Using TagChecker

Introduction

The ChronoTrack TagChecker application is a stand-alone application that reads ChronTrack tags and displays associated participant data. TagChecker is used in conjunction with the Ensyc RFID block and a participant data file. For the RFID block, you must ensure that the correct drivers are installed on your computer. For drivers and installation guides, click Here. 

The RFID Block can be purchased using the standard Order Form found on the Timer Portal.

Installation

The current TagChecker software as well as the last legacy version can be downloaded from the Downloads section at the end of this article. Look for the folder with the highest version number for the most up-to-date version. Once downloaded, just double-click the installation file to begin installation. Once installation is complete, a shortcut to the program will be placed on your desktop.

Using TagChecker

Before TagChecker can be used, you must load a Participant File. To do this:

1. Click File > Settings
2. You will be required to enter a password. The default password is chronotrack
3. Click the Data File Settings tab and locate your file with the participant data
4. Participant Data files should have header titles in the top row and the first two columns of the file should contain the RFID (Tag) number and bib number, respectively. Files can be either .txt or .csv type with , ; ~ | or <TAB> as column separators. Using the Announcer Report from ChronoTrack Live with the RFID Number column added is a quick way to generate a Participant File.
   
5. Select the Data File Field Separator of your file. This will open the Select a participant data file. If the separator type you need is already selected, you can click the Select File button.
6. Locate your participant file and click Open.
7. You can check the Autoload File box to have the program load the selected file each time the program opens. This will help speed up the process of setting up a Tag Checking Station during packet pickup.
8. To finalize your changes, click Save and Quit.
9. The software is now ready to be used.

Other Settings

There are a variety of settings in the TagChecker software that affect how information is displayed and filtered. These settings and their functions are broken down into their tabs and described below.

General Settings

• Enable Password? - When checked, password is required to access Settings form.
• Show Password - When button is clicked, the password hiding characters are turned on/off.
• Enable Clear Data Timer? - When checked, a timer is set that clears participant data from display.  This is a security precaution.
• Clear Data Interval (secs): - Number of seconds participant data is displayed before it is cleared.
• Enable Scanned Tags Log File? – When checked, a file is created containing a log entry for each unique tag that is read. The log file is created each time the program is started and is named using the format TagsReadLogFile-YYYY-MM-DD-hhmm.txt.  The log file entries appear as follows:

2010:02:16:11:38:29-30030-DATA

2010:02:16:11:38:34-30037-INVALID_TIMER_CODE

2010:02:16:11:38:48-30053-NO_DATA

• Use Grid to Display Data? – switches between Grid view and Standard view (Checked/unchecked respectively)
  
• Use Network Tag Reads? – allows you to view tags read by a Controller. Your computer must be connected to the Controller’s ChronoTrack ad-hoc network for this to work. When on Network Read mode, you will see an indicator like this in the bottom left corner of the main TagChecker window:
  
• Use EU Multi-Event ID? – used in conjunction with an HTML file to filter bibs by Timer and Event code. See Data File Settings for more information.
• Log Duplicate Tag Reads? – creates a log of all tags that were passed over the RFID block from the time TagChecker was started until it is closed. The log file can be found on your computer under Documents > ChronoTrack > TagChecker
  
• Display Bib-Number-Only Prompt if No Data Found For Tag? – if there is no data for a particular tag number, displays a message stating the tag number. This message must be acknowledged.
  
• Display Correct Data Prompt? – displays a message that says “Is your personal data correct?” Clicking ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ will close the message, but will not affect the data.
  

Data File Settings

Most of the settings contained in this section were spelled out in the Using TagChecker section, but there is one feature on this tab that was not discussed.

Display Special Information? – (must be used in conjunction with the Use HTML File option on the Display Settings tab) Allows you to upload a .txt file that causes specific information to be displayed for specific bib numbers. The additional information should be in the form of an HTML file stored locally on your computer.

For specific file structure, see the example below.
If you checked the Use EU Multi-Event ID? Option on the General Settings tab,
you can also specify Timer Code and Event Code information in the file.

Display Settings

• Use Default Message Format? – allows you to set up to 5 lines of custom data to display in the lower portion of the main TagChecker window.
• Use HTML File? – allows you to display a web page or HTML document in the lower pane of the TagChecker window. This is an advanced feature and should be used carefully.

Text Settings

• You can change the Font, Style, and Size of text displayed for Headers, Instructions, Participant data, and Grid text. Click Select to alter the data for each of these.

Additional Functions

Clicking Help displays two additional options – Reset, and About.

• Reset – clears all Participant Data fields.
• About – shows version and copyright information for TagChecker.

You can clear all TagChecker settings and return TagChecker to its defaults by navigating to Documents > ChronoTrack > TagChecker on your computer and deleting the TagChecker.config file. This is useful for when misuse of advanced features causes a program freeze.