wheatley@inuxi.UUCP (Steven Wheatley) (01/24/86)
Gateway: The ARRL Packet-Radio Newsletter
Volume 2, Issue 10
January 10, 1986
Published by:
ARRL
225 Main Street
Newington, CT 06111
Editor:
Ed Raso, WA2FTC
CANADIAN PBBS
David Toth, VE3GYQ, reports that a new PBBS is operational
in London, Ontario. The PBBS is operating under the call
of VE3GYQ, and is forwarding messages between the eastern
U.S. and the VE3FXI PBBS in Ottawa. David can also forward
messages to the N8BMA PBBS in Detroit, MI and the AD8Y, PBBS in
Ann Arbor, MI. David's plan is to use a second port on his
PBBS for the 145.09 MHz LAN, (Local Area Network) and keep
the primary port on 145.01 MHz.
Via HamNet
PACKET RADIO DOWN UNDER
Brian Wendt, VK4ATI, reports that a group of 15 amateurs
in Brisbane, Australia are now involved with packet radio.
The group will begin regular club meetings after the first of the
year, and hopes to have a PBBS operating within a short time
Ed.
LANDLINE PACKET BBS
A new landline BBS operated by Packet Of New York is now in
operation. The system is intended to assist New York City
hams interested in packet radio and other forms of digital
communications. The phone number of the system is (212) 250-
7090, and is in operation 24 hours a day, except during periods
of maintenance. The BBS uses 8 bits, no parity, and 1 stop
bit. The system supports both 300 and 1200 bit/s operation, and
"auto-bauds" on two carriage returns.
Via HamNet
TNC 2 FIXES
If you are planning on using your TAPR TNC 2 on HF, take
note of the following problem. A "birdie" may appear every
seven kHz on the HF bands. This is caused by the 556
Oscillator/Timer U2. To correct this problem, place a bypass
capacitor between pins 3 and 7 and pins 11 and 7 of U2. The
value of the capacitor does not seem to be critical, and can be
between 0.22 uF and 0.1 uF. This procedure should clear up the
problem.
The following information applies only to TNC 2 Rev 2.
Symptom: The digital loopback test on pages 47 and 48 of the
TAPR TNC 2 ASSEMBLY MANUAL fails. No CONNECTED message is
displayed, or is intermittent. Solution: change R98 from a
4.7 k to a 100 k resistor. Change C10 from a 10 uf to a 47 uf
capacitor. Remember, these mods are for TNC 2, Rev 2 units only.
Via HamNet
KANTRONICS vs. TAPR HF FREQ.
"It is sometimes confusing to Kantronics users to understand
why they are not on the same HF frequency as TAPR users.
The reason is that the TAPR design uses a low tone of 1600 Hz
and a high tone of 1800 Hz. The Kantronics TNC is using a
tone pair of 2025 Hz/2225 Hz. As you can see, this tone
pair is exactly 425 Hz higher then the pair used in the TAPR
TNC. Since the tones are 425 Hz higher, you must tune your
transceiver 425 Hz higher to compensate."
From PacketEar
NNC PROTOTYPE DEBUGGING PROGRESS
We received this status report from Lyle Johnson, WA7GXD, on
the status of the Network Node Controller (NNC).
"The NNC prototype testing is progressing fairly smoothly.
The test unit is chugging away at a system clock of 4.608-
MHz (due to CMOS Z80 A peripherals being available, while B
parts are not).
"Using test code provided by N2WX, I have verified the operation
of one channel of 1 SIO running HDLC data in a digital loopback
mode at a data rate of 76.8kbit/s (it can't hack 153.6k bit/s in
fulldup with the test code). This is polling, not interrupt-
driven. I have also verified that I can talk to both channels of
both SIO/2s.
"Similarly, I have verified that I can talk to both channels of
the PIO and ran a simple test program tonight to drive a
`Centronics' printer.
"I have also written data to and read data from the SCSI chip
(5380) but it is basically gibberish.
