I've been runing my TNC for APRS, not sure if I'll ever go back to the old ways. I'm not sure of all of the featuers of the Kenwood TS-2000 TNC, but stand alone TNCs can be on the air without using a computer, IE, you can turn off the computer and still be able to receive messages on packet or act as a digipeater for others. 73 de Joe NE3R