Suggestions for improvements

[RossW]

Bottom line for me is the ability to grab data and process it locally.

Tom, just posted new source that's added a couple of additional modes just for you

-ixxx   Interval (how many seconds between logging events)
-l        Log-to-local.  Will create (if required) and append to a text file, a bunch of registers.

Call from cron if you like, or use the -c (continuous) and -i (interval) flags to just read and log.

[dgd]

To be brutally honest we have our system in place for if / when power is unavailable via the grid and if / when the grid  fails the internet will be one of the dependent systems that will fail. When / if that day comes I want to be able to monitor my system here without the need for outside systems. No, I am not paranoid, just practical and I know I can only truly rely on myself

This would make a good general category discussion topic. I sort of agree with your view especially the last sentence.
Thats why I am off grid. I suppose its a case of being prepared for the worst scenario while hoping it never occurs.

dgd

[atop8918]

To be brutally honest we have our system in place for if / when power is unavailable via the grid and if / when the grid  fails the internet will be one of the dependent systems that will fail. When / if that day comes I want to be able to monitor my system here without the need for outside systems. No, I am not paranoid, just practical and I know I can only truly rely on myself

This would make a good general category discussion topic. I sort of agree with your view especially the last sentence.
Thats why I am off grid. I suppose its a case of being prepared for the worst scenario while hoping it never occurs.

dgd

We are all in agreement here!

That is why we have made the Classic's MODBUS spec available and provided the Local App. Ross and others are making very good progress with their local logging applications, there are modscan, modpoll, javamod, and a handful of other 3rd party monitoring tools available which can all be used on-site if there is no Internet connection available. If there is no Internet available, then there is also no remote monitoring. you have a lot of options for local monitoring, though!

Remote monitoring may be be available with a cell modem if you are lucky enough to have cell service at your site and don't mind the feds tapping your info:  http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jun/06/nsa-phone-records-verizon-court-order

[RossW]

That is why we have made the Classic's MODBUS spec available and provided the Local App. Ross and others are making very good progress with their local logging applications

Indeed. I just sent Tom new code today to address his current issue. Added "local logging". Will write to a local, flat text file, the same (identical) data that it would have sent to my server, except it adds a local timestamp. Also added the option to specify how frequently it logs. From 1 to (2^16) seconds. In reality, anything less (frequent) than 10 minutes is in my opinion a waste of effort.

I've got bogged down with over-subscribed time (committed to 4 big jobs, each has blown out (change in scope) and I've ended up with about 5 months work to do in 6 weeks, when I expected 4 jobs of about a week to 10 days each). Anyhow, "feature requests" on the pile include sql, local graphing, task-bar icon and a few other things. One is a "daemon mode" where my app will talk to the classic and accept multiple, simultaneous modbus-over-ethernet requests (local app, other modbus logging, etc) requests. We'll get to them, in time. The main push behind this is for *LOCAL* everything. That it ever sent data to my servers was only ever a stopgap because it was the path of least resistance to me at the time, to get graphing going. (That was about an hours work, not goodness knows how long writing something that was portable across different platforms!)

[dgd]

Suggestions..
I have had a week of decent data to really see how MyMidnite works, looks and feels.. Overall mpression is that this is the best recent history graphing package I have seen for any solar controller.

When the display loads or is reloaded using the browser refresh the dates in Classic panel at at 1 Jan 1970.
The line at top right showing dates 'from and to ' is pointless, its obviously apparent what date range is covered fromthe main display.
The four range buttons DAY WEEK MONTH YEAR are also meaningless. There are the last 14 days of data made available and the white sliding indicator can be widened to cover from several hours out to the full 2 weeks. The data is compressed or spread out as needed tofit the main display window. All that WEEK achieves is to widen this slider over 7 days, you could do this easily for all ranges up to 14 days when in the DAY display.
The MONTH and YEAR are identical with MONTH allowing 6months for the slider to move on and the YEAR allowing 12 months
Everything you can do in expanding/compressing data canbe achieved in both.
Currently if you press MONTH while in DAY then all Classic graphs change to the MONTH view, Nicer if this was individually controller for each Classic
Therefore I would suggest removing these buttons.
Instead in the Chart Controls window for each Classic have a DAY/MONTH toggle, where DAY shows the current 14 days and MONTH shows the 12 month range. Also since the MONTH shows different data stats then these need to auto change in the chart controls as DAY or MONTH is selected.
This would allow each Classic graph to be individually controlled. The data slider would then have to be specific for its own Classic.

Again back to the date slider. The more I look at it the more unnecessary it seems to be  ie to have a miniature graph representation of the 14 days that is one quarter the height of the main graph window. I find this miniature graph distracts from
the main graph, its visual 'noise' that is not necessary to convey real information.
As suggested before, I would have the white slider window just slide over the dates for the two weeks of available data. Since its so easy to see all 14 days in the main graph by simply widening the white slider I don't see any point in having a mini graph under the slider, it does not serve any real purpose.  Same for MONTH display.
I can understand there is perhaps some reluctance  to remove this mini graph as its clear a lot of though and effort has went into it and no doubt much programming effort but for MyMidnite this really is a case of LESS is better...  with the advantage that the main graph could be made taller 

dgd

[dgd]

..another small suggestion
When two Classics' graphs are displayed it would nice to have an option to match up the graph scales between the two.
It looks slightly off with power, for example, when one scale goes to 1Kw and the other to 3kw. If there is average 800w and 1.5kw
then the power blue bars make it visually look like the lower power Classic is producing more power.
If there was a chart control to rescale both to the larger of the two then it would be more visually accurate.
Just an idea but not very important in the the big scheme...

dgd