Category: Amateur Radio

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Amateur Radio Packet – Using Outpost with a software modem

My current packet setup is using the UZ7HO modem software – it seems to work pretty well, and as a software based packet modem it seems to work better than AGWPE since that seems to be a bit temperamental.

I’ve been experimenting using Outpost as a message client via UZ7HO. In the settings (Setup/TNC) on the AGW tab, you can enter an IP address of where your AGW software is running. This is an easy option to connect Outpost with UZ7HO since it can run in network mode. I also typically run a laptop running UZ7HO in my office where my radio is, and then I can connect to it from elsewhere in the house on another laptop.

The first issue I’ve noticed is that if I already have a terminal connected to UZ7HO remotely using my regular call, I can’t connect with Outpost using the same call. I guess this makes sense, and this is where the use of the ‘-number’ suffixes comes in that you commonly see on packet. This is what the error in Outpost looks like if you try and use the same call with no unique suffix:

3/4/2015 10:21:18 PM -- (N2) AGWPE Registration failed. Check for: 1. missing or invalid remote logon/password 2. station ID already in use by another AGWPE application

Ok, so to fix this you could put a number suffix on your call, but then when you connect to a local packet BBS to pick up messages, this doesn’t work as it appears to look for message sent to that matching call+suffix, so I’m guessing the callsign you configure in Outpost really does have to be your real callsign. This means you have to close any other connected terminal apps that you are running at the same time, or, configure the terminal to use a suffix on your call (maybe that makes more sense).

The next issue I’ve run into is that when I connect to a BBS using a terminal app directly, I have the ‘OP’ setting (‘output pause’, I think) set to some sensible number, like 10 lines, so I get the continue/cancel prompt when reading messages, or listing the messages on the BBS. It seems Outpost doesn’t know how to handle this, and will pause forever on message download, eventually timing out and disconnecting. There might be another way to configure this, but the only way I’ve found so far is to connect to the BBS directly, set ‘op 0’ and disconnect. Now when Outpost next connects, it downloads all your messages without interruptions.

 

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Success! Packet Radio via the International Space Station

I think this was my third or fourth attempt, but I just successfully bounced a packet off of the ISS as it passed over this evening – if I understand this right, the red highlighted message is my message as I received it coming back from RS0SS (the callsign for the packet digipeater on the ISS):

2014 12 07 iss packet - 1st contact

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Amateur Radio Packet via the International Space Station (update 2)

On yesterday’s pass I realized too late that the AGWTerminal software doesn’t send unproto packets needed to send packets via the ISS. I’ve now downloaded UISS, got it sent up and checked into the Sacramento Valley Sunday evening packet net, so looks like everything is good to go.

On this evening’s pass, I started sending my cq unproto packets, but looks like I wasn’t heard. I’m wondering after reading around that my ‘via’ value should be ARISS and not RS0ISS that I was using. Apparently your via should be ARISS, but the packets recevied from the digipeater on the ISS will come from RS0ISS. So, will give it another try on the next pass at a good time.

Here’s the packets I received this evening:

Fm K7LWV-6 To APRS Via RS0ISS* <UI pid=F0 Len=47 >[21:08:50]
=4454.96N/12319.98W`Dallas, OR Via ISS {UISS53}
Fm K7LWV-6 To APRS Via RS0ISS* <UI pid=F0 Len=33 >[21:08:59]
:NWS      :Hello from Dallas, OR!
Fm N7HQB To CQ Via RS0ISS* <UI pid=F0 Len=45 >[21:09:04]
=40.637569n/111.931580w/Hello From SLC Utah!
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Amateur Radio Packet via the International Space Station (ISS)

I’ve been meaning to try out packet radio via the ISS packet digipeater for a while. My first attempt the pass was less that 50degrees and I didn’t hear anything during the pass. Tonight there was a 76degree elevation pass – for this try I had my Icom 880 set to 145.825MHz, connected via a Rigblaster to a laptop running AGW Packet Engine. My antenna is just a homegrown 1/4wave vertical in my attic.

All set and ready to go, I started to hear some activity just before the peak elevation. I tried sending my unproto packet, but found out the hard way that AGWTerminal only does connected mode, and won’t send unproto packets. Found a discussion here as well, so I guess this is a limitation of AGWTerminal.

Apparently UISS is the app of choice for working packet via the ISS, but there wasn’t enough time to download it and get it installed in time for this pass.

I did receive some packets though, so although I didn’t get a chance to transmit, here’s what I received on this pass:

1:Fm K6PKL To CQ Via RS0ISS* <UI pid=F0 Len=42 >[21:58:00]
 =3748.51N/12112.44W-Solar Power K6PKL.com
 
 1:Fm K6PKL To CQ Via RS0ISS* <UI pid=F0 Len=24 >[21:58:19]
 >142032zUI-View32 V2.03
 
 1:Fm K7LWV-6 To APRS Via RS0ISS* <UI pid=F0 Len=47 >[21:58:52]
 =4454.96N/12319.98W`Dallas, OR Via ISS {UISS53}
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