My Carabiner Clock
09.15.04
Part I – Features
There are four main buttons on my carabiner alarm clock, a compass, and a semi-sturdy plastic locking mechanism.
1) Light – pressing this button turns the backlight on for two seconds. Timing the backlight was quite easy.
2) Mode – this button changes the state of the watch from time (base mode) to the stopwatch, to the editing state.
3) Start/Stop – Mapped to do different things in each state, this button can display the date, start and stop the stopwatch, and be used to change the value of each time and date component in the editing mode.
4) Reset – this button also is mapped to do multiple things. It can display the alarm time, toggle the components being edited, and reset the stopwatch.
5) Compass – this functions like any other, rotate the clock, and the compass will change accordingly and always point north.
6) Locking Mechanism – while this appears to be visibly sturdy, it may not satisfy a devoted climber. The clock is meant to be an add on to a backpack, and not meant for climbing use, though that phrase is not emblazoned on the backside of the unit.
Part II – Using The Watch
Pushing the Mode button toggles the unit from the standard view, which displays the time, day of the week, AM/PM in Military time, seconds, alarm state, and volume. In the base mode, pressing the Start/Stop button will toggle the screen from Time (standard format) to the date format, which is displayed in Month and Day. Pressing the Reset button in base mode, will simple toggle the screen from standard view to the alarm time. The day of the week does not change, and neither does the time, or the alarm setting. Every hour on the hour, the watch will beep to signify the start of the new hour. This feature cannot be turned off or muted.
Part III – Using The Stopwatch
Pressing the mode button once in base mode will result in the stop watch being queued up. A user can now press the backlighting, which reacts the same way. Pressing the Reset button will reset the stop watch and cause the unit to beep. Pressing the Start/Stop Button once will trigger the stop watch and pressing it again will stop it. Pressing the Reset button will reset the Stopwatch back to zero.
Part IV – Setting The Alarm
In base mode, pressing the mode button twice will allow the user to change the alarm time. By default, the hour will blink on the unit. The user can press the backlight, will still functions the same. The Start/Stop button will increase the hour, which is shown in military time. Pressing the Reset button will toggle between the hour and the minutes, which can be changed using the Start/Stop button.
If the alarm time is being reset, and the user has toggled between the hour and the minutes, pressing the Mode button will bring the watch back to the default mode. If the user has not changed the alarm hour or minutes or toggled between the hours and minutes, pressing the Mode button again will bring the watch into the time edit mode. This state also can be displayed by pressing the Mode button three times from the base mode.
Part V – Setting The Time
Once the watch is in the third mode, changing the time can be done the same way that the alarm was changed. However, when the watch’s time is being reset, the user can set the seconds, miniutes, and hours, day, month, and day of the week. The Light button will still function as normal and display the backlight for two seconds. Pressing the Reset button will allow the user to first change the seconds, then the minutes, hours, day, month, and finally the day of the week.
If the mode button is pressed seven times, the state will be brought back to editing the seconds. If the Start/Stop button is pressed, the seconds will be reset to zero. The user can press the Reset button to toggle through the rest of the time and ate components, and change them by pressing the Start/Stop button to increase the value. Since each component is in a loop, pressing the Start/Stop button will always cycle the state of the component being edited. Pressing the Mode button at any point while editing the time will lock in the changes, if any, and return the watch to base mode.
