PowerTap Issue: Lost Data

RapDaddyo said:

I try it (accidentally) every time I fail to clear the CPU before a ride. And, once I failed to save the ride file before exiting CP and had to download the ride again. So, yes, I've tried it.

Thanks for your input. I am probably going to buy a second unit anyway, just in case.

RapDaddyo said:

No, my CPU is on my horizontal bar and is out of harm's way. But, in general moisture is not a good mix with electrical contacts.

I know nothing about mechanical stuff, but I am going to get someone to change that cpu's position. Right now, it's on the stem.

acoggan said:

Actually, it did - just not in the typically obvious manner. 😉

CyclingPeaks was conceived with the notion that it would become the vehicle for sharing powermeter files via a common format (i.e., .wko). For this reason, any file you open isn't written to your hard drive unless and until you assign it to an Athlete you've created. Once you do, the file date will appear under that Athlete's name on the Navigation Bar, instead of under "Home". Moreover, if you make any changes in the file an asterisk (*) will be shown by the file date until you save the changes.

Thanks a lot. I did notice this way of working, drag and drop the file on my calendar, and then I get notified if I exit when there's an (*) next to the workout date.

I am a db guy, so at first, I thought it was a bit weird, the idea of saving each workout into an individual file. But I think it makes sens after all. And anyway, 15hours/week of workout data would probably turn a regular db table into a multi-milion record monster at the end of the season, given that one single second is a row.

acoggan said:

Re. your downloading problems: I'm a bit rusty w/ respect to using my PowerTap, but the original version would indeed only allow you to download a file once (using Saris' software). The only way around a botched download or lost file was therefore to do a complete dump of the memory, using either ptapdll.exe or David Easter's recovery utility.

I googled that exe name, it didn't return any record. Are you sure of the name?

That would stand for powertap dll.exe ? Usually, a file is either a .dll or a .exe
Anyway, I don't argue. But if you don't mind sending me this file, my email is activated under my profile.

Don't worry if you don't have time, I'll continue testing all that on my side in the mean time.

Thanks

SolarEnergy said:

I googled that exe name, it didn't return any record. Are you sure of the name?

Here's a link to the David Easter utility cyclingforums.comshowpost.phpOpen ↗. I know the dll file is in one of the posts on this forum, but I can't find it at the moment.

RapDaddyo said:

Here's a link to the David Easter utility cyclingforums.comshowpost.phpOpen ↗. I know the dll file is in one of the posts on this forum, but I can't find it at the moment.

Thanks RD,

I do have good news for the OP (if he is still hanging around 😄 )

I found the issue. My unit is fine.

It is definitely a driver issue. Let me explain :

The driver supplied by Saris on their messy cd, with messy documentation doesn't work properly.

If one installs that driver (the one supplied on the CD), on a XP machine, the risk is fairly high imo. Because this driver is designed for Win 9X

It still installs on an XP machine without any error message, but it screws up the ride files, making you believe that the unit is broken.

The biggest problem is that on their messy cd, they offer a link to an upgraded version of this driver for XP, but this thing caused my XP virtual machine to fall in an endless loop of restarts followed by blue screens (that may be a VMWare issue though).

Now I am going to find a replacement for the USB Serial driver for XP, but that won't be easy. I googled for 2 hours trying to find one, and I only found pop up windows of naked girls so far.

Thanks !

** edit **
BTW, my protocol was this one. First download on a Win98 machine. Worked perfectly. Second download on the same machine. Perfectly again (as you said RD). Third download on XP machine, all the powers are there, all the times are '0.00' . Second attempt on the same XP machine, no file anymore. This bug is mean !

SolarEnergy said:

I found the issue. My unit is fine. It is definitely a driver issue.

I think your first problem was removing the Saris CD from the sleeve. Mine is still in the sleeve, virgin. I use CP exclusively.

RapDaddyo said:

I think your first problem was removing the Saris CD from the sleeve. Mine is still in the sleeve, virgin.

Burn it. That's evil !

Where did you find a driver for your USB Serial port?

SolarEnergy said:

Burn it. That's evil !

Where did you find a driver for your USB Serial port?

I use my good old fashioned RS232 port. A classic these days. But, any good software package should ship with a USB serial port driver for each O/S supported.😄

RapDaddyo said:

I use my good old fashioned RS232 port.

With a USB-to-RS232 adapter?

That's brilliant, as no extra driver is required.

SolarEnergy said:

I am a db guy, so at first, I thought it was a bit weird, the idea of saving each workout into an individual file. But I think it makes sens after all.

A pop-up warning would still be helpful...

SolarEnergy said:

And anyway, 15hours/week of workout data would probably turn a regular db table into a multi-milion record monster at the end of the season, given that one single second is a row.

The original PowerTap software used Microsoft Access to maintain all of one's .csv files in a database. Needless to say, that was a very inefficient way of storing the data, as the master file could grow quite large in just one season. The .wko file format was therefore designed to be as compact as possible, and in fact my 7+ y of power data (350-500 h/y at 1-2 s recording interals) only occupies ~40 Mb of my hard drive.

SolarEnergy said:

I googled that exe name, it didn't return any record. Are you sure of the name?

That would stand for powertap dll.exe ? Usually, a file is either a .dll or a .exe
Anyway, I don't argue. But if you don't mind sending me this file, my email is activated under my profile.

Don't worry if you don't have time, I'll continue testing all that on my side in the mean time.

Thanks

My bad: it's ptapdl.exe. If you still can use the file, let me know and I'll email it to you. Unfortunately, however, I've forgotten the optional switch codes (to, e.g., initiate a complete memory dump), and haven't been able to find any place where they are documented.

acoggan said:

it's ptapdl.exe. If you still can use the file, let me know and I'll email it to you. Unfortunately, however, I've forgotten the optional switch codes (to, e.g., initiate a complete memory dump), and haven't been able to find any place where they are documented.

ptapdl.exe is documented at the bottom of page 43 of this old User Guide cycle-ops.comNew%20Version%20 %20PTap%20Manual%20 %20Standard%20&%20Pro%20(Yellow%20CPU).pdfOpen ↗.