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E51SGC Rarotonga. From DXNews.com
Calling all stations for Radiofest (Australia)
Share Soundcard between Direwolf and VARA on Linux
I wish I could make this one simple, but we are getting into complex territory. Please read the instructions and follow along carefully. This is not something I recommend doing without knowing your way around Linux, and so the basics are not covered(it would be too long). this should let you share the same soundcard between direwolf and other apps like VARA, and FLDigi as well. I ran into this when I wanted to have VARA and Dire wolf share a soundcard for my BPQ32 node on Linux. By default, Dire wolf takes complete control of the sound card interface, as well as VARA when ran within wine. There are several tweaks and changes needed to make this work, so buckle in. In this guide, Iβve used this post to install VARA within wine on Debian 12. Iβve used this post to install dire wolf.
Splitting the Interface
First, we need to grab your sound cards device name. Enter cat /proc/asound/cards
to get a list of sound cards, pay attention to the βDevice
β or βDevice_1
β relating to your radios digital audio interface card. I my case, I needed both (one was used for 2m, the other for HF). Note the name somewhere, paying attention to the case as well.
Now, we need to open the βasoundβ configuration file (or make a new one if it doesnβt exist), and enter some information. First, check if one exists for your current user with : cat ~/.asound
. If you get file does not exist, thatβs fine. If you instead see file info, enter rm ~/.asound
to get rid of it. The reason we did that was because the user configuration file overrides the global (which is the one we will now create/edit).
Enter sudo nano /etc/asound.conf
to create/edit the existing global configuration. If your file is empty, awesome. If it contains content, remove everything.
What we will do now, is name our new split soundcard interface. In the following example, Iβve taken the soundcard listed as βDevice
β from above, and now named it βdigirig
β in this new interface, and split it into βdigirig-rx
β for the receive(audio in), and βdigirig-tx
β for the transmit (audio out)
We will now paste the following template:
Take care to replace the word βDeviceβ with the name you found above (probably the same), and if you would like to rename the interface to something other than βdigirigβ like I have here, replace all instances of it with something lowercase and simple you will remember.
pcm_slave.digirig {
pcm {
type hw
card Device
}
period_time 0
buffer_size 8192
}
pcm.digirig-dmix {
type dmix
ipc_key 2023041901
slave "digirig"
bindings.0 0
}
pcm.digirig-dsnoop {
type dsnoop
ipc_key 2023041902
slave "digirig"
bindings.0 0
}
pcm.digirig-rx {
type plug
slave.pcm "digirig-dsnoop"
hint.description "digirig RX audio plug"
}
pcm.digirig-tx {
type plug
slave.pcm "digirig-dmix"
hint.description "digirig TX audio plug"
}
If you have 2 sound card interfaces, such as I do, you will just paste the above twice, one after the other. You will need to rename all instances of βdigirigβ (or whatever you called the first one) to something else (to refer to the second card). You will also need to replace βDeviceβ once more with the name of the second sound card (probably βDevice_1β).
Great, save that file. Issue the following command to have the changes take effect.
sudo alsa force-reload
If you get command not found, youβre better off rebooting before continuing.
Now, we will now make sure weβve done this part right. Open up your direrwolf configuration file (probably nano ~/direwolf.conf
) and find the βADEVICEβ line and remove it.
Replace it with the following. (Obviously replacing βdigirigβ if youβve renamed it in the asound file we made/edited above.
ADEVICE digirighf-rx digirighf-tx
Save the file, and restart Dire wolf. Dire wolf should start fine, and your audio device should be working as it did before. If not, stop here, somethings wrong.
Getting VARA to use the Split interface
Now that dire wolf is using our split interface, we now need to get VARA on board, which is a little more involved.
First, we need to get your wine prefix to be configured using ALSA. If using VARA in the default prefix, this could be as simple as running βwinetricks sound=alsa
β. Give it a try, as it wonβt hurt either way. Otherwise, you will run the following command, replacing β.wine32β with the wine prefix youβve made for VARA.
env WINEARCH="win32" env WINEPREFIX="/home/aspect/.win32" winecfg
Another way you can try to achieve this is by running βwinetricksβ within desktop mode, selecting the prefix where VARA is installed, choosing βChange Settingsβ, finding βsound=alsaβ and pressing βOkβ
Next we need to set some registry keys on the Wine prefix to identify our split interfaces. Similar to the above, we will enter the following command to open the registry editor for the VARA prefix:
env WINEARCH="win32" env WINEPREFIX="/home/aspect/.win32" regedit
You can also reach the Registry editor using the βwinetricksβ command, selecting the prefix, and opening the regedit from there.
