Datacolor User to User Support Group.

I'm guessing that setting this to anything but Never requires keeping the Spyder hardware connected via USB, which I don't plan to do. Is this correct?

Video Card: Load Video Card LookUp Table (LUT) Every:

The settings range from Never to 60 Minutes. Am I correct in thinking that the software reloads the LUT periodically in case Windows or other software messes with the color settings? Any recommendations as to what setting to use? Is there any penalty for reloading the LUT more often?

Recalibration: Check Recalibration Every:

The settings range from Never to 6 Months. What does this check for, and how often should this be checked? I'm having the most difficulty wrapping my head around this one.

Recalibration: Notify if display has not been recalibrated (ReCAL) within the last:

The settings range from Never to 6 Months. I seem to remember setting this when I ran the original calibration. Is this the same thing as I saw in the main program?

Startup: Display Startup Dialogs:

I think I've figured this one out on my own.

One last, generic question: Ever since SpyderUtility began living in the System Tray, I've noticed that periodically, my screensaver mysteriously stops (and the monitors come back to life) without any PC activity to cause it. This change coincided with my installing and running the Spyder software. Could SpyderUtility be causing this?

Thanks in advance for any guidance regarding all of this!

Larry

> On Mar 3, 2017, at 11:42 AM, JN2@... [datacolor_group] <datacolor_group@yahoogroups.com> wrote:
> 
> Despite what Datacolor will tell you, the Datacolor utility is not needed.
> 

That depends on how you define “needed”. If you mean that there is an OS level functionality in both Mac and Windows these days which can, if properly configured, load both a display profile for each display, and a LUT for each display, then yes, thats true, in the best of situations. Unfortunately, there are many less-than-perfect situations. So using Spyder display calibration software, without using a Spyder Utility is rather like driving your car without seatbelt, airbags, or a spare tire. If there is a conflict with another app that wished to control the display LUTs, or if your video card has other ideas about what should be loaded, or if there is some confusion between what LUT to load for each profile on a multiple display system, then you will get no corrections, nor any warnings, of the problems if you aren’t running a Spyder Utility. So, if you are the type of hot rod computer user who, metaphorically speaking, strips out all the safety features and dumps the spare tire, so that your system is lean and mean, and starts up two seconds faster, then nothing will stop you from doing this. However, its very poor advice for the average user.

C. D. Tobie

With respect, that's wildly exaggerated FUD.
I've profiled a great many Windows machines without any 3rd party utilities without issues. All it takes is proper configuration.

You should always take unauthenticated advice with a grain of salt.
Your best option is to open a Support Ticket.
And i suggest you be less critical of free advice.

None of that is true. Your questions likewise make assumptions that aren't true. And you don't seem willing to listen.

That said, when you're not willing to at least try to get answers from Support, then you shouldn't be surprised when people don't waste time trying to help you, especially when you make disparaging remarks.

> On Mar 3, 2017, at 2:42 PM, JN2@... [datacolor_group] <datacolor_group@yahoogroups.com> wrote:
> 
> Despite what Datacolor will tell you, the Datacolor utility is not needed.
> 
> See http://tips.navas.us/2016/05/windows-monitor-calibration-issue.html <http://tips.navas.us/2016/05/windows-monitor-calibration-issue.html>
>  
> 

Yes, it’s needed.

For “+” users who have the new software upgrade (Pro+, Elite+) which has
the new Room Light Switching feature: if you use that feature, SpyderUtility is required
to switch profiles in the background if your ambient room light changes. NOTE: This is
true, regardless of the potential (and thanks - I wasn’t aware of this “tip” until you’d
posted it) for having Windows keep the video card LUTs loaded.

For all Windows users (with and without “+”), unless you’re knowledgeable enough
to have followed the instructions in the “tip” above, yes, you do need SpyderUtility
to ensure that your calibration video luts don’t get overwritten.

Best regards,

David Miller
Manager/Lead Developer, Consumer Graphics Software
Datacolor

> On Mar 3, 2017, at 12:08 PM, lcunning@... [datacolor_group] <datacolor_group@yahoogroups.com> wrote:
> 
> I purchased and installed Spyder5Pro earlier this week, and used it to calibrate both Dell monitors in a dual-monitor system (Windows 10 in case it makes any difference). I'm very happy with the results. The two monitors (for the first time in a couple of years) match each other in terms of brightness, contrast, and color balance, and prints that come out of my Canon Pro-100 now closely match what I see on my monitor. So far, so good.
> 
> My questions refer to the SpyderUtility widget that now sits in the System Tray, and its preference settings. Can anyone explain what these settings do? I have a vague idea, but I would appreciate some clarification. There's nothing in the manual regarding these settings, and I couldn't find anything on the Datacolor Web site about them.
> 
> Here are the settings I'm referring to:
> 
> General: Dialogs will be automatically dismissed after:
> The settings range from Never to 8 Hours. What dialogs, the ones that appear right after booting or rebooting the PC, or something else?
> 
> 
This will be for any dialogs that SpyderUtility might put up on the screen, while it’s running. (Display
recalibration alert, for example). The idea is to prevent them from staying on the screen indefinitely.

