calling ZYGRIB mac users

[oldvarnish]

Are there any?

I'm trying this out as lots of people say it's good.

I've downloaded the mac version with maps but no maps appear when I launch zygrib.

I'm afraid we mac users expect these things to just happen. Do I have to get under the bonnet?

And before I go any further, is Zygrib any good? Am planning to use this is the middle of nowhere so don't want something that's going to faint when the going gets rough.

 

[oldvarnish]

Replying to own thread - first sign of insanity, I know.

I solved my map problem, but the general questions about zygrib on mac still stand. Is it reliable?

 

[RichardS]

Replying to own thread - first sign of insanity, I know.

I solved my map problem, but the general questions about zygrib on mac still stand. Is it reliable?

It's the best GRIB display program I've used with Windows so I would expect that the Mac version will be good.

Richard

 

[Sticky Fingers]

Which Mac have you got? If its a older (PowerPC based) one you have to compile it...

 

[Tradewinds]

Replying to own thread - first sign of insanity, I know.

I solved my map problem, but the general questions about zygrib on mac still stand. Is it reliable?

And before I go any further, is Zygrib any good? Am planning to use this is the middle of nowhere so don't want something that's going to faint when the going gets rough.

Forgot I had it TBH.

Just downloaded the latest version & running on El Capitan.

Downloaded gribs just now via domestic BB - pretty instantaneous.

Interface fairly ugly by Mac standards.

I guess you're going to be downloading at sea via Iridium or some such. 8 day Grib file just downloaded on computer is 2.8mb - fairly chunky for Iridium maybe?

So, sorry not much real-life help other than it works for me OK here at home

 

[elton]

I guess you're going to be downloading at sea via Iridium or some such. 8 day Grib file just downloaded on computer is 2.8mb - fairly chunky for Iridium maybe?

Downloads are nothing remotely as big as that if you choose a sensible area of interest. Smaller still if you choose longer intervals than 3hr, or data of specific interest, such as wind. I download grib data that covers the whole north of England coastal and land areas at 3hr intervals for 8 days, and the files are only 100KB or thereabouts.

 

[Tradewinds]

Yep, that makes sense - thanks for that.

Downloads are nothing remotely as big as that if you choose a sensible area of interest. Smaller still if you choose longer intervals than 3hr, or data of specific interest, such as wind. I download grib data that covers the whole north of England coastal and land areas at 3hr intervals for 8 days, and the files are only 100KB or thereabouts.

 

[Blue Fox]

I have a macbook pro with Zygrib. Much better then Passage Weather: you can select your own area and the specific data you want. The installing and interface could indeed be much easier, but once working it never failed in my case.

 

[aluijten]

Have used it quite a bit I would say it works fine, no issue. Agree the program has a bit of funny user interface for Mac users.
I don't see you using it in combination with a Satphone unless you extensively reconfigure your Mac.
Point being that as soon as your Mac "sees" an internet connection it will jump on it with all kinds of communication (updates, icloud, mail, etc.) making the 2400 baud of Iridum completely unusable. There are devices that can act as firewall to prevent that from happening but they may also prevent Zygrib from working without a lot of configuration steps, I do not know.

 

[DaveRo]

Agree the program has a bit of funny user interface for Mac users.

The "funny interface" is because it uses Qt to make it cross-platform - Windows, Mac, and Linux. It looks old fashioned, even on Linux!

I tried converting it to Android a couple of years ago, but failed.

 

[oldvarnish]

Have used it quite a bit I would say it works fine, no issue. Agree the program has a bit of funny user interface for Mac users.
I don't see you using it in combination with a Satphone unless you extensively reconfigure your Mac.
Point being that as soon as your Mac "sees" an internet connection it will jump on it with all kinds of communication (updates, icloud, mail, etc.) making the 2400 baud of Iridum completely unusable. There are devices that can act as firewall to prevent that from happening but they may also prevent Zygrib from working without a lot of configuration steps, I do not know.

Thanks. I've used the satphone with the laptop quite a lot and there's a bit of software that stops the mac trying to connect to the internet except through the programme you're using. Got it from mailasail, I think.
I don't think I'd allow Zygrib to connect directly because of that issue. Perhaps I'd download a GRIB via email and open it in zygrib.

 

[Strolls]

I don't see you using it in combination with a Satphone unless you extensively reconfigure your Mac.
Point being that as soon as your Mac "sees" an internet connection it will jump on it with all kinds of communication (updates, icloud, mail, etc.) making the 2400 baud of Iridum completely unusable. There are devices that can act as firewall to prevent that from happening but they may also prevent Zygrib from working without a lot of configuration steps, I do not know.

Little Snitch is the best-known firewall that you can install on your Mac - I believe it just asks you for permission, in a pop-up window, whenever a new app attempts a connection to the net.

I haven't used Little Snitch but, from what I've heard about it, it should be ideal for limiting what you describe.

 

[oldvarnish]

Little Snitch is the best-known firewall that you can install on your Mac - I believe it just asks you for permission, in a pop-up window, whenever a new app attempts a connection to the net.

I haven't used Little Snitch but, from what I've heard about it, it should be ideal for limiting what you describe.

that's the one I used - thanks

 

[Yngmar]

The UI is a bit clunky and it crashes occasionally (especially when opening the meteotable window and then closing it again).

However, the really cool feature of ZyGRIB isn't just the free software, it's the server that backs it, which ingests all the GRIB files and then when you ask it to download a region of your choosing, it'll query its database, bake you a special custom GRIB file and compresses it for efficient downloading, optimizing data use greatly. You only get the area of the map you picked and only the data you care about, selected in the download window, e.g. how many days ahead, which altitudes, etc. Which is of course super useful if you're on 2400 bps satellite internet.

 

[Boltrope]

A bit late perhaps - I don't check in very often - but I've been using ZyGRIB since July 2013 on a Macbook air that was new in February of the same year. As an ex-Windows user I had a Devil's own job to get it to work initially, but once I figured out how to install the application and getting it pointing the right way, it very quickly became my go-to weather tool.
I don't rely on it alone, but I find it very quick and user friendly and I'd recommend it.
:encouragement:

 

[franksingleton]

Replying to own thread - first sign of insanity, I know.

I solved my map problem, but the general questions about zygrib on mac still stand. Is it reliable?

Like virtually all GRIB products it is the GFS. The GFS is current,y the best model available free of charge. I use it all the time, forget any GRIB type service that asks you to pay. . Used with care it can give useful advice out to 6 or 7 days. I have often written about this and can do so again. Or you can get Reeds Weather Handbook. Pocket sized, low cost or a Kindle . version. Modesty forbids that I should mention the author's name.

 

[Tradewinds]

Modesty forbids that I should mention the author's name.

Simon Keeling?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/GRIB-Sailor...=1456761499&sr=8-1&keywords=GRIB+for+Sailors:

 

[franksingleton]

Simon Keeling?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/GRIB-Sailor...=1456761499&sr=8-1&keywords=GRIB+for+Sailors:y

Well! For obvious reasons, I saw no personal need to buy Simon's book and would guess vice versa. I may be wrong but got the impression that he was writing about GRIBs. My book is more general and was intended to talk about weather generally and the use of all forecasts - including GRIBs, from the viewpoint of an active off-shore sailor. I guess that both books are intended to help sailors but written from rather different perspectives. One from the provider of forecasts, one from a user.