Esquema 2. Coste económico del abandono
5. Conclusiones
2. Installing and Running ROMDAS
Introduction
Protection
ROMDAS is copy protected. This sees a unique hardware fingerprint generated by the ROMDAS software based on the name of the registered user and the hardware that it is installed to. This fingerprint is provided to DCL who will then provide a registration key which will ensure continued operation.
Without a registration key the software will work for an evaluation period of 30 days after which it will only operate in Office Mode. It is not possible to get around this by resetting the time or date on the machine or any other method. The software can be uninstalled and transferred to another computer, but this requires that a new registration key be issued.
Annual Maintenance Subscription
Continued user support and entitlement for ROMDAS software upgrades is done through the ROMDAS Annual Maintenance Subscription (AMS). As well as entitling the user to the current update patches of the software the user will also get many other support entitlements.
An invoice for the next year's Annual Maintenance fee will be sent at the anniversary of purchase date.
Two or more years Annual Maintenance fee can be purchased at a discount.
Refer to the ROMDAS website for current details of the ROMDAS Annual Maintenance Subscription (AMS) .
ROMDAS CD
Starting the ROMDAS CD
The ROMDAS CD contains software and documentation for the ROMDAS, along with the other ROMDAS products available. Insert the CD and it should automatically start, displaying the following menu:
If the CD does not start automatically, do the following:
Start Windows Explorer
Locate the drive with the ROMDAS CD
Highlight the file MenuEng.exe
Double click to start the menu.
ROMDAS Software
To locate the ROMDAS software:
Select ROMDAS Road Measurement Data Acquisition System
Select ROMDAS Software
Select ROMDAS Data Collection Software This will start the install.
Installing ROMDAS
Default Folder
The ROMDAS software is installed by default to the folder c:\ROMDAS. If you would like to use a different folder select the Browse button when the next screen is displayed. Otherwise, select Next to run the install.
2 Installing and Running ROMDAS
Once installed, a shortcut will be placed on your desktop.
Updating ROMDAS
Update Software
To update the ROMDAS software with a new version you should uninstall the old software before doing a full reinstall. This is done by locating the Remove Programs icon and then highlighting the ROMDAS program to remove
Windows Settings
Power Saving Options and Screen Savers
For a real-time data collection system like ROMDAS it is important to insure that no other software is taking processor time or operating system operations occur which could affect real-time performance.
The following should be done when using ROMDAS in data collection surveys
All Windows Power saving options and screen savers should be turned off.
Check for programs that start-up automatically and run in the background that could affect performance and can be disabled or turned off e.g. anti-virus software, Skype etc
The data collection computer should be keep as “clean” as possible as the more software is installed the more background services will be running that could affect real-time operation.
Windows Performance Options
The ROMDAS software uses Windows background services for the TPL, Video and Laser Profilometer devices. With Windows 2000 and later operating systems, you can increase the performance of ROMDAS while using any of these devices by changing the Processor Scheduling setting from the default “Programs” to the "Background Services"
This option is set under: Control Panel | System | Advanced | Performance Settings | Advanced |
| Processor Scheduling.
For better real-time performance the Visual Effects setting can also be changed to Adjust for best performance.
Disk Defragmentation
The ROMDAS Video option will generate a lot of disk activity when writing video data. Disk fragmentation will affect the performance of the ROMDAS software. Disk defragmentation should be performed regularly.
Anti Virus Software
Several of the free anti-virus software programs interfere with some or all of ROMDAS operation (Avast, Kaspersky etc). Generally if it can be avoided we recommend not using anti-virus software on the data collection computer. However Microsoft Security Essentials has been successfully tested with ROMDAS and currently is the only anti-virus software that we can recommend using if a antivirus protection is required.
Active hard drive Protection
Active hard drive protection refers to technology that is mainly used in laptop computers that detects excess acceleration or vibration and attempts to avoid or reduce mechanical damage to hard disk drives by preparing the disk(s) prior to impact. The software tells the hard disk to unload its heads to prevent them coming in contact with the platter, thus potentially preventing head crash.
Laptop vendors have implemented this technology under different names:
HDAPS, Hard Drive Active Protection System, by Lenovo
GraviSense by Acer
2 Installing and Running ROMDAS
3D DriveGuard, HP Mobile Data Protection System 3D and ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection by HP
Free Fall Sensor (FFS) by Dell
HDD Protection by Toshiba
These utilities will generally interfere with ROMDAS data collection as the vibration of the moving vehicle can shut done the hard disks and prevent ROMDAS from saving the data to file (particularly important with Video Logging option). These utilities need to be turned off when ROMDAS is operating in the vehicle.
Evaluating and Registering ROMDAS
Overview
The full ROMDAS software is protected with a registration key system so that only the purchased subsystems will work in surveys. However ROMDAS can also be operated in other modes that don’t require registration. The three modes of operation are:
Evaluation Version - all features and subsystems work, expires after 30 days if full registration key is not entered. On expiry ROMDAS will automatically revert to become ROMDAS Office.
