Recent Posts by Simon - DAFNE Online

Aug 30, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / searching for fellow DAFNE graduates

Hi shirley,

This is a great idea - we've discussed creating an individual area for each DAFNE Centre, but hadn't got round to it until now - we'll start working on this now and hope to have something for you in the next few weeks.

In the meantime - please feel free to post any ideas for things you'd like to see in this area.

Thanks,

Simon

Aug 26, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / Can User lists topics be alphabetically listed?

Hi Nivz,

This sounds interesting - I tried to do something similar but the means of extracting the data seemed quite obscure - maybe I was doing it wrong though.

This kind of support for uploading direct from the meter would be greatly received I'm sure, I'll contact you via email to discuss further.

Thanks

Simon

Aug 26, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / Online BG Diaries

Clare - this would be quite difficult to do I'm afraid, as everyone has different amounts of entries of different types in their diary view. You can specify the type of an entry in the input form when you add an entry, and the type is shown when the entry is displayed in your diary. Also, if you hover your mouse over the Blood Glucose reading itself, you will get a longer description of the type of reading.

Sorry I can't be of more help here.

Simon

Aug 26, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / Online BG Diaries

Jess (and everyone),

We've just rolled out an update which allows you to specify your own diary targets. You can access this via the link on the 'Add' form underneath your diary display.

Could you let me know the advised targets for the 'after meal' types you mentioned, and I'll add them too.

If you specify your own targets this is reflected in your Diary view, as well as any graphs which relate to targets. Let me know if you find any problems/would like any more enhancements.

Thanks,

Simon

Aug 26, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / Graphs - now I can really see the difference

We've just released an update to the graphs so that you can now compare two graphs of the same type. Whilst viewing a graph, click the 'Compare' link underneath the graph (above the date picking section) to view the Graph comparison screen. You can then choose different date ranges for the two graphs. We've given you handy links to quickly select to view graphs for your last 7,14, or 30 days (on the left), or the 7,14 or 30 days before the range displayed on the left hand graph.

We've tried to make this as flexibile as possible whilst still easy to use - let us know if it can be improved at all, or if it looks wrong on your system.

Thanks,

Simon

Aug 24, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / Online BG Diaries

Hi Jess,

Just got back from holiday and I've got a few spare days before going back to work to look at improving the diaries - I've got a list of things already but will add the setting of your own targets to it - initially we wanted to do this but never got round to it. Now it's been requested it becomes a high priority Smile

You can save maximum 10 entries per day, due to space reasons both in our database and on the screen - if this is proving difficult for you then let us know and we will see about increasing this limit.

Thanks,

Simon

Aug 14, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / Online BG Diaries

Hi Claire,

All done - you can now select the three options you suggested as entry types.

Keep the requests coming!

Thanks,

Simon

Aug 10, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / Graphs - now I can really see the difference

Also, as a general question - how do people use the graphs? More specifically - do you ever specify your own date range, or would you prefer easier to use options such as

View trend graph for: Last 7 Days | Last 14 Days | All Entries

Aug 10, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / Graphs - now I can really see the difference

Hi Liz,

Thanks for the feedback on the graphs - glad you are finding them useful.

From your post it seems you like to compare your results with the previous week - would you like it if there was a 'compare with previous' week option so you could see the current and previous week's graphs side by side? I'm sure this is something we could work on.

Thanks,

Simon

Aug 7, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / Avocado

Hi John,

That's a really good point about the low GI foods being included - maybe a separate list could be added to the Carb Counting book. I'll feed this back to DAFNE Central.

Thanks,

Simon

Aug 6, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / Avocado

Guys,

It's true that the Carb book we get on the DAFNE Course doesn't have everything in - this is unfortunate but understandable as the people who make it can't possibly sample every type/brand of food out there, in much the same way that a dictionary doesn't have every word in the English language. If something is missing and you go on to find out the CP value of a portion, you can add your findings to the online carb counter we have here on the site. You never know - it may feed into the paper based diary in the future.

Simon

Aug 4, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / Can User lists topics be alphabetically listed?

