[Ham-Mac] Digital Interfaces and TNCs

[Chuck Counselman]

At 1:07 PM -0600 12/14/03, R M Greenwood wrote:
>...Any suggestions as to what digital interfaces work well with 
>recent Macs (USB ports only and OS X) would be appreciated.

With my 15-inch aluminum PowerBook G4 1 GHz running OS 10.2.8, a 
Keyspan USB Twin Serial Adapter, model USA-28X B ($79.99 + shipping 
from Zones.com on 11/3/2003) works flawlessly, was no trouble at all 
to install, and is totally effortless to use.  It's substantially 
more convenient than having two old-style printer/modem serial ports 
on my Mac ever was.  It was recommended to me by another ham who uses 
it with a KAM XL TNC in "host" mode.  I use it with a KAM XL TNC in 
dumb serial mode, with MacTNC 1.2, a nice "dumb terminal" program 
with a split window (so you can type or paste into the outgoing 
half-window while received text is scrolling up the incoming window). 
Both "software" (XON/XOFF) and hardware (CTS/RTS) handshaking work 
fine (up to the KAM XL's limit of 38400 bps), and I have no trouble 
running MacTNC and the KAM XL simultaneously with lots of other app's 
including email and web-browsing app's that are using TCP/IP via 
AirPort.


>Also, any advise on TNCs (especially small ones for portable use - 
>emergency/public service) for packet would be appreciated.

I like my KAM XL.  It's not the smallest but it's smaller than my 
PowerBook and there's an awful lot packed into in it, and it can do 
an awful lot, including working in many modes and running HF and VHF 
radios simultaneously on different ports.  Its built-in tuning 
display is useful.  IIRC, it draws about 0.1 A at 9-18 VDC.

My main gripes are that Kantronics' documentation is both incomplete 
and out of date; and their email tech support is _worse_ than 
useless.  So far I haven't found either of the two online forums, 
<http://www.kantronics.com/elmer/index.cgi> and 
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/kantronics/>, to be much help, either; 
but at least they don't cost anything.

-Chuck, W1HIS