You will navigate to the following key and leave it it open:
HKCU->Software->Wine->Drivers->winealsa.drv
Just as in the above screenshot, you will right click the empty space, and select new -> multi-string value.
Create one key called βALSAInputDevicesβ and another called βALSAOutputDevicesβ. In each of them, for the value, make a list of the relative -rx or -tx devices we made before in the asound file. (If you only have 1 sound card interface to use, you only need the one here). (-rx being in the Input devices, and -tx being in the Output.)
Save, and close it all out.
Starting VARA
Now start VARA as you normally do in WINE. In the soundcard settings, now chose the interface we specified in the registry relating to the one we created in the asound configuration file.
Direwolf and VARA should now be able to share the sound interface this way!
The post Share Soundcard between Direwolf and VARA on Linux appeared first on TheModernHam.
Host your own FCC Ham Radio Database for Offline Use with HamDB
First, I want to give all credit for this blog post and script to this website(blog.radioartisan.com), and the ham who created it (K3NG). The only reason I am posting it here is to walk through the database installation portion, and show how the database can be expanded onto to include extra information, as well as add some more detailed documentation. His mission seems to align with mine in making database lookup tools for logbooks for accessible, instead of taking user data and selling it back (such as what QRZ does). As such, most of the information here is ripped from his post, and presented in a different way.
This guide is going to assume you are running Debian 12, or Ubuntu 22.04
Creating our User
This section is Linux 101, but I usually go over it anyways just in case. We will be running mostly everything here as a non root user, that is in the sudo group. As such, the following commands below will create our new user, install sudo, and swap to it. If you already have a user created that you would like to use, you may skip this step.
As Root:
add user your-desired-user
apt install sudo
usermod -aG sudo your-desired-user
su kn4mkb
Installing and Configuring MariaDB Database
The following will perform some updates, and install MariaDB. Everything else from here on should be done under the user we just created, not root.
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get upgrade
sudo apt -y install mariadb-server
systemctl restart mariadb
Now we will configure it for best security practices:
sudo mysql_secure_installation
You will be asked several questions. As we are running the command as root, press [Enter](none) when asked for the root password, as we havenβt configured one. We can answer βnβ for most of the others until asked if we want to remove anonymous users. From here, we want to say βyβ, for the rest of the questions.
Enter current password for root (enter for none):
Switch to unix_socket authentication [Y/n] n
Change the root password? [Y/n] n
Remove anonymous users? [Y/n] y
Disallow root login remotely? [Y/n] y
Remove test database and access to it? [Y/n] y
Reload privilege tables now? [Y/n] y
Creating the Database User
We will now create the user which will be used to update the database with the latest information from the FCC database. We will start the sql prompt as root, and use the prompt to create the user, giving it privileges to create new databases.
sudo mysql
Replace βhamdbuser
β and βSECURE_PASSWORD
β with your desired username and password for the database user. Enter the following 3 commands at the MariaDB prompt:
CREATE USER hamdbuser@localhost IDENTIFIED BY 'SECURE_PASSWORD';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON *.* TO 'hamdbuser'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'SECURE_PASSWORD';
quit
We now have the database and a user ready to go. Next we will proceed with K3NGs database updating script.
Installing HamDB
First we will install wget, which will allow us to pull the most recent version of the hamdb script form github. unzip is also needed as hamdb uses it for database downloads. We will then pull the script into our current working folder and run a full database build.
sudo apt install wget unzip
wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/k3ng/hamdb/main/hamdb
sudo chmod +x hamdb
./hamdb full
The script will ask you a few questions. Would you like to create a config file (y), what is your Database sser, database password. afterwards, it gets to work pulling the current database in full.
