PROMOTIC 8.2 - Release notes

- PmgLine object: It was not possible to move object if configured vertically or horizontally.

- PmTeco communication driver: Fixed bug: If 8-byte values were trasmitted (data type LREAL and DATE / DATE_AND_TIME) there were errors occuring.

- PmABradleyDF1 communication driver: Fixed bug: The communication did not work if there were variables demanding data from different DataFile numbers in one PmaCommGroup object.

- PmaInstance object: Optimization and faster loading from the PmaPrototype object at application launch.

- Web panels:

- Data binding SP - Pm object property: Fixed bug: did not work in JavaScript panels.

- PmIEC8705 communication driver: Generalization by types ASDU-5 and ASDU-6

- PmgTrendViewer object: in JavaScript panels:

- Web panels: Fixed bug: Bugfixes that conflicted with the old InternetExplorer 8 browser.

- PmaAlarmGroup object:

- Web panels:

- PmaWorkspace object: Now working for the Web as standard HTML page (old concept of frameset was used before). also the scrollbar function has been fixed on the Web.

- PmMBus communication driver:

- PmABradleyCIP communication driver: Fixed bug: Sometimes the "Reading names of all available variables from the PLC device" message type transmission did not work correctly.

- PmgRasterImage object: Fixed bug: The transparency defined of the "Opacity level" configurator was sometimes rendered incorrectly.

- PmaPanel object: Fixed bug: JavaScript panels sometimes caused memory shortages.

- Web panels:

- PmSNMP communication driver: Fixed bug: Request identifier used wrong format in transmitted data. Only the first 128 messages were trasmitted.

- PmModbusMr communication driver: Fixed bug: Reading and writing bit in the register (i.e. reading and writing area RoB) did not work correctly.

- Web panels: In PmgString and PmgWEdit objects the focus behavior has been improved after the application is closed.

- Panel editor: In the configuration of the "E - General expression" data binding, it was not possible to add another variable.

- PmS7 communication driver: Fixed bug: On reading or writing value of the S5Time type.

- PmaAlarmGroup object: Fixed bug: on the "Items" tab, there are new buttons for import/export of items.

- PmaTrendGroup object: Fixed bug: For "Database Oracle cyclic" saving type - deleting old records did not work.

- PmgRasterImage object: Support for WMF format added.

- Pm.GetDateOf method: Available for Web panels.

- PmaWeb object: Fixed bug: Under high load the Web server stopped working (especially with setting of the http service type).

- PmgTrendViewer object: Bugfixes and improvements in JavaScript panels.

- PmBACnet communication driver: Generalization of writing into the device:

- PmABradleyCIP communication driver: Fixed bug:

- Web panels:

- PmMBus communication driver: The option to read meter address (MeterAddr) in ItemId.

- Pm.ScanDate method: Fixed bug: sometimes milliseconds were evaluated incorrectly.

- Pm.NetTestPC method: Fixed bug: the nType=3 (Ping 2) parameter caused memory loss.

- PmaObject.GetOwnedByType method: Fixed bug: The method returned also the object over which the method was called.

- Web panels:

- PmaAlarmGroup object: Fixed bug: (alarm history viewer):

- Pm.StringOper method: New method. Allows to delete starting/ending spaces (trim) and conversion to capital/normal letters. This method for JavaScript replaces the VBScript methods: Trim, LTrim, RTrim, LCase, UCase.

- PmaData.WriteToWeb method: Fixed bug: On writing text value the 0 character was added to the end of the text.

- PmaDataTable.SetArray method: Fixed bug: On writing into a cell the value was not converted to the desired data type of the column.

- PmgTrendViewer object: In JavaScript panels:

- PmgWTable object: was optimized and is no longer flickering while being rendered.

- Web panels:

- Panel editor: Multiple copying of the "Pmg object parameters" configurator now works.

- PmgWCombo object: the object size did not adapt to font size in runtime.

- PmaAlarmGroup object: Fixed bug: If the "Delete inactive acknowledged (green) (valid only for dynamically created items)" configurator was set in the alarm state viewer, then the alarms were not displayed in the alarm history viewer.

