Settings

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Navigation:  Collect > Collect Mobile > Menu >

Settings

Tap the Menu Col-Mobile_Menu-Icon icon. Tap the Settings menu item to open the Settings page for accessing user profile information, changing data entry and file synchronization settings, managing interactions with data loggers, and generating support packages. The Settings menu includes the following tabs: Profile Information, General, Security, Data Entry, Files Synchronization, Logger, and Support.

 

 

Col-Mobile_Settings

 

Profile Information

 

Profile information consists of user details and device details. User information includes user name, email address, and data server connection. The device details provide type and model of the device, the platform on which Collect Mobile is running, and the version number of Mobile Collect. The app supports three platforms: iOS, Android, and Universal Windows Platform (UWP).

 

General Tab

 

Tap the General settings menu item to manage settings pertaining to automatic downloads and removing deleted forms.

 

Settings - General

 

Tap the Automatic downloads option to turn on the automatic download of newly published templates assigned to the logged-in user. The option is turned on when the slider is to the right.

 

By default, the Templates tab is hidden (i.e., slider is to the right). To display the Templates tab on the device, tap the Hide templates tab option to change from the default setting.

 

To remove all deleted forms from Collect, select Remove all deleted forms and tap Delete All. To delete an individual form, tap on the Delete button, to the right of the form to be removed.

 

Note (Android Only): A change to the permissible Android 14 storage locations required changing the local storage directory in Collect Mobile. Previously, collected data were stored in an "external" directory, but in Android 14, the data must be stored in a "personal" directory. This change affects Collect users on Android 13 or earlier who have previously collected data using Collect Mobile 7.23.2 Build or earlier. When a user updates Collect Mobile to the 7.23.3 Build, the previously collected data stored on the device is inaccessible due to the storage path having changed, which gives the appearance that the data are gone. Depending on which version of Android the device is running, there are two solutions to retrieve the previously collected data and place it in the current "personal" storage directory.

Android 13 or earlier – An update to the app is available on the Google Play store to address issues relating to Android 13 or earlier versions. If no forms were edited in the original (i.e., prior to this fix being released) 7.23.3 Build, re-updating the app will automatically copy any existing form data from the "external" directory to the "personal" directory for a seamless update. If data were edited in the first Collect 7.23.3 Build, there will be form data in both the "personal" and "external" file paths. Collect for Android 7.23.31356 has a new tool in Settings > General, called "Prepare for Android 14". This tool will copy over data from previous Collect builds into the new "personal" directory that can be used in any Android OS version, including Android 14. Since "Prepare for Android 14" will delete data in the "personal" directory and replace them with data from the "external" directory, please submit any data forms that have not yet been submitted before using this tool. The tool will prompt a manual restart of Collect. After closing and launching Collect, data from previous Collect builds will be visible again. Further work in Collect will be saved to the "personal" directory. "Prepare for Android 14" will only need to be used once and should disappear from the Settings > General menu after successfully restoring old data forms. The following screenshots show the "Prepare for Android 14" button, the warning message shown prior to moving data from the "external" directory to the "personal" directory, and the message shown once the data have been moved successfully.

col-mobile-android_14_prepare_button_zoom50

col-mobile-android_14_update_warning_zoom50

col-mobile-android_14_update_success_zoom50

Android 14 – Collect Mobile will not be allowed access to the "external" file path. Data from previous builds (i.e., before 7.23.3) will have to be restored via a backup. It is best if a backup can be generated before the device is updated to Android 14 and no backup is available. If the device has already been updated to Android 14, the following steps can manually create a backup from the files in the "external" file path:

1.Install the fixed update.

2.Submit any outstanding data forms to the server.

3.Connect the Android device to a PC.

4.Navigate to Android\data\com.earthsoft.equiscollect\EQuISCollect.

5.Add all of the folders contained in this directory into a *.zip file. Folders are listed below:

Database

Forms

Loggers

Templates

Temporary

6.Restore the zip file as a Collect backup (see Restoring a backup for instructions).

 

 

Security

 

Users have the option to establish a Personal Identification Number (PIN) to use for Collect Mobile login. Setting up a PIN allows users to login to Collect Mobile without internet connectivity. To initially setup a PIN, users must be able to connect to the Enterprise site via normal username/password login or Azure Active Directory authentication. To setup a PIN, tap the Security tab.

Col-Mobile_Settings_Security_tab

Tap the PIN option. Users will need to enter their password or Microsoft Entra ID, formerly known as Azure Active Directory (AAD). Tap the Sign In button.

Col-Mobile_Settings_Security_tab2

Using the numeric keypad, enter a PIN between 4 and 10 digits. The Clear Col-Mobile-PIN-Keypad-Clear-icon icon can be used to remove entered digit(s). Tap Continue after entering the PIN.

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Users will be required to confirm their PIN. A confirmation message will display. Tap Ok and the PIN will be set.

Col-Mobile_Settings_Security_tab4

 

Note: If a re-entered PIN contains values that do not match, the entered values will be cleared and the PIN will need to be re-entered.

 

 

Data Entry Tab

 

Tap the Data Entry tab to set controls for entering data on forms.

 

Col-Mobile-Setting_Data_Entry_tab

 

As of the 7.21.2 Build, a Direct edit mode is available and turned on by default for new users. Existing users who upgrade to the 7.21.2 Build will receive a message about the direct edit mode the first time they login.

