This is the first in a series of posts called “I’m a Mac, Diabetes is a PC” about managing data and compatibility of medical equipment such as blood glucose meters, insulin pumps, and continuous glucose monitors with computing platforms Windows and Mac OSX.
Image: Apple Website
Our endocrinologist says in awe while she looks at my Excel spreadsheet with row after row of numbers “Do you enter this all in by hand?”
Followed by, “Doesn’t your pump allow for download?”
Uh, yes, and yes.
Both our pump and our meter are capable of downloading to a PC, but we are a Mac family. We are contemplating buying a cheap laptop that runs Windows just to download the data. (And trust me, there are other things I’d rather spend my money on.)
Over and over I question the medical companies who continue to produce pumps and meters that are only PC-compatible. I think it is short-sighted. Especially in this day and age when almost every household has an iPod and/or iPhone. And Macs continue to have a track record of being quality computers. (A five-year-old PC is outdated; a five-year-old Mac is still a good Mac.)
The only Mac-compatible glucose meter that I am aware of is the Bayer Contour USB.
I want to know what you do. Please take the poll and you can also leave a comment below sharing if you have any tips and tricks for managing data or wish there was a better way.
Check as many answers as apply to you. Thanks!
{ 18 comments… read them below or add one }
The Bayer Contour USB meter is compatible with Mac operating systems but not all of them! I bought a Macbook Pro in January & when I got the meter in March was thrilled to finally have a diabetes device to be able to download from on there. To my surprise, after a phone call to Bayer, I learned its not compatible with my newer version of OS. Luckily I can download the software straight from the USB (not the entire Glucofacts) on my other Windows 7 laptop. Very frustrating!
Oh how I would dearly love for my daughter’s new OmniPod PDM to download onto our Mac! We are strictly a Mac family, and I’ll be damned if I am gonna buy a lousy PC to just download data. (Sorry all you PC lovers out there, I don’t mean to be harsh, but honestly, try Mac for a week, just a week, and tell me your life doesn’t improve – trust me, it will.) Sorry, diversion there.
So, we have the OmniPod and PDM and I can’t download a thing. I keep it all by hand and I don’t even download it into Numbers (the Mac equivalent of Excel). It’s daunting. I wish the makers of the pumps and meters would look up from their drawing boards and look around at computer users and finally get on the ball. Ok, enough ranting this morning, can you tell this is a touchy subject with me??? Thanks for the great post though. If there is any way we can band together to make our voices heard, I am all for it.
Don’t worry, PC users have this problem to. Mac-only families may not be aware of this, but PC’s have progressed somewhat since Windows 1.0. The legendary Windows compatibility with older versions only goes so far: starting with Vista but especially 64-bit (mostly newer PC’s running Windows 7) programs designed for older versions of Windows are less likely to work without incidents, especially if they have to talk to hardware, such as pumps and meters.
Writing medical software is hard, usually lots of paperwork required, and testing is expensive, so release cycles aren’t as quick as for most other software.
Have you tried using a virtual machine (Parallels/VMware) running Windows XP?
I use Parallels, a windows virtualization software for Mac. It’s like running full windows (xp, vista, 7, whatever) inside Mac OS. it’s really simple to set up and install. Or, any Mac from 2006 and up is capable of running Windows via Bootcamp (an Apple app designed to enable your mac to boot to full Windows install). Diabetes apps and devices run in both these solutions. Feel free to drop mea line if you need more info.
I use VMWare Fusion on my Mac so I can download my Dexcom. Not terribly expensive, and I bought a cheap copy of Windows XP (no need for the latest version to run one program) on ebay. I download my data, print my graphs, and upload it to Dexcom all without issue. Much better than bothering with a second machine.
When you discover a solution or entice a company to step up please let me know. I use Parallel, so the PC route is possible but would like a native Mac application!
Blessings.
I am an exclusive Mac user. Having seen the info for the Bayer Contour USB, I was excited and just bought the Bayer Contour USB even after reading all the warnings about the software not working. I am here to tell you, the software does not work. During installation, the process halts and leaves you frustrated. I have tried the software loaded on the USB stick, as well as downloading from Bayer direct. No dice.
Save your time and money and buy something else until Bayer gets this problem fixed.
During my short time use of the product, however, I have to say, I was impressed by the ease of use and the nice colorful screen. Hopefully, Bayer will fix the problems so Mac users can finally have a great software package to track their diabetes related issues.
I found this after much searching for Mac compatible diabetes software, furthermore it is compatible with a host of meters, if you have a meter USB lead then you can download the driver from the site, along with the software, this is online based ihttp://www.healthengage.com/healthengagediabetes.
