|
Things
that can go wrong
Problems
with Viewpoint can generally be traced to
-
hardware
problems (your system or a peripheral such as a printer)
-
Operating
system problems (a corrupted system registry)
-
Data
management problems (inadvertent deletion, moving or renaming of Viewpoint
data components).
Generally
speaking, problems are rare if you have a stable computer that is operated by
competent users. Barring machine failures (which do happen) almost all problems
can be solved via the telephone and/or email.
Here
are some common user issues:
"I
can't print a map."
There
are four things to check:
-
Parallel
port is dead or disabled ;
-
cable
is defective;
-
cable
is connected to the wrong computer port;
-
Printer
driver is not loaded.
-
Can
you print anything in any application? If you can, your hardware and OS
are probably OK.
Printer
driver is not properly implemented or is not current. Viewpoint requires
both "raster and vector ops" for printing. That is why a program
like Paint or a word processor may be able to print while Viewpoint does not.
Most all contemporary, well implemented drivers support raster and vector ops.
Go to your printer manufacturer's web site and download the most current
edition of their driver. If this does not work, you probably have a very
old printer, you may have to consider upgrading to current technology.
"Map
colors are not what I expected or no colors are showing up."
-
Ink
supply is running low or jets are clogged. Use the printer's diagnostic
software to see if you have an equipment or supply problem.
-
Printer
driver is not properly implemented or is not current. Viewpoint
requires both raster and vector ops. That is why a program like Paint or a
word processor may be able to print but Viewpoint does not. Most all
well implemented, contemporary drivers support raster and vector ops. Go to
your printer manufacturer's web site and download the most current edition
of their driver.
"Colors
on the screen look too 'simple' ."
Viewpoint
wants to be run in a "high color 16 bit mode". Check your
display properties (right click on a blank area of the desktop and select
"Properties") to assure that you have high color 16 bit mode
applied. If you have 16 color or 256 color selected, you may experience overly
generalized color or irregularities in color.
"My
system runs slow."
-
Are
you running any software that forces Windows to use "DOS Emulation
Mode"? If so, processing speeds can be compromised. You will have to
decide if you want to remove the device and associated software or if you
will put up with DOS Emulation.
-
Is
your disk too fragmented? Disk fragmentation can take a heavy toll on
Windows applications. You should consider defragmenting your disk
routinely (every few weeks).
"Viewpoint
won't load and run."
-
Was
it properly installed? If you are not sure, install Viewpoint
again and take note of any error messages that pop up during installation.
You may have a defective installation set or you may have a general system
problem.
-
It
was running previously and you have not un-installed it. Use Windows
Explorer to check under \Program Files\ Viewpoint\bin and see that all files
required files are present.
-
It
was running previously, you have not un-installed it and none of its
executable files are missing. Have you installed other software? If
you have, there is a possibility that this installation has created a
conflict. You may be faced with un-installing the new titles and
reinstalling Viewpoint. Conflicts with other software are rare but they can
happen.
"Viewpoint
will run but I can't see any data."
Did
you ever have any data? The installation loads a sample data set. If
you did not delete the sample data somehow you should have at least one
\grower \farm project to display. If you do not see this, the
installation failed or the sample data was deleted from disk somehow. Use
Windows Explorer to look at the contents of a folder titled \DDS_DATA. You
should see, at a minimum, the contents of a folder titled "Sample
Grower". Contents are \Sample Data\Sample Farm\ Drawing and \Sample
Data\Sample Farm\ Image.
If
you see this in Explorer, there could be a problem with your system registry.
If
everything checks out, carefully review the Help System topic Viewpoint
interface.
"I
know I had data for a particular grower \ farm but now it's gone."
Somehow
it was deleted or moved out of the \DDS_DATA folder. If you are working
with the GPC a copy of the data will be available. If the data is still on
your disk but was moved to another disk location, move it back under \DDS_DATA.
If you are not working with the GPC but you have a backup, restore it to
\DDS_DATA. If none of the above, seriously consider making backups in future.
| 
