Resetting millis

[StefanL38]

For expanding the time to 4 days

const int _1000_milli_per_second;
const int _3600secs_per_hour;
const int _24hours_per_day;
const unsigned long _4days_millisecs = 4 * _1000_milli_per_second * _3600secs_per_hour * _24hours_per_day;

As already suggested for such longs times like 4 days
for better long-term precision a real time clock RTC is better suited

to reduce the number of variables that must be checked if 4 days have passed by
you can calculate minute of day

minuteOfDay = hours * 60 + minutes;
secondOfDay = hours * 3660 + minutes * 60 + seconds;

and for counting 4 days I would use an extra variable counting up seconds

if (lastRTC_second != RTC_Second) {
  lastRTC_second = RTC_Second;
  _4DaysSecondsCounter++;
}

if  (_4DaysSecondsCounter >= 345600 ) {
  _4DaysSecondsCounter = 0;
// change boolean variable for 1st / 2nd-4-day-period
}

[matt82060]

Thats fantastic, thank you. I'm fascinated every time I learn something about how to write this code.

[matt82060]

Thank you, going to study this for days

[LarryD]

@StefanL38

const unsigned long _4days_millisecs = 4 * _1000_milli_per_second * _3600secs_per_hour * _24hours_per_day;

4UL

const unsigned long _4days_millisecs = 4UL * _1000_milli_per_second * _3600secs_per_hour * _24hours_per_day;

[matt82060]

I was trying to add in a long, as in runs for 4 days, then swicthes for 4 days, then goes back to the original 4days indefinitely.

// https://forum.arduino.cc/t/resetting-millis/1213723/19
// https://wokwi.com/projects/387534707798036481

const byte led1Pin = 12;
const byte led2Pin = 2;

unsigned long my4DayTimer;
unsigned long myPrintInfoTimer;
unsigned long mylongTimer;
//unsigned long myShortTimer;
const unsigned long myInterval = 4000;
const unsigned long myFulltime = 8000;

boolean first4Days;
boolean second4Days;
boolean longDays;

void setup() {
  Serial.begin(115200);
  Serial.println("Setup-Start");
  pinMode(led1Pin, OUTPUT);
  pinMode(led2Pin, OUTPUT);

  my4DayTimer = millis();
  myPrintInfoTimer = millis();
  mylongTimer = millis();
  first4Days = true;
  second4Days = false;
  longDays = false;
}

void loop() {

  // check if 4 days of time have passed by
  if (TimePeriodIsOver(my4DayTimer, myInterval) == true) {
    // if REALLY 4 days of time have passed by
    flip_between_First_and_Second();
  }

  if (TimePeriodIsOver(mylongTimer, myFulltime) == true) {
    flip_longdays();
  }

  // check if boolean variable with name "first4Days"  is true
  if (first4Days == true) {
    printFirst_4_days_message();  // does what the function name says
  }

  // check if boolean variable with name "second4Days"  is true
  if (second4Days == true) {
    printSecond_4_days_message();  // does what the function name says
  }

  printDaysPassedBy();  // does what the functions name says
}



// easy to use helper-function for non-blocking timing
boolean TimePeriodIsOver(unsigned long& startOfPeriod, unsigned long TimePeriod) {
  unsigned long currentMillis = millis();
  if (currentMillis - startOfPeriod >= TimePeriod) {
    // more time than TimePeriod has elapsed since last time if-condition was true
    startOfPeriod = currentMillis;  // a new period starts right here so set new starttime
    return true;
  } else return false;  // actual TimePeriod is NOT yet over
}


void printDaysPassedBy() {

  static unsigned long myPrintInfoTimer;

  if (TimePeriodIsOver(myPrintInfoTimer, 1000)) {
    Serial.print("-day");
    Serial.print((millis() - my4DayTimer) / 1000);
  }
}


void printFirst_4_days_message() {
  static unsigned long myShortTimer;

  if (TimePeriodIsOver(myShortTimer, 500) == true) {
    Serial.print("  1st");
    digitalWrite(led1Pin, !digitalRead(led1Pin));  // invert LOW/HIGH by using the not-operator
  }
}


void printSecond_4_days_message() {
  static unsigned long myShortTimer;

  if (TimePeriodIsOver(myShortTimer, 500) == true) {
    Serial.print("  2nd");
    digitalWrite(led2Pin, !digitalRead(led2Pin));  // invert LOW/HIGH by using the not-operator
  }
}


void flip_between_First_and_Second() {
  if (first4Days == true) {
    first4Days = false;
    second4Days = true;
    longDays = false;
    //Serial.println("change to SECOND 4 days code");
    Serial.println();
    digitalWrite(led1Pin, LOW);
  } else {
    first4Days = true;
    second4Days = false;
    longDays = false;
    //Serial.println("change to first 4 days code");
    Serial.println();
    digitalWrite(led2Pin, LOW);
  }
}

void flip_longdays();
{
  first4Days = false;
  second4Days = false;
  longDays = true;
  //Serial.println("change");
  Serial.println("long days");
}

get stuck here

  if (TimePeriodIsOver(mylongTimer, myFulltime) == true) {
    flip_longdays();
  }

[gcjr]

@matt82060

I was trying to add in a long, as in runs for 4 days, then swicthes for 4 days, then goes back to the original 4days indefinitely.