You can buy a disc version free from adverts with more features from http://www.healthengage.com/Forms/healthengage/d-downloaddesktop.html. I tried both and they work!! paid version is around £40 0r $60 for our American cousins
There is a way around this. Most equipment that use USB dongles to download data will do so on Mac’s provided that you are running Bootcamp (Native Windows) or a Virtual PC programs (Parallels). I have a friend whose meter would only work on PC and we installed Parallels. The only trick is, don’t plug in any Dongles until Windows has finished loading. They only use Windows for this purpose so they are Virus free and happy.
Thanks for that, i did try the dual boot option but unfortunately i’m using Windows 7 and my one touch software does not support 32 bit on this operating platform. thanks for your reply
Yeah, they have not worked that little problem out yet, one of the problems you have when you have several operating systems still out that run on two different platforms.
I am considering a new pump/glucose monitoring system and a system that communicates with a MAC. I am considering a new Mac. I will not consider a PC. My work depends on a Mac. I find PC’s to be inferior and obsolete long before a Mac. My current Mac is 10 years old and works great. I am also annoyed that I have to enter BG results manually and that new diabetes technology is not up to date with current technology and consumer choices. The inability to download information from BG meters or CGS monitors, that could be transmitted to my doctor/nurse, impairs my optimal care in this age. I am interested in any information that will influence my choice for a pump/CGS system or a solution to bypass the PC/Mac problem, Thanks, Joan Finn, Type 1 for 39 years.
Hello Joan-
I agree whole-heartedly about the superiority of Macs
My work, like yours, also uses Macs. I always say a 5-year-old Mac is still a good Mac, but a 5yo PC is obsolete.
I’m really hoping to see companies work toward Mac-compatibility.
Did you see this: http://www.d-mom.com/wavesense-for-your-iphone/ While you can’t plug it into the Mac itself, the cable will allow you to plug into an iPhone and export data via e-mail. (Look for a review of it right here once it hits the market.)
Hi LeighAnn! I’ve been lurking around your site for a while now and started to read through the archives. I’ve noticed a couple times that you’re contemplating getting a PC so that you can download data from your meter.
I wanted to mention something before you go out and get something, even a cheap one! I am a PC user and I use a OneTouch UltraSmart and a OneTouch Mini. I am unable to download my data from either of these meters becuase my computer has Windows 7 and OneTouch data software is not compatible with it. They can’t even tell me when it might be compatible. Windows 7 has been out for a long time and I feel this is unacceptable!
I wanted to let you know, though. That way you can check with your meter company and find out if its compatible with Windows 7 before you spend some money, since generally a new (even cheap) computer will come with it!
Lynn
Lynn- Thank you so much for your comment! My husband and I finally decided on a PC laptop after researching and consulting Consumer Reports and were about to order it when we realized it was Windows 7 (and you couldn’t order it with the previous version) and it wouldn’t be compatible. Not easy!
We’ve tabled the idea for now, but we’re still looking for solutions.
Thanks for this discussion, it has been really frustrating for our son (type 1 for 8+ years and an avid Mac user) – not to be able to do the most basic of data transfers from his meter to his desktop. The point of posting here is to link this discussion to this initiative, by a parent of a type 1 child : http://www.nesfield.co.uk/diabeteslogbookx/News/News.html – it shows that there may be a Mac workaround soon using existing hardware, at least for Accu-check users. It’s a start.
There is also this: http://www.knowabouthealth.com/agamatrix-developed-iphone-support-for-blood-glucose-monitor/4050/ – which is almost Mac in that (when they release the cable for sale) we will be able to upload data from the Jazz to the iPhone/iPod and from there to the Mac.
Finally, the ultimate dream – again for iPhone/iPod rather than desktop Macs – a meter that is both standalone and integrates. Also not yet released, but hopefully close: http://ibgstar.com/web/ibgstar/app/app
Meantime, back to the pen & paper…
Patrick.
Thank you for the links, Patrick.
I was thinking tonight as I wrote down my daughter’s bedtime BG in her logbook by hand that I need to sit down with the meter and fill in the blanks and then log everything into Excel for our upcoming endo visit.
It makes me annoyed every single time because, yes, it should be as easy as plugging into our Macs and downloading.
Thank you for this discussion. I’m going to research some of the links and hope something will work.
I did come across this site: http://www.dia-log.com. I have been entering in my BG levels every other day or so and it will create the graphs for you to print out. I’ve only been using it for a month, but it saves me time from entering to Excel.
I’m also looking into http://www.healthvault.com. This site says it can communicate data to your doctor’s office. Then I started noticing that the devices they are compatible with, probably won’t be compatible with my MAC.
UGH, the viscious cycle
!