Hi Tony,

Welcome to the site and thanks for your feedback - its always good to hear what our users want. I'd just like to get clarification on some of your points:

What do you mean when you say the page index links - is this the list of forums/topics or something else?

I assume when you say link you mean by attaching your blood glucose meter to your computer. In practice the site is set up to do this as we can accept formatted data, extracting the data from meters is more difficult as meter manufacturers don't seem to want third parties to access data on their devices directly - meaning that they use obscure access methods which different from meter to meter. If you have contacts with meter companies who may be able to assist us with APIs/other access methods to the device data that would be most welcome as this is a feature we'd love to have on the site.

Thanks again for your feedback, and we hope you find the site a useful resource.

Simon

Aug 2, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / Online BG Diaries

Hi Derek / All

You are now able to add the ratio when entering diary entries - this is possible when entering them one at a time, using the multiple entry page and via the mobile site too. The ratio of a diary entry is displayed in the tabular view for that entry.

Hope this is what you were after - let us know if not / there are any problems with the update.

Thanks,

Simon

Jul 30, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Increasing awareness of this fourm.

We have a mechanism in place to get the message out to the DAFNE Educators at each centre, sending them flyers with registration instructions, and also instructions on how to generate a registration code for their centre. It is then in their hands to spread the message to their graduates, as they are the only ones who know who has been educated at their centre - there is no central list of DAFNE Graduates, which is a shame. So far this has given us mixed results, with some centres (such as Leicester) getting a high number of Educator + Graduate signups, whilst other centres have had no presence on the site at all. Obviously we'd like to improve this as most feedback we've had has been positive and people really think this is a great support resource. So... Echoing what Widster said - let your DAFNE Educator/fellow Graduates know about the site, spread the word any way you can. If you think of a new, innovative way to market the site then let us know, we'll do everything we can to make it bigger, better and more accessible to those who need it most.

Jul 30, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / Online BG Diaries

One option if you wanted an automatic calculation would be to drop the correction value from QA,BI and CPs - so that in your example above '6+2' would just become '6' in the automatic calculation.

We're happy to do it either way Smile

Jul 29, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / BG Graphs

Hi NiVZ,

I've updated the graphs - it now says "No data for selected period" instead of the more obscure error if there are no BG results for the specified time period - I'm assuming there were no BG results in the set of data you were trying to graph when you got this error. If this is not the case then let me know.

Thanks,

Simon

Jul 28, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / Online BG Diaries

Hi Derek,

We can certainly look into this - would you like the ratio to be calculated automatically, or added as another input box?

Thanks,

Simon

Jul 26, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / Question: Sharing the online diary

As an update, diary viewers can now access your BG Graphs, if you have allowed them access to your diary. This is useful for HCPs to spot trends graphically in your results.

Jul 26, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / BG Graphs

Just added a 'Seven Day' graph to the list of available graphs. It shows you 7 days worth of diary results in a similar way to NiVZ's example above. If you have opted to show graphs for all entries, you will be limited to the last 7 days for this graph type. If you are showing graphs for a specified date range, the 7 days will start from the first date in the date range selection boxes - I hope this makes sense.

Let me know if this is useful, and any updates you would like to it, or indeed any new graph types.

Thanks,

Simon

Jul 26, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / BG Graphs

We've just rolled out a major update to the graphs, so they all have a consistent look and feel. Check it out. They require the Flash player (if you can see the graphs on the diary graphs page, then you have it) - if you don't have it then there is a link to install it on the same page. If you aren't able to install it and want to be able to access the graphs then let us know and we will work on a solution.

Let us know what you think of the new graph features.

Also - still working on your request NiVZ, hope to have it done soon.

