Latest version: V7.0

[jeff]

V7.0 is the current version. I apologise for not having kept this post up to date. There have been quite a few changes and releases since V6.5 which can be seen in the Readme file that comes with the installation.

V6.5 improves the plotting algorithm so that unclosed areas are not plotted, preventing random lines being drawn where unconnected coordinates appear in the text. Airspace under NOTAMs is now appended to the info popup, and stacked airspace is listed in priority order (highest priority first).

V6.4 makes some minor usability improvements to the interface, fixes Help on the Plot window menu, and also fixes the rendering ("look and feel") of controls (buttons etc.) which had regressed to an earlier version.

V6.3 fixes a problem whereby some NOTAMs relating to the Olympics were being deleted.

V6.2 is mainly a technical release to upgrade from an unsupported legacy version of the compiler (Visual C++ V6) to the current platform (Visual Studio 2010). In addition, data files are now stored in the correct location, to enable updates without resorting to a Microsoft hack which is only there to support legacy code ("virtualisation").

V6.1 fixes a bug where some Notams could be missed in output OpenAir/TNP format files.

V6.0 just changes a few embedded references to take account of the move to the new web host.

V5.9 fixes a problem with automatic downloading of AICs (Air Information Circulars) due the the URL having changed. As well as Mauve AICs, Spine will now recognise and download Yellow, Pink and Green AICs.

V5.8 treats Parachute Drop Zones as a special airspace type, showing them as a red outline circle. Previously they were lumped in with either Danger areas or Prohibited areas, which was not ideal.

There is also now a Turning Point info bar at the top of the plot window, which shows details of the point nearest the cursor. By going to the View menu, this can be selected to be any combination of BGA turning point, ICAO airport, Reporting point and/or Navigation aid. The
initial default is to show the nearest BGA turning point only.

Finally, when updating on Vista and Windows 7 systems, the Program Compatibility Assistant may pop up at the end of installation. If it does, just click on "This program installed correctly". This is a minor irritation which I am working on to solve.

V5.7 caters for a change to the Turning Point file format, and also allows for 4 character TP codes in the future. There are a couple of other minor changes and bug fixes also.

V5.6 fixes a problem caused by a format change to the file downloaded from the AIS web site. NOTAMs were not being plotted due to the active times not being parsed. The direct download of the PIB was unaffected.

V5.5 adds point-and-click task editing and several other enhancements.

V5.4 fixes a bug in HTML parsing and some problems with plotting linear routes.

V5.3 fixes two problems introduced in V5.2:

• NOTAMs downloaded from the AIS web site, and reloaded from a file were not being plotted. This was because the active times were not being parsed correctly.
• The user preference not to display Reporting Points/VORs on the plot was not being saved.

In addition, the (correct) URL for AIP Supplements was being overwritten with an incorrect one by the update file on the server.

V5.2 has a couple of fixes and a new feature:

• The plot for linear routes (for example, formation flights) has been fixed so that the last coordinate is no longer connected back to the first, which gave misleading information.
• One-click download of an AIP Supplement if referenced in NOTAM (this is a similar feature to the Mauve AIC download).
• Fix for internet connection via mobile operator. Optimisation of transmission removes newlines in HTML code which was causing parsing to fail. The code has been rewritten to parse HTML correctly.

V5.1 has the following new features/improvements:

• The main dialog layout has been improved to make controls more accessible.
• Closable panel with current NOTAM details added on left of Plot window.
• NOTAM info popups in the Plot window are now ordered from smallest to largest radius, so that when NOTAMs overlap, it is no longer necessary to click through.
• One-click download of Mauve AIC if referenced in NOTAM.
• Fix for a problem where the Active From or Until times were marked as estimated. These were giving an error. Now they are processed correctly, and shown with '(Est.)' after them.
• Nicer font used in all dialogs.

V5.0 fixes a problem on Vista downloading data file updates. Previously it was necessary to run Spine as administrator to do this. The package also includes the latest 2009 turning points.

V4.9 adds a Lat/Long graticule to the plot window. This was planned before the previous bug fix release when Spine was broken by the format change.

V4.8 Spine was broken when the downloaded PIB format changed. The new version fixes the problem.

V4.7 fixes display of lower and upper bounds which was broken when Spine was changed to process the new NOTAM format.

V4.6 fixes a bug with distance calculations from the home airfield to non-circular NOTAM areas,
which could also cause the program to crash for some, but not all, home airfield settings.

V4.5 adds task plotting and a few other things. See the Readme for more information.

V4.4 has quite a few changes:

• Adds facility to parse user-saved NOTAMs from NATS web site, as well as PIBs.
• Processes NOTAM Scope (from Q-line) correctly, and shows this on display and printed output.
  Adds view selection based on Scope.
• Moves some controls on to tabs in main dialog to reduce clutter.
• Plots airspace layers in correct order, so high-priority airspace (such as Prohibited area)
  doesn't get lost under lower priority stuff.
• When NOTAM information pops up on plot, main dialog now switches to that NOTAM.
• Fixes bug that stopped a danger area mentioned in the text being found in the airspace file.
• Help file updated in line with changes.

NOTE: I found a minor bug just after uploading V4.4 (in Scope view selection) which can crash the program, so there will be another
update shortly to fix this. However, it doesn't affect normal usage of Spine.

