Campbell Scientific PC208 Datalogger Support Software - Manual (Page 103)

SECTION 8. SMCREAD CARD READING SOFTWARE
8-5
8.4.2 C — COMMA SEPARATED ASCII ARRAYS
This format has array elements separated by
commas. No element identifiers are included
and all leading and trailing zeros are removed.
Each array is terminated with a carriage return
and line feed. Comma separated data is
reasonably compact, can be imported into most
analysis packages, and can also be read when
printed (see example in the PC208 manual).
8.4.3 A — AS STORED (8-BIT DATA)
When this option is used SMCRead does not
perform any decoding on the data in the card.
Data is read out of the card and is written to
disk as it is.
If data has been stored from a datalogger in a
binary format, the A option writes the data to
disk in the same format. This is the most
compact format for data storage on disk, but the
data needs to be decoded before it can be read.
The Split program can be used to decode the
data. If you wish to decode data with your own
software please refer to the datalogger manual.
NOTE: If the data was stored from the
datalogger in ASCII format, the A format
must be used to read the data from the
card. Storing data directly in ASCII format
is inefficient in terms of use of the card
memory, as printable ASCII requires five
storage locations in the card (10 bytes) as
opposed to one for binary data.
NOTE: Programs are skipped over when
reading the card with this option. Only data
files are read.
8.5 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON
SMCREAD OPERATION
8.5.1 READING DATA FROM MORE THAN ONE
CARD
SMCRead automatically detects the removal of
a card from the card slot and will update the
status window accordingly. SMCRead indicates
the removal and insertion of a card by
generating a series of short beeps.
8.5.2 ABORTING OPTIONS
Most SMCRead operations can be stopped by
pressing the
ESC key. You are then returned to
the options menu.
8.5.3 BATTERY VOLTAGE WARNINGS
If when the program is run you get a warning in
the module status window that shows the card
battery as being ‘DEAD!’, the battery in the card
is close to being, or is completely discharged.
CAUTION: Do not unplug the card from
the PC or power down the PC at this stage.
Read any data that is present in the card
before removing power from the card.
It cannot be assumed that the card is powered
just because it is in a slot. Exercise caution
when changing the battery and ensure that any
data present in the card is read first. The
normal procedure for replacing the battery is
outlined below.
Read all data, remove the card, replace the
battery and then rerun SMCRead using the E
option to reformat and test the card. When you
first plug in a card that has lost power
SMCRead indicates that the card is unplugged
or corrupted and can show spurious numbers in
the module status window. Continue past the
warning message and select the E option. After
the card has been erased and formatted the
module status returns to normal.
If the battery status displays LOW you should
change the battery as soon as possible as it
may have less than 3% of its original capacity.
If the battery status is ‘DEAD’ a CSM1 will not
allow you to store data in the card from a
datalogger.
8.5.4 CARD ERRORS
If SMCRead detects that the error counter in a
memory card is reading 255, a warning is
displayed in the module status window
indicating that the card has been corrupted.
This means that some of the reserved memory
in the card has been corrupted. As the
reserved memory area is used to store the
various pointers to data in the card, the process
of reading data out of the card may be prone to
errors.