On Sat, 5 Jun 2010 07:31:12 -0400, "Flying Pig"
wrote:

That is, unless the connection deteriorates along the way, starting at mid
thousand, but deteriorating to low hundreds. In those cases, since I'm
unwilling to risk having the entirety go poof, at the cost of all those
amps, let alone my need to babysit it, I break it up, post all the segments
but then unpost all but the next in line, and deal with it like that.

Propagation has not been good lately but should start improving again.

If I try, I can usually get a Winlink connect at 1400 bytes/sec which
is a fairly good rate, even for longer messages. We download a 25K
GRIB file every day, usually with no problems. Winlink is very good
about piecing together broken messages. If the GRIB transmission
deteriorates to below 600 BPS, I disconnect and try another PMBO
gateway station. Winlink automatically picks up where it left off and
completes the transmission. It's a great service and a good example
of how ham radio can still be useful in the 21st century.

maybe this will help explain?



http://science.nasa.gov/science-news...10/04jun_swef/

http://science.nasa.gov/science-news...10/04jun_swef/

As the Sun Awakens, NASA Keeps a Wary Eye on Space Weather
NASA Science News


Richard Fisher, head of NASA's Heliophysics Division, explains what it's
all about:

"The sun is waking up from a deep slumber, and in the next few years we
expect to see much higher levels of solar activity. At the same time,
our technological society has developed an unprecedented sensitivity to
solar storms. The intersection of these two issues is what we're getting
together to discuss."

The National Academy of Sciences framed the problem two years ago in a
landmark report entitled "Severe Space Weather Events - Societal and
Economic Impacts." It noted how people of the 21st-century rely on
high-tech systems for the basics of daily life. Smart power grids, GPS
navigation, air travel, financial services and emergency radio
communications can all be knocked out by intense solar activity. A
century-class solar storm, the Academy warned, could cause twenty times
more economic damage than Hurricane Katrina.

Much of the damage can be mitigated if managers know a storm is coming.
Putting satellites in 'safe mode' and disconnecting transformers can
protect these assets from damaging electrical surges. Preventative
action, however, requires accurate forecasting - a job that has been
assigned to NOAA.

"Space weather forecasting is still in its infancy, but we're making
rapid progress," says Thomas Bogdan, director of NOAA's Space Weather
Prediction Center in Boulder, Colorado.

....

For more information about the meeting, please visit the Space Weather
Enterprise Forum home page at http://www.nswp.gov/swef/swef_2010.html.

Author: Dr. Tony Phillips | Credit: Science@NASA

"Wayne.B" wrote in message
...

If I try, I can usually get a Winlink connect at 1400 bytes/sec which
is a fairly good rate, even for longer messages. We download a 25K
GRIB file every day, usually with no problems. Winlink is very good
about piecing together broken messages. If the GRIB transmission
deteriorates to below 600 BPS, I disconnect and try another PMBO
gateway station. Winlink automatically picks up where it left off and
completes the transmission. It's a great service and a good example
of how ham radio can still be useful in the 21st century.

Interesting, indeed. Is there a setting for that, or is that perhaps just
downloads?

It's always uploads which are troublesome for me (don't download all that
much) and EVERY time I make nearly all the way through - including ALL the
way through other than the handshake/confirmation at the end - and I lose
the connection, it starts over from the beginning on my next successful
connection....

L8R

Skip, off Shroud Cay

--
Morgan 461 #2
SV Flying Pig KI4MPC
See our galleries at www.justpickone.org/skip/gallery !
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"You are never given a wish without also being given the power to
make it come true. You may have to work for it however."
(and)
"There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in
its hand. You seek problems because you need their gifts."

(Richard Bach, in Illusions - The Reluctant Messiah)

On Mon, 7 Jun 2010 22:20:12 -0400, "Flying Pig"
wrote:

If I try, I can usually get a Winlink connect at 1400 bytes/sec which
is a fairly good rate, even for longer messages. We download a 25K
GRIB file every day, usually with no problems. Winlink is very good
about piecing together broken messages. If the GRIB transmission
deteriorates to below 600 BPS, I disconnect and try another PMBO
gateway station. Winlink automatically picks up where it left off and
completes the transmission. It's a great service and a good example
of how ham radio can still be useful in the 21st century.