"Finally, I have patched the BIOS to support the 4.608-MHz
clock rate and all the software I have written/used is running
on the NNC prototype.
From WA7GXD
SOME THOUGHTS ON BEACONING
"In the last couple of months I've noticed something
that is very upsetting. As the growth rate on our packet-
radio network continues to explode, some very bad operating
habits have emerged. It's not the newcomers fault, it's the
rest of us, the `old-timers,` who are to blame.
"As I watch our local packet frequency (145.01 MHz) my screen
fills with beacons, one station sends his telephone number
every 10 minutes, and digipeats it to boot. We have attempted
in vain to forward traffic from the local W0/RLI PBBS system
to another north of us just three digis away. We can't make
it, even in the dead of night! Our channel is backed up with
redundant beacons. How did I come to the conclusion
that the newcomers are not to blame? Simple, they copy the
old pros.
"I'm not going to argue about how one person's beacon's are
`valid` and others are not. Simply put, if you beacon you add
to the confusion and limit our effectiveness. A true computer
network does not do such things. Sending unconnected frames
into space proves very little. Why not put the beacon traffic on
your local PBBS.
"The Packet community was quick to dump the CW ID; it served no
useful purpose. Beacons in the early days were useful because
stations were far apart, and routing to distance packeteers
was unknown. Now most PBBSs have maps of entire states,
including the entire east and west coasts. Make a hard copy
and put it on your wall. Your local area does not have a map?
Sit down and put one together and upload it to the local PBBS
(if you can get thru the QRM).
"There are other operating techniques that are important:
PACLENGTH, FRACK, DWAIT, and the like. I've just mentioned one
that is destroying a perfectly good mode of operation.
"I'm sure the Christmas holidays brought quite a few folks
packet controllers. These new ops will eagerly jump on the
network. Will they find a usable system, or an environment
that leads to frustration?
"Please turn BE to 0 and set the example. Remember, each
packet station forms a vital part of the network. If you are
not part of the solution then you are part of the problem.
From WB9FLW
IOWA GROUP TESTS SAREX-2 TNC SOFTWARE
"The Central Iowa Technical Society (CITS), with the help of
many Midwest packet-radio operators, has completed testing of
terminal node controller (TNC) software destined to be part of
the next Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment (SAREX-2). This
major component of our next manned amateur radio operation in
space has proven to have the potential of thousands of
packet-radio QSOs with ground stations around the world.
"Software was written by Howard Goldstein, N2WX, of Palm Bay, FL
and tested in a Tucson Amateur Packet Radio Corporation (TAPR)
TNC 2 (Rev 2). It follows SAREX-2 system architecture
developed by a team lead by Dr. Tom Clark, W3IWI, of the Radio
Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT). CITS members
provided an intensive test environment by flying the SAREX-2
packet-radio system in an aeronautical mobile operation,
thereby allowing ground stations in several Midwest states
to provide a significant load test.
"Several new packet-radio operating capabilities are
available in Howard's SAREX-2 TNC 2 software which required
evaluation.
- A `ROBOT` capability allows up to nine simultaneous
packet radio QSOs with ground stations with each QSO
meeting amateur radio requirements for information
transfer and acknowledgement.
- The SAREX-2 operator can create `META` beacons containing up
to seven packets of up to 255 bytes of text each allowing up to
1785 bytes of bulletin information to be repeatedly transmitted
on the downlink every 215 seconds.
- HEARD beacons containing up to 25 call signs from monitored
packets can be used by ground stations to immediately
determine if their packets are being copied in the shuttle,
will be used by the SAREX-2 logging scheme to develop a list
of all stations HEARD during the mission.
- WORKED beacons containing up to 17 call signs and QSO serial
numbers of stations with whom successful QSOs have been
made can be used by groundstations to determine if they
have just completed a successful QSO, will be used by the
SAREX-2 logging scheme to develop a list of all stations
WORKED during the mission.