The 30 day extension will reset if a newer version is installed. The 30 day evaluation period can be extended at DCL’s discretion. Contact DCL to apply for an extension key.
ROMDAS Office Version - no restrictions on use. Everything works except surveys. Can be used for Data processing, survey file setup etc.
ROMDAS Registered Version - restricted to one copy per system and enabled for survey subsystems purchased.
Evaluation Version
ROMDAS can be evaluated for a period of 30 days before registration is required. During the evaluation period the software is fully functional. However, after this period the software will no longer operate in evaluation mode on the same computer except if you install a later version of ROMDAS in which case another 30 days trial is available.
When the software is started in evaluation mode the screen above is shown. After a period of 5 seconds select Start and ROMDAS will continue to load.
ROMDAS can be changed to operate in either ROMDAS Office or Registered versions at any time.
ROMDAS Office Version
The ROMDAS Office version requires no registration key to operate. You are therefore able to install on as many computers as required for data processing, survey file setup etc.
After installation the ROMDAS software will operate in Evaluation mode by default. When starting up the software will display the following Registration screen.
To change to ROMDAS Office select he Office Mode button. The following message will appear informing you that all surveying options will be disabled in the Office version.
Select OK. ROMDAS will now always start in Office mode. The version that ROMDAS is operating in will be shown on the status line (or the About ROMDAS dialog).
ROMDAS Registered Version
Once the software has been purchased a registration key will be issued. Enter the name the software is to be registered to in the ROMDAS Registration window shown above (which can also be accessed from About ROMDAS|Registration Status) and select Email Finger Print or Print Finger Print. Both the user name and the fingerprint need to be supplied for the software to be registered. In the example above the fingerprint is EA6D-964E. Send the fingerprint to [email protected] or fax to number in the Information|About ROMDAS menu. E-mail will give the most prompt response.
The Hardware Finger Print is the unique hardware code for the computer that ROMDAS is to be installed to. Each fingerprint is unique to a single computer.
The user name and fingerprint is used to generate a unique registration key. This will be provided and should be entered as shown to the right. Once done the Register button is used to complete the process. If successful, the window below right will be shown. If not, please contact [email protected].
NOTE: If you change the hardware on your computer the registration key may no longer work. It will be necessary to first obtain an uninstall key as described next for moving the software to a new computer, and then obtain a new key once the new hardware is installed.
2 Installing and Running ROMDAS
Changing the Registration Key
The key is only valid for the specific machine hardware configuration so if ROMDAS is to be used on another computer or the hardware is changed, it will be necessary to uninstall the software and obtain a new key. The process is as follows.
Start ROMDAS
Select Information|About ROMDAS|Registration Status
Select the Unregister ROMDAS button
ROMDAS will shut down and the following dialog will be shown. Select OK.
To unregister it is necessary to provide a code which verifies that ROMDAS has been removed. An example of this code is shown on the following screen. WRITE THIS CODE DOWN. It is necessary to press all three buttons and then OK to complete the unregistering.
Send this code along with the new hardware fingerprint to DCL at the contacts above and a replacement key will be provided.
NOTE: If you need to install ROMDAS on to another computer because of hardware failure during a survey and have no way of easily contacting DCL to obtain a new registration key, the software can be installed and run for 30 days on a new/uninstalled computer. This 30 days period should allow you to complete your work in progress.
Running ROMDAS
Menu Options
The ROMDAS menu system has the following options:
File. Surveys, Odometer Surveys and Data Processing options;
View. View processed data;
Calibrate. Calibration options;
Test. Test menus for the various ROMDAS instruments
Tools. Define setup options;
Help. Information about the software.
Navigation
Since ROMDAS is used in a moving vehicle, the system has been designed as much as possible to be operated without needing a mouse. Navigation can be done with standard Windows navigation keys:
Accelerator Key (Ctrl Key) combination: Ctrl key + letter as shown in menu. E.g. Ctrl-S brings up New Survey dialog.
Alt Key combination: Alt key + first letter of menu item. E.g. Alt-F brings up File menu.
Up/Down/Left/Right Arrow Keys. Move between menu and submenu items
Tab. Move between fields
Enter. Select a menu item
ESC. Close the menu
Function Keys. Assigned to specific tasks
Passwords
The Tools|Options menu can be password protected to stop unauthorised access to critical settings. If enabled selecting Tools|Options from the main menu gives the password entry box shown:
The first time ROMDAS is used, the user has direct access to the Tools|Options menus. The password settings are described in Section 0.
2 Installing and Running ROMDAS
Test Mode
The ROMDAS software can be run without being connected to the Interface or being in the vehicle by using the ‘Survey Test Mode’ option. This simulates being connected to Hardware and driving along the road. It is activated by the menu Survey Test Mode under the Test menu as follows.