 

Col-Mobile-Setting_Data_Entry_tab_message

 

When the direct edit option is on, users can enter data directly and tab to the next field. A form navigation pane is also available. A re-set option allows users to set the current field value to the previous value or an empty value.

 

By default, the Auto edit next available fields option is set to on (i.e., slider is to the right). When this option is on, the next available field for data entry is automatically selected when working in a form. Three further sub-options allow further customization:

1.Jump to empty fields only – If on, will skip any field that has data entered and only select empty and editable fields.

2.Jump to required fields only – If on, allows to the user stop in the next field only if it is required.

3.Looping through empty fields – If on, will continue to cycle through empty and editable fields.

 

When the Auto edit next available fields option is off (i.e., slider is to the left), automatic editing of next available field is disabled on the forms. Each field will need to be selected for data entry. The other sub-options also become unavailable. Tap on an options slider button to turn it on or off.

 

The following table provides an overview of the resulting actions that a user will experience when the Auto edit next available fields option is on and the various data entry settings are combined.

 

"Auto edit next available field" is On

Jump to Empty

Jump to Required

Loop through Fields

Resulting Action

On

On

On

Iterate over empty required fields only and loop back to start

On

On

Off

Iterate over empty required fields only once

On

Off

On

Iterate over empty fields only and loop back to start

On

Off

Off

Iterate over empty fields only once

Off

On

On

Iterate over all required fields and loop back to start

Off

On

Off

Iterate over all required fields only once

Off

Off

On

Iterate over all fields and loop back to start

Off

Off

Off

Iterate over all fields once

 

 

Files Synchronization Tab

 

Tap the Files Synchronization settings menu item to manage how files are uploaded and downloaded in the Collect Mobile app. By default, all files are set to automatically upload/download. The user can enable or disable the Auto upload files or Auto download files options. The options are turned on when the slider is to the right. See the Files Synchronization article for more detailed information on applying these settings.

 

Col-Mobile-Setting_Files_tab

 

Note: To automatically upload and download files requires a data connection (WiFi/Mobile).

 

 

Logger Tab

 

Tap the Logger settings menu item to manage interactions with data loggers. See the Logger Integration articles for more information on using data loggers with Collect.

 

Col-Mobile-Setting_Logger_tab

 

The Hide probes bar setting allows users to show or hide the probes bar for the current form screen. By default, the probes bar is set to display. The option is turned on when the slider is to the right.

 

The Connection timeout setting represents the length of time in minutes to disable the logger on the device when data are no longer being received. When this value is exceed, the logger is disabled and appears in red on the probes bar. The Fast Creation and Interval icons on the tool bar are also red. By default, the value is set to one minute.

Col-Mobile-Logger_Disabled

The Disconnection time setting represents the length of time in minutes to disconnect the logger from the Collect Mobile application when new data are no longer being received. By default, the value is set to five minutes. A disconnect error message will be displayed when the currently connected logger is disconnected.

Col-Mobile-Logger_Disconnected

 

 

Support Tab

 

Tap the Support settings menu item to manage the logging of diagnostic information or to generate a support package email sent to EarthSoft Support

 

Col-Mobile-Setting_Support_tab

 

Tap the Generate a support package option to open an Information page. Write information pertinent to the issue for which support is being requested, then tap Generate to create the email. 

 

Col-Mobile-Setting_Support_Info

 

An email to the Support Team is automatically generated that contains the user profile information and the note entered above. If there is no active email setup on the device, it will be unable to send a support email.

 

Generate Support Package email

 

The Debug log level option allows for configuring diagnostic logging. The Debug log level is used to capture different levels of diagnostic information about Collect Mobile, with "Warn" set as the default. 

 

The options for Debug log levels available in the drop down menu include:

Trace

Debug

Info

Warn

Error

Critical

 

Note: Each of the Debug log level options is additive with the levels below the selected level. For example, if the Debug log level is set to "Warn", the logs will also include "Error" and "Critical" messages. Less restrictive levels, such as "Info", "Debug", and "Trace" will not be included in the logs. If the logging level is set to "Trace", all levels of diagnostic information will be logged.

 

The Log retain days option allows for the selection of the number of days that the log file will be saved and available for viewing or, if needed, submitting to support. The Log retain days drop-down menu allows for selecting a minimum of 1 day to a maximum of 7 days in single day increments, with 2 days set as the default.

 

 

Example 1

Col-Mobile-Setting_Support_Log-example1

 

Example 1 shows a log file with entries for the log level and retain days settings, which are maintained at the default level. The log also shows a crash of Collect Mobile occurred, on line 7, followed by diagnostic information that may be helpful to help identify the cause of the crash.

 

 

Example 2

Col-Mobile-Setting_Support_Log-example2

 

Example 2 is a log file with entries showing the log level and retain days were updated to "Debug" and 5 retain days. The log includes additional information, such as an error due to a missing file and an "Info" message about Collect Mobile searching for a Bluetooth® logger.

 

 

Note: If a logs.zip file is created because of a Collect Mobile crash and the application is restarted, a crash report is available to EarthSoft. The logged information only includes device and crash specific information, no personal information is collected or sent.