Zezo forum:

Post by Tri123 | 2020-12-03 | 08:56:14

Hello,

I have an issue to set up Chrome extension VR Dashboard
I log first on virtual Regatta. Than start VR Dashboard on chrome extension.

I can't select the race on VR dashboard page : "Race info not available - please reload VR Offshore"

Any option to be connected?
Thanks
Pierre

53 Comments

Post by Hardtack | 2020-12-03 | 09:28:03

Please press F5 on the VR tab.
If that does not help, close the Dashboard tab.
Go to the VR home page, do NOT log in yet. Start Dashboard, then log in to VR Offshore.

Post by YourMomSA | 2020-12-07 | 19:00:09

Question for Hardtack...

When the boat is sailing a fixed compass course, how many decimals are used on the server? In other words, if Dashboard says 90.0, is it really 90.0, or might it be 90.037?

I ask because we'll have some time soon at 46S where setting it to 90.0 and going to bed, if you're at 45 59 59 S, might result in an unpleasant morning if you wake up to discover that you were actually sailing 90.037.

Post by Hardtack | 2020-12-07 | 19:28:40

There are more decimals. Dashboard display 90.0 could be 90.037 indeed.

Post by YourMomSA | 2020-12-07 | 20:21:56

Would it be reasonable to add the full decimal to Dashboard? Maybe not everywhere... Maybe just in the command response when a course change is executed or scheduled.

Post by Hardtack | 2020-12-07 | 20:41:42

I've just increased the display to 3 decimals everywhere, let's see how this works. It would probably have been enough to increase the precision of the heading.

The VR messages contain varying numbers of decimals - between 4 and 7 I think. Internally it may be more.

Post by YourMomSA | 2020-12-07 | 21:39:25

Outstanding, thanks! It'll be a lot easier to sleep along that line at 89.97 than at 90.03!

Post by zezo | 2020-12-07 | 21:49:54

I believe this is an evil plan to get us all clicking compulsively to full exhaustion while you sail happily at 90.3 ;-)

Post by YourMomSA | 2020-12-08 | 02:48:39

Me? Evil plans? Nah. Even when I'm sneaky, I rarely keep it a secret.

I'm not seeing the extra decimals, though. Am I missing something, or does that just mean the decimals beyond the first are all zero? (I'm currently sailing compass 70.0, and that will still be true in the European morning).

Post by BooBill | 2020-12-08 | 03:12:32

I am not happy with this change; It will increase the amount of time spent fiddling to achieve a perfect bearing or wind angle by a factor of X^3

BTW, the accuracy you want is already there in the raw log.

"boatActions":[{"deg":69.77731,"autoTwa":false,"

Post by OgeR | 2020-12-08 | 12:40:34

Thanx a lot guyz, for the request and for providing it!
It's like a Christmas gift in advance, I appreciate!

Fair winds!

Post by Hardtack | 2020-12-08 | 13:30:50

Google still hasn't approved the new version 3.14.2. If you need it urgently you can download it here and install it as an unpacked extension, but the map will not work in unpacked extensions.

Post by Ultimate Victory | 2020-12-08 | 15:26:21

I'm really confused about these 3 digits precision, I don't think this make any sense as a single digit for HDG and TWA is by far enough.

Post by BooBill | 2020-12-08 | 15:43:23

You can always ignore the trailing digits. YourMom's concern above is real. If you are trying to shave the ice line and running parallel to it, sailing even 0.05 a degree deeper than you think you are will lead to you intersecting the line eventually.

It gives peace of mind. Unless you have OCD and always insist on sailing round number headings and angles, then it makes your life unmanageable.

Edit: 3.14.2 installed through regular channels. Please note my heading of 69.000.

Post by YourMomSA | 2020-12-08 | 16:46:16

Great, thanks!