Interesting, indeed. Is there a setting for that, or is that perhaps just
downloads?

It's always uploads which are troublesome for me (don't download all that
much) and EVERY time I make nearly all the way through - including ALL the
way through other than the handshake/confirmation at the end - and I lose
the connection, it starts over from the beginning on my next successful
connection....

The speed settings are adaptive based on signal strength and error
rates. Use only Pactor 3 mode (P3) if at all possible. I rarely do
large uploads so I'm not sure if they will pick up again from where
they left off. Downloads most definitely do that however. Try
November Zero India Alpha in Deltona on 80 meters in Pactor 3 mode.
He's slow to connect but very solid.

On Mon, 7 Jun 2010 22:20:12 -0400, "Flying Pig"
wrote:

Skip, off Shroud Cay

If you have not yet done so, take your dinghy through the northern
most creek on Shroud Cay to the east side, find the trail, and climb
the hill. It's a great dinghy ride and a great view - best done at
high tide.

"Wayne.B" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 7 Jun 2010 22:20:12 -0400, "Flying Pig"
wrote:

Skip, off Shroud Cay

If you have not yet done so, take your dinghy through the northern
most creek on Shroud Cay to the east side, find the trail, and climb
the hill. It's a great dinghy ride and a great view - best done at
high tide.

No kidding. At low tide, it's a very long walk to get there :{))

Had a lovely dinghy ride up the mangroves yesterday early evening, but
grounded this morning before gettng in the entry...

N0IA is one of my frequent tries; I have no current need for him, but
I'll
remember about the long connect times.

My pactor is set for III but it bounces around depending on tx/rx
strength...

L8R

Skip

--
Morgan 461 #2
SV Flying Pig KI4MPC
See our galleries at www.justpickone.org/skip/gallery !
Follow us at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheFlyingPigLog
and/or http://groups.google.com/group/flyingpiglog

"You are never given a wish without also being given the power to
make it come true. You may have to work for it however."
(and)
"There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in
its hand. You seek problems because you need their gifts."

(Richard Bach, in Illusions - The Reluctant Messiah)

On Fri, 11 Jun 2010 19:24:20 -0700 (PDT), Skip Gundlach
wrote:

My pactor is set for III but it bounces around depending on tx/rx
strength...

Assuming that your hardware is configured properly, Pactor 3 mode is
selected in the "frequency" pull-down of the Airmail Terminal window.
For example: 3580.0(P3)

If the frequency selection is not followed by (P3), you will not
connect in Pactor 3 mode.

Do you have the latest firmware loaded in your Pactor controller? I
upgraded mine last year and found that it improved my connection
speeds. You can download the latest version he

http://docksideradio.com/Firmware_update.htm

It is also important to have the Pactor audio output level set
correctly - too high and it causes distortion, too low and you are not
transmitting at full power.

Here is the process description from the Airmail help function:

Setting Audio Levels:

It is important that the audio output level from the Pactor mdem (TNC)
is set appropriately. Unless direct FSK keying is used, the modem
generates the audio signal that gets transmitted by the radio in SSB
mode. If the audio level is too low then the output power will be
reduced and communications will suffer. If the audio level is too high
then the transmitted signal will be full power but may be distorted,
perhaps severely, causing interference over a broad range of
frequencies. Besides being prohibited by regulation, such
"splattering" is also quite un-neighborly. The good news is that
setting the transmit audio level is relatively easy.

First, locate the adjustment. The PTC-II-family modems have
software-settable audio output levels which can be set from AirMail
using either the Options Window or the special audio-level toolbox
from the Terminal Window (Set Audio Level from the Control Window).
The KAM-98 and KAM-XL modems have software-settable audio levels,
adjusted via the modem's CAL command (use AIrmail's Tools/Dumb
Terminal window). The KAM+ controller uses an internal trimpot, R28,
and a jumper (J9) to select a high or low range. The PK-232 and MFJ
controllers use externally-accessible trimpots.