@gcjr

targIdx = (day / 4) % 2;

think about what the above does when day is just the # of days that have elapsed.

dividing by 4 indicates the Nth group of 4 days and the (modulus) %2 indicates whether its odd or even, 1 or 0 which can be used to determine which of the 2 values to use

[StefanL38]

@matt82060

I was trying to add in a long, as in runs for 4 days, then swicthes for 4 days,

I have a question
did you run the simulation?

You seem to have not yet understood

My demo code does

EXACTLY

runs for 4 days part 1

then switches

switches for 4 days part 2

4 days code-part-1
4 days code-part-2
4 days code-part-1
4 days code-part-2
4 days code-part-1
4 days code-part-2
4 days code-part-1
4 days code-part-2
4 days code-part-1
4 days code-part-2
4 days code-part-1
4 days code-part-2

can you see that the code already switches between
part 1
part 2
part 1
part 2
part 1
part 2
part 1
part 2
part 1
part 2
??
With real dates starting with today 21.01.24
day 1: 21.01.24 part 1
day 2: 22.01.24 part 1
day 3: 23.01.24 part 1
day 4: 24.01.24 part 1

4 days over switching to part 2

day 5: 25.01.24 part 2
day 6: 26.01.24 part 2
day 7: 27.01.24 part 2
day 8: 28.01.24 part 2

8 days over switching to part 1

day 9: 29.01.24 part 1
day 10: 30.01.24 part 1
day 11: 31.01.24 part 1
day 12: 01.02.24 part 1

12 days over switching to part 2

...

going on in this pattern

next question:
is the pattern as described above the pattern that you want?

You added a long to my code.
For doing what?
The democode does already switch between two different parts !
Did you understand it?

[StefanL38]

@matt82060

get stuck here

  if (TimePeriodIsOver(mylongTimer, myFulltime) == true) {
    flip_longdays();
  }

what is your intention for this line of code

@matt82060

const unsigned long myFulltime = 8000;

Your question is faaar to unprecise to be understandable

Please write down what your code shall do
write it down by many lines where each line represents a day

here is an example
There is a pattern in Yellow
4 days part 1
4 days part 2

then there is a pattern in pink
4 days part 1
8 days part 2

You should write down your wanted pattern as detailed as this example
With such poor words like

@matt82060

I was trying to add in a long, as in runs for 4 days, then swicthes for 4 days, then goes back to the original 4days indefinitely.

is

NOT

understandable

[matt82060]

Yea i dont know what im doing, just making it up.

I did run the code.

Trying to get;

first 4 days
second 4 days
first 4 days
first 4 days
first 4 days
first 4 days
first 4 days
first 4 days
....

[murphyslaww69]

How I work too...

[StefanL38]

murphyslaww69

The original wording of murphy's law is:

if something can go wrong it will go wrong some day.

I hope you are only tinkering with small watering systems outside in your garden
and that you do not tinkering with Lipos or main AC-voltage or even gas in your house

[StefanL38]

@matt82060

Yea i dont know what im doing, just making it up.

I do not even understand what you want to say with that.

For getting

@matt82060

first 4 days
second 4 days
first 4 days
first 4 days
...
...

If you are as lazy as that my support shrinks down to

you don't need "blinking all the time"
you need a one-shot timer
in combination with a boolean variable
secondPartNotYetDone

go tinkering finding it yourself how this will be coded

You showed way too less own effort with your answer
good luck with your "project"

[matt82060]

How is that lazy?
that's all im trying to do.

i dont know code, im not a computer guy. Just want to make thing work

[StefanL38]

@matt82060

How is that lazy?

You refuse to learn coding.
maybe this picture sequence is better understandable for you

Visualisation of the difference between a too naive imagination and the reality

if somebody starts to learn to program for arduino it happens quite often that there is a pretty big difference between what the imagination of how much work it is and how much work it really is. I had this idea to create a description that uses easy to understand pictures to explain it. So if somebody has just started from zero to write programs her / his knowledge might be like this [image] After a short time some very basic things work. But this is not yet the final thing. The final th…

[matt82060]

Ive spent every waking hour for the last month learning this stuff.

[StefanL38]

@matt82060

Ive spent every waking hour for the last month learning this stuff

Sounds like you have invested 50 to 80 hours.
So it seems to be very in-effective how you tried to learn coding.

If you want to know the basics do yourself a favor and invest maybe 10 hours.
Where these 10 hours include tinkering and experimenting with small demo-codes

Do you understand
small
demo-codes
where these demo-codes have nothing to do with your real project but are easy to understand.

You seem to have chosen this way
learn basic baking by making this wedding cake

Take a look into this tutorial:

Arduino Programming Course

It is easy to understand and has a good mixture between explaining important concepts and example-codes to get you going. So give it a try and report your opinion about this tutorial.

[gcjr]

@matt82060

Ive spent every waking hour for the last month learning this stuff.

it's an ambitious program

but to more easily handle different dewPoint targets values without duplicating a lot of code requires restructuring the existing code, as well as efficiently recognizing 4 day intervals

[matt82060]

It didnt start so ambitious, just got a bit out of control, I used to look at the code and knew what everything did.
Now im learning what it does more.

Up until trying to change the dewpoint after 4 days it was pretty easy.

I have about 30 different versions of code, everytime i try something new i save a different copy.

[matt82060]

It occurred to me I don't need to be trying to time it.

I could just use a button to start the one off 4 day cycle whenever i needed then revert back to the old cycle?

[gcjr]

you mean a button to toggle between 2 target values?