- PmaComm.ClosePort method: This method now does not close the port while the port is being opened.

- Pm.FileCsvWrite method:

- Pm.SetBit method: Sometimes the bit range was not tested correctly causing some writing outside the range.

- Pm.ControlSound method: in the INFO system, an error was generated into /Errors/Global even if the method worked correctly.

- Web panels:

- PmaAlarmGroup object: Fixed bug: The filtration text is now also transferred when switching between history viewer and status viewer.

- Pm.NetTestPC method: Fixed bug: Returned true randomly even for unaccessible computer.

- PmaPrototype object: Important optimization that speed up the application start and reduce the size of used memory (e.g. common scripts in instances are initialized only once).

- PmaAlarmGroup.GetStateData method: if the direction is not defined (the parameter from or to is not set) then the records are returned from newest to oldest as described in the documentation. The direction can be entered using the scanstart parameter.

- PmModbusMr communication driver: in the message of the XX-User defined opened function type the number of bytes of received data was not saved into the variable on the "Data-received" tab. The total message length was saved instead.

- Bugfix in communication drivers - sometimes the communication locked under high load.

- PmgCanvas object: New preconfigurations for intelligent valves and pumps.

- Fixed bug: In Windows OS XP some data bindings were not evaluated in panels. (this fix is also in version Pm8.1.13).

- Panel editor: It was not possible to edit simultaneously multiple the "PmgObject > Box > Contrast (-100 to 100%)" configurator.

- Web panels: For InternetExplorer 8 (and lower): PmgTrendViewer and PmgWTable objects in JavaScript are not emulated in graphic panels (because this old browser does not observe some important standards) but the browser switches to full ActiveX object view (these ActiveX objects must be installed on the client side) - similar situation as for VBScript panels.

- Web panels:

- PmgInstance object: Fixed bug: Compilation error ocurred if one PmgInstance object was inserted into another PmgInstance object.

- Alarm and Event system:

- PmIEC8705 communication driver: If a value is received with flag of wrong qualifier state, then the Quality property of such variable is set to the "0=Bad:NonSpecific" value.

- PmaCommGroup object: Fixed bug: Sometimes the import/export into the CSV file did not work correctly.

- PmSNMP communication driver: Created

- PmRtManager: New utility PmRtManager. It is used for managing runtime of the PROMOTIC application. It allows two basic functions:

- PmaData.WriteToWeb method: Now it is possible to enter which variables are to be transmitted.

- PmgInstance object: Fixed bug: Position was not drawn correctly in the panel editor if the object was embedded into another object.

- Pm.TransformValue method: Generalization of transformation of the Double type number (transformation types 200-203, 225).

- PmgCanvas new object: Allows free drawing (using JavaScript) into the are of this object.
This object is "revolutionary" in the sense that it gives the application designer a free tool for creation of own graphic. The drawing algorithm may be dependant on item variables and this way change colors, shapes, etc. based on the variables in the application.
There are also some handy preconfigurations prepared for this object, that demonstrate its capabilities.

- PmIEC62056 communication driver: New driver for communication with electricity meters by the IEC62056-21 or IEC1107:1996 standard protocol.

- Localized texts manager: New tool for management of localized texts. It can be launched in the development environment in the menu " > Localized texts manager".

- Web panels:

- PmaTrendGroup object: In configurators Unit and Displayed trend name it is now possible to use Macro expression $.text.

- PmaAlarmGroup object: Fixed bug: The GetStateData method did not return data if the type was set to "Remote connection via the Web".

- Pm.ColorOper method: New type of transformation 2 can darken or lighten defined color.

- PmgString object: Direct editing is now available (similar as in the PmgWEdit object). Before, it was possible to edit the value only by opening an extra window. See the "Type of editing" configurator.

- Pm.StringJoin method: Returns a string created by merging the substrings contained in 1-dimensional array.

- Pm.StringCmp method: Returns a result of a comparison of the two strings.

- PmElgas2 communication driver: Created

- PmIEC8705 communication driver: Fixed bug: Generalization for the ASDU-103 type.