Generally, I agree with Ultimate Victory. My goal in asking wasn't to try to get TWA courses to 150.000 instead of 150.032. Rather, my goal is just to be able to sleep while sailing close to the upcoming ice line at 46S and know that I'm sailing 90.000 (or 89.98) but not 90.04. If you're close to the line and you go to sleep sailing 90.04, you might discover in the morning that you've been sailing at 30% speed for 4 hours.

If it feels like an unpleasant distraction or unwanted complication, I'd have no problem with it going back to one decimal after we get past that line. Or maybe give the exact course on HDG while rounding the TWA to the nearest tenth.

Post by zezo | 2020-12-08 | 19:16:39

Good point!

Post by marcusbelgicus | 2020-12-08 | 20:06:27

It is easier to put a WP, no?

Post by zezo | 2020-12-08 | 20:29:43

No. You have to put 20. Waypoints sail orthodrome, and it will cross the red loxodrome after few hours if the waypoints are close enough to the red line. You are sailing extra distance if they are not close enough.

Post by BooBill | 2020-12-08 | 17:55:36

You can't say no to extra precision, even if it triggers some personality disorder.

What I would like to see is that precision in the command line of the log, so you don't have to wait till the next refresh to confirm your exact bearing.

Has anyone experience using setting and cancelling waypoints to make micro heading adjustments with the new game engine? I know for a fact that using fixed twa to bend yourself onto the desired heading and then cancelling does not work. Clicking off the twa when dashboard indicates the desired heading ends up locking in a heading several degrees off sometimes.

Post by Hardtack | 2020-12-08 | 19:19:30

First let me say thanks for all your feedback, it is always welcome.
Unfortunately this time, I actually implemented the opposite of what YourMom suggested. Three decimal are displayed everywhere /except/ in the command response.

Those who always asked for more decimals obviously are really happy now, but clearly not everybody is. I think YourMom's last suggestion is good. I'll modify the display once more:
- TWA with one decimal. More precision doesn't add any value and only confuses people.
- Heading with three decimals.
- Same precision in the command response.
The new version will not be out before we reach the flat ice line but I'll make the changes soon.

Post by zezo | 2020-12-08 | 19:31:50

Two digits could be useful for the TWA while hunting the zero. Move one minute ahead -> change 0.03 ... Now it's too granular sometimes in constant wind.

Post by BooBill | 2020-12-08 | 20:06:17

I hope my comments were seen as sarcastically as they were meant. Always happy to have more precision tools and very grateful for all your changes Michael.

Post by YourMomSA | 2020-12-08 | 20:26:32

Thanks for the tailored changes! I really like Hardtack's latest plan. While Cvetan is correct that a second decimal on TWA would help to hunt the zero, I already find hunting the zero to be infuriatingly time-consuming and frustrating. So I'm content to not know if I'm off by 0.04. But if Hardtack decides to put that back in, I won't argue.

How do I force it to load the latest version? Mine seems to still be running 3.14.1. I'd like to get to 3.14.2 before I get to the corner.

Post by Hardtack | 2020-12-08 | 21:03:54

You should have v3.14.2 if you restart your browser.
But BooBills idea to look at the raw log may still be your best option.

Post by YourMomSA | 2020-12-08 | 21:59:23

All set now, thanks. All I need now is to be awake at 2 AM my time to deal with the corner. I guess tonight will be a short sleep night, but once I've turned the corner, this'll allow me to rest easy.

Post by Antoine17-42 | 2020-12-08 | 21:18:55

Hello guys,
Am I wrong if I say, regarding HDG, that if you make a full rotation of compass with your mouse you can set exact 90 ?

Here is what I get in raw log : {"deg":90,"autoTwa":false,"isProg":true,"_id":{"user_id":"5f1d312552e859ef03f95f1a","race_id":440,"leg_num":1,"ts":1607506860000,"action":"heading"}

Post by Hardtack | 2020-12-08 | 21:38:24

Nah, surely they'd have mentioned it in the manual.

Seriously though, works for me too.

Post by BooBill | 2020-12-08 | 22:04:04

Appears to work for any bearing, not just 90. That is brilliant Antoine.