Also keep in mind that for many transceivers, the front-panel Mic gain
control is also active for the rear-panel audio input connection (even
though the Mic my be disabled), so be sure the Mic control is set to
the usual position before adjusting the controller.
To set the audio level you need to be transmitting. The objective is
to transmit full power, or close to it, without over-driving the
transmitter and requiring the ALC (Automatic Level Control) to crank
the power back, this is what causes distortion. Most ham transceivers
have built-in power-output meters as well as an indication of ALC
level.

First, find an unused frequency and start transmitting using Unproto
mode (Xmit Unproto from Terminal Window's Control menu). Starting from
a minimum audio level, increase the audio level and watch the
transceiver's output power meter - the power should smoothly increase
to the maximum level, or close to it, with no increase on the ALC
indicator. As you increase the audio level further, the output power
will no longer increase and the ALC will begin to increase instead.
Back off the adjustment until the ALC is near the bottom, well into
the "green" range, and the power-output about 60% of maximum. Click
the disconnect button to stop transmitting. Repeat this check on all
of the bands used as there may be differences. (If the differences are
large it may be an indication of RF feedback - see RF Isolation).

For a PTC-II controller there is a second audio level adjustment for
the Pactor-2 phase-shift (PSK) modulation. The PSK setting is
typically about 30% higher than the FSK level. Selecting PSK Unproto
will transmit a PSK signal and the PSK level can be adjusted as above.
Note that the average output power will be lower, this is because PSK
is a complex waveform and while the peak power is the same, the
average power density is about half of the peak.
Marine transceivers typically do not have an ALC meter, but the method
is the same. Increase the audio level until the output power level is
close to maximum and stops increasing, and then back off slightly. If
there is no output power indication, a DC ammeter provides an
excellent indication of output power. A transmitter putting out 100
watts will draw about 20 amps from 12-volt supply, and a marine
transceiver will draw up to 30 amps when putting out 150 watts. So
increase the audio level until the indicated current stops increasing,
and then back off to around 80 watts- 15-20 amps. .

Reducing the audio level, and operating with less output power, is
much better than too high a level and a distorted signal. The effect
of reduced output power is much less than one might expect. Your
signal will be reduced by one S-unit by dropping the power to half; in
other words to S-6 instead of S-7. A strong signal will still be a
strong signal, and a marginal signal will be only a little weaker.
Choosing the right time and frequency for good propagation, and
minimizing any on-board electrical interference will have a much
better payoff than trying to squeeze the last watt out of the
transmitter.

AirMail Help ©1997-2006 Jim Corenman

Hi, Wayne, and list,

"Wayne.B" wrote in message
...
Assuming that your hardware is configured properly, Pactor 3 mode is
selected in the "frequency" pull-down of the Airmail Terminal window.
For example: 3580.0(P3)

If the frequency selection is not followed by (P3), you will not
connect in Pactor 3 mode.



Excellent pointer. I'd not been aware of that utility. I just did a scan
and saw the ones which have that (p3) after them as they went by. I'll try
to limit my tries in the future to those.

Currently, of course, as you're seeing this, we are blessed with a
connection off the northwest corner of Allens Cay, so telnet is nearly
instantaneous, but I'm not blessed with such largess (that's a lady large,
of course) in the middle of a passage :{))

Do you have the latest firmware loaded in your Pactor controller? I
upgraded mine last year and found that it improved my connection
speeds. You can download the latest version he

http://docksideradio.com/Firmware_update.htm

Just did that, too - mine was 3.9.x of the 3.3 build, now it reads 4.0


It is also important to have the Pactor audio output level set
correctly - too high and it causes distortion, too low and you are not
transmitting at full power.

I've done that, before. My marker was that the tx bar on my 802 never got
to the end, but about 2/3 of the way...

L8R

Skip, off to dive some more, then other activities Wilbur thinks are TMI
:{))

--
Morgan 461 #2
SV Flying Pig KI4MPC
See our galleries at www.justpickone.org/skip/gallery !
Follow us at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheFlyingPigLog
and/or http://groups.google.com/group/flyingpiglog

"You are never given a wish without also being given the power to
make it come true. You may have to work for it however."
(and)
"There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in
its hand. You seek problems because you need their gifts."

(Richard Bach, in Illusions - The Reluctant Messiah)



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