Thanks,

Simon

Jul 23, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Introductions

I agree that the advice given here may well be useful - we are all living with diabetes, and anything that can help or make that situation more bearable/manageable is a good thing. We have purposefully put users 'levels' underneath their names on the forums so that you can see if the post has come from a Medical Professional (HCP) or DAFNE Graduate, or someone else. That way users can make informed decisions as to whether to follow advice given on the forums or not. It is true that adjustments made by one person with diabetes may not work the same for another person, but it is also true that the same adjustments may work for both people. My thoughts are this - give advice freely - be open about your experiences, that is what forums are about; but use it with care, if you do make changes do them gradually - as things which are too drastic may have severe effects. If something doesn't work for you, don't hold the advice-giver responsible, it's not their fault it didn't work for you - just try something else, or speak with your DAFNE Specialist. This site was created so Graduates could help each other.

Anyway, sermon over Smile

on to the topic in hand... I often find that if I've had a night-time hypo I'll have a headache - even if my BG is 8.3 or something. I remember also on our DAFNE course one of the guys had to do a 3AM test 3 nights out of the 4, and found that he was having night time hypos so reduced his background insulin.

Thanks,

Simon

Jul 20, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / BG Graphs

Hi, sorry for the delay in replying to this guys - I've been out of the country for the past week.

NiVZ - Have you seen our Diary Graphs, which are accessible from the BG Diary view (underneath the actual table of entries)? If not, you may find what you are looking for there. If not then what type of graph would you like to see above and beyond what we already have?

Alan - I have implemented both 'mean' and 'modal' versions of this graph, and you can find links to them as 'Daily Trend Charts' in the BG Diary section - is this the kind of thing you are after? If not then let me know and I'll modify it for you.

As always - feedback by all members is encouraged.

Simon

Jul 9, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: General Discussion / More forums ?

Hi Aifric,

If you browse the General forum you'll see that other users have raised general Diabetes related issues here, would this meet your needs, or would you prefer to have a more specific forum geared towards health issues?

Our development, as always, is guided by you - the users.

Thanks,

Simon

Jul 9, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: DAFNE Online Mobile / Rationale - Please read

I also have an iPhone and the mobile version of the site, whilst cut down, displays pretty well on it. If you let us know what features you'd specifically like to access (currently you can search CP lists, view the forums and enter new BG results) via the mobile site then we can work on that, or a native iPhone app.

Thanks,

Simon

Jun 21, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Hello

Hi Shelley,

Welcome to the site, glad to hear you enjoyed the course and hope you find the site as useful. Congratulations too on being our first user to take advantage of the diary sharing feature of the forums.

Simon

Aug 30, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / searching for fellow DAFNE graduates Hi shirley, This is a great idea - we've discussed creating an individual area for each DAFNE Centre, but hadn't got round to it until now - we'll start working on this now and hope to have something for you in the next few weeks. In the meantime - please feel free to post any ideas for things you'd like to see in this area. Thanks, Simon

Aug 26, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / Can User lists topics be alphabetically listed? Hi Nivz, This sounds interesting - I tried to do something similar but the means of extracting the data seemed quite obscure - maybe I was doing it wrong though. This kind of support for uploading direct from the meter would be greatly received I'm sure, I'll contact you via email to discuss further. Thanks Simon

Aug 26, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / Online BG Diaries Clare - this would be quite difficult to do I'm afraid, as everyone has different amounts of entries of different types in their diary view. You can specify the type of an entry in the input form when you add an entry, and the type is shown when the entry is displayed in your diary. Also, if you hover your mouse over the Blood Glucose reading itself, you will get a longer description of the type of reading. Sorry I can't be of more help here. Simon

Aug 26, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / Online BG Diaries Jess (and everyone), We've just rolled out an update which allows you to specify your own diary targets. You can access this via the link on the 'Add' form underneath your diary display. Could you let me know the advised targets for the 'after meal' types you mentioned, and I'll add them too. If you specify your own targets this is reflected in your Diary view, as well as any graphs which relate to targets. Let me know if you find any problems/would like any more enhancements. Thanks, Simon

Aug 26, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / Graphs - now I can really see the difference We've just released an update to the graphs so that you can now compare two graphs of the same type. Whilst viewing a graph, click the 'Compare' link underneath the graph (above the date picking section) to view the Graph comparison screen. You can then choose different date ranges for the two graphs. We've given you handy links to quickly select to view graphs for your last 7,14, or 30 days (on the left), or the 7,14 or 30 days before the range displayed on the left hand graph. We've tried to make this as flexibile as possible whilst still easy to use - let us know if it can be improved at all, or if it looks wrong on your system. Thanks, Simon

