Category: Hardware solutions

Podcatcher instructions (text) and Symbols (.ai) to add on a signage / or language activation panel

If you would like to add (or record) instructions for your visitors, on how to use the Podcatcher, you can use the text below;

ENG

“You start the commentary by pointing the player at an activation point, holding it no more than thirty centimeters (or one foot) away like a remote control. You don’t have to press any buttons; the commentary will start automatically after the beep.

The device has three buttons. Use the button on the left to turn the volume down and the button on the right to turn the volume up. Use the middle button to pause the commentary and then restart it.

If you are asked to select a fragment, the buttons function as options up, down, left, right.”

NL

“U start een verhaal door de speler binnen 30 cm op een activeerpunt te richten, net als een afstandsbediening. U hoeft daarbij geen toets in te drukken, het commentaar start vanzelf na de beep/pieptoon.

Er zitten drie toetsen op het apparaat. Met de linker toets zet u het volume zachter, met de rechter toets zet u het volume harder. De middelste toets gebruikt u om informatie te pauzeren en vervolgens weer te hervatten.

Tijdens een keuzefragment functioneren de toetsen als pijltjes keuzetoetsen”.

We also have icons available which you can use on your signage or language activation point.

These icons are the first steps on how to activate the Podcatcher. You can download the 4 icons here;

Adobe Illustrates files:
1 Take Podcatcher out
2 Select a Language
3 Listen
4 Put Podcatcher back

JPG files:
1 Take Podcatcher out
2 Select a language
3 Listen
4 Put Podcatcher back

Replacing the battery of IDentifiers

After a while – a year or two in indoor environments – an IDentifier’s battery will eventually run dry. When this happens, replacing it is fairly simple. This page aims to teach you how to do so.

Object IDentifier

The process of replacing batteries is as follows, depending on the type of IDentifier you have;

V2 – IDentifier

  1. Remove frontside using a fine flat screwdriver.
  2. Carefully take out the PCB with transmitter and batteries.
  3. Replace the 2 CR2032 lithium coin cells (batteries) off the transmitter.
  4. Re-assemble the IDentifier.

Instruction-sheet Instruction IDentifierV2 Battery

V3 – IDentifier

  1. Remove frontlabel using a fine small knife.
  2. Remove the 4 screws with a T6-screwdriver
  3. Remove the top cover whilst keeping the sealing in the front side.
  4. Carefully take out the PCB with transmitter and batteries.
  5. Replace the 2 CR2032 lithium coin cells (batteries) off the transmitter.
  6. Re-assemble the IDentifier.

Instruction-sheet Instruction IDentifierV3 Battery_

Done!

Can I manually sync Podcatchers, and how long does a sync take?

Is it possible to manually sync Podcatchers?

Yes, it’s entire possible. There are two ways:

  1. Click the “Sync Now” button in the Podcatcher Sync application on the Sync computer.
  2. Click the “Sync Now” button in the Podcatcher Portal. See this article for more information.

How long does a sync take?

The first synchronization can take a while, since all of the content has to be loaded onto the Podcatchers. As an approximation, one minute of content equals one minute of syncing. Keep in mind that every translation also adds content, so a Tour made up of 30 minutes of content in three languages adds up to 90 minutes of syncing per Podcatcher. Further, stereo content has more data to sync so it will take about twice as long as mono content.

Any following syncs should take significantly less time; usually a sync should only take a few minutes at most. The more content you’ve added in the meantime, the longer a sync will take.

Something went wrong during synchronization, how do I fix it?

Number of Docking Stations mismatch

The number of Docking Stations found during this synchronization does not match the number of configured Docking Stations for this Sync Console.

This report shows that during the last synchronization the number of docking stations found by the computer did not match the number of docking stations that it should have according to the server.

It’s possible a USB- or power cable isn’t connected properly.

  • Check all the cables and see it they are connected. The light on the Docking station should be green.
  • Check if the USB Hubs are still functioning. Try to use as few USB hubs as possible, and try to use the USB connections directly on the computer if possible. When you use USB hubs make sure the cables between the computer and USB hub are as short as possible. We advise you not to use the power adapter that comes with the USB Hubs.
  • Check if the FTDI operating program installation is installed.
  • If problems persist it can be helpful to use (or not use) a grounded electrical outlet.