- Communication drivers: Fixed bug: For virtual serial port (for USB-serial link converter) the methods OpenPort and ClosePort did not work.

- PmaTrendGroup object: In the trend variable in the "Additional parameters" configurator, there is a new item Additional parameters, that allows to enter different column name in the database.

- Web panels:

- Alarm and Event system: If the "Storage type" configurator in the PmaAlarmGroup object was set to "Remote connection via the Web" value, then:

- $.expr macro expression: The pDE variable (object of the Data extensions type) can be used in the expression.

- INFO system: Fixed bug: in the INFO system, sometimes the content of the "/Errors/Script" tab was deleted in runtime (bug since Pm8.2.3 version)

- Pm object: New constants were added that are used for mathematic calculations: PI, E, SQRT2, LN10, LN2, LOG10E and LOG2E.

- PmaPanel object: Fixed bug: If the values of panel parameters were entered in the "sViewPars default value" configurator, then the incorrect evaluation occured (bug since Pm8.2.3 version).

- Web panels: Optimization of trends viewing by the PmgTrendViewer object on the Web with slow HTTP connection.

- Communication drivers:

- Web panels: Improved emulation of objects PmgTrendViewer and PmgWTable for JavaScript panels.

- How to create an application using different national languages: Added new supported runtime national languages: Lithuanian (lt).

- PmgObject.GetPar method: by the GetPar method; only first parameter was accessible.

- How to create an application using different national languages: Added new supported runtime national languages: Serbian (latin).

- The "Application" tab of the PmaRoot object: The password protected application was not available for editing (bug since Pm8.2.1 version).

- Web panels: Improved emulation of ActiveX objects PmgTrendViewer and PmgWTable for JavaScript panels.

- Pm object: Many new methods were added that replace the original VBScript methods. These new methods are functional also in Web panels (JavaScript and VBScript). The new methods are:

- Pm object: Many new methods were added that replace the original VBScript methods. These new methods are functional also in Web panels (JavaScript and VBScript). The new methods are:

- The "Application" tab of the PmaRoot object: The "Run on start" configurator has been removed. It means that with the development key, the application always starts in development mode. For PmFree applications, it is possible to define in the "Runtime licence type" configurator, whether the application starts in the development environment or in runtime.

- PmaCommGroup object: GetSpecParam and SetSpecParam new methods. These methods allow to read/modify the preset PLC address in some communication drivers ("SlaveAddr").

- Panel editor:

- Web panels: The automatically generated HTML pages are now improved in order to work properly in additional Web browsers Firefox, Chrome, Opera .... For full functionality, the panel must be modified:

- PmaWeb object: "Web server type=http internal" now supports persistent connection according to HTTP/1.1. It means that after each request, the connection is NOT terminated and therefore the communication is faster.

- Communication drivers:

- Alarm and Event system:

- Data extensions:

- CSV files:

- Macro expression:

- Development environment: Development environment PROMOTIC now remebers (in the Promotic.ini file) 10 last edited projects.
If you run the Promotic.exe program, then the last edited projects will be listed at launch for selection.

- PROMOTIC licence carrier types: - PmLicServer licence server New type of licence key that allows to manage multiple PROMOTIC licences on a single server.
If this licencing method is used then the PROMOTIC applications do not need to use the standard HW Keys, but they can obtain the licence by means of Ethernet communication with the "PmLicServer" server.
This is very handy if the application are running on a virtual computer, or if there is a large number of licences used in the enterprise.

- PmaTrendGroup object: The string value of the "Displayed trend name" configurator is now localized on the Web also if the local application is switched to another language.

- Users and permissions: The onUserLogonBegin event is naw called also for the network users and therefore it is possible to disable login of a specific user by script.

- The "Application" tab of the PmaRoot object: System datafiles (e.g. the Application.log file) are by default saved in the application folder.
Now it can be changed in the "PmaRoot > Application > To system data files" configurator.

- PmgFrame object: In the PmgFrame object, there is a new method OpenView that allows to open the viewer with parameter.

- Pm.GetSystemInfo method: