[Elecraft] K3 - interfacing to N1MM Contest Logging software

[Jim Brown]

On Mon, 29 Sep 2008 09:35:11 -0700 (PDT), Guy, K2AV wrote:



>Barry Pfeil wrote:
>> 
>> 
>> ESCape key - In the configurer, N1MM says that "ESC will not interrupt CW
>> keying via the radio communications port".  But I'm using the DTR line on
>> the single RS232 interface for keying and ESC seems to instantly stop any
>> "F" key-initiated sending.  Am I missing something?
>> 
>> 

>I asked this exact question on N1MM's yahoo reflector not too long ago, but
>did not get a response from anyone.  Last time I tried it, using a <single>
>RS232 cable for CW and CAT, the MM's CW <did> work nicely, but I was NOT
>able to get esc to stop the CW. Don't know if there's a change in MM
>behavior, or whether you and I are doing something different.

>That the principal writers cannot lay hands on a K3 to test things
>apparently is (or maybe was? ) a bit of a holdup.  Since it's a free
>program, there's no corporate research budget for the coders to go buy one,
>other than to wait in line and spend the cash out of their own pocket, like
>everyone else. 

It is a function of how N1MM sends CW -- it runs a separate program that hogs 
the processor, so that almost nothing else can happen on the computer while 
you're sending CW!  I'd call that bad programming, but what do I know. :)  I 
raised this issue, and N2IC, one of the guys who has contributed to N1MM, 
attempted a fix. I beta-tested the code on my 5-year old 1.1 GHz IBM T22 
running SO2R during a recent NA Sprint. It worked, I could interrupt sending, 
I could shift focus from one radio to another, but the CW could best be 
described as "lumbering" -- that is, sort of choppy. Much better -- it's 
stable, no crashes -- but not ready for prime time. 

That software works FLAWLESSLY for a SINGLE radio, including a K3, MP, Omni 
V, and TS850 with CW and PTT on the same cable -- in fact, I've done that for 
five years with both WriteLog and N1MM on that same T22. It's only SO2R that 
chokes it, and it's the way that N1MM (and probably WL) send CW. That's why 
so many guys doing SO2R use the WinKey -- it takes keying outside the 
computer. 

So as far as I can tell, it has NOTHING to do with the K3, and the 
programmers should not need a K3 to solve the problem. They just need to find 
a better way for computers to generate CW. Since I'm not a programmer, I have 
no idea how much of a challenge that is. 

The sad thing though is that the N1MM programmers SEEM to have abandoned the 
idea. If you want to use N1MM and run SO2R, you should voice your concerns to 
them. 

73,

Jim K9YC