Options

Overview

The Options dialog is where you configure most of the EZScale's program features. You get to the Options by selecting Tools | Options from the menu.

There are six (6) tabs on the Options dialog, General, Event Logs, Comm Port, Scale Codes, Scale Settings and Data Transfer.

Tabs

Each tab groups a common set of program features. You can switch from tab to tab by clicking on the tab name, pressing Ctrl-Tab to cycle forward through the tabs, or press Ctrl-Shift-Tab to cycle backwards.

General Tab

The General tab groups general program settings such as Location, Ticketing settings, and program management features.

Location

Location is used to identify the specific installation (computer) running this instance of EZScale. The location can be up to 15 alpha/numeric characters and is added to the tickets table location field whenever a ticket is processed during Ticketing. This field can be useful if you are running EZScale on multiple computers and want to positively identify which computer (workstation) produced the ticket. The location value can also be included in Data Transfers to accounting.

Next Ticket ID

You can set the next Ticket ID to be assigned during the Ticketing process. If the Ticket ID ends with a digit, it will be incremented as tickets are used. For example:

You are allowed to repeat Ticket ID's. However, during Ticketing, EZScale will warn the user if the next Ticket ID already exists in the Tickets Table. The user will be given an option to assign a new number, cancel, or use the duplicate Ticket ID. If you periodically recycle your Ticket ID's, you should purge the old tickets from the Tickets Table so that the duplicate ticket ID warning is not triggered.

Disable Matching CV Warning

EZScale will warn you if the Customer/Vendor CV associated with a Job and Purchase Order selected during Ticketing doesn't match when you print the ticket. You can disable this warning by checking the "Disable Matching CV Warning" here.

To further explain, Jobs and Purchase Orders can both be associated with a Customer/Vendor (CV). When you ticket, you can select a Job and a Purchase Order to associate with the ticket. Although it is not necessary, you would generally expect that the Job and Purchase Order are associated with the same CV. If they aren't, that may mean that you selected the wrong Job or the wrong Purchase Order or there is another error in the database.

Therefore, when you ticket, EZScale does a quick match check. If the CV associated with the Job does not match the CV associated with the Purchase Order, EZScale will warn you unless you've disabled this feature.

Note:      The match check is not performed if the Job or Purchase Order selected are the Default record or if the associated CV is the Default.

Finally, when the warning occurs, the user will have the option to ignore the warning or cancel the print ticket request so that they can attempt to correct the problem.

Tickets To Print

You can define up to three ticket designs to be printed when the user prints a ticket during the Ticketing process.

Note:      The tickets must first be designed using the Ticket Designer and saved to an .EZT file.

You can then either:

    Type the full path and file name pointing to the .EZT file(s) you want to print, or

    Click on the Open File icon to the right of each field and use the Open File dialog to locate and insert the path and .EZT file name.

The tickets are printed in the order listed. Multiple copies can be defined in the Ticket Designer and will generally print faster than repeating the name of a single design here. Each ticket design can be printed to a different printer which is also defined when you design the ticket in in the Ticket Designer.

Always Run Full Screen

Check the Always Run Full Screen box to force EZScale to always run in full-screen (maximized) mode.

Compact Database On Exit

Check the Compact Database On Exit box to automatically compact and repair the database each time EZScale is closed. We recommend that you ENABLE this option. You can also manually compact the database at any time by selecting Tools | Compact Database from the menu.

Disable Default Record Warning

EZScale normally flashes a warning when you select the Default Record for any of the tables under the Maintain menu.

Check the Disable Default Record Warning box to disable the above warning.

Match Entry Timeout

You can set the amount of time that you have to match an entry when selecting an item from an Edit list or Lookup list. The default is two (2) seconds.

Event Logs Tab

Event logs are useful for management auditing and security within EZScale. Be default, all event logs are disabled (unchecked).

Transaction Logs

Place a check by each type of transaction event that you want to log, Log New Records, Log Edits, and/or Log Deletions. Transaction Log results can be viewed under Tools | View Logs | Transaction Log.

Since so much information is recorded about every change in the Transaction Log, this table can grow very rapidly. If allowed to grow too large, it can affect system performance. For that reason:

    We do not recommend that you enable transaction logging unless needed for and/or periodically for auditing purposes.

    You also have the option enabling the level of logging desired to New, Edits and/or Deletions under Tools | Options | Event Logs. Only enable those options you need.

    Be sure to turn off transaction logging when they are not needed under Tools | Options | Event Logs.

    Be sure to purge old transaction log entries when they are no longer needed.

    Be sure to compact the database after purging old entries to recover the free space from the database.

Scale History Log

Place a check in Log Scale Activity box to enable scale activity logging.

Scale Trigger Wt.

Enter the trigger weight to initiate a scale history log event. Weights below this value will be ignored with respect to the scale history log. You can still weight trucks and process tickets regardless of the value set here.

Tare History Log

Place a check in the Log Tare Activity box to enable tare activity logging.

Comm Port Tab

EZScale can communication with most scales equipped with an RS-232 (serial) port or and output signal that can be converted to RS-232. The Comm Port tab in the Options dialog lets you set the RS-232 serial communication parameters to match those of the electronic scale or scale head. You'll need to see your scale or scale head manufacturer's documentation to determine the specific settings required for proper communication.

IMPORTANT:      All the comm port settings in EZScale must match the settings for the scale interface. If you change a comm port setting here, you have to change the scale interface to match and visa versa.

Port

Select the comm port on your computer to which the scale is connected. The ports available will depend on your computer hardware and configuration. Typically you will be connected to Com1 or Com2.

Note:      You may need a special cable or multiplexor to properly connect your scale to the computer. Please talk to your scale manufacturer to obtain the correct cables.