Post by Antoine17-42 | 2020-12-08 | 22:13:17

Yes, it works for any value of HDG ; if only it could be as easy for TWA :-)) !

Post by Hardtack | 2020-12-08 | 23:38:14

I just tried waypoints to navigate the ice limit. It looks like VR is displaying the track correctly as orthodromic line segments, and the ice limit as rhumb lines. If you set the waypoints too far apart the waypoint track bends into the ice limit.

Please be careful when using Dashboard to check the path. It doesn't always reflect the latest waypoint changes. I've seen this issue before and I thought I fixed it, but obviously there is still a problem.

Post by BooBill | 2020-12-09 | 00:15:00

Antoine's method alleviates the need, but my plan was to use a waypoint set not to far away. Move it to heading I want. Cancel the waypoint and see what my heading is in Dashboard, with 3 digit precision! If it's not exactly what I want, set, nudge and cancel another waypoint till it is.

That will still work, right? Like if some time you need a very precise fractional degree heading?

Post by Hardtack | 2020-12-09 | 01:09:40

Yes, Antoine's method will be useful in many situations.
Using waypoints to fine tune heading should work too, but I never tried it. Hmm. Maybe you can even set TWA more easily this way.

Post by PML | 2020-12-09 | 06:41:22

Another (easier) way to set exact integer heading is to click and hold on the white dot between the two arrows, turn the wheel to the desired heading and release the button. Works also with prog.

Post by YourMomSA | 2020-12-09 | 07:32:58

This method and Antoine's were both what I believed to be true prior to Hardtack's change, but I didn't trust it to be correct until I saw the 90.000 in Dashboard just now. Dashboard has confirmed that if you turn the compass to a course (using the white dot rather than arrows), while not sailing TWA, it turns you to precisely that compass course.

Post by BooBill | 2020-12-09 | 19:27:34

Not precisely it turns out.

When I first levelled out at the line with a Programmation set to 90 deg, using Antoine's method, I was at 45 59' 59.97". I confirmed and followed it for a few refreshes and then went away for an hour or so. Now I'm at 45 59' 59.92". So, with numerical rounding, there is some drift and it's still a little dangerous. At least in this case I've moved a meter away from the line.

Post by zezo | 2020-12-09 | 20:22:05

Works for me. Sailing at 45�59'59.74"S for few hours now. Or at least I think so, because I restarted my browser and don't have the evidence.

Post by zezo | 2020-12-09 | 20:31:40

But was it your last reported position or the last calculated one? What matters is not the where you did it, but the next position report 10 minutes later, and consequent reports.

Post by YourMomSA | 2020-12-09 | 20:28:32

I've been at 45 59 59.21 for 13 hours now.

Geez, BooBill... 59.97? I thought I was pushing it.

Post by BooBill | 2020-12-09 | 22:10:35

I've been getting my numbers of the race log in Dashboard, but like you Cvetan, I've restarted my browser, so I don't have the evidence, just my memory.

Quite by accident YM. This is the equivalent of hitting it to 2' 7 5/8" from a sucker pin, tucked behind a bunker, when you were trying to hit a safe shot to the middle of the green. Toed it a bit.

That said, it's been absolutely steady since my original post.

Post by YC6211 | 2020-12-10 | 02:40:17

Look at Mr Fancy Pants getting it out of the bunker in 1

Post by karriv | 2020-12-10 | 08:00:16

Couldn't resist the temptation of doing the math for the advantage here.

BooBill gets a staggering advantage of 0.00177 nm (0.000282 %) over Your Mom over the 625 nm of straight-line sailing next to the ice limit due to sailing closer to it, not factoring in the increased pressure, just the shorter distance.

I've been very conservative sailing at 49S59'56,48, and I lose 0,008 nm to BooBill.

Going to the rich-get-richer scenario, my loss might make a difference.

Post by Paul Shore | 2020-12-10 | 11:39:58

That means that BooBill will get in total a stunning advantage over Your Mom of 3,28 meters.
Karriv, instead, will lose 14,8 meters against BooBill. You are definitely way too conservative :).

