My desk is a bit of a mess now that I have two transceivers sitting on it. I mocked up a shelf with some spare ¾” wood and comp sci text books as end pillars and it is very functional. Monitor, power supply and VHF/UHF on top, HF underneath. So now I need to build it for real.
Risen
As a new Ham (aka amateur radio operator) I was interested in HF from the start. After studying the available transceivers a bit I narrowed my choice down to either the Yaesu FT-991a or the ICOM IC-7300 .The 7300 seemed the better choice due to its more user friendly interface, superior touchscreen, some better processing as well as a larger body of community support. I definitely have not regretted the choice in the 1 month I have owned the radio.
When researching the radio, and as a newbie, I tried to find out what software was available for each brand and whether there were versions I can run on my MacBook Pro. Windows is by far the most popular platform in ham radio and most of the info (YouTube etc) is targeted there. However it turns out there are good choices for Mac users (and Linux too).
One key piece of software for HF is one that can handle contact (QSO) logging. I found two main contenders: RumLogNG (free) and MacLoggerDX ($95). Free always sounds like a good deal so I initially used RumLogNG and was happy with it. In addition to logging it can directly control the 7300 (tuning, RF power setting, noise reduction setting and so on). However I was making a lot of new contacts hence doing a lot of logging and RumLogNG is only semi-automated for uploading to QRZ, eQSL and so on. Also, RumLogNG has very limited support. I tried MacLoggerDX in demo mode and although it lacks the rig control of RumLogNG I found the logging automation, DX spotting and overal user interface implementation superior. Support email was answered within an hour so I made the plunge. As with the 7300 I’m happy with the switch though I do miss rig control. On the plus side this forced me to better set up my desk (shack in ham parlance) so everything is now more ergonomic.
The 7300 is trivial to use with the Mac. Simply plug in a USB cable and configure the software to port. Here is a screen shot of MLDX configured for my 7300. Most settings are default.
The 7300 settings need to be correct for CAT control as well. MacLoggerDX has a page with the details but it isn’t so easy to find. The details for each radio are here.
In my next post I want to document the software and settings I’m using for HF digital modes like FT8 and JS8Call.
Putting the last couple of pieces in puzzle #6
Lovely bit of sky from the back porch. Sadly this is the leading edge of a storm front coming through in a couple hours.
I can’t put a finger on why but I feel much more energetic and upbeat today. Maybe Good Friday has something to do with it. 🐣
A couple years ago I added defensive assets to my portfolio for the first time. The crash was a good stress test. I spent this morning evaluating how well they did. They worked to some extent but not as well as I wanted so I’ve identified some replacements today. Yea, I’m a nerd.
COVID-19 timeline:
9:00pm last night, wife says she smells French fries
9:01pm last night, wife is in the kitchen making French fries (air fryer)
Note: they were especially tasty!
This morning I was greeted by sunrise while exercising, song birds aplenty and the sweet smell of honeysuckle permeating the air.
Also, it was nicely chill this morning and the high will be 20F cooler than yesterday’s 97F.
We had a high of 97F here today beating the older record by 4F.
Die virus DIE!!! 🦠
Found object: a hat
Damn it! I think I have to stop using the exercise trail. Some people just won’t enable social distancing on the trail. Couples mainly as apparently they have to go side-by-side taking up enough room of 3 or 4 people and won’t move over 😠🏃🏻
In the context it may sound nuts, but I feel I have so much to be thankful for. None of us has symptoms, we have corners in the house for me time, we don’t need to leave the house for more than groceries, we all have things we love to do at home, … Trying to focus on this.
Starting a few days ago several of my devices stopped being able to pull weather data from one of my sources. I finally had a chance to investigate and it’s due to a SSL change by Cloudflare. Not sure these old devices can meet the requirement.
The past ~2 weeks I broke my rule of only checking news twice a day. Changes were happening fast and with the Trump admin so slow to react I was anxious to see what was going on. But now the slow motion train wreck simply has to play itself out. Twice a day checks are enough.
My wife has started work to sew some cloth face masks using scrap material on hand.
We’re not going out, except when we need groceries. She almost agreed to me getting take out from a local restaurant for tonight’s dinner but changed her mind.
My wife just yelled JACKPOT from across the house.
Turns out she found some Clorox wipes hiding in the back of a cabinet. 🎰
Grocery store observations: Toilet Paper and Paper Towels available but not ~Kleenex. Popcorn gone. Peanut butter and bread gone (except some crappy stuff). Otherwise ample supplies. Customers wearing masks and gloves. Employees wearing neither.
Well, volunteers in my area’s emergency radio groups got a meeting notice today. I thought it would just be a general comms check but instead it was an official notice we’re to be on standby. It’s prudent the precaution is being taken now. Sobering too.
Oh and puzzle #4 is now complete.
I posted this 1 year ago today - and it applies 1000x more now than then!
This Financial Times Headline cracked me up this morning: April Fool’s Day Cancelled Due To Current State of Reality
The school announced today that the kids will not be graded in the normal way for the remainder of the school year. Teachers will basically use their judgement to assign a score of 0 (didn’t turn anything in at all) to a 4. No GPAs. It’s pretty subjective. 🤔 🏫
I have to wonder what the heck Amazon’s algorithms/execs are doing. I ordered a few new books for the 11 year old and they’re already arriving today. These were not life critical yet more important stuff can’t get through their warehouse ?!?
Hope
In other news, it just dawned on me that Dark Sky is closing their API and I use that API in several projects. At least they gave a lot of heads up so I have time to change my code to another source. ☁️