Using HamDB to lookup Ham Radio Callsign Information
You can use HamDB in a few ways to lookup information. But the true power will be building third party or external tools to extract information from the database.
Look up a callsign: ./hamdb k3ng
Wildcard Search: ./hamdb like k3ng%
Search for amateurs in a zip: ./hamdb zipcode 17701
Search by last name: ./hamdb lastname Jones
./hamdb -h
will give you all of the lookup options built into the application.
Maintaining and Updating the Database
You will want to run and update daily on your database to keep things current. You can use cron to accomplish this.
Take note of where you have downloaded the hamdb script (mine is at /home/kn4mkb/hamdb
)
Enter the following command. If you are unsure with what editor to use when asked, go with nano.
crontab -e
Enter the following line at the end of the file to update the database every day at 2:30 am.
Take care to replace /home/kn4mkb/hamdb with the path of your hamdb script.
30 2 * * * /home/kn4mkb/hamdb update
Ctrl X + Y to save (if using nano), and you should be good to go!
The post Host your own FCC Ham Radio Database for Offline Use with HamDB appeared first on TheModernHam.
Connect to a Packet Radio BBS Node with KISS or AGWPE TNC Windows/Linux
As a last post to the BBS portion of the packet radio series, I wanted to give a few ways you can actually connect to a BBS node within Linux and windows. If you want to setup your own node with BPQ, you can follow the guide here.
Connecting to a BBS Node in Windows OR Linux with Paracon
Thanks to a recommendation by a commenter, Iβve added a program called Paracon to the top of this list of programs I recommend to use to connect to radio BBS nodes. Paracon is a cross platform python application used to connect to AGWPE enabled TNCβs. It does not support KISS TNCβs, which means this option limits you to the use of software TNCβs like dire wolf or AGWPE. If you are using a hardware TNC, please see one of the below options instead. If you donβt yet have a TNC, check out this guide to setup Dire wolf.
You will need python 3.7 or above installed. If you are on windows, grab the latest version and install it from here. If you are on Debian/Ubuntu or Raspberry PI OS, you can install it with:
sudo apt install python3
Grab the latest release of Paracom from the release page here. You will want to download the βpyzβ file. Linux users can grab it headless by running the following commands:
sudo apt install wget
wget https://github.com/mfncooper/paracon/releases/download/v1.0.0/paracon_1.0.0.pyz
Go ahead and start your chosen AGWPE application (such as direwolf) and note the port. Open a command prompt (on windows) or a terminal (on linux) and run the following command to open Paracon.
#On Linux:
python3 paracon_1.0.0.pyz
#On Windows:
python paracon_1.0.0.pyz
You may need to modify the file name above if you have downloaded a newer version (obviously). The application opens with a terminal screen, F1 will show you the help menu, and the mouse can be used to also click various buttons. The Setup screen should appear. Here you will enter your AGWPE server IP and port. If running dire wolf on the same system, the IP will be 127.0.0.1, and probably the default port, 8000.
Connecting to another node is as simple as Pressing βConnectβ and then entering your desired NODE/BBS Callsign.
In the end you should be connected to your desired node!
Connecting to a BBS Node in Windows with QtTermTCP:
My choice here without python or Paracon is a program called QtTermTCP by John Wiseman G8BPQ. Although it isnβt perfect, and does crash sometimes, for the most part it works as long as you donβt try anything funny. Grab the download link from here and unzip the file. At this time, your TNC should be started or plugged in, depending if you are running a software TNC or a hardware one. Keep the packaged version, as Iβve noticed when crashes occur, itβs best to delete the extracted folder and replace it with a fresh version. Open the contents, and you should see a βQtTermTCP.exeβ file. Open it up.
Once open, navigate to Setup, and choose your desired communication mode. The most popular options are going to be either VARA or KISS. If you donβt yet have a KISS network or serial interface, go check out The Ultimate guide to Direwolf to setup a KISS TNC.
