Encore Viewer Software comments.

[djtowle]

I've only just had the oppertunity to use this software and only a few days at that. But wouldn't it be useful to have some user fields available?

For example:

1. day by day notes. I felt like ...., slept well, mask leaked... blood pressure etc.

2. ability to add what mask was used, and type in the flow/leak numbers for each pressure for that mask, then this could be shown on the graph along with the leak rate each night.

3. a bit of customization for the graph data, i.e. run a report that shows summery for all data, or last 3 months or what ever, and the daily data for the last night, or week only.

4. option to show multiple uses in the same day on one sheets. Currently if you use the machine from say 12-3 and then from 4-9 this seems to chart on two different pages even though it was really the same night with a one hour TV break.

Anyone know where or better who to send software improvment requests?

[Goofproof]

I don't know what the E-Mail address of the Respironics Trash Can is, but I can guarantee if you send it to them, they will promptly throw it in. Jim

Probably just send it to the P.O. Box you send the requests for the "M" Series Lost data repairs. It's all the same Can.

_________________

CPAPopedia Keywords Contained In This Post (Click For Definition): respironics

[rwalther]

I know I'm bucking the conventional wisdom here ... but I'm pretty happy with the software and data. It's easy to use, and simple to understand. I find I'm able to make good adjustment decisions from it, and have settled into a really good pattern.

Occasionally I get that annoying "Missing Day" detail page issue, but not more than once a month or so ... and I've learned to not lose any sleep over it. (HA!)

I work in the tech-business, and I know how hard it is to correct a latent defect once it's in the field. The question is always ... how many millions of dollars of incremental cost will it take to recall these products and fix the firmware bug ... balanced against the estimated sales losses of not fixing it.

In most cases ... it makes better business sense to fix it going forward, and just live with it looking backwards.

This is about "cost" and "margin" ... not about "truth, justice, and the American way".

That being said ... they should fix the damn thing so that nobody in the future has to deal with it.

I actually believe that the whole "User Software" thing is a bit of a side-job for them, so they're not really focused on it, and aren't very good at it yet.

A mixed bag ... no doubt.

Rusty

[DreamStalker]

I've only just had the oppertunity to use this software and only a few days at that. But wouldn't it be useful to have some user fields available?

For example:

1. day by day notes. I felt like ...., slept well, mask leaked... blood pressure etc.

2. ability to add what mask was used, and type in the flow/leak numbers for each pressure for that mask, then this could be shown on the graph along with the leak rate each night.

3. a bit of customization for the graph data, i.e. run a report that shows summery for all data, or last 3 months or what ever, and the daily data for the last night, or week only.

4. option to show multiple uses in the same day on one sheets. Currently if you use the machine from say 12-3 and then from 4-9 this seems to chart on two different pages even though it was really the same night with a one hour TV break.

Anyone know where or better who to send software improvment requests?

You can keep track of those types of notes in Excel or even NotePad.

[xyz]

> wouldn't it be useful to have some user fields available?

That's why MS sells Excel. Different people want to see different things, e.g., "day by day notes" or whatever. With a spreadsheet you can track, or note, what you want. And create graphs with color. And change it whenever you want.

That said, it is clear that there are some problems with Encore Viewer. Or perhaps with the data that the Auto M writes to the card.

The other day I had a "90% Leak" of 39 and an "Avg Leak" of 40. Huh?

In EV when I set the report view to Continuous Scroll, I get a .net framework error when I scroll down through the document pages. This is before I even try to copy the report. Do others get this error also?

The reason that I set the report view to Continuous Scroll is that I use the SnagIt utility to generate a copy of the report. (That Respironics software developers would write software that generates a report with no way of saving it is incompetent.)

SnagIt gets my vote for the top two PC utilities of all time (along with ccleaner). It is very versatile and, among many other features, can save files in about a dozen different formats, e.g., .pdf and .jpg.

I change the EV report to continuous scroll and then start SnagIt in the "copy a scrolling window" mode. Just as when I try to scroll/page through the document manually, it comes up with a .net framework error every page or so. I've found a workaround, but it means babysitting it and clicking on the error message about a half dozen times. I can't start it up, walk away, and come back when it's finished. The alternative would be to tell SnagIt to copy each of the six separate pages (report windows), and then I would end up with six separate files for every day.

Has anyone else found any errors in the EV report? I have ver 1.003. Does anyone have a different version?

[DreamStalker]

... snip
The other day I had a "90% Leak" of 39 and an "Avg Leak" of 40. Huh?

That is actually quite possible. Average is not the same as median ... now if the median (same as 50th percentile) was greater than the 90% (90th percentile), I would say double Huh?

All it takes is one very large number to raise your "average" above the 90% value.

[Wulfman]

... snip
The other day I had a "90% Leak" of 39 and an "Avg Leak" of 40. Huh?

That is actually quite possible. Average is not the same as median ... now if the median (same as 50th percentile) was greater than the 90% (90th percentile), I would say double Huh?

All it takes is one very large number to raise your "average" above the 90% value.

Considering the way EV "rounds" things.....like leaks.....that wouldn't surprise me at all. My average leak is always a "round" number....40, 42, 45, etc. Yet, in the Encore Pro software, it may be 38.65 or 40.16 or something lower and with decimal numbers. EV leak numbers are always higher and rounded as opposed to Encore Pro.

Den