QRZ! Ham Radio 5/QRZ Ham Radio Callsign Database - Volume 5.iso/files/arrl/tis/software.txt

Text File | 1994-11-27 | 19.9 KB | 601 lines

Reprinted from April 1992 QST Lab Notes
Copyright 1992 American Radio Relay League, Inc.
All rights reserved.

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Lab Notes

Conducted By Steve Ford, WB81MY, Assistant Technical Editor and
the ARRL Laboratory staff.

Subject: How to Locate Amateur Radio Software

Wouldn't you like to put your computer to work in your ham shack?
So would many amateurs! Finding the right Amateur Radio software
to run on your machine can be difficult. Jon Bloom, KE3Z, ARRL
Laboratory Supervisor, is an old hand at software hunting. As Jon
says, the software you want is probably out there...somewhere!
WB81MY

Q: I just bought a new computer and I 'd like to use It in my ham
shack. Where can I get some ham radio software?

A: That depends. What kinds of applications did you have in mind?

Q: Applications? I'm really not sure.

A. Well, you can be sure your problem is not an uncommon one. When
you put ham radio, with all its diversity, together with the power
of a computer, the possible uses are almost innumerable! Don't
feel bad if you hardly know where to start.

Let me see if I can help by categorizing the Amateur Radio
applications of a computer. The programs you might want to run
fall into these basic categories:

o Communication -- Computer-oriented communication -- RTTY,
AMTOR, packet, and the video modes -- is the most popular
application. Depending on the computer you own, you may need some
external hardware to fully enjoy some or all of these modes.

o Control -- Computers are often used to control various pieces
of amateur equipment, such as a rotator for satellite tracking, to
helping the contest operator run the rig, to...whatever!

o Calculation -- To the experimenter or builder, the computer
has replaced slide rules, nomographs and look-up tables in
calculating answers to mathematical problems. Moreover, computers
now offer applications never before available to amateurs, such as
antenna-modeling programs.

o Record keeping -- One of the most common programs -- everyone
with even a smattering of programming ability seems to write one
sooner or later -- is a logging program. But other kinds of
records can be accessed, too: on-line callbooks using CD ROM,
lists of US counties and so on.

Q: I 'd like to do all of those things! Where do I get the
software?

A: Hold on! You still have a decision to make! Do you want to pay
for the software? Uh. . .let me rephrase that! Would you rather
pay for software and get support, or get free software and be on
your own when it comes to figuring out how to use it? That's the
major difference between store-bought software and the free
variety. Authors of free software often aren't interested in
helping the neophyte. They feel their time is better spent on
developing even better software. A company that sells you software
has to be a little more helpful. The software buying public
expects it, and companies that don't provide adequate support
don't stay in business very long! So, what will it be?

Q: I guess I will start with the free stuff and see what I can do
with it. I can always buy a program if I can't find a free one
that does the job. So, enough beating about the bush! Where's the
free software?

A: It's all around you. You can either download software from a
telephone bulletin board system (BBS) via modem, or you can
contact one of the many shareware vendors to get software on
disks. (We'll discuss telephone BBSs in a moment.)

First, lets talk shareware, freeware and public domain. These
terms are not synonymous. Public-domain software is software that
is owned by no one. That is, anyone can use it, sell it, give it
away, modify it or do whatever they want with it. Freeware, on the
other hand, carries copyright protection. Usually, the author will
provide some kind of usability criteria in the documentation. Most
often, use of the software for noncommercial purposes is free,
while commercial users are required to pay a licensing fee.
Shareware is yet another category. Shareware is not free software!
It is copyrighted and its use is restricted by the author. Usually
the restriction takes the form of allowing a brief trial use,
after which you are expected to register your copy of the software
by paying a fee. Fees range from a few dollars to hundreds,
depending on the complexity of the software -- and on what the
author thinks the market will bear.

You can get public domain, freeware and shareware software from a
number of companies that sell it. That might sound somewhat
contradictory, but I'll explain. Usually, these companies package
several related files -- like Amateur Radio programs -- on a disk
and sell the disk for a few dollars. (Even though you buy the
disk, you are still obliged to register any shareware you use from
it unless the documentation says otherwise.) Many companies
provide shareware, and most of the bigger hamfests sport at least
one shareware vendor. You can buy shareware by mail, too. Here are
a few shareware vendors for IBM PC systems:

Public Brand Software
PO Box 51315
Indianapolis, IN 46251 tel [phone]

Renaissance Software & Development
Killen Plaza
Box 640 Killen, AL 35645 tel [phone]

Save On Software
PO Box 2837
Wilkes Barre, PA 18703-2837 tel [phone]

There are others, of course, but these will give you a place to
start. I should also mention one noncommercial source of PC
software. Tucson Amateur Packet Radio (TAPR), the group that
produced the TNC-I and TNC-2, is very much alive and well. As a
service to their members, they provide recent versions of
shareware and public domain packet radio software for the IBM PC
for a nominal per-disk fee. A list of available software is
included in each issue of Packet Status Register, the TAPR
newsletter.

