[ADXA] JTAlert 2.50.2

[Jay Bromley]

Hi Scott,

The new Windows .NET has been a huge problem for JTA and also the gamer
community for a while now.  Also for the SDR folks.  So far I've not had any
issues with JTA and I have upgraded to the latest on all.  However I don't
use the voice alert.  One person complained about not having the voice
alerts and so I sent him info on how to delay Windows upgrades and drop back
to a previous version of .NET so it would operate correctly.  Really most of
the time it is always best to upgrade to keep current on any software and
firmware..  Some will disagree and that is OK.  The only software I had
issues with as far as anti-virus is with JTA.  You must put an exception for
it and then you are good to go!  I use only the Window 10 Pro anti-virus
which is very non aggressive, but also probably not as good protection wise
as some of the other virus software out there.  Running multiple anti-virus
software is not a good thing either.   

 

You will love the new JTA!  While it does take getting some use to, when you
hover over the calls with your cursor it provides a ton of info without
clicking to other software.  Like do they receive text messaging or
currently online?  The beam heading, LOTW, state, country they are in is all
in there by simply hovering the mouse over the callsign box.  No longer is
it a guessing game or as much of one.  Still on some contacts you need to do
unorthodox stuff to make the contact.  That way you can keep your mouse and
do a quick draw if you need the contact, lol.  

 

73 de jay..

 

From: adxa-bounces at mailman.qth.net <adxa-bounces at mailman.qth.net> On Behalf
Of sbranyan at cox.net
Sent: Wednesday, June 23, 2021 9:32 AM
To: 'ADXA' <ADXA at mailman.qth.net>
Subject: [ADXA] JTAlert 2.50.2

 

It's been frustrating over the past month with JTAlert updates. The
developer redesigned the Call Alert Window in 2.50.1 requiring installation
of Windows NET 5 Desktop Runtime app. I started having issues with the call
alert window closing and opening up when TXing in WSJT-X. WSJT-X would then
crash in at the start of the QSO! 

 

I looked on their group discussion page, and the developer had no help other
than the usual, "It's the antivirus software. Disable it. Norton is
especially bad." OK. I'm not going there. Been down that road too many
times. 

 

Another week or so past and I was still having issues with crashes. Dev said
Windows Runtime had sent out an auto update 5.07 and that was the culprit.
So I uninstalled 5.07 and reinstalled 5.06 runtime. Problem solved until
runtime auto installed 5.07 again. Dev said to turn off auto updates. Sorry,
but if your software doesn't work, it doesn't work. Dev then said to turn
off the sound notifications and that would be a temporary fix. I did as
suggested. But WSJT-X still crashed. So I uninstalled runtime and JTalert.
WSJT-X crashed a few more time until I rebooted. Then it seemed to run
stable. 

 

Yesterday, JTAlert came out with 2.50.2. I installed it last night and
tested it all evening. Smooth as silk. Dev said it was able to address the
issues with a component of Runtime so that it and JTAlert finally play
nicely together. So I am hoping it's resolved. 

 

The new call alert window takes some getting used to but has some nice
features I am still exploring. For one, it has unlimited call alert capacity
so it doesn't stop alerting after the window box fills. You just scroll down
to see more of the window and alerts if there are a bunch all at once. It
does run very smoothly with no hiccups like the most recent versions. 

 

I am a big proponent of keeping windows and apps up-to-date. Sure, there
will be issues, but it's the only way to stay safe online and take advantage
of new features. Small software developers have a big job keeping up-to-date
with windows releases, and this was an example of how it sometimes just
takes patience until the developer can work the issues out. 

 

So last night I was able go back to sound alerts and to chase JW and
XT2AW--unsuccessfully but I had some shots. I did pick up ES and EI on 5W.
So my QRP DXCC pursuit stands at 65 LOTW confirms in mid-April. JTAlert is a
big help to me and I am glad it is back to working well. 

 

One other note. I was listening to FT8 frequencies the other night just to
check propagation. I was surprised how many times I heard JTAlert call
alerts on the freq. So there are hams out there who don't have their audio
settings set right and the windows sounds are TXing on the freq. I heard
this on different frequencies, so it seems to be a general problem. Read the
manual if you have question on this. 

 

Both my audio output and input selections under settings in WSJT-X are set
to USB Audio Codec. And under Windows sound settings, output (speakers) is
set to Realtek High Definition Audio and input (microphone) set to USB Audio
Codec. If your windows output is on audio codec, it will TX your windows
sounds on the air! 

 

That is all.

 

73,

Scott/W5AAJ

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