[Elecraft] P3 - is it stable?

[Bruce Beford]

Hi, Bill.
 
The P3 is a very stable product. There are, from time to time, minor bug
fixes incorporated into firmware (note the use of the word "minor" here).
 
The recent rash of email activity is around a major enhancement that is in
field trial right now. That is the newly activated keyboard port on the
P3SVGA option card. I feel somewhat partly responsible for this recent
flurry of (mine doesn't work, is it supposed to work this way, etc) posts. A
week ago, I mentioned that new firmware appeared in the P3 Beta folder on
the Elecraft FTP site. Many Elecraft users look at these folders on a
regular basis, to see if new beta firmware has been released for the various
products. Sometimes new beta firmware files appear there before a general
announcement is made to the list, for those who would like to try it. Trying
beta firmware and reporting back on it's operation or any bugs noted is
completely optional. Many people wait for firmware to be promoted to full
"Production Release" status before loading it.
 
Anyway, back to the recent situation. On July 20th, new beta firmware
appeared in the P3 folder. I made an announcement to the list, as an
official one had not been made by Wayne or Eric. I assumed the announcement
was just missed before the weekend. As the new firmware included
long-awaited capabilities, I posted a notice to the list. What I later found
out was that this firmware was in fact "Field Trial" level, for those few
who had actually signed up in advance to test new releases of P3 firmware. I
would call this "Alpha" rather than "Beta" firmware. It was not intended for
release to the general user base. In the past, Field Trial firmware has not
been posted to the beta FTP folders. I believe it was distributed via
private email to the FT team.
 
So, in my zeal and excitement about the new firmware release, I
inadvertently made available the FT firmware to a wider audience than it was
intended to reach. I have apologized to Paul Saffren N6HZ, the primary
developer, and indicated that I will not make any announcements about beta
firmware in the future. 
 
If anyone IS trying this firmware in their P3, and has feedback on it's
behavior, Paul has asked that it go directly to him via pauls at elecraft
dot com
 
So, in summary, the P3 is stable, but continues to evolve as features an
capabilities are added. I highly recommend it.
 
73,
Bruce, N1RX
 
 
> While my K3 is in California being repaired, I have been considering the 
> P3 as an addition when it returns. I already have the board installed in 
> my K3.
 
> Having watched the many posts regarding the P3, I have to ask: Is the P3 
> a stable device with well defined software?
 
> I ask, as I do not want to purchase something that requires a lot of 
> fiddling to use and becomes a later disappointment.