Sentinel favorites lists and DB updates Was: Neophyte RR DB Question

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kudzu_kid

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Hi,

Pardon the n00bish question here. I've had my scanner (Uniden SDS200) for about 3 weeks. My time to parse the RR threads and the fair to poor scanner manual is rather limited.

To my question(s): Once I have my scanner configured to my liking (unwanted stuff is AVOIDed on scanner, some but not all avoids in Sentinel), what happens when I update the scanner with the new database again? Do I lose my AVOIDs? (Right now I have avoids on scanner that Sentinel doesn't know about!). What's the best workflow to keep "the good stuff" (AVOIDs, favorites, etc.) How does the database download work - is it an overwrite or a merge or ... ? Does Sentinel honor previous AVOID's? Hopefully the questions are semi-sensible / logical. Feel free to point me to other relevant RR threads, internet links, etc.

Thanks for your time and patience!

--Pete
 

RandyKuff

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The database is a separate entity...
Your fav's, profile, nothing will change... Unless you do it...
Even if the new database is written to the scanner...

You know there is two "Avoids"... Temporary and Permanent...
Temporary will will clear on a power cycle of the scanner...
 
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hiegtx

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Hi,

Pardon the n00bish question here. I've had my scanner (Uniden SDS200) for about 3 weeks. My time to parse the RR threads and the fair to poor scanner manual is rather limited.

To my question(s): Once I have my scanner configured to my liking (unwanted stuff is AVOIDed on scanner, some but not all avoids in Sentinel), what happens when I update the scanner with the new database again? Do I lose my AVOIDs? (Right now I have avoids on scanner that Sentinel doesn't know about!). What's the best workflow to keep "the good stuff" (AVOIDs, favorites, etc.) How does the database download work - is it an overwrite or a merge or ... ? Does Sentinel honor previous AVOID's? Hopefully the questions are semi-sensible / logical. Feel free to point me to other relevant RR threads, internet links, etc.

Thanks for your time and patience!

--Pete
When you write the updated database to the scanner, any Favorites that are tagged to be downloaded in the Sentinel profile will overwrite what is in the scanner. When writing to the scanner, or downloading the scanner into Sentinel, the software gives you a pop-up message that the list that is being sent is different than the saved copy. You can choose to make them identical, or tell Sentinel to skip any that don’t match.

If you read the scanner into Sentinel, it will overwrite any avoids in the program’s lists, but at least they’ll be on synch.
 

RandyKuff

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Not True... If that was the case my fav's would change all the text back from what I changed it to be to match the database again...
 

hiegtx

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Not True... If that was the case my fav's would change all the text back from what I changed it to be to match the database again...
For the Uniden scanners, whatever is in the main database when you update it, whether system details, text tags, or anything else, has no effect on any Favorites list. You would only see a difference, for instance in text tags, if you are scanning via the main database using your location and range. You cannot`change the name or other details in the main database. Unless you appended a system from the main database to one of your lists, the appended data might overwrite something (it usually does not, only adds something not already there), any test tags, alert light or sound alerts, etc, are not changed on a Favorites list. For the Whistler database scanners, there is an option in EZ-Scan to update your scan lists with updated whatever change was made in the main database, there is no corresponding update option for the Uniden scanners that make your Favorites lists text tags match whatever the database has.
 

RandyKuff

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For the Uniden scanners, whatever is in the main database when you update it, whether system details, text tags, or anything else, has no effect on any Favorites list. You would only see a difference, for instance in text tags, if you are scanning via the main database using your location and range. You cannot`change the name or other details in the main database. Unless you appended a system from the main database to one of your lists, the appended data might overwrite something (it usually does not, only adds something not already there), any test tags, alert light or sound alerts, etc, are not changed on a Favorites list. For the Whistler database scanners, there is an option in EZ-Scan to update your scan lists with updated whatever change was made in the main database, there is no corresponding update option for the Uniden scanners that make your Favorites lists text tags match whatever the database has.

I either misread your post or something... Thats what I said in my post...

The database is a separate entity...
Your fav's, profile, nothing will change... Unless you do it...
Even if the new database is written to the scanner...

You know there is two "Avoids"... Temporary and Permanent...
Temporary will will clear on a power cycle of the scanner...
 

hiegtx

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I either misread your post or something... Thats what I said in my post...
Randy, I think we're responding to conflicting thread posts and got off track somewhere.

