RailMaster installation issue

[RDS]

Hi

I have installed the software from purchased discs onto a laptop and a desktop PC.  I have succesfully launched and activated the laptop software.

When I try to launch (as administrator) on the PC, I get an error message:

"TurboCAD Designer 20 64-bit

The feature you are trying to use is on

a CD-ROM or other removeable disk

that is not available

Insert TurboCAD Designer 20 64-bit and

click OK"

I do not have a TurboCAD 20 64-bit CD-=ROM and can

find no mention in the instructionns that came with tghe softwsare.

Operating system on both computers is 64bit windows 10 and is up to date.

Any ideas how to solve, please?

Regards

[hedley_reynolds]

Hi Brian 

try downloading it from the top of the page where it says railmaster v1.67 but you don’t need to uninstall it first as this will over write the  program and see if that solves the problem also did you have 2 discs? as you can only register railmaster on 1 computer at a time also the sticky posts at the top of the page are very useful for problems with installing railmaster as well  Hedley 

[Chrissaf]

I just want to be super clarified here as this is both a RailMaster and Trackmaster sub-forum. The reference to TurboCad might be appropriate to TrackMaster. RailMaster has no need to access TurboCad for any reason.

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Also as Hedley mentioned you used the term "discs" infering plural, more then one. RailMaster is sold on a SINGLE disc.

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Are you really sure it is RailMaster (the physical control of a model railway via an eLink or Elite controller) that you are trying to install. Or Trackmaster (the design of a model railway layout). I appreciate the topic title says RailMaster, but we need to be 100% sure of what is being queried.

.

Please confirm....

[Fishmanoz]

General rule on buying RM - find and keep the activation key in a safe place and put the CD in the bin without using it.  Install the software by downloading and installing from the link at the top of the forum as previously stated.  Then run it and activate using the key.

 

I say general rule as AC has pointed out that on some (rare) occasions this won’t work and you have to do initial installation from the CD.  However, having done that, then immediately update it to latest by installing the link version over the top of the CD version.

 

There is no chance the CD version will ever be the latest version of the software as it gets updated regularly.  You will always need to install the latest link version. And you will likely need to go back to and install the link version regularly to ensure you have the latest.  The software automatically finds major version updates when they occur and asks if you want to install them, but there are many minor revisions included in the link from time to time that don’t trigger this automatic update system.

[GnosticBrian]

Hi

I have THREE discs having purchased THREE copies of RailMaster in THREE separate boxes from Hattons.

I installed and activated one disc on a laptop.

I tried to instal on a desktop - where I would use a different activation key but ran into the "TurboCAD" issue when I tried to instal.  I also tried to download and instal an evaluation copy onto the desktop but when trying to run hit the same "TurboCAD" issue.

I updated the firmware on my Elite but can't get the software on the laptop to speak to it.

Both computers are running the latest version of Windows 10, fully updated.  I am under the influence of serious man flu and probably doing something very silly for which I will kick myself - but the software does not strike me as very user friendly at the moment.

 

Regards

[Fishmanoz]

Have you read my post immediately above yours?  Please start by throwing all 3 disks in the bin, keeping their activation codes.  Install on all 3 computers from the link at the top of the RM forum and activate using the codes.  On the one you installed from the disk, overwrite it by installing from the link over the top of it.

 

Your Elite not talking to RM on your computer is one of 2 problems in 99.9% of cases.  The first is the driver hasn’t been installed correctly.  This isn’t your problem as it must have been installed to update the firmware.  The 2nd is your com port number has changed. Check what it is in Device Manger and make sure it is 4 or less, not 5 or more.  Now look in RM Setup and ensure it is the same.  Then always use the same USB port to connect with to minimise the risk of it changing again.

 

Yes there are more user-friendly programs than RM and there are some common setup issues.  They are all covered in the 2 sticky threads at the top of the RM forum.  If those threads or advice from other users don’t get you going, email HRMS from within the Help screen of RM and they can log into your computer remotely to solve your problem.

[Chrissaf]

OK so we have clarified that it is indeed RM and not TM, and you have explained how you have got more than one disc.

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You wrote:

I updated the firmware on my Elite but can't get the software on the laptop to speak to it.

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Do you mean, you have tried to update the firmware on the Elite but can't get the firmware updater software on the laptop to speak to it. Reason I ask, is that the Elite would have to connect (speak) to your laptop for the firmware to be successfully updated. Or is a case that you successfully updated the Elite firmware on a different PC and it doesn't connect (speak) to the laptop. What Elite firmware version, was it 1.44?

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You wrote:

but the software does not strike me as very user friendly at the moment.

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You've noticed then........no it isn't plug n play and needs a lot of user configuration to get working. We are trying our best to help you, but you might not think so, but the information provided is rather vague.

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Ignoring RM for the moment. Ideally you shouldn't have installed RM until after you installed the Elite drivers on the PCs.

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Have you installed the Elite drivers correctly - see below?

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Plug in the Elite to your PC and power it up. If you have one, use a USB2.0 port and not a USB3.0 one.

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Open Windows 'Device Manager'.

Have you got this entry showing in 'Device Manager'.

/media/tinymce_upload/6c9d14636239831931f1c7f28956044c.jpg

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If not, then the Elite driver is NOT installed and nothing will work until it is installed correctly first. The COM4 might say COM3 instead, that is fine if it does. If it says anything other than COM3 or COM4 tell us what it does say.

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If the driver is not installed as shown above, then follow the instructions in this previous post and then come back for further instructions when the driver is installed and displays as per the image above.