If all of the above seems to be in order, you can try the following:

  1. Turn off the Sync computer / laptop.
  2. Remove the Podcatchers from the docking stations.
  3. Remove all USB connectors which are connected with the docking stations or USB hubs from the computer/laptop.
  4. Pull the plugs of the 5V adapters out of the outlet.
  5. The green light of the docking station will turn off, wait several minutes.
  6. Reconnect all the cables and place the Podcatchers back into the docking stations.

It can also be possible that the stated number of docking stations no longer matches the real number of docking stations present at your location. This can happen if you’ve ordered more Podcatcher for a temporary Tour for example. If that is the case, change the number of docks that should be connected in the Portal.

This Sync Console has never run a synchronization

As the message implies, the Sync Console has never run a synchronization before. You can manually start a synchronization from the Sync desktop application and/or on the Sync Console, or wait for the automatic daily synchronization to start.

Synchronization of this Sync Console took place more than x days ago

The last synchronization was some time ago ago. To help keep the Podcatcher working correctly, it is recommended to synchronize daily.

Possible causes:

  • The Sync Console is (or was) offline at the time the daily automatic synchronization was scheduled.
  • The internet connection is (or was) not functioning at the time the daily automatic synchronization was scheduled.
  • The Podcatcher Sync program is not running on the Sync Console.

The Sync Console indicates that it’s offline even though it isn’t

If the Sync computer shows as offline in the Sync, that means it can’t connect to our services. This can be caused by something as mundane as an internet cable being plugged out or your Site cutting power to the computer at night, or by something more complex.

To prevent or fix the most common causes of sync failure, make sure:

  • The computer is powered on at the time of syncing;
  • It’s connected to the internet (preferably wired);
  • It has the proper software installed;
  • The Podcatcher Sync application is running;
  • The hard drive isn’t completely full;
  • The computer isn’t stuck on the log-in screen to Windows.

If all of that is true and it still doesn’t want to sync, try rebooting the computer and then manually scheduling a synchronization with the sync application.

Another thing to try is to check whether the application’s settings file has been corrupted. The file is typically located on the C: drive, in Program Files, Guide ID, Podcatcher Sync, Data. Right-click the settings file and open it with Notepad. If it’s empty, close the file again and replace that file with the file inside this zip archive. After replacing the file, restart the Podcatcher Sync service and/or the computer.

Date and/or time on the computer seems to be incorrect

The date and/or time on the computer seems to be incorrect, check the date and/or time settings on the computer and make sure they are correct. After adjusting the time, you need to restart your computer for the changes to be applied properly.

The sync console seems to be online but could have stopped responding

There is communication between the Sync Console and the server, but it seems that the Sync Console is taking too long to finish a task. It’s possible you’ll have to restart the computer manually if it seems to be frozen.

Advanced Syncconsole setup

Introduction

Some computers need advanced settings to get the Podcatcher Sync program up and running. In this article you’ll find a couple of configuration options.

Proxy server

Some locations need to connect to the Internet through a proxy server. You can’t change this setting in the Podcatcher Sync program but you can still change it for the application. You can do this as follows:

  • Start the program ‘Notepad‘
  • Click File -> Open and navigate to the folder where the Podcatcher Sync program is installed. By default, this is ‘C:\Program Files\Guide ID\Podcatcher Sync‘.
  • Change the file types in the ‘open’-dialog from ‘text files (*.txt)‘ to ‘all files (*.*)‘
  • Select the file ‘Podcatcher Sync Service.exe.config‘ and open it. The extension .config might not be visible, if you click the wrong one it’ll show some garbled text. Should this happen, try again from the first step.
  • The file should open with readable text and start with <?xml version=”1.0″?>.
  • The last two lines of the file are currently </system.serviceModel> and </configuration>. Add the following information between the last line and the line before the last line:
<system.net>
 <defaultProxy enabled="true">
  <proxy bypassonlocal="true" proxyaddress="http://proxy.domain.org:8888/" />
 </defaultProxy>
</system.net>
  • Replace ‘http://proxy.domain.org:8888/‘ with the URL of your own proxy server.
  • Save the changes.
  • Restart the computer.