"Through the efforts of Tom Clark in Washington, D C and
TAPR in Tucson, AZ, PROMs containing Howard's SAREX-2 TNC 2
program were received in Iowa a few days after Howard released
his code. Ten Des Moines area packeteers performed a limited
test which yielded over 400 ROBOT QSOs in one hour. This
initial operation prepared the group for the more intense
aeronautical test which followed.
"On Wednesday, December 11th, CITS members Larry Vandewater,
N0/BKB, Rich Amundson, WA0/JFS, and Ray Knapp, WA2GTM, were off the
ground with the SAREX-2 system shortly after 1900 CST. At the
same time, Ralph Wallio, W0/RPK, opened information nets on
3857 and 1955 KHz to announce test progress and answer
operating questions. A UHF FM link was maintained with the
aircraft which proved its value toward the end of the flight.
"The first SAREX-2 QSO occurred almost immediately and load
increased as the aircraft gained altitude. Although the
SAREX-2 software allowed nine simultaneous QSOs, several
ground stations reported receiving BUSY responses to their
CONNECT attempts. Obviously, this was a very busy system.
"During this one-hour test, several ground stations collected
packets heard on the `downlink` frequency into disk
files which, at the end, contained approximately 154 kbytes
of packets.
"During a measured hour of this test, the system allowed 502
successful QSOs which is considered to be near its maximum
capability.
"Toward the end of the first hour of what was supposed to
be a two-hour mission, the aircraft developed mechanical
problems. The two highly qualified pilots aboard decided to
reduce altitude which meant the flight never made it to
10,000 feet. Unfortunately, this reduced the operating range
to approximately 175 miles eliminating participation by
expectant packet radio operators in the larger but more distant
metropolitan areas of Minneapolis - St. Paul, Chicago and St.
Louis.
"As the aircraft descended toward the Greenfield airport,
the mechanical problem became more serious finally
resulting in a dead-stick landing with the prop totally stopped
(the last UHF FM transmission heard was `... we are a glider`).
"The landing was uneventful, albeit quiet, but the end of the
landing roll left the aircraft and SAREX-2 test crew a long
way from the hanger on a cold Iowa night. Fortunately, the
aircraft was equipped with several forms of two-way radio and a
Greenfield police vehicle was soon on the scne. It was a few
days before the news was out that a 3/4-inch hole was burned
into the wall of a cylinder allowing an almost total loss of
oil and causing total failure of the engine."
From W0/RPK
CALL FOR PAPERS
The ARRL will hold its Fifth Amateur Radio Computer
Networking Conference on Sunday, March 9, 1986 in Orlando Fl.
The conference will be hosted by the Florida Amateur Digital
Communications Association, and held in conjunction with the ARRL
Florida State Convention being held that same weekend.
The deadline for receipt of camera ready papers is February 1,
1986. Contact Paul Rinaldo, W4RI, at ARRL HQ for information on
submitting papers.
From W4RI
DIGITAL COMMITTEE MEETS
On the weekend of December 7-8, 1985, The Ad Hoc Committee on
Amateur Radio Digital Communications met at ARRL HQ. There was
general agreement that the current number one problem in packet
radio is channel congestion. This recognizes that 1200 bit/s
is already too slow to handle the amount of traffic on a single
channel such as 145.01 MHz. Utilizing 9600 bit/s would only ease
the situation for a year or so. The Committee recognized that
congestion could be eased by more channel space, such as
using 145.01, .03, .05, .07 and .09 MHz. A move to higher
frequencies where adequate space is available would ease
congestion on 145 MHz. Greater intercity trunk
capacities are also possible using full duplex.
The Committee would be interested in hearing other ideas and
implementations that could be used to solve this problem.
Ed.
PBBS LIST
The following stations run PBBSs of one nature or another. All
are linked by way of automatic forwarding.