Q: That's all fine, but I have a Macintosh!

A: Up until now I assumed we were talking about an IBM PC-type
computer. After all, over half of the computers owned by QST
readers are PCs or compatibles. This is reflected in the fact that
you'll find less software available for computers other than PCs,
particularly public domain and shareware software. But there is
some out there! One resource to tap is the large number of
telephone bulletin board systems. You can download software from
these systems for the price of the phone call, although some
"boards" charge a small monthly or annual access fee. (Some packet
systems have software available, too. The congestion prevalent on
most packet channels, however, limits the ability to conduct large
file transfers.)

Here are two telephone BBS systems that offer Amateur Radio
software, including software for the Macintosh, Amiga, Atari and
other computers. There are many, many more! Check the telephone
BBSs in your local area; some of them have ham radio sections.

N8EMR BBS -- tel [phone]
WB3FFV BBS -- tel [phone] and 301-625-9663

Atari users can also get ham radio software from:

Atari Microcomputer Network
John Adams, KCSW
17106 Happy Hollow
San Antonio, TX 78232

(send an SASE for a list of available software)

Packet radio software is available for most computers from a
variety of sources. These can be found in Your Gateway to Packet
Radio and in The ARRL Operating Manual, fourth edition.2

Q: Suppose I don't find what I 'm looking for in the shareware
world? What commercial software do you recommend?

A: We don't actually recommend software -- or other products --
because that would interfere with our objectivity in doing product
reviews. Also, to be fair, we don't know enough about every
software product on the market to be able to say with certainty
which is the best. Most importantly, we don't know enough about
your software requirements to say which software would work best
for you.

But we do know this much: We make sure that software publishers
who advertise in QST respond to customer complaints. Buying
software advertised in QST is probably your safest bet when it
comes to commercial software.

By the way, one source of satellite software for most types of
personal computer is AMSAT. They sell low-cost software for
satellite tracking, telemetry decoding and accessing the digital
satellites. Most of it is discounted to members, so it pays to
join AMSAT if you're interested in amateur satellites! You can
contact them at:

AMSAT
PO Box 27
Washington, DC 20044 tel [phone]

Q: I never see much software for my computer listed in QST. Why?

A: It all boils down to supply and demand. As I said before, if
you don't own an IBM or compatible computer, the pickings get kind
of slim. (There are some goodies in the display ads and Ham Ads,
though.) Here's a brief list of sources for Macintosh and other
non-IBM computers:

EPO Corporation (Apple 11, Commodore)
7805 NE 147th Ave
Vancouver, WA 98682

Kinetic Designs (Amiga, Apple 11)
PO Box 1646
Orange Park, FL 32067

MacTrak Software
PO Box 1590
Port Orchard, WA 98366 tel [phone]

ZCO Corporation (Macintosh)
PO Box 3720
Nashua, NH 03061 tel [phone]

Dynamic Electronics (Color Computer)
Box 896
Hartselle, AL 35640 tel [phone]

Q: I'm really getting into this computer stuff! How can I find out
more about what's going on in ham radio computerization?

A: There's no single answer to that to that question! One good
place to start is the subscription on-line services. There are
several such services, including CompuServe, GEnie, Prodigy and
others.

Using a telephone modem, you can call the service and download
thousands of files, including many ham radio programs. You can
also communicate with amateurs and other subscribers in a
bulletin-board format, making it easy to get answers to your
"where do I get . . . " and "how do I do. . . " questions. Of
course, these are subscription services, so you have to pay for
your usage.

There is a huge amount of software available for ham radio
applications, particularly for the IBM PC. If you haven't found
what you want, keep looking. By the way, if you run across a good
source of Amateur Radio software, let us know! We're always happy
to find new software sources and share the information with
others.

Notes

The Packet Status Newsletter is available from:

Tucson Amateur Packet Radio (TAPR)
8987-309 East Tanque Verde Rd
No. 337
Tucson, AZ  85749.  $15/year

The ARRL Operating Manual and Your Gateway to Packet Radio are
available from your local dealer or direct from ARRL HQ.

