Setting up Messaging Formats

Messaging Formats

When we get call data from your dispatch via your account's alert email address, we process the alert using a server. This server performs an operation called "parsing". Parsing means deciphering a message to figure out what part is the address, what part is the title, and so forth. We build a unique parser for every dispatch center that sends us call data because they all send us data in a different format.

Most of the time, we ask that you send messages through the alert email address from your dispatch. We then look at those alerts and try to program the server to understand them. In this way we can make our server work with whatever your CAD system is already using. The Activation process is described below.

Activation Process

Once your account has been approved, it begins a phase called "Activation". This means we are waiting for you to send your alert email to your dispatch system. The goal is to have your dispatch center send an email to the alert address every time you are paged out. Until we see those messages and activate your agency, you will see the following error message:

Open

While you are in the activation phase, messages you send to the alert email will still be delivered to your phone or tablet. However, since we have not yet programmed the servers to correctly understand your message format, mapping may be inaccurate or may not work at all.  The various fields of your call, including the title and the call details, may not come through clearly.

All you need to do during the activation phase is to get your dispatch center to send messages to the alert email address. We will automatically notice this (we try to activate agencies at least once every week) and begin activation automatically.

In some cases, this is not possible. For example, if you don't have a CAD system capable of generating an automatic email. In these cases, some departments send us messages that they write by hand.

When an automated message is not possible...

If your CAD system is one that is unable to send automated messages, we recommend that you send messages to the alert email address in one of the following formats:

for example,

This simple format is called StandardA. Another standard format that is capable of greater complexity is the Cadpage format. Cadpage uses standard NAME:VALUE pairs:

Each alarm using Cadpage format should at least have a CALL and an ADDR and CITY. All other fields are optional. You may also add custom fields of your own, which we will put into the notes section of the app. For example, adding the custom field "RISK". This will allow "RISK: Moderately low" to appear in the notes area.

If you don't have an address

You may also use a latitude and longitude instead of an address. This may be more accurate than using an address in areas where Google does not do a good job of mapping. It is will be more accurate, provided your GPS coordinates are good:

Summary

Using these formats will help our servers do the best possible job of understanding and mapping your alerts. The simple message format described above is called StandardA, and the more complicated version is called Cadpage.