Once open, you will see a few options. either way, we want to check the box to βEnable KISS Interfaceβ. If you are using a hardware Kiss TNC, make sure itβs plugged in, and select the correct port and speed from the βSerial TNCβ portion. On the other hand, if you are using a network KISS TNC such as direwolf, select βTCPβ under βSelect Deviceβ, and enter the IP where itβs running. If direwolf is running on the same windows computer, it will be β127.0.0.1β
Great, click βOkβ and we should be ready to get connected. If all is tight, you should see βKISS Connected on the bottom of the program. Now, Naviagte to the βConnectβ button on the top left, and press βKISS Connectβ. In the βCall Toβ Field, enter your destination , and press βOkβ to get connected.
Connecting to a BBS Node in Linux with Kissattach
Linux can be a little more evolved that Windows, but donβt worry itβs not too bad. The instructions are going to assume you are running Debian/Ubuntu or Raspberry Pi OS. If you are using Arch Linux, Iβve already made a guide for this here. If you intend on using a hardware TNC, go ahead and get it connected. If you are using direwolf make sure itβs configured, but donβt start it just yet as we will make a slight change. If you donβt yet have a KISS TNC, check out this to get dire wolf up and running.
Install needed tools
sudo apt-get install ax25-tools ax25-apps
Now we will create a new βax.25 portβ which we will use for connections. Open the file at /etc/ax25/axports
as sudo. Add a new line at the bottom below the comemted lines like the following example.
# /etc/ax25/axports
#
# The format of this file is:
#
# name callsign speed paclen window description
#
#1 OH2BNS-1 1200 255 2 144.675 MHz (1200 bps)
#2 OH2BNS-9 38400 255 7 TNOS/Linux (38400 bps)
ax0 KN4MKB-8 19200 236 7 144.675 MHz (300 bps)
Replace βKN4MKB-8
β with your own call.
Replace β19200β with your TNCs serial connection speed (you can leave it as 19200 if using direwolf).
The β236β is the packet length. If using HF, you may want to use β64β here. 236 is fine for VHF.
The β144.675 MHz (300 bps)β at the end is just text, and does not really matter.
Save it.
If you are using a hardware KISS TNC, you will need to gets itβs serial path from /dev. If you are using dire wolf, you will now start it like this in a separate terminal:
direwolf -t 0 -p -c ~/direwolf.conf
Replace β~/direwolf.confβ with the dire wolf configuration file you would like to use.
You will see the following serial path, we will need that in just a moment:
Bind kissatatch to the TNC
Now run the following command, replacing β/dev/pts/4β with your serial /dev path from above.
sudo kissattach -l /dev/pts/4 ax0
If you are using dire wolf, additionally run this command:
sudo kissparms -c 1 -p ax0
Connect Away!
You should now be able to connect to a given callsign within your linux shell. Use the following format, obviously replacing βKN4MKB-4β with the call youβd like to connect to.
axcall ax0 kn4mkb-4
The post Connect to a Packet Radio BBS Node with KISS or AGWPE TNC Windows/Linux appeared first on TheModernHam.
DE-0094: A Vacation POTA by the Sea
Had a very nice and special POTA activation of DE-0094 NiedersΓ€chsisches Wattenmeer National Park:
Conditions were rough but I've managed to get 16 stations into my log, including two from the Azores. It was great to sit on a dyke, watch people kite and enjoy the view of the sea while talking to stations all over Europe.
My rig was the usual: Xiegu G90 and a 5.4m long telescopic vertical antenna with four 5m radials.
- rtl-sdr.com
- Receiving Weather Images from NOAA Weather Satellites with an RTL-SDR Blog V4 and Multipurpose Dipole Antenna Kit
Receiving Weather Images from NOAA Weather Satellites with an RTL-SDR Blog V4 and Multipurpose Dipole Antenna Kit
Over on YouTube Baltic Lab has uploaded a video showing how he was able to successfully use an RTL-SDR Blog V4 and the included multipurpose dipole antenna kit to receive images from polar-orbiting NOAA weather satellites.
In the video, Baltic Lab shows how to orient the dipole antenna in a "V-Dipole" shape which optimizes it for receiving from satellites. He also shows how to use a VNA to confirm that the telescopic elements on the dipole are extended to the correct length, noting that he was able to achieve a VSWR of less than 1.2 between the target frequencies of 135 to 138.1 MHz, with a near perfect match at 136.5 MHz.
He then demonstrates receiving the NOAA APT signals with his laptop, and successfully recovering the weather satellite image.
