FAQ

TackTracker FAQ

Answers to Frequently Asked Questions

Installation and Licenses

Will upgrading erase my license or data?
Where are my TackTracker tracks stored?
Where are the tracks in the TrackLoader stored?
How can I email a race to a friend?
Can I install my license on multiple PC's?

Will upgrading erase my license or data?

You can upgrade the latest version of TackTracker by downloading and installing from the download page. The new version will replace the old install, but your existing license and data will not be affected. This is because your License and data are stored in a completely different location to the installed program.

Where are my TackTracker tracks stored?

TackTracker data is stored under a single folder:

Windows: "My Tracks" in your Documents folder
Mac: "TackTracker Tracks" in your home folder

Races are stored chronologically in folders by year and month.

Where are the tracks in the TrackLoader stored?

In the "loadedTracks" folder under My Tracks (Windows) or TackTracker Tracks (Mac).

How can I email a race to a friend?

The best way to share your races is to publish to your home page on the TackTracker Cloud. But you can also save your race to a TTZ file and email it if you wish. Save to TTZ by right-clicking on the race entry in the Library and selecting "Export to TTZ file". This will archive your race and all its tracks to a single file that may be loaded into any TackTracker Player for the PC or Mac. A Race Editor license is needed to create a TTZ file, but no license is needed to load a TTZ file.

Can I install my license on multiple PC's?

TackTracker licenses are sold for use on one PC or Mac only. However it is acceptable to install on two PC's for personal use. Clubs must purchase licenses foe each PC.

Each license is personalised and is not transferrable. If you wish to give your license to a friend, please contact TackTracker Support.

Live Tracking

Do I need a Race Editor license for live tracking?
Can I see other people's trackers in the Trackers tab?
I've recorded my live track. How do I get it?
I recorded a race session as a single live race - how do I now split into individual races?

Do I need a Race Editor license for live tracking?

A Race Editor license is needed to create an publish a live race. However you do not need a race editor license to add your track to a race someone else has set up.

You can also watch your trackers live in the Trackers tab without the need for a Race Editor's license. For example, to watch your two kids on your iPad, the minimum setup would be two live trackers and two tracking rights.

Can I see other people's trackers in the Trackers tab?

Only your live trackers will be listed in the Trackers tab ("My Trackers" on the iPhone and iPad). Specifically, you will see the enabled trackers that you have added to your TackTracker Cloud account.

However, when watching one of your trackers on the map, you will see any other TackTracker Live trackers that are in the vicinity and that you have rights to view. This will include:

Any of your live trackers
Any live tracker that is recording publically. (Friends Only is not checked in the Tracker List).
Any live tracker that is recording Friends Only where you are a nominated Friend of the owner of the tracker.

I've recorded my live track. How do I get it?

You can retrieve any track you have recorded live into the TackTracker player for PC or Mac via the Track Loader. (You will need a Race Editor license.) Use the Track Loader's Get button to bring up a track search wizard. Specify the date, time period and location for the tracks you wish to download from the cloud.

You can also use the Get feature to retrieve other people's tracks that you have access to.

I recorded a race session as a single live race - how do I now split into individual races?

With back-back racing you sometimes won't know in advance the start times and course for each race or even how many races will be run. In this situation, you may decide to record a single live race for the entire race session.

Afterwards, you may want to split the single race into individual races for analysis. To do this, you need to get the tracks into your TrackLoader so you can create the races and assign the tracks to them. The easiest way to do this is:

Load the race into TackTracker.
Open the Race Editor and select the Tracks tab
Check the "Track Tools" checkbox to show the Track Tools
Click the "Copy All" button adjacent to "Copy Track to Track Loader"
Open the Track Loader

You will now see all the tracks for the race in your Track Loader

TackTracker Player

What is the difference between the TackTracker Players?
How to overlay back-back races?
What does the Sync button do?

What is the difference between the TackTracker Players

The Players for PC and Mac are the most feature rich players. They have an almost identical feature set and usage is extremely similar. The few differences are the Mac player lacks some Club Regatta licensed features present on the PC player: the Auto-replay play list and Competitor Schedule.

The in-browser Web player (see tacktracker.com/cloud) shares the same library code as the PC player, but has a simpler user interface designed for casual use.

The iPhone and iPad App shares the same library code as the Mac Player, but has a different interface designed for IOS.

How to overlay back-back Races?

You can overlay the tracks from multiple races so that the start time for each is synchronized to one point in time. You may want to do this if you have sailed two or more back-back races and wish to compare your performances in each race.

To overlay races, load your first race from the Track Library. Then right click on the second race in the Track Library and select "Overlay onto current race".

What does the Sync button do?

Sometimes you may do poorly in the first part of a race, but feel that you have improved in the second half. The Sync feature lets you synchronise all boats at the beginning of the current leg to simulate then all rounding the mark at exactly the same time. This lets you eliminate previous performance in the race from your analysis of the leg.

To use the Sync feature, move the timeline to the desired leg of the race. Click "Sync". Sync button The position of all boats will change to simulate them rounding the mark at the same time. An orange boarder will be displayed around the map to remind you that you are viewing a simulation.

How do I learn to use the Race Editor?

The best way to get started with the Race Editor is to watch the Race Editor training videos. There is also detailed information in the user guide. We'll be adding more information to this FAQ over time as well. If your question is still not answered, please send an email to TackTracker Support support@tacktracker.com.

How to use Trackers on Marks?

One of TackTracker's powerful features is the ability to track the location of race marks with trackers. You can do this with both live and logged trackers - but of course you will need to use live trackers for a live race.

To track a mark:

Add the mark to your race course definition in the Race Editor. Lay it's approximate position on the map.
Assign a name to the tracker exactly matching the name of the mark. So, for example, if your mark's name is 'A', then your tracker should be named 'A' also. (This is the track name, not the tracker's nickname.)

TackTracker uses pre-assigned names for the start and finish line marks. They are:

Start Line:	StartBoat	StartPin
Finish Line:	FinishBoat	FinishPin

TackTracker Cloud

Can I re-publish a race without using any Publish Credits?

Can I re-publish a race without using any Publish Credits?

Yes - you can re-publish a race as many times as you need without consuming any more credits. A publish credit is needed only when you first publish a race. Note that a credit will be required if the race date is changed, as this will be considered a different race.