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1990-07-08
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LAN-LINK Application Notes Number 2.
By Joe Kasser G3ZCZ
PO Box 3419
Silver Spring
Md 20918
Connecting to other stations
LAN-LINK lets you minimise the keystrokes necessary to connect to
another station. There are several ways to connect to the other
station as described below. Howver before you connect to someone
else, remember that LAN-LINK treats incoming connects and outgoing connects
differently. To connect to another station, Use the Alt-C
hot key, Function key 5 (F 5), or bring up the Call Menu by touching the
'Esc' key and choosing the 'C' option. DO NOT TYPE
'C Callsign'
in the command mode. If you do, the
connect will still take place (the TNC won't know if you or
LAN-LINK issued the command) but LAN-LINK will treat it as
an incoming connect and issue the "[ZCZ] LAN-LINK 1.56>"
handshaking signal (if the LAN-LINK flag is in its default,
or enabled state). If you connect to a BBS or a Node this way,
you will get an error message back from the BBS or node, since it
does not recognize LAN-LINK's handshake.
When you use the Alt-C or F5 approach you can also make use
of the 'path memory' feature in the LAN-LINK.DIR file.
Point and Shoot MH List
You use the F5 approach to connect to a station that you have heard.
When you touch Function key 5, LAN-LINK sends a 'MH' command to the
TNC and the MH list shows up in a special window and freezes until
you depress any key. While the list is frozen, LAN-LINK is
not monitoring received data, so don't freeze it too long. Move the
cursor to the desired callsign. When the cursor is positioned on
any character in the call, press the 'Enter' Key and that call
will be recognized as the callsign. If the call is joined to the
word "Cmd:" or the cursor is positioned on a space or blank,
the connect attempt will be inhibited.
Using the Call menu
When you use the Alt-C hot key or the The Call Menu LAN-LINK will remember
the previous 15 calls and you may use the Up and Down arrows to move the
cursor to a remembered call. If you wish to capture a call from the incoming
text window, push Function Key 10 (F10) to enter the window and
move the cursor to the desired callsign. When the cursor is
positioned on any character in the text, push the 'Enter' Key and
that word will be recognized as the callsign. Any characters
joined to the call (such as a '.') will be picked up as part of
the call. If the cursor is positioned on a space or blank, the
connect attempt will be inhibited.
In AMTOR, whenever you are asked to enter a callsign, LAN-LINK
will prompt you with its guess at the SELCAL. If you agree with
it, just press the 'Enter' Key, if you disagree, enter your
choice over the prompt version.
Names, Handles and Paths
If you so desire, you can create a directory file
(default name is LAN-LINK.DIR) and keep a list of names
and calls. The computer will look up a name and call
the station by its callsign. For example if you put
Joe G3ZCZ
as a line in the file, when you tell the computer to
connect to Joe, it will try to connect to G3ZCZ. If
you enter
4X4HF 4X4HF V 4X1AA, 4Z4ZB, 4X4IL
you only need to type '4X4HF' to set up the correct
connect path.
You can also use this feature to automate a NET/ROM
and/or a KA Node path connection.
NET/ROM and TheLink
In the manual NET/ROM path setting up mode, you would
first connect to your local node, then when you are
connected with it, connect to the next node, and so on
through any intermediate nodes within the whole path
before you finally connect with your destination
station. You may also have digipeaters in any of the
paths.
For example if you wish to connect to K1HTV who is in
range of the SSCT node, and you are in Washington DC,
you might first have to connect to your local NET/ROM
node (ELK) via a digipeater, then each of the
intermediate nodes, SNJ3, NNJ, WMA before you could try
to connect with K1HTV.
Consider the manual sequence to make the connection.
K1HTV is the station the contact is being attempted
with, and he is located within range of the SCCT
NET/ROM node. The station attempting the connect is
located in the Washington DC area one digipeat away
from the ELK NET/ROM node.
The connection to the local node is performed first.