The post you where you indicated that 'nothing will change' on Favorites lists is Post # 2
The database is a separate entity...
Your fav's, profile, nothing will change... Unless you do it...
Even if the new database is written to the scanner...

You know there is two "Avoids"... Temporary and Permanent...
Temporary will will clear on a power cycle of the scanner...
That's correct.

But right after that, in post three, I was making the point that in cases where Favorites lists differ between Sentinel & the scanner, reading the scanner into Sentinel, or writing from Sentinel to the scanner, would make the two lists the same, unless you told Sentinel to skip the changes. That was because the OP was saying that his Favorites list on the scanner has a different set of channels set as Avoid, with more Avoids set, than the same list does in Sentinel. So, if he read the scanner into Sentinel, it would pick up the extra Avoids & make the two copies the same (unless you tell Sentinel to ignore the change). Same issue if writing from Sentinel to the scanner; since the software has fewer avoids in place, those "extras" in the list on the scanner would be overwritten.

When you write the updated database to the scanner, any Favorites that are tagged to be downloaded in the Sentinel profile will overwrite what is in the scanner. When writing to the scanner, or downloading the scanner into Sentinel, the software gives you a pop-up message that the list that is being sent is different than the saved copy. You can choose to make them identical, or tell Sentinel to skip any that don’t match.

If you read the scanner into Sentinel, it will overwrite any avoids in the program’s lists, but at least they’ll be on synch.
Then, you answered "not true".
Not True... If that was the case my fav's would change all the text back from what I changed it to be to match the database again...
I was making the point that bouncing the lists back & forth between the scanner & software would alter whatever avoids differ between the lists, not indicating that text tags would be altered on a Favorites list by updating the main database. That, of course, is not true. Writing an updated database to the scanner has zero effect on the Favorites at all. But, if in writing the database to the scanner, the OP also had one or more Favorites lists set to download, only then would there be changes in the lists. You could, if desired, set all the Favorites in your profile to not download, then that would write only the updated database to the scanner. Since no lists had been selected for download, no changes would be made.
Your post, "not true" was immediately after I was discussing that exchange of lists between the scanner & software would impact items that were set differently (avoided systems, channels, whatever). I think you were thinking only about database updates making changes, whereas I was discussing the differences in the lists themselves.

Why the OP has different sets of avoids between list and scanner, I have no idea.
 

RandyKuff

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No big deal...

I agree... If you have changed something in your fav list or lists in sentinel.. Of course it will change the fav list on the scanner when
you wright back to the scanner if download is on...
My point was the database download will not change your fav's in sentinel or the scanner unless you changed your fav list before
you wright to the scanner or vice versa, scanner to sentinel....
 

kudzu_kid

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Why the OP has different sets of avoids between list and scanner, I have no idea.

Hi All,

Thanks for the responses. I think they've clarified a few things in my thick skull.

But I wanted to respond to the last part - about why the different sets of AVOIDs.

Did you mean you didn't know why or how the differences came to be?

But first a question: when you say "the list" I presume you mean Sentinel? The differences are the result of this type of action (for example): using the scanner bedside, I hear a 2m repeater key up that's ~35 miles away. More static than signal (not a good antenna yet that's a whole 'nother story!). I usually don't care so much about that general area anyhow, so I'll AVOID (either temp or permanent) the offender. But the list (Sentinel on PC) doesn't know about that AVOID yet. Yup, I understand temp AVOIDs get flushed at power down (or next power up, as the case may be).

So, if I'm understanding what's been said here, the best workflow to keep things happy seems to (usually) be the following:

1) Sync FROM scanner TO Sentinel.
2) Download latest RR DB to Sentinel.
3) Write Sentinel to scanner.

Does that seem correct / logical? I don't want to over-think this (which I tend to do)

I may have another related question but it'll keep and I don't want to muddy the water of this particular post. Baby steps :LOL:

I truly appreciate your assistance and long suffering here!
 

ofd8001

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When you connect the scanner (or insert the scanner's SD card in a card reader) and do a Read from Scanner, you may see a pop-up window saying a Favorites List is Different on PC!. You are then given three choices:

Copy and Replace on PC
Copy with New Name
Skip

If you choose Copy and Replace, Sentinel will overwrite the Favorites List on the computer with what your scanner is. This will ensure both the computer and scanner versions are identical.

Copy with a New Name will result in two iterations of the Favorites List(s) on the computer. This is good if you are testing something and want to ensure you have a restore method.

Skip means nothing is done - your scanner will be different from what is on the PC.
 
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