We welcome your suggestions for topics to be discussed in Lab
Notes, but we are not able to answer individual questions. Please
send your comments or suggestions to: Lab Notes, ARRL, 225 Main
St, Newington, CT 06111.

Fig 1 -- AMSAT's InstantTrack is an example of a software package
that can track satellites and control your antenna system.
InstantTrack is available at a cost of $50 for AMSAT members, $70
for nonmembers. Figures not available electronically -- see April
1992 QST.

----------------------------------------------------------------

Additional Software Sources:

                 Antenna Modelling Software

1.  Antenna Model    (Wire-frame analysis - straight elements only)
    Teri Software
    P.O. Box 277
    Lincoln, TX 78948

2.  Elnec
    Roy Lewallen, W7EL
    P.O. Box 6658
    Beaverton, OR 97007

3.  Mininec
    National Technical Information Service
    US Department of Commerce
    5285 Port Royal Road
    Springfield, VA 22161
    Tel: [phone]
    (Order number: ADA 181681)

4.  NEC/Wires 1.0,     (wire based modelling)
    NEC/Yagis 2.0,     (  "    "      "     )
    AO 6.0, - Antenna Optimizer  (Wire based)
    YO 5.0  - Yagi Optimizer
    Brian Beezley, K6STI
    507 1/2 Taylor
    Vista, CA 92084

------------------------------------------------------------------

        Callsign Lookup Software

1.  Hamcall (CD-ROM)
    Buckmaster Publishing
    Rt. 4, Box 1630
    Mineral, VA 23117
    Tel: [phone]
    and: 1-703-894-5777
    Note: requires approx. 650k hard disk space
      (modem call lookup also available - call for details)


2.  SAM Callsign Database
    RT Systems, Inc.
    P.O. Box 8
    Laceys Spring, AL 35754
    Tel: [phone]
    Note: requires 17meg hard disk space and high-density floppy)


3.  CALLSIGN (on World of Ham Radio CD-ROM)
    AMSoft
    P.O. Box 666
    New Cumberland, PA 17070-0666
    Tel: [phone]


4.  QRZ! Ham Radio Disc (CD-ROM)
    Walnut Creek CDROM
    1547 Palos Verdes Mall, Suite 260
    Walnut Creek, CA 94596
    Tel: [phone]
    and: 1-510-674-0783
    Fax: [phone]

----------------------------------------------------------------

                Amateur Radio QSO Logging Programs
                ----------------------------------

1.  Logwrite
    Aerospace Consulting
    P.O. Box 156
    Gwynedd, PA 19436


2.  Logger, Logger and Contest
    Alamo DX Amigos
    106 Tomahawk Trail
    San Antonio, TX 78232


3.  WriteLog (Contest logger for Windows)
    Austin Code Works
    11100 Leafwood Lane
    Austin, TX 78750-3489
    Tel: [phone]
    Fax: [phone]


4.  N6RJ 2nd OP
    GRF Computer Services
    6170 Downey Ave.
    Long Beach, CA 90805
    Tel: [phone]


5.  CT (Contest logger)
    K1EA Software
    P.O. Box 803
    Hudson, MA 01749
    Tel: [phone] (orders)
    and: 1-603-465-2392 (support)
    Fax: [phone]


6.  NA (Contest logger)
    LTA
    P.O. Box 77
    New Bedford, PA 16140
    Tel: [phone]


7.  NN8Z LOG (Also CQ5, QSL)
    Namlulu Communications
    1120 Meadowview Road
    Willard, IH 44890


8.  TurboLog
    Pavillion Software
    P.O. Box 803
    Hudson, MA 01749


9.  DXLog
    PAYL Software
    P.O. Box 926
    Levittown, PA 19058
    Tel: [phone]


9.  Log View (for Windows)
    PDK Co, (Paul Keezer, NX1P)
    46 Oak Street
    Dunstable, MA 01827


10. LOGic III, LOGic Jr. (PC, Amiga, Atari ST)
    Personal Database Applications, Dept. Q
    2616 Meadow Ridge Road
    Duluth, GA 30136
    Tel: [phone]
    Fax: [phone]


11. EZlog Plus
    RAI Enterprises
    4508 N. 48th Drive
    Phoenix, AZ 85031
    Tel: [phone]


12. WB2OPA Logmaster Plus
    Sensible Solutions
    P.O. Box 474
    Middletown, NJ 07748
    Tel: [phone]


13. LogPak+
    Technical Software Corp.
    P.O. Box 722
    Plainville, CT 06062
    Tel: [phone]


14. The Log Program
    Viking Business Systems
    10310 Main Street, Suite 106
    Fairfax, VA 22030


15. WJ2O Master QSO Logging program
    P.O. Box 16N
    McConnellsville, NY 13401
    Tel: [phone]


16. LOGPROG (BASIC)
    QST Reprint - September 1984, Page 24
    Article copies are available for $3.00 each from:

        Technical Department Secretary
        American Radio Relay League
        225 Main Street
        Newington, CT 06111
        Tel: [phone]

