DIAdem Idea Exchange

Post an idea

Assignment channels are useful for converting extremely long text channels with repeated values into numeric channels for saving, but I feel like viewing the text values in table format is clumsy as it requires converting the channel back to text or manually looking up the value in the Assignments property "Parameters" dialog.

I would like to see a native option in the "Format" box to directly display the assignment text rather than the numeric value for assignment channels in VIEW and REPORT tables.

For example, in the Format Numbers dialog, in addition to Automatic ("AutoAdj"), Number ("d.dd"), Date/Time ("#mm/dd/yyyy"), etc. entries, you would also see Assignment ("Assign") option. This would allow you to display the numeric value by default as it works today (to preserve efficiency in VIEW and backwards compatibility), or be able to see the text directly in the table.

A few challenges:

I assume this would make the channel read-only in VIEW, as the .Values AssignmentChannel property is today.
Displaying of text values for unassigned numeric ranges. Probably just stick with "NOVALUE", but could also do "UNASSIGNED"?

I believe the same visibility could be accomplished through an X-Table toggling between .Values and .DValues, so hopefully it wouldn't be too difficult to accomplish natively.

I've attached some image mock-ups for clarity.

-Josh

Download All

View All (3)

Script Interface Conveniences

I've been spoiled by using other scripting environments lately, and thought I'd suggest a few features that I feel would make scripting in DIAdem a little more convenient:

Check for un-dimmed variables when Option Explicit is turned on
Check for unused dimmed variables (very helpful for cleanup)
Check for variables that are used, but never initialized to a value

I feel these would be really useful for identifying and fixing bugs (especially for inexperienced script writers) and cleaning up old scripts, while not requiring major changes to the interface (although they could get really annoying if implemented incorrectly, may be difficult to implement in the back end, and may even require manual compilation to detect?).

Thanks!

-Josh

Programmatic copy function

Diadem currently has a copy function for curves within the user interface, as shown below:

However, there is no copy function within the scripting api. This means to duplicate a curve programmatically multiple functions. one for each of the properties in the curve, need to be called as shown below:

Dim oMyReportObj, oMyNew2DCurve,

Set oMyReportObj = Report.ActiveSheet.Objects.Item(1)

Set oMyNew2DCurve = oMyReportObj.Curves2D.Add(e2DShapeLine, oMyReportObj.Curves2D.Item(oMyReportObj.Curves2D.Count).Name &"_copy")
oMyNew2DCurve.Shape.XChannel.Reference = oMyReportObj.Curves2D.Item(oMyReportObj.Curves2D.Count-1).Shape.XChannel.Reference
oMyNew2DCurve.Shape.YChannel.Reference = oMyReportObj.Curves2D.Item(oMyReportObj.Curves2D.Count-1).Shape.YChannel.Reference
oMyNew2DCurve.Shape.Settings.Line.Width = eLineWidth0100

...

It would be far easier if there were a call to copy a curve directly:

Dim oMyReportObj, oMyNew2DCurve,

Set oMyReportObj = Report.ActiveSheet.Objects.Item(1)

Set oMyNew2DCurve = oMyReportObj.Curves2D.Copy(1)

I've noticed that the easiest way to relate a channel calculation back to the original channel is to append to the channel name:

iH_EngSpeed_rpm

iH_EngSpeed_rpm_RegX

iH_EngSpeed_rpm_RegY

iH_EngSpeed_rpm_1

iH_EngSpeed_rpm_2

iH_EngSpeed_rpm_Filtered

Filtering for *engspeed, or *engspeed_rpm will return all of the above channels, but in my experience I rarely want to see all the additional channels...With enough channels, it can effectively obscure the channel you're looking for!

The simplest way I can think of to obscure these with the current functionality would be to have a stop character ("\"?) to prevent the filter from grabbing anything beyond that point:

*EngSpeed_rpm\ would return anything ending in *EngSpeed_rpm

Another way would be to get rid of the assumed * at the end of the filter, forcing people to put one on themselves when necessary (but that would be changing the current functionality and would likely confuse users at first):

*Engspeed_rpm would return anything ending in *EngSpeed_rpm

*EngSpeed_rpm* would return everything with EngSpeed_rpm inside it

This would also be nice for looking for channels that end in something, like anything ending in *nm\ rather than anything with nm in the name...

When I am loading multiple same-named channels into the Data Portal from a DataFinder Search Results list (after 'searching for channels'), if I load these channels into the data portal, by default they all load into the 'default' group, and because they have the same name, they are re-named inside the Data Portal with suffix numbers.

I think it would be better to create a new group in the Data Portal with the name of the group the channels belong to in their respective files, or at least provide this option.

Channel Table Inserts

When dragging and dropping a channel into a View or Report table from the Data Portal, no matter where you release the channel, it's always appended to the end. This can be frustrating if you have a large number of channels in the table, forcing you to rearrange the table after each channel is added.

I would like to propose the ability to drop channels in-between columns of the table, OR append channels on the end.

I would think that the area you drag the channel into would decide where it inserts:

Between 2 channel headers (anywhere in the "Selected Channels" section or above) = Insert

Anywhere on the "Channel Contents" section, row numbers, or blank area without channels = Append to end

Thanks!

-Josh

Hi,

Still on the toppic "Making Diadem more user friendly", Diadem is really limitated when it goes on X offsets. Somebody who wants in a report to superimpose two curves who do not begin at the same X value have to calcute the offset and set up 2 time chanells to get the whished result. Being able to move the curves yith the öouse or have a dedicated function in report could be helpful.