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https://www.hornby.com/uk-en/forum/windows-10-drivers-for-hornby-elite/?p=1

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If you do have the entry above in Device Manager, then come back and tell us that, for further instruction.

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With regard the THREEs in capitals. Please do not get frustrated at our replies if you have already done the above and the driver is successfully installed. We do not have the luxury of looking over your shoulder. The purpose of this reply is to start from the basics and work methodically through an installation plan to try and get your system operational, since we can't physically sit in front of your PCs and do it for ourselves.

[hedley_reynolds]

Hi Brian 

when I had first started with railmaster and the elink controller I too had problems with getting it going but you have to do one step at a time as that’s what I had learned and the only reason that I had got it going was the help on this forum and the help and information from the likes of Chris, Fishman ,RAF and Ray and if It wasn’t for them and all of the help from them I too would have put it in the bin also you have the added bonus of the elite controller as you have the best of both worlds and if you have a look through the forum you can see that I too am still learning about dcc and still having to ask everyone on the forum for their help and advice but if you stick at it, it too will click in your mind and then you’ll find that’s not too bad after all.

but take all of the advice from Chris and Fishman above your post and you’ll find that it’ll work for you and do one step at a time Hedley 

[GnosticBrian]

Hi

Thank you all for your help.

Software succesfully installed and talking to the Elite on my desktop PC.  Pro pack next!

My use of capitals was simply for emphasis.  I will run the software on three devices.

Now I just have to figure out how to shoehorn a Shinohara No 6 double crossover into the mimic diagram.

Regards

[Fishmanoz]

I think you’ll find that covered on pages 89-91 in the manual.

[Chrissaf]

Brian, for the benefit of others that might follow later, looking for advice with the TurboCad error message. Could you tell us what you did to resolve the issue.

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Was it just a case of the driver not being fully installed properly?

i.e your 'Device Manager" driver entry showed "CDC RS232 Emulation" instead of "USB Serial Port (COMn)" where n = 3 or 4

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Or something else?

[GnosticBrian]

Hi Fishmanoz

 

Not sure that 89 - 91 covers it.  The Shinohara looks like this:

 

Image link: http://www.scalelink.co.uk/acatalog/SDG812.jpg

 

I may have to exercise a degree of engineering licence to mimic what I want.

 

Regards

[Chrissaf]

Brian, what about my question, just above......any chance of an answer to it please.

[96RAF]

I have TurboCad from donkeys years ago, now incompatible with current Windows and wonder if it is a simple case of wrong CD in the right sleeve.

 

Re the double slip, treat it as four separte normal turnouts, linked as necessary i.e. this one operates the other one, etc.

Rob

[Fishmanoz]

Brian, that’s a double slip, the configuration I’d assumed, and is most definitely covered as I said.

[St1ngr4y]

Fishy,

The picture that Brian provided is a scissors crossover, not a double slip. I have two Shinohara scissors crossovers, one at each end of my hidden sidings, so that trains entering and leaving can access all of the sidings from both main line directions. On the mimic diagram, I had to separate the points and place a couple of diagonal straights one on top of the other in the same cell at the centre of the four points, otherwise the red/green point buttons would conflict with each other.

I wish Peco would bring out an electrofrog scissors crossover in Code 100.

Ray

[Fishmanoz]

Thanks for pointing that out Ray.  Still works like the diagram on page 91 including the straight as shown?

[St1ngr4y]

Thanks for pointing that out Ray.  Still works like the diagram on page 91 including the straight as shown?

Hi Fishy,

The image below shows how I had to configure each Shinohara scissors crossover, to make use of an ADS2-FX accessory decoder to switch them, while at the same time, switching the electrofrogs correctly.

At this time, I should point out something which I don't know has been covered or not on the Forum. If you have a simple crossover with two electrofrog points, you can't wire them to the same ADSn-FX port and make use of the frog polarity switching facility. This is because, on such a crossover, each point frog is on the opposite running rail to the other.

 

 

So, having purchased the Shinohara scissors crossovers, and ADS2-FX decoders, I needed a way to maximise the functionality. This I achieved by wiring the top two points to one port (47) and the bottom two points to the other port (48), rather than diagonally opposite points to the same ports. This works because the frogs of the top two points are on the same running rail, and the frogs of the bottom two points are on the opposite running rail.

/media/tinymce_upload/4d37c7a3cafb0cc9837eb16c785cf112.png

In Railmaster, I configured each point to fire the other port, the result being that, for one button press, all 4 points end up either set to "straight on" or to the "diagonal crossover".

Hope this makes sense.

Ray

[RDS]

That seems like a good tip Ray and a great workaround.

[Fishmanoz]

Now I get the difference as well Ray.  All I was looking to replicate was possible track routes, what I forgot was being able to replicate the actual throwing the tie bars with the added complication of frog switching.  I’d go further than RDS too, an elegant solution Hornby could publish in the manual, not a workaround.  After seeking your permission of course.

[St1ngr4y]

Having re-read my post, I feel I have only given half of the solution. With hindsight, I should have used a picture of a Shinohara Scissors, rather than use the RM track designer. This was intended to show how to physically wire the point motors to the ADS2FX decoder.

However, if this physical setup is transferred directly to the user's layout diagram in Railmaster, you would end up with two "passing loop" scenarios (as discussed elsewhere on the Forum).. There would be no way to get the blue/gray route indicators to reflect the points settings. Fortunately, the answer is simple. Swap the port number of the two points at the right hand side i.e change the top right to 48 and the bottom right to 47. In this way, diagonally opposite points have the same port number. I must stress that this needs to be done only on the track diagram. The physical wiring remains as described in the diagram.

Ray