[Dx4win] CW function-key with USB RS232 emullation

[Larry Gauthier (K8UT)]

Oops... my mistake. I did not read the posting closely enough. The problems 
I described were with a "standard" PC serial port, not a USB-derived serial 
port.

My apologies,

-larry
K8UT
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Radivoj KAR" <radivoj.kar at chello.fr>
To: "'Larry Gauthier (K8UT)'" <K8UT at charter.net>
Sent: Sunday, November 14, 2004 2:56 PM
Subject: RE: [Dx4win] CW function-key with USB RS232 emullation


> Hi Larry,
>
> Thanks for this info. But what is strange is that CW works ok on RS232 
> port
> and also with WinTest contest software on the USB port that emulates 
> RS232.
> The problem is only with DX4WIN and USB port, which indicates that the
> DX4WIN software routines were written differently than the one for WinTest
> (which is in C++).
> 73,
> Radi F6GNZ
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Larry Gauthier (K8UT) [mailto:K8UT at charter.net]
> Sent: Sunday, November 14, 2004 12:41 PM
> To: radivoj.kar at chello.fr; dx4win at mailman.qth.net
> Subject: Re: [Dx4win] CW function-key with USB RS232 emullation
>
> I had this problem 3 years ago with DX4WIN CW keying on a Dell Pentium 800
> MHz computer. NOTHING I did with this computer solved the problem -- load,
> unload, install, reconfigure, new versions of Windows, BIOS upgrades, old
> and new versions of DX4WIN -- nothing fixed it.  The problem turned out to
> be a strange timing-related software issue with the computer, CPU chip 
> set,
> the BIOS, and the serial port driver.
>
> I solved it with a different (slower!) computer.
>
> Bon chance,
>
> -larry
> K8UT
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Radivoj KAR" <radivoj.kar at chello.fr>
> To: "Paul van der Eijk (E-mail)" <pvander at erols.com>
> Cc: "DX4WIN Reflector (E-mail)" <dx4win at mailman.qth.net>
> Sent: Saturday, November 13, 2004 5:19 PM
> Subject: [Dx4win] CW function-key with USB RS232 emullation
>
>
>> Hi Paul,
>> I have purchased  very fine and versatile Micro-Keyer (MK) from OM7ZZ
>> (www.microham.com ), which allows full computer control, Iambic keying,
>> CW/PTT and PSK/Packet/RTTY/SSTV interfacing with my FT1000MP (and other
>> modern rigs) over the USB port of the laptop (many new laptops today do
>> not
>> have RS232 comports). The MK uses a program that emulates RS232 COMports
>> over the USB port, without need to manually define the IRQ's.
>>
>> I have configured DX4WIN preferences on my Win2000Pro Pentium III 1GHz
>> laptop (the same one that was used to control radio via RS232 ) to use 
>> now
>> the COM4 for radio control and COM5 DTR/RTS for CW and PTT keying.
>> Everything works fine as before (when I was using COM1 RS232 for radio
>> control, CW and PTT keying), except one thing:
>>
>> The messages stored in buffers of the CW function-key keyer of DX4WIN are
>> now being sent with a lot of errors: omission of dots, replacement of
>> dashes
>> by dots, change of spacing/weights...
>>
>> The examples (changing randomly):
>> F6GNZ becomes --> R6GNZ, R6GIZ, F6RNZ..
>> F6EPY --> F6PY, R6EPY..
>> UP --> AG, AP
>> QRZ --> QNZ....
>>
>> I first thought the problem could be  either in the USB/RS232 driver
>> software or within the micro-Keyer software. But, I found that with
>> another
>> (contest) logging software (WinTest by F5MZN), installed on the same
>> laptop,
>> there is no problem nor distortion of CW strings sent from its function
>> buffers over the USB interface. I tried to inhibit all other programs
>> running in the background, but still no improvement of DX4WIN CW keying.
>> So
>> ,I suppose DX4WIN uses some different software routine for CW keying than
>> WinTest.
>>
>> As the issue may have a similar impact on the future non-RS232 port
>> provided
>> PCs, which would use USB/RS232 emulators to interface DX4WIN with rigs,
>> would you please give me your thoughts on the above, and let me know if
>> the
>> issue is dependent on the USB driver program used, and if yes, do you
>> suggest using a particular one. I could use the internal MK CW buffers to
>> store message strings, but it won't be able to read and insert the
>> correspondent's callsign nor automatically log the QSO, like it can be
>> done
>> by the use of the DX4WIN buffers in CW pileups.
>>
>> Thanks in advance for your help.
>>
>> 73,
>> Radi  F6GNZ
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
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>
>