizontal);
        removeChild(DisplayObject(evt.target));
initialiseAtm();
function moveForward():void{
    bg_mc.x -=10;
function moveBackward():void{
    bg_mc.x +=10;
var tank_mc:Tank;
// create a new Tank and put it into the variable
// tank_mc
tank_mc= new Tank;
// set the location ( x and y) of tank_mc
tank_mc.x=0;
tank_mc.y=375;
// show the tank_mc on the stage.
addChild(tank_mc);
stage.addEventListener(KeyboardEvent.KEY_DOWN, onMovementKeys);
//creates the movement
function onMovementKeys(evt:KeyboardEvent):void
    //makes the tank move by 10 pixels right
    if (evt.keyCode==Keyboard.D)
    tank_mc.x+=5;
//makes the tank move by 10 pixels left
if (evt.keyCode==Keyboard.A)
tank_mc.x-=5
//checking if the space bar is pressed and shooting is allowed
if(evt.keyCode == 32 && shootAllow){
    //making it so the user can't shoot for a bit
    shootAllow = false;
    //declaring a variable to be a new Bullet
    var newBullet:Bullet = new Bullet();
    //changing the bullet's coordinates
    newBullet.y = tank_mc.y + tank_mc.width/2 - newBullet.width/2;
    newBullet.x = tank_mc.x;
    //then we add the bullet to stage
    addChild(newBullet);
if (tank_mc.hitTestObject(antiTankmine_mc))
        //tank_mc.gotoAndPlay("hit");
        currentHP -= 10;
        // remove anti tank mine
        removeChild(antiTankmine_mc);
if (tank_mc.hitTestObject(tankMine_mc))
        //tank_mc.gotoAndPlay("hit");
        currentHP -= 10;
        // remove anti tank mine
        removeChild(tankMine_mc);
    //var maxHP:int = 100;
//var currentHP:int = maxHP;
//var percentHP:Number = currentHP / maxHP;
    //Incrementing the cTime
//checking if cTime has reached the limit yet
if(cTime < cLimit){
    cTime ++;
} else {
    //if it has, then allow the user to shoot
    shootAllow = true;
    //and reset cTime
    cTime = 0;
function updateHealthBar():void
    percentHP = currentHP / maxHP;
    healthBar.barColor.scaleX = percentHP;
    if(currentHP <= 0)
        currentHP = 0;
        trace("Game Over");
    updateHealthBar();

USe the trace function to analyze what happens and what fails to happen in the code you showed. trace the conditional values to see if they are set up to allow a shot when you press the key

Need help with Modbus RTU over TCP communication

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for