AmateurRadio.com

After a rainy start, it turned out to be a gorgeous Spring day. It was sunny and it was nice and warm, despite a stiff breeze. I was able to get to the car at lunchtime and worked two Swedish stations, SM5IMO and SM4NGT on 15 meters and IK2CIO on 12 Meters.  The nice thing about operating at lunchtime here, is that at that time, most of Europe is done with the work day and there are lots of stations on the air.  They get to relax and enjoy their evening, and I get some good DX.

Thanks to a comment from Kelly WB0WQS, I am taking another close look at LOG4OM.  I tried this a couple years ago and was having severe problems getting it to run properly on my computer.  They must have made a bunch of improvements, or maybe it’s that the laptop I am using now is a better platform than what I had before. Whatever the reason, I downloaded it again tonight and installed it.  It’s working very well and for now? Let’s say I am intrigued.  It has most of the bells and whistles that are part of better logging programs these days. It is powerful with CAT, Cluster management and all the other “necessary” stuff.  It’s free and it’s easy on the eyes.

Here’s an announcement that I saw in an e-mail today.  This looks way cool and is going to get me to try and get back in the swing with my bug (pun intended!):

W6SFM On-Air BUG ROUNDUP – Saturday May 17th 2014

Objective: 
This 12-hour event is not a contest; rather it is a time dedicated to celebrating our CW and Bug key heritage. Participants are encouraged to get on the air and simply make enjoyable, conversational CW QSOs using a Bug style key as the sending instrument. There are no points scored in this event, and all who participate are winners.

Once the event has concluded, logs can be submitted to the W6SFM by way of the link provided on the clubs Bug Roundup web page. Nominal prizes/certificates will be awarded to: the person who had the most QSOs during the 12 hour period; and the person who worked the most interesting amount of bug types. 

Bands            (Suggested Freq.)
10 meters – 28.040 – 28.050 MHz
15 meters – 21.040 – 21.050 MHz
20 meters – 14.040 – 14.050 MHz
40 meters –    7.040 – 7.050 MHz
80 meters –    3.540 – 3.550 MHz

Dates
W6SFM Bug Roundup is held twice annually.
– Every 3rd Saturday in May from 1700 UTC though Sunday 0500 UTC
– Every 3rd Saturday in November from 1800 UTC through Sunday 0600 UTC


Thank you for your participation and we hope you enjoy the event. 73

For more information on this exciting event please visit the W6SFM Bug Roundup website page by clicking HERE (http://www.w6sfm.com/Bug_Roundup.html)

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!

I recently mentioned using PZTLog which has been the work of Charlie M0PZT.  This is an extremely well done logging program and on the plus side, is free.  Don’t let the “free” part dissuade you in any way.  Charlie has put together a magnificent piece of software that will compete with any program that you would pay for.

There’s another one that I have been playing around with that is also free.  This one is called LOG4OM and has been written by Daniele Pistollato IW3HMH.

This program is also very good.  It is a little more basic than PZTLog and was written more in mind for the Ham who might be considering moving away from paper logging to computer logging.  It’s no slouch of a program, though.  It has many great features – ADIF import/export, mapping of QSOs, labeling, onboard DX Clusters, rig control, etc.

If you have been searching for a logging program and haven’t found one that quite fits your needs yet, I would highly recommend giving each of these a look.

The price is right!

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!

I was visiting AmateurRadio.com today and happened to see Tim G4VXE’s post about a new logging program, called PZT Log.

I’m a sucker for logging programs and my search for the “perfect” one continues.  I do not have the knowledge or expertise to write one that would 100% suit my needs, so I go from logging program to logging program, like Diogenes.  He searched the world for an honest man – I am looking for my ideal logging program.

This one by Charlie MØPZT looks like it has the potential to be a winner in my book.  Not overly complicated – not too many unnecessary bells and whistles; but it might have to wait before I try it out in earnest.  So far, there is no ability to import ADIF files, so I cannot load my current logbook into it.  Once Charlie comes up with that fix, I am more than willing to give his program serious consideration as my primary logging program.

