If you program, install, or repair equipment that uses asynchronous serial ports then you already know about the problems one encounters in dealing with these and the difficulties one has in diagnosing and curing the problem. Serial provides you with the low cost portable solution to diagnosing these problems. It provides you with the capability of monitoring and capturing asynchronous serial channel data and control line activity using an IBM PC or true compatible. This easy to use software package turns a PC compatible into a versatile and sophisticated serial channel analyzer capable of simultaneously monitoring both sides of a serial communications link with the optional bidirectional monitoring cable.
Asynchronous communication protocols are fully supported at baud rates from 75 to 9,600 with limited use up to 115,200 baud, depending on the computer's speed. Serial also supports the 16550 UART FIFOs for enhanced high speed support. Character lengths of 5, 6, 7, and 8 bits with the various parity options and one or two stop bits are supported (1 1/2 stop bits are also allowed for 5 bit operation).
Serial has been designed for ease of use. Program operation is done through a menu and windows system. A context sensitive help system provides you with immediate access to on-line assistance. Configuration information is kept in disk files so your normal settings are automatically loaded on start-up. Special configuration files may also be selected at start up. Much of the program's configuration, including contents of the help messages, is user customizable.
Easy to use window and menu system Context sensitive Help system Captures both data lines and control lines Time stamping to better than 1 ms resolution User selectable display and data formats Formats include Hex, ASCII, EBCDIC Custom data formats for EGA/VGA Font editor for custom EGA/VGA fonts Auxiliary data screen with second format Data logging to disk Trigger strings to control data collection Highlighted trigger events in review mode Audible alert for trigger events Baud rate search function CRC-16 and LRC calculations Character and block transmission modes RTS Control for half duplex transmission
The time stamping option captures the time of each data event along with the data. The time stamp contains time information for the time of day down to a resolution of less than a millisecond. Time data captured includes the hour, minute, second and millisecond of the event based on the PC's time of day clock. An ultimate resolution of about 214 microsecond is captured.
You can view data in several display formats including ASCII, Hexadecimal, and EBCDIC. The display may be divided into two display windows, a primary and secondary display allowing you to view data in two formats simultaneously.
Serial allows data collection to disk file as well as to the memory buffer. File size is limited only by available disk space.
Data collection can be controlled by trigger strings. These may be used to start, stop, or end the collection of data. Each side of the serial port, DCE and DTE, are separately controlled. You may define several strings of data to be used by Serial as triggers to start and stop data collection. Up to ten strings may be setup and active, each can be active in any or all of six different trigger modes. You can use these triggers to start and stop data capturing for each side of the communications link. Triggers may be constructed from almost any combination of ASCII and hexadecimal characters.
An audible alert option provides the capability of attracting attention for trigger detects. When enabled, this feature generates a single beep each time a trigger string is detected that changes the operating mode.
Window, menu, data, and cursor colors are user definable. You have substantial control over the colors for the various windows and special data types. In addition to color, the cursor and marker symbols may also be selected.
Optional CRC and LRC calculations are provided during the review mode. This allows you to determine the CRC-16 of the data block between the current cursor position and the marker position.
Serial data may be sent to a device under test in either a character by character mode or by data blocks. Character by character data is sent in ASCII from the keyboard as it is typed. Block mode transmissions may be combinations of ASCII and hexadecimal characters. CRC-16 or LRC bytes can be automatically calculated for the block and appended to the message. Message blocks files may be kept on disk.
The ATS Serial Analyzer program requires standard IBM PC XT or AT compatible hardware. The program supports both monochrome and color operation with MDA, HGC, CGA, EGA, and VGA displays. Two serial ports are needed to monitor both serial data lines.
Serial provides a window and menu format for ease of use. A context sensitive help window is available to provide you with online help assistance. Assistance is never more than one or two keystrokes away.
Configuration information is kept in disk files. You may choose different configurations simply by choosing different configuration files. Special file directories showing the existing options files are displayed when selecting a new file.
The program is invoked from the DOS comannd line. A horizontal bar menu provides access to the options and program operations. Pressing the Enter key drops down a menu associated with the highlighted option. Cursor arrow keys allow the user to move down through the drop down menus as well as left and right across the horizontal bar menu.
Context sensitive help is available for the drop down menus and for specific data entry items. The help window is available by pressing the F1-key. If only the horizontal menu is visible, the window will provide the basic instructions for accessing the drop down menus. If a drop down menu is visible, the help window for that window is displayed. For configuration entry windows, specific help windows provide information concerning the currently highlighted item is displayed. Help windows stay visible with their information until the user presses any key to return back to the previous operational state.
Help window messages reside in an ASCII disk file which can be customized by the user. Each help message may be modified. The window width and number of lines are automatically set based on the message contents.
Serial for PC compatibles Program and Manual $99.00 Serial Bidirectional Monitor Cable $40.00 (5 foot cable inserts in-line with DB-25 connectors and connects to PCs with DB-9 connectors - may be extended using standard DB-9 cables) Additional Serial Manual $15.00 (Includes cable diagrams)
Corporate wide licenses and source code are available. Contact Allison Technology Corporation for more information.
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