V4.3 fixes problems with printing (page breaks) and no longer tries to plot really complex NOTAM areas which it can't handle properly (instead it just plots the circle given in the Q-line). Also some NOTAM popups on the plot incorrectly showed an airport which had come from a different NOTAM.

V4.2 is an update to process the new format of the source data.

V3.7 fixes a problem with the covered date range when both FIRs are selected.

V3.6 adds file output in Tim Newport-Peace format. This is the format used by Glide Navigator II and SoaringPilot PDA software.

V3.51 is an "oops I screwed up" release. Sorry for the update so close on the heels of V3.5.  It concerned the extension on the new airspace file, which was changed and meant the file couldn't be found for new installations.

V3.5 fixes a bug in the airspace parser found when updating to the current version of the airspace information. This version includes the new airspace data file.

V3.4 fixed a problem with spurious extra lines on the plot and a couple of other minor bugs.

V3.2 and V3.3 added many improvements to the plotting feature.

V3.1 added a plotting feature which enables you to see NOTAMs graphically on screen. There are quite a few bells and whistles, so take a look! See the web site for new screenshots. This release also fixes a couple of bugs.

V3.0 was a major new release which uses the 'Q' line to classify and filter NOTAMs. There were also many other enhancements and bug fixes. See the post "V3.0 release details" or the web site for full details.

[jeff]

Bump the date.

[martinfreye]

Hi, can yoyu help us? My pal and I, members of Bristol & Glos Gliding club, have downloaded the latest version, 4.7, after sucessfully using Spine for some time

A pop up tells us that "This is not a valid NOTAMS file. The From Date/Time is invalid. ( This error can be caused by incorrect proxy settings )".

The same error appeared both before and after we updated our club one too so we're all pretty stuck.

None of us need to put anything into the Proxy Settings so it must be something else, a bug perhaps?.

Any help appreciated.

Thanks,

Martin

[jeff]

Something has changed in the PIB file - it's the same for everyone. I'll take a look to see what has happened.

Edit: Along with at least one other NOTAM processor, Spine is temporarily broken due to a minor reformatting of the PIB file. I will fix the problem as soon as possible.

[jeff]

The problems are now fixed and Spine is working again.

[jeff]

Bump date.

[KMorgan]

Jeff

Just updated to 5.7 and am getting the "incorrect database format" (or something like that) error.  I've tried uninstalling and deleting all Spine files/folders in app data that I can find.  However, I still get the error once I've installed Spine gain.  Any help really appreciated as I lurv Spine.  Win7 64 btw.

Cheers

Keith

[jeff]

Well, the updated installer (A10) is supposed to fix the problem, and I can't see why this doesn't work for a couple of people.

The manual solution is to go to the AppData folder in your user area in Windows Explorer. (AppData is normally a hidden folder, so if you can't see it, bring up Folder Options on the Tools menu and select the View tab. Click the radio button next to 'Show hidden files, folders and drives').

Under AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files\Spine you will see at least one file (2010X.dos or similar). Delete all files in this folder and it will all work again.

(Ignore the AppData\Local\Spine folder if it exists - this is not the problem.)

Edit: Oh I see you say you have deleted AppData files already - are you sure you found that particular folder?

[KMorgan]

Aha

Once again proven that I'm not as smart as I'd like to be.  You are right I didn't delete the file in the "Virtual" place.  Thanks Jeff.

Keith

[jeff]

Good, glad you found it. Perhaps you can help me a bit further to try and find out why the updated install program didn't find that file and delete it.

Can you tell me what your userprofile environment variable is set to? The easiest way is to type 'cmd' in the search window on the Start menu, then type %userprofile% (return) at the command window prompt.

It will then say something like 'C:\Users\username' is not recognised etc. It's the bit between the quotes I need. If you prefer, you can PM me with the information, rather than post it here (click on my name and there's a menu on the left hand side of the page).

[KMorgan]

Jeff

after typing cmd I get the following prompt

C:\Users\Keith>

I then type %userprofile% and hit return to get

'C:\Users\Keith' is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file.

I'm afraid I'm off on my hols as of right now, so can't help for a week. Sorry.

Cheers for now

Keith

[zgoudie]

Just tried loading 6.4 but it won't plot meanwhile the check list panel just flashes.

[jeff]

Could you supply a bit more information please.  Is this a new install or are you upgrading from an earlier version? What version of Windows are you running? By flashing do you mean that checklist  is appearing then disappearing again?

Edit: When you say "doesn't plot", does the plot window appear at all, and if so what does it show?

[zgoudie]

Upgrading from 6.1. using windows 7.  When I start Spine I go through range, sort order but when I get to fetch it asks me if I want to download 6.4.  If I click yes it appears to download it but if I then click on plot the checklist panel flickers a few times but the plot window does not appear.  I then can only get out by using task manager.

If I say no to downloading 6.4 it appears to function as normal.

Z

[jeff]

Ah right! I'm assuming the version in the title bar is still saying 6.1. I'm pretty sure the installation didn't work then, because you are missing some Microsoft DLLs. Please go to the web site, http://www.jeffg.co.uk and read the red text at the bottom of the page, which explains what to do.

Once you have installed the DLLs, you should be able to repeat the update successfully. There was a message, actually, which you should have seen. On V6.1, if you go to Settings and click on the button that says "View latest server message", you should see it again (on V6.4, that button has been moved to the main dialog).

Jeff.