Enable Comm Port

Place a check in this box to enable the comm port. When you first install EZScale, the comm port is disabled (unchecked). EZScale will not start checking for scale input until you enable this port.

Checking for scale input takes time and can affect program performance. There are a number of times when you will want to disable (uncheck) the "Enable Comm Port" option:

    When there is not a scale attached to the computer.

    When the scale or it's computer interface is not working properly.

    When you want to ignore all scale input and enter data manually.

    When you temporarily need to use the comm port for another purpose such as with an external modem.

Maximum Speed

Select a communication speed to match the settings for your scale from the pull down list. You can only select from one of the available speeds.

Communication reliability and transmission distances (the maximum length of the serial cable connecting the scale and the computer) can be dramatically affected by this speed setting. If you are having difficulty getting reliable readings, try slowing down the communication speed. For most scale applications, 1200 to 2400 baud is more than adequate.

Connection Preferences

Set the Data Bits, Parity and Stop Bits to match your scale interface settings. Data Bits = 7, Parity = None, and Stop Bits = 1 are common.

Flow Control

Set the Flow Control to match you scale interface settings. You have the choice of None, Xon/Xoff (software handshaking), RTS (hardware handshaking), and Xon/RTS (both software and hardware handshaking). None is the most common.

Scale Codes Tab

Scale Codes along with Scale Settings tell EZScale how to "ask" the scale for information then parse and display what the scale sends back. Not all scales will necessarily support all the capabilities shown. Use those features that match your scale's communication capabilities.

Scale Codes

Scale codes set where information about the state of the scale can be found in the information returned by the scale.

Start - the position in the text returned by the scale where the code starts

Length - the length (number of characters) of the code in the text from the start position.

Code - the actual code letters or numbers used for Gross, Tare, Stable or Unstable Conditions

Color - the color to render the number on the scale display for each condition

Example

Assume that the scale returns the following text: 00053002GRST

If EZScale were setup as shown above, the program would read the 2 characters "GR" starting at the 9th position and interpret the weight as a Gross Weight.

Likewise, setup as shown above, EZScale would read the 2 characters "ST" starting at the 11th position and interpret that the scale is currently Unstable.

Scale Settings Tab

Scale Settings along with Scale Codes allows EZScale to process the information sent back from the scale. Not all scales will necessarily support all the capabilities shown. Use those features that match your scale's communication capabilities.

Extract Weight

Extract Weight defines the part of the response sent back from the scale that contains the numeric weight.

Start - is the position in the text returned by the scale where the weight value begins.

Length - is the length (number of characters) to read from the start position.

Multiplier - is used to convert the units reported by the scale to other units. For example if the scale reported weight in pounds (lbs.), setting the multiplier to .4536 would convert the weight to kilograms (kg). Conversely, a multiplier of 2.2046 would convert a scale reporting in kilograms (kg) back pounds (lbs). The multiplier is usually set to 1 to use the weight as it is returned by the scale.

IMPORTANT:      The multiplier (and Format below) only applies to the Scale Display. EZScale uses the raw units of the scale (usually lbs.) internally and on all other display areas including the status bar, tare form, ticketing form and in tickets and reports. In other words, changes to the multiplier here are for operator convenience only and never affect internal use of raw units. This lets the Scale Display be modified for convenience without compromising the database or any reports.

Format - determines the way the scale display window displays the scale reading. For most needs, you simply create a format as shown in the example. The pound (#) sign is a placeholder that will only be used if a value exists for that position. Zero (0) is a placeholder also that forces either the actual value or a zero of no value exists for that position. The decimal (.) can be set to define the number of significant digits you want displayed. Click here for advanced number formatting guidelines.

Stable Reading Timeout - indicates how many second EZScale will wait for a stable reading after you request to print a ticket during the Ticketing Process. If a stable reading is observed between the time you request to print a ticket and the number of seconds indicated, EZScale will use the reading. If the scale is still unstable after the number of seconds indicated, you will be asked whether or not you want to use the reading.

If you do not want to test for stable readings, set this value to zero (0).

Transmission Codes

Transmission Codes are text transmitted from EZScale to your scale or scale head to command the scale or scale head to perform certain tasks. See your scale or scale head user manual for the codes supported. Not all scales and scale heads will support all capabilities of EZScale.

Read - is the command that must be transmitted to the scale to request a weight.

Zero - is the command that must be transmitted to the scale to reset the scale to zero (0).

{CR} - is used to send a carriage return (ASCII value 13)

{LF} - is used to send a line feed (ASCII value 10)

Data Transfer

Allows the user to configure a data transfer from EZScale to a file that can be imported by accounting or management reporting.

There are three basic steps to configuring EZScale for data transfers:

    Select a file format.

    Define the fields that are to be transferred.

    Set a path and file name to receive the data.

File Formats

EZScale supports two (2) file transfer formats:

    Comma Separated Values, saved by default with a .CSV file extension.

    Fixed Length Fields, saved by default with a .ASC file extension.

After selecting the file format type, click the Define Transfer Fields to select the fields you want to transfer.

File Protection

If you have already transferred data to a file defined under "Transmit Data To", and that file is currently present, EZScale will not let you change the file format settings and will display the warning below. This is done so that you can't accidently end up with two different formats appended to the same file.

If you see the file protection warning above, you must do one of the following before you can change the file format:

    Process the existing file then delete it, or

    Change the "Transmit Data To" to a path and file name that does not currently exists.

Transmit Data To

Enter the full path and filename that will receive your data transfers. Data will be appended to this file.

You can also click the Open File icon to display an Open File Dialog that will let you browse your computer and network to select a file and/or location.

EZ Transfer Fields.INI

Data transfer field settings are stored in a file named "EZ TRANSFER FIELDS.INI" in the \DATA folder. This file can be copied from machine to machine to use the same data transfer settings on each machine.