----------------------------------------------------------------

             Morse Code practice and proficiency

1. SuperMorse (Version 4.10 - SM410.EXE on the ARRL BBS)
   Lee Murrah
   10 Cottage Grove Woods SE
   Cedar Rapids, IA 52403

2. Morse Academy (MA.ZIP on the ARRL BBS)
   Joseph Speroni, AH0A
   259 Copper Beech Drive
   Bllue Bell, PA 19422

3. International Morse Code Trainer (IMCT.EXE on the ARRL BBS)
   Edwards Oros
   2629 Sapling Drive
   Allison Park, PA 15101

4. Hambone (Theory and Code practice - HAMBONE.ZIP on the ARRL BBS)
   TekMate (Joe Lincoln, KB5DIX)
   15307 Parkville
   Houston, TX 77068

5. GGTE Morse Tutor (Basic and Advanced editions available)
   ARRL
   225 Main Street
   Newington, CT 06111
   Tel: [phone]

----------------------------------------------------------------
             Propagation Prediction Software

1.  Miniprop Plus
    Sheldon Shallon, W6EL
    11058 Queensland Street
    Los Angeles, CA 90034-3029

2.  IONCAP
    Nation Technical Information Service
    5285 Port Royal Road
    Springfield, VA 22161

3.  MiniMUF
    Printout - December 1982 QST, page 38

4.  IONSOUND
    SkyWave Technologies
    17 Pine Knoll Road
    Lexington, MA 02173

----------------------------------------------------------------

                Station Remote Control

The following is a list of known sources for software and
hardware needed to remotely control an amateur station:

1.  Engineering Consulting
    583 Candlewood Street
    Brea, CA 92621
    Tel: [phone]
    FAX: [phone]

2.  DATACOM, Int.
    7678 Venetian Street
    Miramar, FL 33023
    Tel: [phone] (Orders)
     or  [phone] (Info)
    NOTES: Owner is Bill Roig.  Products may be ordered direct from
           Universal Radio @ 1-800-431-3939 or Gilfer Shortwave @
           1-800-GILFER-1.

3.  Public Brand Software
    P.O. Box 51315
    Indianapolis, IN 46251
    Tel: [phone]

----------------------------------------------------------------

                     Weather Software

The Weather Satellite Handbook Programs Disk contains
the following files:

1.  A new version of WSH1700.EXE and its companion documentation
    file, WSH1700.DOC. This program is designed to be used with the
    METSAT scan converter described in the book. WSH1700.EXE is
    identical to the earlier version EXCEPT that it packs images into
    32-kbyte files instead of the 64-kbyte files required by the
    earlier version of the program. This results in a considerable
    increase in disk-file capacity.

2.  Four sample images--satellite pictures--(each with a .WSH
    extension) illustrating all the major image formats.

3.  BANDPASS.EXE, a program that permits interactive design of
    audio bandpass filter stages.

4.  PREDICT.BAS and WSH1700.BAS, the BASIC programs that are
    listed in Appendix III of the fourth edition of the Weather
    Satellite Handbook. PREDICT.BAS is used to predict polar-orbiting
    weather-satellite passes during which you can easily access the
    satellites. WSH1700.BAS is a fundamental version of WSH1700.EXE
    designed to be used with the METSAT scan converter described in
    the book.

5.  PREDICT.EXE and its accompanying documentation file.
    PREDICT.EXE is a faster, more refined version of PREDICT.BAS.

    Including a README file, these are the programs that should
    be on the disk:

        BANDPASS EXE    46294   7-24-90   9:38p
        GOESNE   WSH    32519   5-22-90   2:52a
        MTR2-18  WSH    32519   5-22-90   2:48a
        NOAA10   WSH    32519   5-22-90   2:39a
        NOAA11   WSH    32519   5-22-90   2:44a
        PREDICT  BAS     7424   6-15-90   9:13a
        PREDICT  DAT      581   4-21-90  10:21a
        PREDICT  DOC    16000   4-25-90   8:37a
        PREDICT  EXE    69120   5-16-90   8:38a
        README           1065   7-25-90  12:48p
        WSH1700  BAS     9984   3-15-90   4:47p
        WSH1700  DOC     1920   3-26-90  11:17a
        WSH1700  EXE    52836   5-22-90   5:48a