Re: Tech question - interface between receiver and central station software

["Andrew" <bewareofcabbage@xxxxxxxxx>]

Yeah we are dying to get version 5, but they won't until we do this
training session.  We're already using it because one PC here is a
remote terminal we monitor for another company, which uses V5.

The only reason I am not a 4+2 fan is because it's such a hassle to
program lol.  We have a folder with information on the formats to help
operators program them up, once you do a couple it's not hard - but
Contact ID is just much more "plug and play" from a central station
point of view lol.

We have a few IRFast clients, very handy format.  We tend to stick to
Contact ID, IRFast and 4+2 if needed on those older panels.  However we
have had a few Cactus clients switch to us and have had to make
provisions to support the odd radionics format (I don't know much about
it).

We monitor from New Plymouth, Taranaki-wide, mostly local but a few
national.  One of our biggest selling points is being local, having
people who know your area etc...  Plus we have our own guards in New
Plymouth and Hawera, which avoids the ghastly dispatch centres of
ADT/Armourguard or Chubb.

We have one FE100 receiver, and a Silent Knight which we monitor for a
local medical alarm trust, as well as a standard RF receiver.

mckenzie wrote:
> Get up to Patriot 5 asap. We did last year.
>   Everything is much better, although we upgraded our server soon after, so
> performance increased anyway.  The 'training' was an afternoon with one
> Patriot guy, who asked us more question than we asked him.  Sometimes the
> best way to learn is to just do it.
>
> Patriot are good to us, we have been using their software for about 5 years,
> and they are very quick to issue updates when we request features.
>
> Don't dis 4+2 totally, at least you know that the signal you get thru was
> purposely programmed - even if it doesn't match the template.  With CID,
> there are a few manufacturers that use an odd code, that nobody has picked
> up on, until it comes thru, in the middle of the night.
>
> Best format would have to be IR Fast - everything comes thru in the same
> english the tech programs in the Concept panel.  Everytime they update
> users, we don't have to - the new name comes thru automatically!
>
> Worst format is Ademco fast - never understood it correctly  - the template
> works perfect, so we don't look into it too much.  I tried to work it out
> about 10 years ago, but then CID came along and we were sorted!  have to
> say, though - it is by far the fastest format I have seen, bar IR Fast.
> Also it's the best format for the old Solution 8 panels - 4+2 sucks majorly
> on them - very very slow reporting!
>
>
> Where are you monitoring?  We are in Wanganui, but cover the country, with
> remote FE100 receivers on different PC ports.
>
> Graeme McKenzie
>
> "Andrew" <bewareofcabbage@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
> news:1120281078.500458.49970@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> > Thanks Graeme,
> >
> > That was incredibly interesting.  Yeah, we run Telemate as a backup,
> > during the regular times when Patriot crashes.  We are currently still
> > stuck on version 4 (clarion database) and are trying to get them to set
> > training times, so we can upgrade to version 5 with the sql database,
> > which will make things a lot faster and easier to run searches.
> >
> > I knew how the templates etc work (may I say god bless Contact ID, and
> > boo to old panels that use 4+2 lol) but yeah it was just understanding
> > the serial connection, which you've answered in great detail.
> >
> > Thanks :D
> >