Aug 24, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / Online BG Diaries Hi Jess, Just got back from holiday and I've got a few spare days before going back to work to look at improving the diaries - I've got a list of things already but will add the setting of your own targets to it - initially we wanted to do this but never got round to it. Now it's been requested it becomes a high priority You can save maximum 10 entries per day, due to space reasons both in our database and on the screen - if this is proving difficult for you then let us know and we will see about increasing this limit. Thanks, Simon

Aug 14, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / Online BG Diaries Hi Claire, All done - you can now select the three options you suggested as entry types. Keep the requests coming! Thanks, Simon

Aug 10, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / Graphs - now I can really see the difference Also, as a general question - how do people use the graphs? More specifically - do you ever specify your own date range, or would you prefer easier to use options such as View trend graph for: Last 7 Days \| Last 14 Days \| All Entries

Aug 10, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / Graphs - now I can really see the difference Hi Liz, Thanks for the feedback on the graphs - glad you are finding them useful. From your post it seems you like to compare your results with the previous week - would you like it if there was a 'compare with previous' week option so you could see the current and previous week's graphs side by side? I'm sure this is something we could work on. Thanks, Simon

Aug 7, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / Avocado Hi John, That's a really good point about the low GI foods being included - maybe a separate list could be added to the Carb Counting book. I'll feed this back to DAFNE Central. Thanks, Simon

Aug 6, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / Avocado Guys, It's true that the Carb book we get on the DAFNE Course doesn't have everything in - this is unfortunate but understandable as the people who make it can't possibly sample every type/brand of food out there, in much the same way that a dictionary doesn't have every word in the English language. If something is missing and you go on to find out the CP value of a portion, you can add your findings to the online carb counter we have here on the site. You never know - it may feed into the paper based diary in the future. Simon

Aug 4, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / Can User lists topics be alphabetically listed? Hi Tony, Welcome to the site and thanks for your feedback - its always good to hear what our users want. I'd just like to get clarification on some of your points: What do you mean when you say the page index links - is this the list of forums/topics or something else? I assume when you say link you mean by attaching your blood glucose meter to your computer. In practice the site is set up to do this as we can accept formatted data, extracting the data from meters is more difficult as meter manufacturers don't seem to want third parties to access data on their devices directly - meaning that they use obscure access methods which different from meter to meter. If you have contacts with meter companies who may be able to assist us with APIs/other access methods to the device data that would be most welcome as this is a feature we'd love to have on the site. Thanks again for your feedback, and we hope you find the site a useful resource. Simon

Aug 2, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / Online BG Diaries Hi Derek / All You are now able to add the ratio when entering diary entries - this is possible when entering them one at a time, using the multiple entry page and via the mobile site too. The ratio of a diary entry is displayed in the tabular view for that entry. Hope this is what you were after - let us know if not / there are any problems with the update. Thanks, Simon

Jul 30, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Increasing awareness of this fourm. We have a mechanism in place to get the message out to the DAFNE Educators at each centre, sending them flyers with registration instructions, and also instructions on how to generate a registration code for their centre. It is then in their hands to spread the message to their graduates, as they are the only ones who know who has been educated at their centre - there is no central list of DAFNE Graduates, which is a shame. So far this has given us mixed results, with some centres (such as Leicester) getting a high number of Educator + Graduate signups, whilst other centres have had no presence on the site at all. Obviously we'd like to improve this as most feedback we've had has been positive and people really think this is a great support resource. So... Echoing what Widster said - let your DAFNE Educator/fellow Graduates know about the site, spread the word any way you can. If you think of a new, innovative way to market the site then let us know, we'll do everything we can to make it bigger, better and more accessible to those who need it most.