By the way, I am sailing at 45S59'59.80". But I am pretty sure will loose "all" what I gained as soon as we will bear away...

Post by WakeUp650 | 2020-12-09 | 22:32:02

Yessssss, at last I've been able to set heading at 90.000 . I've used Antoine's tip. Thank you.

Post by BooBill | 2020-12-10 | 12:20:34

First, let me reiterate that getting that close to the line was purely accidental. I also haven't sailed the entire ice line at that latitude. Twice I came up a bit and then back down to take advantage of headers and playing the polars. First time it gained some positions, second time it cost me a few.

That said, since settling in less than a meter from the line I have slowly picked off positions. I attributed that more to sailing a perfectly straight line (thanks Antoine) than anything else. Also, part of that is illusionary based upon whatever mystery point they are measuring DTF to. Clearly, it's favouring those further south. For instance, I'm right next to SlyStar, who is a few meters east, I'm a few meters south, I win the classification battle, but frankly, I'd rather be east here.

Post by Inicio | 2020-12-10 | 12:21:58

I have not rotated it 360 degrees, I have simply adjusted the heading only with the central white button. And the result has been the same. 90.000�. I have not changed latitude since 8 pm yesterday, to the hundredth of a second.

Post by Julian | 2020-12-10 | 21:25:30

Hallo, Perhaps is not important but I would like to know why Dashboard some times m shows that my boat is 0,1000 or 0,0444 in red color in Factor and "no" or "0%" in foils of course with FULL PACK.
The User Manual is not very clarifier..

Post by Hardtack | 2020-12-10 | 23:30:10

Yes, there's not a lot of detail in the manual.

VR sends the same information about your own boat it sends about all the competitor boats.

The idea of the Factor column was to deduce if a competitor boat has the foils and/or hull options by comparing the factors that would arise. If the factors match we know the boat has the options that produce the factor. If the factor cannot be reproduced by any combination of options, it is displayed in red - but the logic doesn't take some well known situations into account
- tack/gybe/sail change: speed is multiplied by 0.5, giving for example 0.5015 for a boat with only hull
- aground: factor is 0
- in the ice zone: speed is multiplied by 0.3, giving for example 0.3120 for a boat with foils, in full foiling conditions
- boat is sailing in sail change tolerance zone: additional factor between 1.000 and 1.003, giving for example 1.0445 for a boat with foils.

With all that said, I never saw 0.1000 or 0.0444. If you didn't mistype them, it could be a bug.

Post by Hardtack | 2020-12-22 | 20:09:25

New Dashbaord version 3.14.3:

- switched the commands display to 3 decimals now, as discussed a while ago.
- Existing waypoints weren't displayed when entering a race, and deleted waypoints were not removed from the map. This should work now.
In addition, waypoints now have a tooltip that shows the exact position.

Post by jf44 | 2020-12-24 | 10:11:06

I think we have to wait a while until Google updates the VR Dashbord extension...

Post by BooBill | 2020-12-24 | 14:14:30

Ya, 2 days later, I've still got 3.14.2. Folks that approve these things at Google taking a holiday break?

Post by Hardtack | 2020-12-24 | 14:22:01

Seem I forgot to submit the new version. I didn't notice because I was happily using the development version :-)
It should be available now - at least the store is showing 3.14.3 already .

Post by BooBill | 2020-12-24 | 15:32:05

Successfully launched 3.14.3. Thanks for the triple-digit precision on the command line! With the holiday break and social gatherings banned for lockdown, I can now occupy myself with fiddling to get TWAs precise to 3 decimal places 🤪

Post by Shelisteam | 2020-12-28 | 21:19:44

Why the diference is so big between game and dachboard?

After update in game 23 SOG in Dachboard 22.1 SOG Am I doing something wrong?

Tom

Post by Hardtack | 2020-12-28 | 21:35:02

It's not unheard of, but check if the timestamps are updating in Dashboard.