From time to time, Plum Canary technical support will need copies of the Chirp internal log files to debug a Chirp problem. To do so, you will:

1. Locate the file using the method appropriate for your computer;
2. Copy the file to a new location, giving the new filename a name that is not "hidden;"
3. (Optionally, but preferably) Zip the log file to compress the file size;
4. Email the log file to Plum Canary technical support at support@plumcanary.com

The usual file you will be asked to send is the ".log" file located in folder where Chirp stores all your task assignments. The default location of the files is as follows:

• Windows: (user-home-directory)\Chirp\.metadata\.log
• OS X: /Users/(username)/Library/Chirp/.metadata/.log

Note that your log files may be in a different location if you selected a non-default location for your "data" files when you installed Chirp. You can determine the location of your data directory by looking at the first pane in the "Preferences" in your Chirp application.

Because the folder and file names begin with a dot, these log files are "hidden" from normal file explorers (such as Windows Explorer and OS X Finder.) Therefore, the steps you use to "see" these files will be different for users of different operating systems.

Windows

First, unhide hidden files from Windows Explorer, as follows:

1. Open Windows Explorer (the file/folder viewing application, not the web browser)
2. Click "Folders" in the toolbar (if not already showing the folder/tree view on the left of the window)
3. Go go \MyComputer\c:\documents and settings\(your-username)\Chirp (or whatever directory you specified for where you want data kept)
4. Click on the *folder* (Chirp) in the folder pane (tree/left view) of WinExplorer
5. Pull down "Tools > Folder Options"
6. Click the View tab
7. Look for the entry "Hidden Files and Folders". Click "Show hidden files and folders."
8. Click Apply

Now, get the log file and send it

1. When you look at the directory ...\Chirp, you should see the folder called .metadata. Click to view the contents of this folder.
2. Within the .metadata folder, you will either see a file simply called .log, or you may see a text file icon with no name. (The latter can happen if your Explorer is set to *not* show file extensions.)
3. Right-click this file with your mouse, and select Copy from the context menu.
4. Right-click in an open area of the window and select Paste from the context menu. This will create a file called "Copy of...".
5. Now drag this Copy Of... file to your computer Destkop.
6. (If the size of the .log file is over 100Kb, please use WinZip (or equivalent) to compress the file to a smaller size for sending to us.)
7. Switch to your email application, compose a message to support@plumcanary.com, and attach the file from your desktop.

Once the mail is sent, you can *reverse* the effect of the Show Hidden Files by going back to the Windows Explorer, Tools > Folder Options > View, and setting it to "Do Not Show Hidden Files and Folders."

OS X

You must use the Terminal (command line) application to locate and copy this file. The steps are:

1. Launch the Terminal application. (Terminal is located in Applications > Utilities)
2. In the window that opens, type the following:

   cd Library/Chirp/.metadata

   and press Enter.
3. Type

   ls -a

   (and press Enter) to confirm that you see the file called .log
4. Type

   cp .log ~/Desktop/chirp.log

   (and press Enter) to copy the log file to a visible file on your Desktop
5. (If the size of the .log file is over 100Kb, please use Stuffit, ZipIt or equivalent to compress the file to a smaller size for sending to us.)
6. Switch to your mail application, compose a message to support@plumcanary.com, and attach the file chirp.log from your desktop.

Once the file is sent, you may safely exit the Terminal application, and delete the chirp.log file from your desktop.

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