The operator has to type 'C ELK v WB4APR-5' to make
that link. When the connect with the node is achieved,
the operator must type 'C SNJ3' to connect to the next
node. Each time the connection is made, the operator
must type in the command to make the next one, until
finally the last node is reached and a connect request
can be made to the destination station (either direct
or via a digipeater). Sometimes there may be an
intermediate non-NET/ROM connection between two
stations somewhere in the path.
This procedure is tedious and time consuming, because
it may take several seconds to complete each stage of
the link. LAN-LINK automates this sequence by scanning
the line in the LAN-LINK.DIR file associated with the
callsign entered and transmitting each section of the
line when it recognizes the 'Connected to' reply from
each NET/ROM node in the path. When it finally gets to
the destination it sounds a chime to alert you that the
connect has been achieved.
The LAN-LINK.DIR file entry for this path is as follows:
K1HTV ELK v WB4APR-5!SNJ3!NNJ!WMA!SCCT!K1HTV
where the '!' separates each stage of the link.
The key word is K1HTV. LAN-LINK then scans the line to
see if there is a '!' in it. If there is it knows that
it is dealing with a NET/ROM path. It then tells the
TNC to attempt a connect with the characters following
the key word up to the first '!'. In this case it
tells the TNC to connect to ELK via WB4APR-5. When the
TNC sends back the connected message, LAN-LINK tells
the TNC to try to connect to the next node in the path,
namely in this example, SNJ3. The sequence continues
each time a connection is made until the link is
complete.
To set up a directory entry just use the format shown
above. Place a '!' sign after the uplink path and
different node segments. Do not place one after the
downlink path.
Depending on the configuration, LAN-LINK will issue a
'disconnect' command to the TNC in the event the
NET/ROM or KA-Node connect attempt fails. This feature
is designed for known paths not for general path determination.
KA-Nodes
You can connect or crossconnect via KA-Nodes using the
directory file. You must still use the ! separators as
well as two new symbols % and &. Use % for 'C' and &
for 'X' in KA-Node links..
For example, given that a path to W9TNN-2 is first to a
local KA node [JRW] then to a second node on the same
VHF frequency [W3EAX-7] and lastly via a cross connect
on 40 Meters to W9TNN-2, the line in the LAN-LINK.DIR
file would be as follows.
w9tnn-2 jrw!%w3eax-7!&w9tnn-2
You can mix NET/ROM and KA-Node paths as in:
n7dva!g3zcz-9!&WA6IEL-4!n7dva v kl7vz-3
The different symbols are used for the KA node to tell
LAN-LINK which replies to look for as well as what to
prefix the call with.
Depending on the Node Drop Link Flag configuration,
LAN-LINK will issue a 'disconnect' command to the TNC
in the event the NET/ROM or KA-Node connect attempt
fails. This feature is designed for known paths not
for general path determination.
Loop Backs
In the Packet Communications Mode, if you want to loop
back to yourself through someone else you would have to type
C <yourcall> V <hiscall>.
For example if I (G3ZCZ) wanted to loop back through
G3RWL, I would have to type the command
C G3ZCZ V G3RWL
to the TNC.
In LAN-LINK you just have to enter the '/' character
followed by the call of the station you want to loop
back through. For example if I (G3ZCZ) wanted to loop
back through G3RWL, I just need to enter
/G3RWL
as the call to connect to at the Alt-C prompt, and
LAN-LINK will tell the TNC to try to connect to G3ZCZ
via G3RWL, namely issue the command 'C G3ZCZ V G3RWL'
to the TNC.
LAN-LINK has special hot keys for connecting to a BBS and packet
cluster. Try the Alt-Y and Alt-Z keys instead of the Alt-C key.
73 Joe G3ZCZ
LAN-LINK is available from the author. For an evaluation copy,
download it from Compuserve or send $5.00, or send $35.00 for a
registered copy which will entitle you to at least one free
update. When you write in, say where you saw this Application
Note.