• Registered: 2008-02-26
  • Posts: 50

Topic: How Often Does The Sony Dash Check For The Correct Time?

I am just wondering if anybody happens to know how often the Sony Dash checks for the correct time? Since I have been home and inside a bit more often than in the past, I have been keeping a closer eye on it. It seems like over the course of the day it might lose a couple of seconds. It seems more accurate in the morning than in the evening. My best guess is that it checks once a day, perhaps overnight, but it is just a guess on my part.

I have also performed a power cycle on it and it will power off with the time right on the mark. Does anybody here know for sure how often it checks for accurate time?

  • Duane
  • Duane
  • Blue Octy
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  • Registered: 2006-08-24
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Re: How Often Does The Sony Dash Check For The Correct Time?

If I recall correctly, it checks once a day.

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  • Duane
  • Duane
  • Blue Octy
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  • Registered: 2006-08-24
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Re: How Often Does The Sony Dash Check For The Correct Time?

You can change this if you have some basic Linux skills.

1) turn on ssh using the hidden "pi" screen (top button->"MENU"->Settings->Device Info->(pi in upper right)->SSHD
2) Get the IP for the device from the Network screen
3) Use an ssh client to log into the device, username "root".
4) use vi to edit /psp/crontabs/root
5) replace the "3"in the first line with "*".
6) exit the editor, type "sync", then "reboot".

This changes the device to sync with network time every hour instead of once a day at 3am.

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  • sweh
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Re: How Often Does The Sony Dash Check For The Correct Time?

Duane wrote:

the hidden "pi" screen

Oh good grief.  That was 25 years ago.

Interesting to see the Dash has much older scripts than the C1.  With the C1 there's an ntpd daemon to keep time in sync, but the Dash only has ntpdate so needs this nasty sawtooth timer.

  • Duane
  • Duane
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Re: How Often Does The Sony Dash Check For The Correct Time?

sweh wrote:

Oh good grief.  That was 25 years ago.

The chumby has dozens of old geek-pop references.  After all, the "pi" screen itself quotes TRON, and that's 38 years ago.

The dash was in development at around the same time as the C1, by different teams, and much of the middleware stack was spec'd and provided by Sony.

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  • sweh
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Re: How Often Does The Sony Dash Check For The Correct Time?

Duane wrote:
sweh wrote:

Oh good grief.  That was 25 years ago.

The chumby has dozens of old geek-pop references.  After all, the "pi" screen itself quotes TRON, and that's 38 years ago.

Oh yes, I know.

But Tron was when I was still at school.  I remember reading about it in "Computer and Video Games" (C&VG) magazine in the school playground.  I expect that to be "a long time ago".  But "The Net" was when I was working and if that's a long time ago then OMFG it means I'm getting old!

7 Reply by Jim1348 (edited by Jim1348 2020-05-19 07:46:36)

  • Registered: 2008-02-26
  • Posts: 50

Re: How Often Does The Sony Dash Check For The Correct Time?

Duane,

Thank you so much for the reply. When I first thought posting this, I was sort of reluctant, but now I am very glad I did.

One of my other random thoughts about this is, "Why didn't they configure this to check for a time sync more often originally?" No big deal, though, because mine does now.

My youngest son just completed his second year of college and is an IT major. So, I thought I would give him this task. He has done a bit of Linux work in the past.

It didn't take him very long, either. He was able to change the 3 to an asterisk and then finish up. I am actually kind of excited to see this working better now. In the grand scheme of things, it isn't a big deal The Sony Dash may have been off by maybe two seconds by the time it reached 0259, but at 0300 it would check with the "mother ship" and be on time.

Anyway, thanks again. I do appreciate it!




Jim


https://forums.watchuseek.com/attachmen … 1589902743

https://forums.watchuseek.com/attachmen … 1589902675

  • Duane
  • Duane
  • Blue Octy
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Re: How Often Does The Sony Dash Check For The Correct Time?

Glad to help.

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