RowPro Too Unreliable to Buy

johnlvs2run · Post by **johnlvs2run** » January 31st, 2007, 5:05 pm

jlemon wrote:Let me say that there is an alternative in the process of being developed, that will run on Linux, OSX, and Windows. Just wait a little while longer.
--
Jonathan

Jonathan,

That's great. Please keep me posted.

johnlvs2run · Post by **johnlvs2run** » January 31st, 2007, 5:32 pm

Regarding rowpro, I set one of my 30 minute pieces this morning into 1 minute splits. Apparently you can only set splits for 1 of the 10 ranking pieces in rowpro, but not for any other distance or time. I posted a question on the RP forum yesterday about this but haven't gotten a response.

So I did the 30 minutes and at the end was checking the 1 minute splits, but the last two splits were missed. Instead it gave a 2:00 split from 28 to 30 minutes.

I love the nice graphics in RP but am finding it hard to use and set up. Also when you set up a session, there is no place to save it (another question I asked yesterday and no response yet), so you have to keep setting up that session again every time.

Because of not being able to set up any splits (other than the 10 events) I'm going to stick with the pm3 tomorrow. I'd like to give RP more of a trial but we'll see.

johnlvs2run · Post by **johnlvs2run** » January 31st, 2007, 11:58 pm

Update: I've emailed to rowpro and asked them to deactivate my trial copy of rowpro.

I like the great easy to read display, but it doesn't have the functionality at this time that I'm looking for.

whaskell · Post by **whaskell** » February 1st, 2007, 7:05 am

You can save custom sessions - I do it all the time for my Interactive Program workouts. Under session setup there is a custom session button that allows you to do this. Maybe that feature is not available in the test version...

michaeln · Post by **michaeln** » February 1st, 2007, 9:56 am

Nightrower wrote:As for something that is "better". Good luck and perhaps you can find it but for free, well that is just silly. Who is going to want to program and support a detailed, graphics intensive program for free?

I don't expect it to be free. Almost nothing that runs on Windows is.

However, you are wrong about getting quality stuff for free. Entire Linux OS distributions are totally free, totally created and maintained by volunteers who are not getting paid to do it. Entire complex Linux applications are free, things that are FAR more complex and capable than silly little RowPro will ever be.

michaeln · Post by **michaeln** » February 1st, 2007, 9:58 am

whaskell wrote:You can save custom sessions - I do it all the time for my Interactive Program workouts. Under session setup there is a custom session button that allows you to do this. Maybe that feature is not available in the test version...

It's there. You can save custom sessions, and you can recall and run them.

Whether or not they'll work properly is another question though.

RogerR · Post by **RogerR** » February 1st, 2007, 10:58 am

michaeln wrote:I've been trying out RowPro (latest version downloaded from their site) for the past week, and it pretty much leaves me cold. I find the onscreen 3D stuff to be pretty lame (sometimes the guy just stops, sometimes he rows right off the screen), and the software is unreliable.

For instance, this morning I started RP. Set up a 15 minute row with 2 minute warmup and cooldown. It set the PM3 (which is at firmware level 97) to 2 minutes and counted down as I did my warmup. Then when I finished it, it popped up the annoying dialog box for me to click OK or something and start the row. I did.

It reset the PM3 to 15 minutes and said to pull the handle to start the row. I started rowing, the PM3 started counting down and showing all the normal stuff updating, but no reaction from the RP screen, it was still saying I should pull the handle to start.

I checked the indicator for PM3 connectivity, and it was green. I disconnected and reconnected the USB cable at the PM3 end, the indicator turned red when it was disconnected and went green when reconnected. It was still saying to pull the handle to start rowing. I started rowing again, still no reaction.

I pulled the USB cable out of the PM3 and continued my row, and the PM3 worked fine.

The RP has done this several times, and frankly I don't have the patience to deal with software that claims to be commercial grade and wants my 99 bucks, but is this crappy and unreliable.

I may give it a go again in the future if they come out with a new version, but right now I wouldn't give 99 cents for it, let alone 99 bucks.

I have had the very same problems you have described. It's sporadic. After exit RP and starting again sometimes the issue went away.

Beside the issues related to reliability I have come to dislike the time and trouble it takes to start up the PC (old, slow laptop), starting the SW, etc.

