E-Trac Exchange: Typical Brain-Dead Minelab Software :(

[Erik in NJ]

Finally had a chance to load E-Trac Exchange on my PC this evening. I downloaded a couple patterns from this site to my desktop and associated them with the app. When I double-click the pattern file on my desk top it lauches E-Trac Exchange - the mode tab is shown - which is stupid in and of itself. Then when I switch to the pattern tab I do not see the pattern that I'm trying to view. Any idea what I'm doing wrong? How do I view/edit the Park pattern?

Sorry for the rant, but as a computer scientist and software developer for 25 years it simply angers me to see commercial grade software that seems so dysfunctional. I've never much cared for the user interface on the Explorer line, but have learned to live with it. I have offered Minelab several times over the years to help them re-design their software to something that would knock the sox off of what they offer, but I never hear a peep. Just another case of awesome hardware that is unfortunately not enhanced by crummy software.

OK, so please someone tell me what I'm doing wrong and how I can view/edit these patterns. Thanks.

 

[jimpugh]

click on patterns then browse to the folder or desktop where you have patterns and then click on open that it will be drop down like mode browse and load your pattern ...have not tried to edit but should be easy to play with...hope this helps...
happy trails
jim pugh ps i just made folder on my desk top and just drag drop files on that folder ...I put patterns and modes
it will only see the pattern files or mode files dependiing on which one you are working in



[attachment 105880 addon.php.jpeg]

 

[Erik in NJ]

Hi Jim,

My Patterns tab does not have a browse button. There's a drop down that gives me two choices:

1. Download all patterns from E-Trac
2. Upload a pattern to E-trac

Neither of which I want to do since I do not have the E-Trac connected. I simply want to view the pattern using the software E-Trac Exchange. When I double-click on the file and it loads E-Trac Exchange (EE) the pattern should be loaded somewhere in some soft of pattern edittor as far as I'm concerned. Am I missing something?

I'm sure the machine is excellent - can't wait to get out with it, but the software seems to leave a lot to be desired.

Regards, Erik

 

[EddieB]

Hey Eric, In the pattern tab go to upload to Etrac, browse, go to the file you downloaded the patterns, and open it. It will bring the download to a pattern. Try that. EddieB

 

[jimpugh]

n/t

 

[Beachcomber]

The instructions the others gave you are correct and will allow you to see a pattern. But Minelab did drop the ball. The software is only 90% complete. You can NOT EDIT or CREATE a Pattern on your PC. You can only upload or download them but you can not modify them. I guess that function will be in version 2 of the software. Guess they were in a hurry to get it to market. They give you the ability to adjust every variable of the detector and send the changes to the machine but no way to edit or create patterns. The first thing I wanted to do when I loaded the software was to create a couple of custom patterns only to find out that capability does not exist in this software. It's kind of like them leaving the Ferrous mode out of the E-Trac. They get things 90% right but the 10% they get wrong they really get wrong!!!!! Dummy me thought that I was going to be able to sit in comfort in front of my PC and create or edit discrimination patterns rather that have to sit there holding the detector and playing with all the buttons on the touchpad to create them. After owning Minelab detectors for the past 15 years you would think I would be used to their antics by now!!!! But I am not I get just as annoyed now as I always have at the things they do. I had the dumb impression back when they came out with the Xterra they had finally realized people wanted nice lightweight detectors and that they were finally going to start giving them to us from then on but that was not to be either. Here we are with a brand new flagship detector and it's back to the old heavyweight Explorer design instead of the nice new lightweight Xterra style. The obvious reason is they were forced to use the heavyweight Explorer style or they wouldn't have been able to use all the currently available Explorer coils on the E-Trac. Still it would have been nice to see their new top of the line machine follow in the lightweight Xterra's tracks rather than the Explorer's. Well time to get off the Minelab bashing soapbox See what you started Eric ) JMHO

HH

Beachcomber

 

[Erik in NJ]

Hi Eddie! I actually did get to that point on my own out of frustration. Here are the problems that I see with this set of steps:

I don't have the E-Trac connected, so it doesn't make sense to select "Upload to E-Trac" from the drop down. Then when the pattern is loaded it only shows it to me in a little 1/2" x 1/2" field on the screen while it's waiting for me to select a slot for the upload. Minimally I would want to see the pattern in the "Mode Pattern" field (whatever that is) which is on the Settings tab - I thought modes and patterns were two distinct entities, no? But what I had really hoped to have seen was a pattern view/edit screen of some size where I could study the various patterns and edit them with my mouse.

 

[Beachcomber]

n/t

 

[EddieB]

Hey Eric, That would be a good job for you: if it's possible to create a add-on to the software so we can edit and make our own patterns on the pc. I too was very disappointed that all editing has to be on the detector. Oh well. EddieB

 

[Erik in NJ]

Hi Eddie, Thanks for the vote of confidence....I'm seriously thinking about it. With my job in NYC, the 11 mo. old baby, and the house renovation that is now going on a year, it leaves me precious little time, so I'd probably need to team up with another good programmer to get the job done, but it should be done. If anyone out there is interested in teaming up with me I'd be very interested in writing an add-on that we can actually use - drop me a PM. I'm going to start working on decyphering the file format this weekend.

Regards, Erik

 

[Rigit]

Its just a simple file transfer program that does what it says on the tin, ample for saving edited patterns and modes

 

[Erik in NJ]

My CD didn't come in a tin - just a thin plastic sleeve All it says on the disc is E-TRAC Xchange. Well it's a bit more than a file transfer program - they let you change all sorts of E-Trac settings on the PC side, but don't let you edit the discrimination pattern or even view it to any reasonable extent. My point is that with a little extra effort the software could have been as strong as the detector.

 

[BlackX]

Hack it, dood!

Somebody's got to do it and it sounds like you might have the experience to pull it off. One of the things I love about the Howard forums for cell phones is how folks hack some really cool stuff. Minelab put in the USB interface finally and unless they're more thorough for protection than they seem to be in other areas, someone ought to be able to reverse engineer it enough to improve the software to at least get some of what we want out of it without waiting for their 3(?)-year cycles--some of which never manifests itself. (Their forte seems to be hardware rather than software.) Go for it!

(Though I'm wondering if it would take the combination of a hardware and a software hacker to do it. Know any good EE's? )