[Dx4win] Is there a blacklist feature for Cluster spots?

Wed Jul 24 21:21:36 EDT 2013

So question is why does Frank do this?  Was it requested by some 
individuals?  Anyone who wants to follow the RBN spots can do so.  I 
have yet to meet anyone sho says, "hey, this LPL software is a great 
feature,"  however, I've spoken with many who find it very annoying.

Barry W2UP

On 7/24/2013 08:20, Pete Smith N4ZR wrote:
> I have been corresponding with Frank off and on for a couple of years 
> about this.  Here's an explanation of how hisspots are generated, from 
> December 2011.  The only change I know of since then is the addition 
> of a "heard in [state]" comment earlier this year:
>
> "Automated CW DX spots from W3LPL are produced by custom software that 
> monitors the DX spots from the Reverse Beacon Network, a global 
> network of CW Skimmers. There are no radios involved except at the 
> approximately 50 CW Skimmers that originate the DX spots sent to the RBN.
>
> Core to the software is a list of one thousand rare and semi-rare DX 
> callsigns. Each callsign has an appended DX spotting rule that 
> specifies the bands that should be spotted for that callsign and the 
> re-spotting interval (typically one to three hours).
>
> When a DX spot is received from the RBN, it is compared to the list of 
> 1000 calls. If there is an exact match, the software then waits for a 
> second RBN spot of the same exact callsign. If one or more of the 
> spots originated from a CW Skimmer in the USA, the DX spot is sent to 
> the DX Cluster network as specified by the DX spotting rule appended 
> to that callsign. If neither RBN spot originated from a CW Skimmer in 
> the USA, the software continues to search for an RBN spot for that 
> exact callsign from a CW Skimmer in the USA. If within ten minutes it 
> receives a DX spot for that exact callsign from a USA CW Skimmer a DX 
> spot is sent to the DX cluster network, otherwise it times out and no 
> spot is sent.
>
> Most CW Skimmers use a Quicksilver QS1R SDR, covering seven ham bands 
> simultaneously. My QS1R is fed by my transmit monoband phased arrays 
> on 40 thru 6 meters, and by my Beverage antennas on 160 and 80 meters. 
> Please send me an email whenever you see a bad callsign spotted by 
> W3LPL. That always means there is a bad callsign in the list of 1000 
> calls! tks"
>
> 73, Pete N4ZR
> Check out the Reverse Beacon Network at
> http://reversebeacon.net,
> blog at reversebeacon.blogspot.com.
> For spots, please go to your favorite
> ARC V6 or VE7CC DX cluster node.
>
> On 7/24/2013 8:03 AM, Kurt Zimmerman wrote:
>> Thanks all for the info. I use DX4WIN and I can see how that could be 
>> a problem.
>>
>> 73;
>> Kurt -W2MW
>>
>> Sent from my iPhone4
>>
>> On Jul 23, 2013, at 7:33 PM, Barry <w2up at comcast.net> wrote:
>>
>>> Pete - I believe, until recently, they were from around the world, 
>>> as the band and times made no sense for US stations - even for LPL 
>>> antennas.
>>>
>>> Kurt -  You are missing something.  Many of us keep DX4Win on in the 
>>> background with an audio alert set for new band-countries.  It's 
>>> very annoying when these spots alert us to something that doesn't 
>>> exist in our part of the world.
>>>
>>> Barry W2UP
>>>
>>> On 7/23/2013 15:55, Kurt Zimmerman wrote:
>>>> What is a skimmer? I've seen W3LPL spots and if I'm on the band and 
>>>> hear the DX station I work him.
>>>>
>>>> Am I missing something?
>>>> 73
>>>> Kurt - W2MW
>>>>
>>>> Sent from my iPhone4
>>>>
>>>> On Jul 23, 2013, at 5:41 PM, Pete Smith N4ZR <n4zr at contesting.com> 
>>>> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Not quite right, Jim - they are from NA Skimmers only, and for 
>>>>> several months now, the location where the station was heard has 
>>>>> been appearing in the Comment field
>>>>>
>>>>> 73, Pete N4ZR
>>>>> Check out the Reverse Beacon Network at
>>>>> http://reversebeacon.net,
>>>>> blog at reversebeacon.blogspot.com.
>>>>> For spots, please go to your favorite
>>>>> ARC V6 or VE7CC DX cluster node.
>>>>>
>>>>> On 7/23/2013 4:51 PM, Jim Reisert AD1C wrote:
>>>>>> On Tue, Jul 23, 2013 at 11:57 AM, Andreas Junge N6NU wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Use the VE7CC “CC user” cluster filtering tool. There is a 
>>>>>>> switch to turn on/off Skimmer spots.
>>>>>> Actually, they do not come in as skimmer spots.  CW Skimmer spots 
>>>>>> are
>>>>>> identified by -# at the end of the spotter callsign.  I have CW
>>>>>> Skimmer disabled, but still get the W3LPL spots.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> W3LPL has such a great antenna farm, I can't hear his spots even 
>>>>>>> when they
>>>>>>> are from MD.
>>>>>> Spots arriving from W3LPL originate from CW skimmers all over the
>>>>>> world, not just in MD.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> -- 
>>>>>> Jim Reisert AD1C, <jjreisert at alum.mit.edu>, http://www.ad1c.us
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