System Settings

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System Settings

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The System Settings page in the Control Center contains settings and utilities that apply to all users:

Display Style

The 3D graphics in RowPro require good performance from the PC and its graphics driver in order to work well. As a general rule, if your PC meets the Minimum System Spec then it will have a sufficiently powerful graphics system, although the performance of individual graphics drivers can vary greatly. The amount of display RAM is in particular is critical to graphics performance.

To ensure RowPro will run in a wide range of PC environments, the 3D graphics can be set to run at a number of different levels that require progressively lower performance from the PC by removing details like trees, scenery, etc.
You can check the frame rate on the fps monitor on the bottom frame of the PM twin. The fps monitor is active when you are rowing, when the Oarsman in the Coaching Clinic is rowing, and briefly each time the Control Center is closed. At all other times it shows "--" which means the 3D display is paused so that other RowPro functions will have more PC resources available to them.
If the fps is low in your PC (i.e. below 15), there are several things you can do to improve RowPro's 3D graphics performance - for details see the Troubleshooting Graphics Performance Help Topic.  RowPro offers the following graphics settings:

All Scenery (Live Water)

This is the standard RowPro setting. The scenery looks best with this setting, but the fps may not be high enough on some low-spec PCs.  Also the 3D part of the display may be blank or white if your PC graphics card and driver are not capable of supporting the advanced graphics technologies used for live water.

All Scenery (Static Water)

The live water is replaced with static water, which raises the fps and does not require advanced graphics capability in your PC, but makes the water less realistic.

3D (Without Trees)

The trees are removed, which raises the fps but makes the scenery less interesting while you row.

3D (Water Only)

The shoreline is completely removed, and most low-spec PCs should run at a good fps on this setting.

3D (Aerial View)

This top-down view leaves only the boats visible, and all but the most severely challenged PCs should run on this.

2D View

If the 3D frame rate is still not high enough, or if you want a longer course view for rowing with other boats, choose the 2D view. This shows from 100m to 1,000m of the course in a 'swim lane' style with a boat-shaped object moving along each lane.

Graphics Options

There are several options available for tuning the way RowPro handles 3D graphics.  These can be set to enable you to take advantage of whatever level of capability your PC graphics chip and driver has available. RowPro offers the following graphics settings:

Graphics Engine

There are two main 3D graphics engines in use today: DirectX and OpenGL.  Before version 3, RowPro could only use OpenGL, however from version 3 onwards RowPro can be set to use either DirectX or OpenGL.  Neither of these is the 'correct' choice. Some PC graphics drivers have bugs in one or the other of their 3D graphics systems, so it may be necessary to set RowPro to use the other system.  Note: If RowPro will not run sufficiently to enable you to change this setting, you can change it by (carefully!) editing the <RenderSystem>xxx</RenderSystem> line in the RowPro.config file with a text editor to either OpenGL or DirectX.

Anti aliasing

Aliasing is the jagged appearance of straight edges in the 3D scene.  Anti aliasing is the smoothing of these jagged edges.  By default this is set to Jagged (= no anti-aliasing) because only the more powerful graphics cards and drivers can provide anti-aliasing support without reducing the fps too much to be useful.  If you have a powerful graphics system, you can try moving this setting further towards the Smooth end to make the graphics edges smoother.

Use Broadcast Camerawork

By default, the view in the 3D Display is always from a camera that tracks alongside your boat. RowPro can also use broadcast camerawork, which means the camera position moves as the session proceeds and shows different views, and scoreboards appear onscreen giving information about participants and their positions, similar to the way on-water rowing regattas are shown during TV broadcast coverage. To use broadcast camerawork by default, check the Use Broadcast Camerawork checkbox.  Note you can change this per session with the Use Broadcast Camerawork checkbox in Session Setup.

General

Default User

RowPro can be set to start up with the Current User being either the Guest User or the Last User.

Guest

If there will be more than one user, set RowPro to start with the Guest User activated - that way none of the users will accidentally row as another user.

Last User

If you are the only user, set RowPro to start with the Last User activated - that way you will never need to bother logging in.

Rowing Log Default Sort Order

The default sort order in the Rowing Log is to show the most recent rows at the bottom.  You can change this to show the most recent rows at the top.

Connection

If your PC connects to the Internet via a Proxy Server, you will need to set the Proxy Server setting in RowPro. To check if you are using a Proxy Server, and to check its settings, if your browser is Internet Explorer, click Tools | Internet Options | Connections | LAN Settings and see if the Use a Proxy Server checkbox is checked.

If so

Note the Address and Port settings, and enter these in RowPro Control Center | System Settings | Connection | Proxy Server settings.

If not

Ensure the Proxy Server setting in RowPro is unchecked.

PM Settings

This control enables you to specify which serial port is used by the PM2+. This control is necessary because the PM2+ is not a plug 'n' play device, and scanning the ports to find it can upset other applications, services or devices that are using your PC's COM ports. By default, RowPro uses serial port COM1. If you connect the PM2+ to another serial port, you will need to change the COM port setting. Check the PM2+ Connection Icon on the lower frame of the PM twin:

If it's green, the COM port is set correctly.
If it's red, the COM port may be set incorrectly. See the Troubleshooting Concept2 PM Connections Help Topic to resolve this.

Note this setting is not relevant for PM5, PM4 and PM3 and can be ignored.

Database

RowPro contains an extensive Database which includes your rowing plans and your digital rowing log. The Database is located in the ..\Program Files\Digital Rowing\RowPro folder.

Database Backups

Digital Rowing strongly recommends that you take regular backups of the Database to ensure that you do not lose valuable information, in particular from your rowing log, in the event that your PC has a problem. To back up your database, click the Backup button and specify the location and filename of the backup. By default, RowPro puts backups in the Backups subfolder under the main RowPro program folder, and uses the current date and time in the backup filename. For example a backup taken on January 6, 2008 at 9:33:32 am will be named RowPro20080106093332. See the Managing your Database Help Topic for more information.

Restoring your Database

If you need to restore your Database, open the Control Center, click the System Settings tab, click Restore, browse to the backup that you want to restore, and click Open.

Language

By default, RowPro operates in English.  To change to another supported language, click the relevant language, then close and restart RowPro.