Installation

(Note: Current version is aladin-1.19)
If you are in a hurry for downloading the whole package (including this file) please download from aladin-1.19.tar.gz.

What can this software do?

This software CAN do:

Depth profile graph on X Window Left is a screen shot of a depth profile graph plotted to X Window System. The upper part of the graph is the depth profile and the lower is the warning information of each time during the dive.
Click here to see larger picture

Logbook info on xterm Left is a screen shot when the software (named 'aladin') is executed from xterm and the logbook data for dive No. 450 is shown.
Click here to see larger picture

This software CANNOT do:

In short, this software is not an electrical substitute for paper logbooks but a software that can receive data from Aladin and display data in human readable forms.


Operating environment

This software requires Optionally, received data from Aladin is usable as an input to Uwatec's DataTrak if the following are ready:


Disclaimer

This software is distributed as is in a hope that it will be useful for many people. The author of the software is not responsible for any damage or loss caused by using the software or information on the related web pages. This web page or this document tries to provide information in all possible accuracy, but may contain many errors. The author is not responsible for these errors, either.

This software is a free software written in Perl (so you can read the whole source code). Duplication or redistribution is subject to GPL (Gnu Public License). For more detail please refer the comment in the Perl script header or the file COPYING included in this package.


Install

1. Install Perl 5 and gnuplot-3.7 (or later) if necessary. When installing Perl 5, some Linux distributions require to do

    % su
    # cd /usr/include
    # h2ph *.h sys/*.h asm/*.h
When compiling gnuplot it is recommended that you use libvga. (The libvga version of gnuplot does not need X Window System to plot depth profile.)

2. Power on your PC and enter BIOS Setup menu. Enable COM port to which you are going to connect the interface cable. Boot Linux (or FreeBSD) and change the permission of the corresponding device file /dev/ttySX (or /dev/ttydX) to 0666 (user readable and writable). For example, if you are to connect the cable to COM1 port, do

    % su
    # chmod 666 /dev/ttyS0

3. FreeBSD users are required to add following one line to your rc.serial file:

    stty -f /dev/ttyidX speed 19200 clocal cread -hupcl
and to reboot, where the above character 'X' should be replaced by your port number to which the cable is connected.

4. Download this package from aladin-1.19.tar.gz.

5. Unpack the package:

    % tar xzf aladin-1.19.tar.gz

6. Copy the executable Perl script file "aladin" in the package to somewhere in your PATH.

7. Edit "sample.aladinrc" for your circumstances, and put it in your home directory as the name ".aladinrc". Each line in "sample.aladinrc" is:

   $PrintPsCommand = "system \"cp \$GnuPlotPs ../ps/\$DIVE\"";
      Description: Command for printing the temporary PostScript 
      file $GnuPlotPs.  Default will just copy the temporary file 
      to directory "$DataDir/../ps" to have filename $DIVE.
      (In this point, the variable $DIVE contains the dive number of 
      the profile.)
      If you want to print the profile to your PostScript printer, set
           $PrintPsCommand = "system \"lpr \$GnuPlotPs\"";

   $DiveNoOffset   = 0;
      Description: Dive number difference between you and your Aladin.
      Default is 0, and in this case the dive number is the number of 
      dives your Aladin have experienced.

   $Device         = "/dev/modem";
      Description: Device name to which Aladin is to be connected.  

   $DataDir        = "~/datadir";
      Description: Directory to which data received from Aladin should go.  

   $BuggyPro       = 0;
      Description: Some old Aladin Pro has a bug in the number of depth 
      profiles.  This will be resulted in erroneous plot.  Set this variable
      to 1 if your Aladin Pro is buggy.

   $DOSEmuSerial   = "/dev/dosemuserial";
      Description: Name of named-pipe which dosemu emulates as a serial 
      device. (--- Optional) Or device the Palm/WorkPad reside (usually
      /dev/pilot).

8. (This step is optional. You can safely ignore the step.) Install dosemu. Edit /etc/dosemu.conf so that com1="/dev/dosemuserial" (or whatever you specify to the valuable $DOSEmuSerial). Do su root, and make the named-pipe /dev/dosemuserial as

    % su
    # mknod /dev/dosemuserial p

9. Execute the Perl script.

    % aladin
Then a prompt > appears. Commands for this prompt are:
plot <num>
Display depth profile graph of dive No. <num>. If your gnuplot has been compiled with libvga a graph is on VGA, otherwise on X. To dismiss a graph, just hit return key.
lpr <num>
Print out a depth profile graph of dive No. <num> to your PostScript printer.
get
Receive data from your Aladin (connected to COM port $Device), and store the data in the directory ($DataDir). Data file name is determined automatically. In order to receive data from your Aladin, do:
        (1) Type "get" against the prompt >,
        (2) Connect your DIY interface cable to the contacts of Aladin
          (and the other end of cable to PC),
        (3) Touch the contacts of Aladin by moisted fingers,
        (4) Enter [logbook] mode,
        (5) And go to [logbook1] mode.
Between (4) and (5) data should be received. If I/O error occurs, a message of "Read error" will be showed. In this case, repeat (4) and (5). A prompt > completes a data transmission.
<num>
Show a logbook data of dive No. <num> (start time, bottom time, temparature etc.).
dump <file>
(for debugging; print the contents of a file in text form.)
ls
Show file listing of $DataDir. Display will be done through "less".
rm <file>
Remove a file. If attempted deletion causes information loss (such that some profile will be lost) then the file won't be removed and a warning message is displayed.
help
Show help message.
quit
Quit the Perl script.
put <file>
Put the file to DataTrak (for debugging) or Palm/WorkPad. In order to put a file to DataTrak, do:
        (1) Type "put <file>" against the prompt >,
        (2) Change to another virtual console (to do this, for example, 
            type Ctl-Alt-F2), and run dosemu there,
        (3) In emulated dos execute datatrak,
        (4) Choose [Logbook] memu,
        (5) Choose [Receive].
In order to put a file to Palm with the software Paladin (the software is downloadable from this site, too),
        (1) Power on your Palm and launch Paladin.
        (2) Connect your HotSync cable or cradle between Palm and PC.
        (3) Tap [Receive] button.
        (4) Type "put <file>" against the prompt >.
Pushing return key just against the prompt has a significant meaning if the previous command is either "plot <num>" or "lpr <num>" or "<num>". It has the same effect as executing the previous command but with the argument num+1. For example,
    > 102[Push return key here]
     ....             <==   logbook data for No. 102 dive here,
    >[Push return key just after the prompt]
     ....             <==   logbook data for No. 103 dive here.

Back to the top page of Aladin data transfer tools.


Any questions or comments or bug reports should be made to

ITO N. Hisashi <kuro at neko.ac>
(Please convert the above 'at' to @ sign, this is for spamproof.)