Notes for upgrading DilaSoft V3 for Windows software: Sections: Saving the old data: Can not read old data : Upgrading from the 16 bit version of DilaSoft to the 32 bit version: Important files to save: Contact information: Before reinstalling or upgrading the software, steps should be taken to insure keeping the old files and setups. It may be very difficult to configure the new software for your instrument without knowing the exact setup parameters such as data acquisition card IO ports, com ports, thermocouple types, LVDT size and other important parameters. Saving the old files offers access to this information! If you have questions, the first place to look is the DilaSoft help file. This is installed with the software and is also available on the CD. To use the copy on the CD, open Windows Explorer and open the CD drive (may be D:, E:, but will have a 'CD' icon). In the root directory of the CD is a file called "DilaSoft32Help.chm". Simply double-click this file with the mouse left button and it will open on-screen for viewing. There are complete sections about installing and trouble shooting the software. Saving the old data : When upgrading or reinstalling the software, the easiest method of retaining your old data and setups is to copy the original main directory to another directory name in a safe place on your hard drive. This can be done with Explorer in the Windows environment through the following steps: Open Explorer by clicking on the Start button with the mouse. Move the mouse pointer to 'Programs'. At the bottom of this menu should be 'Windows Explorer'. Click on that name with the left mouse button. Once Explorer opens, it should display the root directory of your hard drive (C:). Look through the window on the right side for the directory name that the original software was installed into. Click once on this with the RIGHT mouse button. A menu will appear with an option to 'Copy'. Click on this option with the LEFT mouse button. Visually, nothing will happen yet. Now select another directory on the hard drive. Click on that directory with the RIGHT mouse button and select 'paste' from that menu. If you just select the root of the drive ( 'c:\' ) for the destination, a directory called "Copy of DilaSoft" will be created. If you select a different directory, DilaSoft will be copied. We recommend using an archive directory to store data, experiment and temperature program files. This would be a good place to copy the DilaSoft directory. Note: Version of DilaSoft prior to 3.0.x defaulted to c:\tw32 as the home folder. Any version 3.0 and above now uses c:\DilaSoft\. Since these installations do not conflict, both could be installed at the same time. Backup would still be recommended! If you do install DilaSoft version 3.x and keep a prior version installed, the desktop icons and program menu liks will point to the new installation. An alternative to copying the entire directory is to copy only those files needed to a safe place. Don't forget the DilaSoft.ini file! The entire directory may also be renamed using Explorer. Simply click on the DilaSoft directory with the RIGHT mouse button and select the 'rename' option. The advantage to copying the old directory and installing into the old directory: Unless a major change has taken place in the new software, all setups will be maintained. The advantage to renaming the old directory and installing into a new directory: The software will be a 'clean install' with all files being installed from the CD. An alternative to saving the old setup/data files is to run the old software BEFORE upgrading or reinstalling. Go through every menu option and record the settings on paper. Pay special attention to the instrument setup as instrument type, connections and ports; channel setup for thermocouple types and calibration constants; and configuration for hardware setups. Can not read old data : If installing an upgrade and a major change has taken place in the software, it will not be able to read the old DilaSoft.ini setup file. You will know this when the software is first run. An alert message will be displayed explaining that it could not read the setup file. It will then create a new DilaSoft.ini setup file using built-in defaults. These default settings will NOT match your instrument! If this happens, every menu option must be gone through, checked and set up to match your instrument. If you don't know certain setup options, you can contact Theta Industries for help. If you saved a copy of your old DilaSoft.ini file, we can read the original instrument setup from that. Upgrading from the 16 bit version of DilaSoft to the 32 bit version: No special steps need to be taken. The 16 bit and 32 bit versions of the software reside in different directories and share no files. The 16 bit version can be either deleted, or saved in case there is a problem with the 32 bit installation. This is also a good way to check the instrument setup parameters by running the old 16 bit software and checking the setup menus. DO NOT install the new 32 bit software into your old 16 bit directory (usually named 'thetawin')! Important files to save: DilaSoft for Windows keeps data and information in specific areas and files on your hard drive. The most common are: Filename(s) Location DilaSoft.ini main program setup, C:\DialSoft. *.exp experiment setups, usually C:\DialSoft\exp. *.set temperature programs, usually in C:\DialSoft\program. *.bmp quick report graphs, usually in C:\DialSoft\graph. *.rpt quick reports, usually in C:\DialSoft\report. *.prn *.pr1... data files, usually in C:\DialSoft\data. Note: the '*' above means any characters as these files are named by the user. The DilaSoft.ini file contains all the instrument configuration for hardware and communication between the computer and instrument. When installing new software, this file should be saved in a safe place for reference or use in the new software. It will always reside in the same directory as the software itself, usually C:\DialSoft, unless the software was installed into a different directory by the user. *.exp files contain all the information for a particular experiment. If an old experiment is to be rerun, these files can be loaded into the software. They also rely on the *.set temperature program files so both sets of files should be saved if needed. *.bmp and *.rpt files are from the Quick Report function. They are not necessary for program operation. They may be saved for future reference and will not be overwritten by new software installations. *.prn and *.pr1 through *.pr4 are the data files recorded during an experiment. These are the most important files if previous experiment data needs to be accessed. They should be periodically backed up to a safe location. They will not be overwritten by new software installs or upgrades except for the 'standard' filenames of: test.prn, testw.prn and testw*.prn. The files *.exp, *.bmp, *.rpt, and *.pr* reside in directories set in the software. The standard directory names are given above but may be changed by the user. Locations of these files should be recorded and maintained by the user. Contact: If you have any problems or questions regarding the reinstallation or upgrading of DilaSoft V3 for Windows 32 bit version, you can contact: Theta Industries, Inc. 26 Valley Road Port Washington, NY 11050 USA Phone: 516-883-4088 Fax: 516-883-4599 E-mail: support@theta-us.com For questions pertaining to DilaSoft V3 for Windows 32 bit ONLY, you can also contact the author: Bearly Computing Rich Schmitt E-mail: dilasoft@bearlycomputing.com