[PaQSO] P A Q P Logging

Tue Oct 9 23:05:48 EDT 2012

I used KA3JWE's program until it wasn't supported anymore either.  I think
it would have worked fine for my needs even today, as I didn't care about
the digital modes.  Hmm, maybe the points are a bit different now which
might be another problem.  Maybe there were other changes that wouldn't
allow it to work quite right for me, but it's capabilities for county-line
entry were GREAT! as well as great graphics that were specific to the
PAQP.  Anyway, I used it until it "timed out" and wouldn't let me use it
anymore, but was a great PAQP specific program.  Too bad t isn't supported
any longer.  But, rather than trying to go back, let's look to the future
and what is out there today (or at least my review from previous years
investigations):

I had some experience with W3KM's logging program which I used for
VHF/UHF/Microwave contesting for a few years.  Great program, but for some
reason I never used it for PAQP.

Moving forward I think the year after JWE's program stopped working I tried
WB3W's pre-contest and quickly abandoned it due to previously mentioned CW
timing.  Maybe it is better now, but I'm not going back down that path
again.  That year instead I tried N3EQF's logging program for one year.
That worked fairly well, but now it isn't Tom's program anymore and I'm not
sure if it is good, better, worse or whatever.  I wrote the .DAT files for
the Mid-Atlantic QSO Party myself to support that and forwarded those files
to Tom for the first year of that contest.  If it works as well and
supports PAQP sufficiently I would recommend that program as my #2 pick.  I
recall having some sort of problem with it toward the end of the contest
which may have been a memory problem or hard disk space problem or
something strange, probably not related to the program directly, but I did
lose several potential QSOs during the last hour of the contest that year.
I think it took me at least 15 minutes to resolve once I realized what was
going on and had to scramble to write down a couple of QSOs on paper (oh,
the hardship of paper logging!) and then edit the real log later with those
details.

After that I switched to N1MM, thanks to a great recommendation by Skip,
K3CC, prior to him moving from Lehigh to Potter.  When Skip showed me that
program I was amazed!  I use it for nearly all of my contest logging.   I
had started using N1MM Logger prior to using it for PAQP but I think the
only reason I didn't use it during PAQP that one interim year was due to
the fact that it didn't directly score correctly, which has since been
corrected.  The work around was simple enough and I should have bit the
bullet sooner!  Now it is my only go-to contest logging program and has
definitely made me a better contester with increasing score totals year
after year for a variety of contests, going from very casual contesting to
more serious over the past several years. There are a plethora of features
that I have not yet begun to discover and likely may never need.  If some
of you have never tried it, check it out!

My best advice, though, is to pick a program that is familiar and capable
for your needs.  Get familiar with it before the contest.  Practice various
scenarios so that you know how to deal with "odd" entries or having to edit
contacts in the heat of the moment.  Keep a pad of paper handy for notes
along the way just in case.  I've also discovered that rather than trying
to take too much time to describe exactly when a DUPE occurred that it
might be better to just log it and let it show up in the log as a DUPE.
You are not penalized for having log entries that are noted as a dupe (as
far as I know) and it would show 0 points as a dupe (in N1MM at least).  I
think that only one of those contacts would count, and if the first one
doesn't, then the second one might (even if noted as a dupe if the first is
eliminated because it is not logged correctly in the other person's log).
Seriously, I've learned over time, especially on CW, that just logging a
DUPE is easier than convincing the other station that he needs to correct
his log somehow!

Otherwise, GL everyone, and I hope to work you all for a clean sweep this
year!

73,

Mark, NK8Q
/MIF this year!

On Tue, Oct 9, 2012 at 10:03 PM, Ray Bilger <w3tdf at ptd.net> wrote:

> Hi Blair, & the rest of the PAkQPppp  group.
>
> I loved the  KA3JWE  logging program, which I am proud to say, I helped
> Don develope the code generation, but since so many changes having
> occured,m
> making his program outdated, I had to bite the bullet.
> Spent a bit of time with N1MM and wouldn't trade it for a bottle of 25 yr
> old
> scotch. That little trick of using 'right-click' and edit out the number
> sounds
> like a real winner.
> 73
> de  The Grump
>
>
>
>   ----- Original Message -----
>   From: k3yd at aol.com
>   To: w3tdf at ptd.net
>   Sent: Monday, October 08, 2012 9:12 PM
>   Subject: Re: [PaQSO] P A Q P Logging
>
>
>   What does the GRUMP like?
>
>   73 de k3yd
>
>
>
>   -----Original Message-----
>   From: Ray Bilger <w3tdf at ptd.net>
>   To: PA-QSO <PaQSO at mailman.qth.net>
>   Sent: Mon, Oct 8, 2012 8:33 pm
>   Subject: [PaQSO] P A Q P Logging
>
>
> My opinion is that  WB3W is great for code-less operators.
>
> Take my word for it, the code generation is not good.
>
> GL All
>
> The Grump
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