The easiest (to use and, I suppose, to develop) would be something alike to the "offset korrektur"/"offest correction" but applied for 2 curves. One can either chose a minimal, a maximal or both on the 2 curves and make those 2 to 4 points superimpose. With the 4 points choice, one can imagine that the curves will auto-rescale.

View All (3)

It would be very useful to be able to copy data directly from a View 2D axis chart/graph to the clip board.

This action is similar to using the channel table to copy a selection of data and being able to past that data to the next empty column of the table or pasting it directly into the portal to create a new channel.

Currently I can zoom into a small region of the data in the View graph. Based on the position of X-cursor1 and X-cursor2 I can find the data in the table and copy it to the clip board. Then create new channels by pasting into empty columns or pasting into the portal.

But this is very time consuming and cumbersome.

Some time ago I created a script that would copy the data to new channels automatically, but if I can copy the data to the clip board I can paste it into other programs like, please forgive me, Excel for customers who don't have Diadem.

Excel does have the TDM importer add-on, but then it is really hard to search for data.

View All (4)

I would like to request Ctrl+F "Find" capability for the List View in the Data Portal.

Unlike the Structure View's channel/group filter, this would be capable of searching any of the currently visible properties (Name, Description, Unit, custom items, etc.).

Should contain all standard "Find" search capabilities:

Search highlighted column(s) or all columns ("Find in Selection" checkbox)
Found items would select the found cell inside the row (this would allow multiple entries to be found for a single channel if multiple properties contain the desired text). "Select All" would select entire channels.
Individual "Found" items would become visible (if outside of the existing display window), this wouldn't be possible for multiple "Found" items.
Previous/Next item search functionality ("Search Up" checkbox)
Left-Right then Top-Bottom search order

While it is possible through a custom script to do such a search (limited to selecting entire channels), it is much less desirable to do so than to have the functionality built into DIAdem (especially considering the properties are already present in the visible table so wouldn't need to be retrieved separately).

-Josh Rewerts

Engineering Technician
John Deere Power Systems

In the DIAdem interface, there are menubar buttons available that allow the user to "Save ___ As...", whether it's a script, SUD, layout, etc. In the script editor, there is also a "Save All" button that saves all of the opened scripts. However, 9 times out of 10 I just want to save the current layout/script/whatever. It would be great to have a standard "Save" button either in addition to or in place of the "Save As..." button in the menubar.

(Yes, I know I can use the keyboard shortcut "Ctrl+S" or click "File --> Save" but these options are not as readily apparent as the "Save As..." or "Save All" icons, so I find myself clicking one of those and then having to click several more times just to get out of it...when all I wanted was a one-click save.)

An added benefit would be (like in the Script editor), if the file has not changed then the "Save" icon could be grayed out. That way the user would know that the current state of the current script/layout/etc was saved to disk.

Freeze Frame

Hi,

I would like to request th ability to "Freeze" columns in a view table so they stay on the left-hand side of the table as you scroll to the right.

The channel names/properties sticking at the top works brilliantly, but if you want to have a timestamp channel (or Timestamp, Speed, and Torque channels) visible when you have a view table with many channels you have 3 options:

1) Scroll back and forth a lot

2) Add a new occurrance of the channel(s) into the table and move it(them) to the correct spot

3) Have 2 tables side-by-side and vertically scroll them both together manually

I would suggest 2 interfaces to select the columns to freeze at the left hand side of the table:

1) Right-Click menu called something like "Lock Column(s) at Left" or "Freeze Column(s) to Left" (Or just "Lock/Freeze Column(s)")

2) On the "Display" interface, have a "Lock/Freeze Left" checkbox on the columns in the Name/Format table (you may also want to have a "Lock to Left First # Channels" checkbox for the All/All of a group channel table options) This should probably automatically move the columns selected to the top of the list so they appear in the order they will display in the table, as well as allowing the user to rearrange the leftmost columns (if they lock/freeze multiple columns)

-Josh

REPORT Graph options

View All (4)

Clear error messages from user commands

Errors occuring in Diadem user commands result in all running scripts aborting without any clear sign of the reason. The only means to find out is the log file in Diadem Script.

Support says this in a feature, as user commands are supposed to handle events and there should be no (frequent) error messages.

On the other side, user commands are the ideal place to have a user functions library as it is accessible from everywhere including dialogs. With ScriptInclude command such a library has to be included at every script start and possibly several times as dialogs have a separate script environment.

Therefore I would welcome an option to turn on error messages / beep when there is an error in user commands.

The current behaviour of silent abortion of any script is quite confusing, especially for people that are only applying scripts for evaluation.

DIAdem Idea Exchange

Add more VIEW legend options

Add "title" for axes objects in REPORT

Assignment Channel Table Format

Script Interface Conveniences

Programmatic copy function

Channel & Group Filter Stop Character / Removal of Assumed End Wildcard (*)

Loading multiple channels into their group names from NAVIGATOR Search Results

Simple Copy of Plot from View/Report to Clipboard

Channel Table Inserts

Moving channels "on the fly" in REPORT

Add features for plotting/viewing data properties

Add "wrap and truncate" feature to REPORT axis labels

Drag and Drop Channel Properties to REPORT table

Copy or Export data from the visible area of a View 2D axis chart to the Clipboard

Data Portal List View Find (Ctrl+F)

Save Icon (vs. Save As or Save All)

Freeze Frame

REPORT Graph options

Mass-Manage (Delete, Move) Sheets in VIEW and REPORT

Clear error messages from user commands