DM2 CPU?

[willpoll]

Is the DM2 CPU still in the works?
Thanks!

[BobO]

Is the DM2 CPU still in the works?
Thanks!

Yes.

[JT]

Are you able to share any information on any new features/abilities? or even a timeline?

[BobO]

Are you able to share any information on any new features/abilities? or even a timeline?

There are several schools of thought on this and we are back and forth on which we are going to do. What things would you like to see?

[JT]

Are you able to share any information on any new features/abilities? or even a timeline?

There are several schools of thought on this and we are back and forth on which we are going to do. What things would you like to see?

The things I would like to see in no particular order would be,

• DNP3-SA support
• Profinet support
• More memory for larger UDT types > 64DWords
• Double length tag/nicknames
• More than 1 level of nesting in a UDT
• Structured Text support
• A folder structure to sort/group programs and tasks in the project browser ect. e.g. A program that controls a pump, and calls separate tasks for different functions can be nested underneath

We are based in Australia and our work is mostly with Water Authorities and these are the protocols that they use including Ethernet/IP but that is already supported.
We have already started using a few of the OPCUA poms and so far they have been a great addition but DNP3 is our biggest hindrance in using more BRX.

I understand everyone has different use cases and ours might be the minority but that’s my 2 cents.

[Controls Guy]

• More memory
  
• ST

[BobO]

More memory and a textual subroutine language are in the plan, although I'm really not a fan of ST as the textual language. We'll probably do it, but graybeard languages from the 80s really shouldn't be the focus. A Java/C variant makes better sense for the future and even that starts to become a question when AI enters the picture.

[Controls Guy]

More memory and a textual subroutine language are in the plan, although I'm really not a fan of ST as the textual language. We'll probably do it, but graybeard languages from the 80s really shouldn't be the focus. A Java/C variant makes better sense for the future and even that starts to become a question when AI enters the picture.

100% concur.  Weird Pascal isn't really my preference either.

[Kristjan]

Option to import/export documentation through Excel files

[franji1]

Option to import/export documentation through Excel files

Excel supports CSV format (both import and export), which is what Designer supports through the File->Export->Element Documentation mechanism.

[Kristjan]

Option to import/export documentation through Excel files

Excel supports CSV format (both import and export), which is what Designer supports through the File->Export->Element Documentation mechanism.

Well, for some of us aliens (weird language settings), the CSV breaks when saving in Excel.

From DMD we get a clean CSV with double quotes and commas. When my Excel installation saves the CSV it returns no quotes and it returns semicolons. I have tried all kinds of different encodings and Save As in different formats in Excel and haven't found the right combination. I still use the CSV import/export a lot but it requires editing in a text editor.

My colleague often succeeds in the CSV import/export but not always. On another system we are using (SCADA platform), they introduced Excel import/export a few years ago and it is very smooth.

[Kristjan]

Allowing nicknames to start with a number would be nice.

API read/write permissions. I know this has been discussed and there is a lot of security stuff to consider. But just thought I'd throw it in the mix.

Another feature I wanted to mention was some sort of AI integration interface but then again, I don't really know what to request  I have vague ideas about some sort of a handle (API or MCP) for AI tools towards DoMore Designer (ladder programming, documentation work, set up PID controllers, configure PLC etc). Since you already have an API, we should be able to make AI work towards that or create applications to connect via API.

[franji1]

From DMD we get a clean CSV with double quotes and commas. When my Excel installation saves the CSV it returns no quotes and it returns semicolons. I have tried all kinds of different encodings and Save As in different formats in Excel and haven't found the right combination. I still use the CSV import/export a lot but it requires editing in a text editor.

My colleague often succeeds in the CSV import/export but not always. On another system we are using (SCADA platform), they introduced Excel import/export a few years ago and it is very smooth.

Yeah, it appears your CSV Save-As mechanism in Excel has changed the delimiter from using a comma to using a semicolon.  You may need that for OTHER application files that you are importing and or exporting from Excel (databases?).  Not sure how to adjust Excel - but be careful - you might get Designer element documentation import/export working, but then break your SCADA import/export!  You might need to utilize the Excel Export wizards every time you import or export (and not just use the "defaults" from the last time you did it).

Losing double quotes doesn't hurt Designer's import typically.  Excel does a good job of retaining double quotes if the column contains text that also contains a comma or also contains a double quote.  Designer exports every column in double quotes so that any import mechanism knows to treat it as TEXT.  For example, a description might have the text "1", which Excel would interpret as a NUMERIC value, not as TEXT.  Or it could contain something that starts with an EQUAL SIGN (looks like an Excel Macro).  Then Excel would fail or mis-interpret or actually run the macro if it was NOT in double quotes (this is one "virus" mechanism).  Again, this needs to be in double quotes.

I just tried the CSV export from Designer with lots of combinations of fields with and without double quotes in the actual data, and other fields with and without commas in the actual data, and combinations of the two.  I imported those into Excel, then saved it (as Excel's CSV format, losing some of the Designer column level double quotes), then imported it back into Designer, and it worked (even though Excel stripped of the column level double quotes).  I then exported that again from Designer and it MATCHED the ORIGINAL EXPORT.  As long as the comma and double quote grammar is semantically identical, everything should work.

I do know Designer does NOT support Unicode text files it is trying to import.  Designer does not support Unicode text inside edit fields.  These could be other issues you might be seeing with Excel CSV files.

[Controls Guy]

Well, for some of us aliens (weird language settings), the CSV breaks when saving in Excel.

From DMD we get a clean CSV with double quotes and commas. When my Excel installation saves the CSV it returns no quotes and it returns semicolons. I have tried all kinds of different encodings and Save As in different formats in Excel and haven't found the right combination. I still use the CSV import/export a lot but it requires editing in a text editor.

My colleague often succeeds in the CSV import/export but not always. On another system we are using (SCADA platform), they introduced Excel import/export a few years ago and it is very smooth.

Kick Microsoft to the curb.   I use Softmaker Office Planmaker; it defaults to a comma as the delimiter and you have several choices including double quotes as the text marker character .   Available in both free and paid perpetual versions.   I'm still using the 2021 version.   I used the free version for years till I found some feature I needed that was only in the paid version.   The whole suite at that time was like $50 for perpetual.   I also have Libre Office which I use primarily for the word processor, but I just checked and the spreadsheet defaults to comma delimitation and double quotes for text, and gives you the option to quote every single field if you want.   The only advantage I've ever seen for Excel is that it will use more than one core, so it will handle mammoth sheets better than the others.