Jul 30, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / Online BG Diaries One option if you wanted an automatic calculation would be to drop the correction value from QA,BI and CPs - so that in your example above '6+2' would just become '6' in the automatic calculation. We're happy to do it either way

Jul 29, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / BG Graphs Hi NiVZ, I've updated the graphs - it now says "No data for selected period" instead of the more obscure error if there are no BG results for the specified time period - I'm assuming there were no BG results in the set of data you were trying to graph when you got this error. If this is not the case then let me know. Thanks, Simon

Jul 28, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / Online BG Diaries Hi Derek, We can certainly look into this - would you like the ratio to be calculated automatically, or added as another input box? Thanks, Simon

Jul 26, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / Question: Sharing the online diary As an update, diary viewers can now access your BG Graphs, if you have allowed them access to your diary. This is useful for HCPs to spot trends graphically in your results.

Jul 26, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / BG Graphs Just added a 'Seven Day' graph to the list of available graphs. It shows you 7 days worth of diary results in a similar way to NiVZ's example above. If you have opted to show graphs for all entries, you will be limited to the last 7 days for this graph type. If you are showing graphs for a specified date range, the 7 days will start from the first date in the date range selection boxes - I hope this makes sense. Let me know if this is useful, and any updates you would like to it, or indeed any new graph types. Thanks, Simon

Jul 26, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / BG Graphs We've just rolled out a major update to the graphs, so they all have a consistent look and feel. Check it out. They require the Flash player (if you can see the graphs on the diary graphs page, then you have it) - if you don't have it then there is a link to install it on the same page. If you aren't able to install it and want to be able to access the graphs then let us know and we will work on a solution. Let us know what you think of the new graph features. Also - still working on your request NiVZ, hope to have it done soon. Thanks, Simon

Jul 23, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Introductions I agree that the advice given here may well be useful - we are all living with diabetes, and anything that can help or make that situation more bearable/manageable is a good thing. We have purposefully put users 'levels' underneath their names on the forums so that you can see if the post has come from a Medical Professional (HCP) or DAFNE Graduate, or someone else. That way users can make informed decisions as to whether to follow advice given on the forums or not. It is true that adjustments made by one person with diabetes may not work the same for another person, but it is also true that the same adjustments may work for both people. My thoughts are this - give advice freely - be open about your experiences, that is what forums are about; but use it with care, if you do make changes do them gradually - as things which are too drastic may have severe effects. If something doesn't work for you, don't hold the advice-giver responsible, it's not their fault it didn't work for you - just try something else, or speak with your DAFNE Specialist. This site was created so Graduates could help each other. Anyway, sermon over on to the topic in hand... I often find that if I've had a night-time hypo I'll have a headache - even if my BG is 8.3 or something. I remember also on our DAFNE course one of the guys had to do a 3AM test 3 nights out of the 4, and found that he was having night time hypos so reduced his background insulin. Thanks, Simon

Jul 20, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / BG Graphs Hi, sorry for the delay in replying to this guys - I've been out of the country for the past week. NiVZ - Have you seen our Diary Graphs, which are accessible from the BG Diary view (underneath the actual table of entries)? If not, you may find what you are looking for there. If not then what type of graph would you like to see above and beyond what we already have? Alan - I have implemented both 'mean' and 'modal' versions of this graph, and you can find links to them as 'Daily Trend Charts' in the BG Diary section - is this the kind of thing you are after? If not then let me know and I'll modify it for you. As always - feedback by all members is encouraged. Simon

Jul 9, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: General Discussion / More forums ? Hi Aifric, If you browse the General forum you'll see that other users have raised general Diabetes related issues here, would this meet your needs, or would you prefer to have a more specific forum geared towards health issues? Our development, as always, is guided by you - the users. Thanks, Simon

Jul 9, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: DAFNE Online Mobile / Rationale - Please read I also have an iPhone and the mobile version of the site, whilst cut down, displays pretty well on it. If you let us know what features you'd specifically like to access (currently you can search CP lists, view the forums and enter new BG results) via the mobile site then we can work on that, or a native iPhone app. Thanks, Simon

Jun 21, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Hello Hi Shelley, Welcome to the site, glad to hear you enjoyed the course and hope you find the site as useful. Congratulations too on being our first user to take advantage of the diary sharing feature of the forums. Simon