[Ham-Mac] Winlink on A Mac

[Richard Rucker]

On Jun 8, 2006, at 10:53 AM, brett wrote:


> Winlink is a proprietary system, and despite numerous requests from  
> the amateur community, closed source.
>

Jim Scott, KG6EFT, recently made a presentation to our chapter (#91)  
of QCWA entitled "Winlink 2000 and Medical Missions to Honduras."  It  
was thoroughly fascinating.  I wrote the story and took the photos  
that are posted under the heading "Recent Events" here:

       <http://homepage.mac.com/rrucker/chapter91.html>

With regard to Winlink, I'll post here what appears there with regard  
to the history of Winlink:

========================
" In the late 1980s, Vic Poor, W5SMM, developed APLink, a DOS-based  
system that relied on HF AMateur Teleprinting Over Radio (AMTOR) to  
deliver AX.25 packets to marine mobiles. When Windows replaced DOS as  
the operating system of choice for PCs, Vic converted APLink to what  
is now called Winlink Classic, and Hans Kessler, N8PGR, enhanced it.  
One of the most important uses of Aplink was during the 1990s Gulf War.

"In the mid-90s, the exchange of e-mail via the Internet became  
popular and the use of amateur packet radio declined. Steve Waterman,  
K4CJX, recognized the need to replace the AX.25 protocols with those  
used to convey Internet e-mail. He talked Jim Jennings, W5EUT, into  
giving it a try. The result was Netlink.

"Jim Corenman, KE6RK, developed a client application for Winlink/ 
Netlink called Airmail. Rick Muething, KN6KB, an ocean sailing  
enthusiast, set up an active mailbox station and later took over the  
programming effort that KE6RK has started. But there were some  
limitations that kept Winlink/Netlink from being a full-fledged  
participant with the Internet

"In 1998, Steve Waterman, Rick Muething, Hans Kessler, and Vic Poor  
met in Cleveland and laid out plans for Winlink 2000 (WL2K). It was  
to be a feature-rich messaging system that would operate over Amateur  
Radio and use the connectivity provided by the Internet where practical.

"Development continues on both WL2K and AirMail. Thanks to the  
efforts of Hans-Peter Helfert, DL6MAA, and Martin Clas, DL6ZAM, the  
inventors of PACTOR, data rates over HF links have been increased  
significantly using PACTOR 2 & 3 radios in lieu of AMTOR. For a  
somewhat dated, but easy-to-read, primer on PACTOR and its  
application to Winlink, see <http://www.airmail2000.com/pprimer.htm> .

"With the help of Tim Rulon of NOAA, the system now provides critical  
weather data to those who need it. With the help of the Seven Seas  
Cruising Association, WL2K and AirMail are now being used worldwide  
by maritime mobile users."
=======================

Given that story, I can believe that some of the hardware used is  
proprietary; i.e., the transceiver controllers used to implement  
PACTOR 2 and 3, units that are only available from the company  
founded by Helfert and Martin Clas:
     Special Communications Systems (SCS) GmbH & Co.,
     Hanau, Germany

But I find it unbelievable that the higher layer protocols, or their  
software implementations for the Windows OS, should or would be kept  
proprietary.  After all, they must conform to the open standards used  
to handle all e-mail over the internet.  Given the widespread  
usefulness of Winlink networking in a wide range of public services,  
it seems unconscionable to me to try to shut out Mac and Linux users  
from joining in and contributing to its growth and usefulness.

So I question the accuracy of the claim quoted above.  Can anyone  
provide a more definitive answer?

Dick Rucker, KM4ML