I recently powered up my SDS200 after a long while. I guess I just lost interest for a while. But I noticed something that always baffled me before and is baffling me again after about a year not using the scanner. What happens is when I use sentinel software to both read from the scanner to the PC or the other way around, I get messages saying one or more (sometimes nearly all) of my favorites are different and it's asking me if that's okay or not. And in most cases, nothing should have changed! I might not have even opened up the Favorite on my PC or even listened to it on the scanner. What gives? Please help end my confusion, maybe some of you can explain this. What is changing that I didn't change myself?
SDS200 and Sentinel software weirdness
- Thread starter mortoma61
- Start date
The only way to know for sure what changed is by using a file comparator program. WinMerge (free) is good program WinMerge
That program can compare the whole folder containing the text files. The text files are in a Uniden format so they will have to be deciphered.
If you want to go that route, post the changes here so we can decipher and advise on the changes.
{edit} Also if using my ProScan, ProScan will show detect the differences, same as Sentinel but it will show the differences (View Differences button) when reading or writing the favorites.
That program can compare the whole folder containing the text files. The text files are in a Uniden format so they will have to be deciphered.
If you want to go that route, post the changes here so we can decipher and advise on the changes.
{edit} Also if using my ProScan, ProScan will show detect the differences, same as Sentinel but it will show the differences (View Differences button) when reading or writing the favorites.
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I still don't understand why it does it if you didn't personally do any changes to a Favorites file. Maybe since I uploaded the very latest national database, it's changing things on it's own without my permission? I have noticed it's doing it much less now than it was last night. And last night I had downloaded the database for the first time in over a year. I'm just going to assume that's what it does. Actually maybe a good thing since I'd never go through 20 or 30 favorite listings to look for TGIDs that are not used any more or whatever. That would take weeks or months. And if site frequency changes are made, it would be a really good thing!
I believe Sentenial does notify you there's a change in the master database for systems in your favorites lists. It does not change them though.
Sentinel gives no notification if updated data exists on the server from what is stored locally (scanner or app) in a FL. Only if you download the data from the server into Sentinel appending it to the same FL then write said data to the scanner will you get a notification if the data on the scanner is different from how it exists in Sentinel
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OK, I was wrong.
I was under the impression that when you updated the master database you got a notice relative to what the favorites list loaded from the scanner say different from what is in the new database.
Guess not
Maybe you were thinking of the Whistler database scanners? (The TRX-1 for example.) For those, you can ask EZ-Scan to update your scanlists based on updates to the main database. But, that only works for channels & systems that you programmed via Library Import. Anything you added yourself in a scanlist
Nope...never owned a Whistler or Radio Shack, etc. Only Radio Shack crystal scanners and Bearcat/Uniden programmable scanners.
I thought I read it here. In the last 20 years, very little change in Colorado Radio systems other than the conversion to P25 trunking for a lot of agencies when the state created the statewide system.
It's all good, I was wrong, it's happened before, I am sure it'll happen again 😊
Yep, same here.
I think I'm figuring the problem out maybe? I sometimes use Butel ARC536PRO to re-program old favorites and create new ones. Simple fact is, you can do some things easier (or at all) with the Butel software than you can with Sentinel. But the two are very different. Sentinel software needs to write to the scanner or write from the scanner to by writing everything at once. With Butel you can make a change to just one Favorite and just write that one to the scanner. Or just read one from the scanner if you want to. With Sentinel it's all or nothing.
So I did notice that after making some changes in Butel and then later making some changes with Sentinel I started getting a lot of those messages again that a Favorite is different on the scanner or on the PC. And I got a lot of them right after using Butel. I bet if I went to exclusively using Sentinel, those messages would stop (unless I really made changes to a Favorite). So something Butel software does drives Sentinel a little wonky. Although it really does not seem to hurt anything. I doubt I stop using the Butel software because it's so much easier to set avoids, alerts, volume offsets and priorities than it is with Sentinel. Among some other advantages.
So I did notice that after making some changes in Butel and then later making some changes with Sentinel I started getting a lot of those messages again that a Favorite is different on the scanner or on the PC. And I got a lot of them right after using Butel. I bet if I went to exclusively using Sentinel, those messages would stop (unless I really made changes to a Favorite). So something Butel software does drives Sentinel a little wonky. Although it really does not seem to hurt anything. I doubt I stop using the Butel software because it's so much easier to set avoids, alerts, volume offsets and priorities than it is with Sentinel. Among some other advantages.
I always read and write all and guess it's just an unnecessary personal preference. I know @ProScan shows all favorites lists individually with checkboxes for one to check.
I'm keeping a sticky note by my setup. If I change Sentinel, I point the arrows to the scanner; and if I make a change on the scanner, I point them to the computer. Then I try to remember to write/read in that direction to keep everything synch'd.
No matter what, I always read the scanner first and never mess with Sentinel, Proscan or Arc until the reading from the scanner is complete.
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