Is port extension or e-delay a universal solution?
Several recent articles examined the use of s11 port extension or e-delay in some scenarios that might have surprised.
Recall that s11 port extension adjusts the measured phase of s11 based on the e-delay value converted to an equivalent phase at the measurement frequency.
It is:
- an exact correction for any length of lossless line of Z0=50+j0Ξ© transmission line;
- an approximate correction for a very low loss length of approximately 50Ξ© transmission line; and
- an approximate correction for some specific scenarios such as those discussed at Some useful equivalences of very short very mismatched transmission lines β a practical demonstration.
Of course 1. does not exist in the real world, but 2. can give measurement results of acceptable accuracy if used within bounds. Both departures mentioned in 2. occur in the real world, non-zero loss and departure from Z0=50+j0Ξ©. Provided these departures are small, port extension may give acceptable results.
Letβs analyse some example measurements based on a 10m length of ordinary RG58A/U from 1-11MHz.
Above, measurement of the first series resonance with SC termination.
Note that the curve is a spiral inwards from the outer circle, the line is not lossless.
A requirement for e-delay to work well is that phase of s11 is proportional to frequency. This plot wraps, but apart from that, the plot looks approximately linear⦠however scale prevents detailed analysis.
Above, measurement of the first series resonance with OC termination.
Note that the curve is a spiral inwards from the outer circle, the line is not lossless.
Again the plot wraps, but apart from that, the plot looks approximately linear⦠however scale prevents detailed analysis.
Letβs find a value for e-delay at 1MHz and analyse the result.
Above is adjustment of e-delay to 115ns for approximately s11 phase 180Β° at 1MHz with SC termination.
The phase is correct at 1MHz, but at higher frequencies, it departs. So, the assumption that this TL has phase delay proportional to frequency is invalid. If you look closely, it is not a perfectly straight line, there is a small oscillation superimposed which is a sign of Z0 error. For these reasons, e-delay correction will have error.
Above is adjustment of e-delay to 100ns for approximately s11 phase 180Β° at 1MHz with OC termination.
The phase is correct at 1MHz, but at higher frequencies, it departs. So, the assumption that this TL has phase delay proportional to frequency is invalid. If you look closely, it is not a perfectly straight line, there is quite an oscillation superimposed which is a sign of Z0 error. For these reasons, e-delay correction will have error.
Letβs proceed anyway and look at the error. We will connect the 50+j0Ξ© termination load to the end of the cable and measure with each of the e-delays above.
Above is measurement of a 50+j0Ξ© termination with e-delay calibrated using 100ns e-delay (calibrated to OC termination). Note that the curve is a small circle, a sign of Z0 error and a hint that actual Z0 is about the centre of the circle plotted. Note though that Z0 is frequency dependent at these frequencies for this cable, so you canβt pin a pin on the chart and say this is Z0.
Above is measurement of a 50+j0Ξ© termination with e-delay calibrated using 115ns e-delay (calibrated to SC termination). Note that the curve is a small circle, a sign of Z0 error and a hint that actual Z0 is about the centre of the circle plotted. Note though that Z0 is frequency dependent at these frequencies for this cable, so you canβt pin a pin on the chart and say this is Z0.
At 5.75MHz and:
- e-delay from the SC calibration, Z=45.01+1.25Ξ©; whereas
- e-delay from the OC calibration, Z=45.01-1.26Ξ©.
For some purposes, that might be sufficient accuracy, for others it might be unacceptable:
- Z0 departure is more significant for lossier cables below about 10MHz; and
- in any event loss of tenths of a dB leads to measurable error.
Conclusions
Port extension or e-delay can provide a convenient means of shifting the reference plane given suitable test fixtures, but it is subject to significant error if the underlying assumption of lossless 50Ξ© line is breached.
via the ARRL: ARRL Urges Protecting the Amateur Radio 902-928 MHz Band
Testing the new(to me) rig
Remember yesterday when I mentioned the latest addition to my POTA setup, the Xiegu 5105 QRP rigβ¦.
Well this morning I decided to test it out and see how much work I would have to do with setting the parameters such as mic gain, processor, to make it sound like me⦠I was also testing out my EARCHI 9:1 unun with a 29.5 foot random wire to see how it would play with the built in AT of the 5105.