Since a month or so I have been working just with my PM4 and just like it. Set up time close to nil, enough flexibility for all my various workouts, Rerow works just fine, force curve is very useful for me, quick to retrieve data from the logcard and no bugs that bother me.

So, I just stay with the C2 PM.

michaeln · Post by **michaeln** » February 1st, 2007, 11:33 am

RogerR wrote:So, I just stay with the C2 PM.

Yep that's the way I feel. If I want to screw around with the computer, I'll screw around with the computer. But when I want to exercise, I don't want to spend a lot of time trying to get some crappy software working right... I just want to exercise.

RowPro gets in the way, and that's unforgivable.

johnlvs2run · Post by **johnlvs2run** » February 1st, 2007, 12:08 pm

whaskell wrote:You can save custom sessions - I do it all the time for my Interactive Program workouts. Under session setup there is a custom session button that allows you to do this. Maybe that feature is not available in the test version...

The custom sessions don't have any way of settting up splits, unless that is missing from the trial versions - and there's been no response about that for 2 days from RP. A lot of funtionality is lost if the sessions have to be done with no splits.

RP responded this morning that the trial version can't be deactivated, so the 20 days will run out.

whaskell · Post by **whaskell** » February 1st, 2007, 1:46 pm

I will not disagree that RP has had some difficulties, but my experience has been very trouble free for a long time. DR was given a somewhat impossible task initially, in that it had to make RP compatible with e-row, which is very outdated and often quite unstable. My understanding is that the RP version currently in the works will eliminate the e-row compatibility which will hopfully eliminate a number of issues.

In addition, if you ask for assistance, Pete usually responds very quickly. You need to understand that DR is a relatively small shop and does not have a 24/7 help desk. I think RP is great.

johnlvs2run · Post by **johnlvs2run** » February 1st, 2007, 5:12 pm

Pete has been very helpful through getting RP set up on computer.

I'll see how the next version comes out.

Thanks for replys.

Anne · Post by **Anne** » February 6th, 2007, 10:57 pm

Maybe my expectations were lower, but I bought an erg for home primarily to be able to row with online friends. I just got it all set up last week. Thus far I have been really happy with row pro and the support it provides. My one technical issue was resolved immediately via their help desk and rowing online has caused me to have a far better workout.

No gripes from me.

Wood_Duck · Post by **Wood_Duck** » February 7th, 2007, 2:05 pm

I wonder if people are using v2.006. I rarely have problems with the program. Sometimes we have trouble getting a race going but we just make a QR and off we go.

I really look forward to rowing on-line and find it helps the time pass and the companionship really improves my times.

I have helped people who have had trouble getting started and connected but once everything is set up and working, we haven't had trouble since. In once case the person upgraded her PM2+ to PM3 and the PM3 wasn't working quite right but when that was straighted out we have had no more issues.

I row regularly on-line and have done time pieces, distance pieces, AND a marathon with other women around the globe.

I do think it is a good buy and is very helpful for rowing. Yes, there may be kinks at first but once it is straighened out there are very few problems.

Susan

ancho · Post by **ancho** » February 23rd, 2007, 9:36 am

I had a major PC crash a few weeks ago, and lost all my RowPro data, includeing access data.
I emailed Digital Rowing assist@digitalrowing.com, and got prompt reply that soved my problem within hours.
Thanks Pete!

Looking forward to my next race now!

EddieW9146 · Post by **EddieW9146** » March 2nd, 2007, 11:19 am

I've been using RowPro for as long as I've owned my C2, about 3 years now, with no problems. Other than the time I plugged the USB cable into the PM3 upside down, my bad! Some of the problems here sound like video issues. I had RowPro running on an older machine (within specs) but had to reduce the graphics settings in RP, because my video couldn't keep up. If you are running RP in its full 3d graphics glory, on a machine with out the resources, it will be jittery and unresponsive. The key is making sure your frame rate is acceptable. I looked at x2row, and it seems very nice. It has a lot of analytical stuff (reports and statistics), that appeals to the engineer/geek in me, however it's missing the 3d rowing scene eye candy and the competitor/pace boats. If all I wanted was a workout log, than x2row would be the way I’d go. My big complaint at the moment is the lack of Win Vista support.

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