[Elecraft] K3 port sharing and FT-8

Wed Jun 12 22:17:29 EDT 2019

Yep, that's the best solution. I built a winkeyer clone with an Arduino
Nano, and it works great.
Thanks for a fine piece of software Tom. It is well worth the price of
admission and a key component in my shack.
73 de W0ZF

On Wed, Jun 12, 2019 at 5:09 PM Tom <elecraft.list at videotron.ca> wrote:

> Managing the DTR and RTS over 6 virtual computers all running in separate
> threads and on the radio introduces lots of potential incompatibilities
> between applications where one might expect a different signal than the
> other and so on.  Fortunately, all applications that I am aware of support
> software PTT or allow you to use a different comport for PTT.  You can make
> such an adapter easily with one resistor and a transistor on an RS232 port.
> In the case of N1MM+, using DTR to send CW when there are 6 other
> applications running is impossible since it relies on precise time for the
> dit's and dah's.  So the solution is a WinKey for CW.  You can buy one for
> under $40 these days and well worth it.
> 73 Tom
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net <elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net>
> On
> Behalf Of Dave Fugleberg
> Sent: June 12, 2019 9:08 AM
> To: M. George <m.matthew.george at gmail.com>
> Cc: Elecraft Mailer <elecraft at mailman.qth.net>
> Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 port sharing and FT-8
>
> I would echo what Max said. I use Win4K3 whenever the K3 is on in the
> shack,
> but seldom use its graphical interface. The virtual radio concept works
> extremely well.
> As he said, software that expects to connect directly to the K3 has no idea
> that Win4K3 is there. I did find one caveat to this while testing it during
> my trial period... I used to send CW from the computer by toggling DTR on
> the K3 serial port. With Win4K3 in the mix, this did not work. Tom told me
> that direct control of those hardware handshake lines was not supported.
> I was so happy with everything else it does that I bought it anyway and
> switched to using a winkeyer.
> I don't know whether that limitation still exists or not...just throwing it
> out there in case it matters to your use case.
>
> On Tue, Jun 11, 2019 at 11:05 PM M. George <m.matthew.george at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> > Wes, I wanted to jump in where Tom mentioned my YouTube video of
> > sharing Virtual K3 CAT feeds with Win4K3Suite
> > <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbf7BPfcj4U>.
> >
> > I'm just like you, I like to turn the knobs primarily.  Don't be
> > confused by the graphical interface that Win4K3Suite provides as it
> > relates to sharing your K3/S CAT feed.  Early on I purchased the
> > software primarily for the ability to share full on Virtual CAT Feeds
> > and not the graphical interface.  The CAT sharing is just one aspect
> > of Win4K3Suite.  The PAN Adapter support and graphic interface are
> > simply additional features you can use if you like.  And for remote
> > operation the graphical interface is excellent as you will learn if
> > you operate remote.  Or just minimize Win4K3Suite and don't use it...
> > twist the knobs on your radio and just use the CAT sharing via the
> Virtual
> K3 CAT feeds it provides.
> >
> > I would highly recommend that you watch my video.  It's very
> > detailed... to a fault some will say, but you can jump ahead by 10
> > seconds and back using the L and J keys and pause with the K key.  Or
> > jump ahead 5 seconds and back with the arrow keys and pause with the
> space
> bar.
> >
> > I too used LP-Bridge many years ago and it did work, but it isn't even
> > in the same ball park for reliability as Win4K3Suite for sharing CAT
> Feeds.
> > Not even close.
> >
> > The beauty of :Win4K3Suite is that it creates true Virtual K3/S CAT
> feeds.
> > The software or hardware you are using has no idea it's not connected
> > directly to the K3/S CAT port / USB CAT port direct.  No funky API's
> > like Hamlib or Omni-rig that requires software support to use the
> > abstraction layer required.
> >
> > If there is hardware or software that expects to be connected directly
> > to a K3/S CAT port / feed, it will work with Win4K3Suite Virtual K3/S
> > CAT interfaces.
> >
> > Watch the video and give Win4K3Suite a try.
> > <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbf7BPfcj4U> The com0com port setup
> > trips most guys up, but you have the same problem with LP-Bridge too.
> > I go into great detail on com0com in the video.  It's not bad once you
> > understand the concept. You won't go back to LP-Bridge... my two
> > cents.  And again, you are not required to use the graphical interface
> > to the K3 for anything, but you might just start using it after awhile,
> for remote control like I did.
> > Not to mention all the other features... like using it with LP-PAN2 or
> > SDRPlay.  I switched from NaP3 long ago and never looked back.  By the
> > way, i'm a big N8LP fan too... I love the LP-PAN2 setup and LP-700,
> > but NaP3 plays second fiddle to Win4K3Suite's spectrum display and you
> > can now pump a UDP feed of the spectrum to N1MM too... Have fun.
> >
> > Max NG7M
> >
> >
> > Tom,
> >
> > I've downloaded and tried your program several times (perhaps that why
> > your site won't let me do it again).? Nothing personal, but I just
> > don't like running the radio from the computer that much.? I know that
> > flies in the face of my desire to tune (sometimes) the frequency with
> > the mouse on the panadapter.?
> > Otherwise,
> > I like the knobs.? That said, your mention of Omni-rig got me thinking
> > and I installed it and at first blush it appears that I can now
> > connect everything to everything else using LP-Bridge.
> >
> > I'll call this the beta test stage, but did want to put this out there
> > for the folks who said it would work.
> >
> > Wes
> >
> >
> > On 6/11/2019 4:00 PM, Tom wrote:
> > > Hi
> > > 7 years ago, I tried to write some small software projects that used
> > LPBridge to share ports. I quickly found out that it does not pass all
> > commands through the radio. In addition, there were many cases of
> > collisions between software products if they tried to write to the
> > comport at the same time.
> > > So, a long story short, I developed Win4K3Suite.
> > > It is completely different than passive comport sharing utilities.
> > > It
> > has 6 "Virtual radios" that act pretty well identical to the K3, KX3
> > or KX2.  It listens to commands from software products and then
> > delivers results either from memory or if a write is necessary, then
> > all threads are synchronized and prioritised so that one application
> > cannot clobber the other.
> > > You can run 6 applications simultaneously as well as HRD Logbook.
> > > It
> > also works with hardware devices like SteppIr antennas and tuners.
> > Here is a video from Max, NG7M who uses it extensively to connect all
> > kinds of software and hardware together. https://youtu.be/zbf7BPfcj4U
> > > It does use com0com, but not as a sharing tool but rather com0com
> > actually behaves just like a null modem cable.  You create a Pair of
> > comports which form a null modem cable and you connect one side to
> > Win4K3 and the other to the other software.  It is 100% reliable and
> > tested with thousands of users.
> > > There's a free trial and updates are free.  There are numerous
> > > videos
> > under Documentation, Video Tutorials.
> > > In any case, I would not use HamLib for connections.  Always use
> > Omni-rig.  Much more stable.
> > > 73 Tom
> > > Va2fsq.com
> > >
> >
> > --
> > M. George
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