I figured I might as well do the testing at a POTA location just in case I was able to turn the test into an activation.
For this I chose Fort Frontenac POTA CA-5303. Its fairly easy to get there via the Kingston Transit system and its also close to downtown and all the amenities I might need. In the North East corner of the picture you will notice some white lines on the ground.
They are actually the walls of whatβs left of that part of the Fort. Also the only parts of the Historic Site that is open to the public.
I leaned my MFJ 33 foot mast (supporting the 9:1 and wire in the vertical configuration) up against the tree.
And then ran the COAX over to the remains of the wall and set up my radio there and started operating.
My first contact was on 7.255 with the NCS of the ECARS net. He did hear me and considering I was QRP I was pleased. He did tell me that my audio seemed hot as if I was overdriving things. Lowering my voice seemed to help.
After that I looked at POTA Spots and managed to get W2IDG and VE3FI into the log from their parks and then finished up with the NCS of the MidCars net on 7.258.. All contacts were made on 40m SSB. I tried 20 SSB and was hearing lots of stations including a POTA Activation in VO1 but no luck breaking any of the pileups.
Then I figured it was time to get home and try to re configure the radio to my liking⦠I turned off the Speech Processor and lowered the Mic Gain from 60 to 40. Over the next few days I will get out again and see what else I have to do to get things sounding right.
Till then
73bob
Via the RSGB: RadCom September 2024, Vol. 100, No. 9
via the ARRL: Solar Cycle 25 Producing Record High Sunspot Numbers
via the ARRL: Hurricane Ernesto Updates
Thursday, August 15, 2024 Midday Update:
The National Hurricane Center reports that Tropical Storm Ernesto had become a Category 1 hurricane.
A hurricane warning has now been issued for Bermuda and dangerous rip currents are likely along U.S. East Coast beaches this weekend, August 17 - 18.
Bobby Graves, KB5HAV, Hurricane Watch Net Manager, reports the netβs activation plans:
Friday August 16Β
20 me...
Read more
American Radio Relay League | Ham Radio Association and Resources - Read More
Logs 15 Aug 2024
1625 2027 Radio Torpedojager. SINPO 44433.
1629 2048 Radio Blauwe Fazant. SINPO 34433.
3940 2005 Music Wave Radio. SINPO 54444.
5846 1817 Radio Joey. SINPO 44444.
5880 2055 Radio Rock Revolution. SINPO 44433.
6280 1811 Radio Argus. SINPO 55444.
6295 1801 Mike Radio. SINPO 54444.
6303 1827 Radio Mustang. SINPO 54444.
6325L 2015 Radio Kobus. SINPO 24432.
Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2442 for Friday August 16, 2024
- STARLINER ASTRONAUTS MAY RIDE HOME ON CREW DRAGON
- HAARP RESEARCHERS SEEK HAM INPUT
- HAMS IN INDIA GIVE FEEDBACK ON RADIO RULE PROPOSALS
- NEW SHORTWAVE TRANSMITTER FOR RADIO NEW ZEALAND
- ARCTIC CIRCLE BROADCASTS TO DEBUT AS LONGWAVE RADIO
- US BUSINESS PETITIONS FOR EXPANDED USE OF 900 MHz
- TWO CUBESATS GIVE SATELLITE FANS MORE OPTIONS
- HAMS' WIRELESS TECHNOLOGY WORKSHOP ASSISTS POLICE
- WRTC OPENS BIDDING FOR ENTRY OF SPONSORED TEAMS
- WORLD OF DX
- KICKER: HAM RADIO FAMILY EMBRACES SILENT KEY'S CALLSIGN
via Hackaday: Pi Pico SDR on a Breadboard
Breakaway Pipeline
New RTTY contest β Friday 4th October 2024
I have been emailed details of a new RTTY contest which will run for the first time this year on Friday 4th October 2024. Itβs scheduled for the first Friday of October each year going forward. Itβs called the URC DX RTTY Contest and the rules are pretty standard in that everyone works everyone. The [β¦]
The post New RTTY contest β Friday 4th October 2024 first appeared on QSO365.