Currently, I am using AC Log by N3FJP.  I really don’t have many complaints with it; but there are a few things in Charlie’s program that I like.  Here’s what I would like in an “ideal” logging program – and yes, if wishes were nickels I would be a rich man.

Easy to use – very intuitive, with no encyclopedia needed to use it  – if a logging program requires its own Yahoo group, that’s more than likely more software than I need (I can be quite the dunce, at times).

Should include the following:
Capability to monitor TelNet Clusters
WWV information
Capability to interface with Google Earth
Import/Export capability of ADIF files
A world map with current day/night grayline display would be nice.
Be able to import QSL information from QRZ or some other such source.

Other than that, my needs are few. Computer control of the rig, Digital Mode capability, and all the other fluffy type things are not required by me.  At the same time, I want the program to “look good” on my computer – I got tired of Win-EQF’s UNIX look and that’s why I switched to AC Log.  I was using Ham Radio Deluxe for a while and liked it; but when they decided to charge for future upgrades (none of which I would probably be using) I decided to switch back.

Free is not a priority, but I have to admit that the concept is nice.

I am not technically savvy enough to fully describe my “prefect” logging program; but I would know it if I saw it!

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!

I am making this brief post on a very inexpensive Android tablet that I purchased through eBay.  Not the ideal way to do this, but fun in any case.

I was amazed on finding so many Amateur Radio apps in the Google  Play Store.

I have a few installed, including Ham Log. It will be interesting to see if this tablet can be used as an effective portable ops logging device.  Reminds me of the time that I used to use a Palm Pilot for that purpose.

One concern would be that the battery life on this thing isn’t all that great.  It will be fun to experiment, though.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP- When you care to send the very least!

Sometimes, the most satisfying QSOs don’t seem to relate to distance.  I had a really nice rag chew tonight with John N3WT on 40 Meters.  The band was in real good shape, with hardly any background QRN.  John is only two states away, in Maryland; but yet he gifted me with one of the nicest chats I’ve had since the one with Terry W9UX last week. He was using his K1, and I was on (of course) my KX3.  We were both pumping 599 five Watt signals into the aether.

The discussion ranged from things Elecraft to things Flex Radio, antennas and radio problems. Our conversation lasted but a half hour; but it will be one that I will remember for a while to come.  When the CW just flows from your fingers and the copy is armchair, a QSO can be a thing of beauty.

I’ve also migrated back from Ham Radio Deluxe to N3FJP’s AC log.  Since Simon Brown sold the rights, and HRD will no longer be a free offering, it’s probably just a matter of time until the free version will no longer be supported.  I paid for AC Log years back, so I may as well use what I have already paid for.  And seriously, with HRD, I was only using the logging portion anyhow, so it’s not like I’m losing a lot of features that I never used anyway.  AC Log loads faster, since it’s a much simpler program – so it’s almost ready to go as soon as I am. Good thing I never threw away the e-mail with my registration number!

I was contemplating looking at the DX Lab suite of programs for a second time, but again, I think we’re looking at more than I need for my purposes.  All those bells and whistles are extremely nice; but if I don’t plan on using them, what’s the sense?  I don’t want to say that I would never be, but right now I’m just a dial twiddlin’ kind of guy.  I don’t envision being the kind of contesting guy who truly needs the ability to click a mouse and have the radio instantly jump to a frequency that’s on a computer screen.  To borrow a line from Seinfeld – “Not that there’s anything wrong with that”.  But it’s just not my speed.

This coming Saturday is the Raritan Valley Radio Club’s annual hamfest.  Like last year, I will probably be on parking lot duty.  It will be a long day, with arrival time set at about 5:00 AM.  Watching the 10:00 PM news for the long range forecast is so far calling for a partly cloudy, but dry Saturday with highs in the mid to upper 70s.

Oh well, time to hit the sack. I have to go downstairs and pop a couple Advil first.  I am feeling some minor aches and pains from all the yard work that I did this weekend.  Don’t want to be up all night with a twitchy back.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!