> Room Light: Check Room Light Level Every:
> 
> I'm guessing that setting this to anything but Never requires keeping the Spyder hardware connected via USB, which I don't plan to do. Is this correct?
> 
> 
> 
Yes, that’s correct. If the Spyder isn’t plugged in, then the periodic measurement of ambient
room light (if configured to be done periodically) is automatically disabled. When the Spyder
is plugged back in again, this will pick up again automatically if it’s configured for something
other than “Never”.

> Video Card: Load Video Card LookUp Table (LUT) Every:
> 
> The settings range from Never to 60 Minutes. Am I correct in thinking that the software reloads the LUT periodically in case Windows or other software messes with the color settings? Any recommendations as to what setting to use? Is there any penalty for reloading the LUT more often?
> 
> 
> 
Yes, that’s exactly how it works. The default of 1 minute should be “fine”. At first glance, it sounds
like this might be “too frequent”, but the fact is, if your video card LUTs get overwritten for any
reason, then your display will suddenly go “out” of calibration and it won’t be “fixed” until a time
period as long as, potentially, that full minute. (depending on “luck” and when in the default 1-minute
reload cycle that your LUTs were overwritten).

You could set it to a longer value if you like; it helps to be aware of what calibrated vs. uncalibrated looks
like, and how important in your normal workflow it is to ensure that your display “is” in calibration.

There’s no meaningful penalty for reloading the LUT more frequently; it’s a very simple system call to
do this. There’s a tiny bit of work that needs to be done to load the data from the profile, pass it to Windows
and have it refresh the video card LUTs but it’s so small as to be irrelevant. There are other, more complex
things that SpyderUtility does in the background while it’s running that are more involved than reloading
the video card LUTs.

IF you’ve applied your “fix” to Windows AND if you’re confident that Windows will be doing the right
thing itself (no need for SpyderUtility to do this periodically), then you can set it to “Never”, and, still
keep SpyderUtility running for the other reasons mentioned in my last email (for example, if you’re
using the Room Light Switching feature in either Pro+ or Elite+).

> Recalibration: Check Recalibration Every:
> 
> The settings range from Never to 6 Months. What does this check for, and how often should this be checked? I'm having the most difficulty wrapping my head around this one.
> 
> 
> 
> Recalibration: Notify if display has not been recalibrated (ReCAL) within the last:
> 
> The settings range from Never to 6 Months. I seem to remember setting this when I ran the original calibration. Is this the same thing as I saw in the main program?
> 
> 
> 
Yes. The original setting for that preference is based on what you entered at the time you calibrated
the display. This is a way that you can override it.

> Startup: Display Startup Dialogs:
> 
> I think I've figured this one out on my own. 
> 
> 
> 
That one’s a bit more obvious. :-)

> One last, generic question: Ever since SpyderUtility began living in the System Tray, I've noticed that periodically, my screensaver mysteriously stops (and the monitors come back to life) without any PC activity to cause it. This change coincided with my installing and running the Spyder software. Could SpyderUtility be causing this?
> 
> 
> 
I could look into that. I haven’t heard any reports of it, but since it’s an application that’s running in the
background and since it periodically (and by default, frequently) reloads the video card LUTs from what’s
stored in the calibration profile, I suppose it’s “possible” that Windows could interpret this as user activity,
even though it’s not “user activity”… your mouse and keyboard aren’t being touched… so, hmmm.

I’d -think- that if this was the problem, then as soon as the first default interval to reload the video LUTs
goes by, and this happens, that your displays would wake up again. Is that what’s going on, or (my guess,
otherwise you’d have said your screensaver fails to work and your system always wakes up almost immediately!)
is it much more intermittent than that?

> Thanks in advance for any guidance regarding all of this!
> 

You’re welcome! Sorry for not answering your question sooner - I’d seen it late yesterday afternoon
but didn’t have time to respond until now.

Best regards,

David Miller
Manager/Lead Developer, Consumer Graphics Software
Datacolor

[Apology for repost, but mangling by Yahoo makes it a necessity.]

@David Miller

Yes, it’s needed.

For “+” users who have the new software upgrade (Pro+, Elite+) which has

the new Room Light Switching feature: if you use that feature, SpyderUtility is required

to switch profiles in the background if your ambient room light changes. NOTE: This is

true, regardless of the potential (and thanks - I wasn’t aware of this “tip” until you’d

posted it) for having Windows keep the video card LUTs loaded.

@David Miller

For all Windows users (with and without “+”), unless you’re knowledgeable enough

to have followed the instructions in the “tip” above, yes, you do need SpyderUtility

to ensure that your calibration video luts don’t get overwritten.