W1AW-4, Newington, CT (ARRL HQ station)
K1BC, Lexington, MA (145/220 GateWay)
N1DL, Sudbury, MA (HF/VHF GateWay)
KE1G-1, Goffstown, NH
N1DKF, Cranston, RI (145/220 GateWay)
WB1DSW, E. Kingston, NH
WA1LRL, Brighton, MI (HF/VHF GateWay)
KD1R-1, Milton, VT
W1ZHC, Mattapoisett, MA
KC2FF, Tampa, FL
WA2FTC-1, Newington, CT (HF/VHF GateWay)
WB2MNF, Medford, NJ
AI2Q, Freeport, NY
WA2RKN-2, Hyde Park, NY
WB2RVX, Pennsauken, NJ
WA2SNA-1, Wayne, NJ
KC2TN, Atco, NJ (HF/VHF GateWay)
WA2VKH, Carlstadt, NJ
N2WX-1, Palm Bay, FL
KC3BN, Harrisburg, PA
KC3BQ, Skaneateles, NY
WB3EYB, Harrisburg, PA
K3GYS, Atco, NJ
W3IWI, Clarksville, MD (145.01 / 145.05 GateWay)
K3MC, Pittsburgh, PA
AK3P, Hummelstown, PA
KS3Q, Baltimore, MD
WA3QFN, Margate, FL
K3RLI, Wilkes Barre, PA
W3TMZ, Mount Airy, MD
W3VH, Arlington, VA
K3VPZ, Granite, MD (HF/VHF GateWay)
K4AHO, Orlando, FL (HF/VHF GateWay)
WD4BRF, Stuart, FL
N4CI, Atlanta, GA
KB4CIA, Port Charlotte, FL
K4EID, Knoxville, TN (HF/VHF GateWay)
KF4JF, Hahira, GA (HF/VHF GateWay)
NK4K, Miami, FL
W4KAU, Cohutta, GA
KD4NC, Sweat Mtn., TN
K4NGC, Woodbridge, VA
K4NTA, Stuart, FL (HF/VHF GateWay)
KC4OI, Powell, TN
K4OZS, Ocala, FL
WX4S, Johnson City, TN
WA4SZK, Florence, SC (HF/VHF GateWay)
K4TKU, Miami, FL (HF/VHF GateWay)
KI4XO, Marietta, GA (HF/VHF GateWay)
WB4ZNW, Moultrie, GA
WB5BBW, Houston, TX
WA5MWD, Garland, TX
WB5VUL-1, Palo Alto, CA
W5XO, Gause, TX (HF/VHF GateWay)
W6CUS-1, Richmond, CA
WA6ERB, Lakewood, CO (HF/VHF GateWay)
KD6SQ, Rancho Cucamonga, CA (HF/VHF GateWay)
KE7CZ, Dewey, AZ
WB7DCH, Enumclaw, WA (HF/VHF GateWay)
K7PYK, Scottsdale, AZ (HF/VHF GateWay)
N8BMA, Detroit, MI (145/220 GateWay)
KB8CI, Cleveland, OH
N8FJB, Harpers Ferry, WV
WB8WGA, Gahanna, OH (HF/VHF GateWay)
WB8WKA, Southfield, MI
AD8Y, Ann Arbor, MI
K0/HOA, Colorado Springs, CO (HF/VHF GateWay)
WA0/JFS-1, Des Moines, IA
KC0/OJ, Battle Creek, IA
NA0/P, Ames, IA
KI0/Q, Ames, IA (HF/VHF GateWay)
KC0/QJ, Walsenburg, CO (HF/VHF GateWay)
W0/RLI, Westford, MA (145/HF GateWay)
W0/RLI-1, Westford, MA (145/220 GateWay)
NA0/S, Ames, IA
AI0/Z, Roland, IA
LA6OCA, Skien, Norway
VE3FXI, Ottawa, ON
VE3GYQ, London, ON
ZF1GC, Grand Cayman Is.
From W0/RLI
REPRODUCTION OF GATEWAY MATERIAL
Material may be exerpted from Gateway without prior permission,
provided that the original contributor is credited and Gateway is
identified as the source.
[EOF]