Jacars2 is a free (as in beer) program designed to connect you to ACARSD servers around the world via the Internet. 
Jacars2 requires the Java runtime environment (JRE) and an internet connection. You are on your own for the connection, but get Java now.
Provided you have the JRE installed, simply unzip Jacars2 and run Jacars2.exe.
A discontinued copy of JACARS 2.0 ACARSD Client software can be donwloaded here.
Chooe your antenna
DL9KCE released a new version of his ICNIRPcalc software that allows you to calculate safety distances for many know amateur radio antennas with respect to ICNIRP limits.
Calculations are done by considering many depending factors, like your Antenna characteristics, Band, Gain, Power Output, Coax Line, additional attenuation and many more.
By variating any of these values a different Safety Distance is calculated.
You can choose by many popular antennas, and I found even my GAP Titan DX antenna… but if you cant find it, you can always create your own antenna, from the File Menu you can choose “Construct your own antenna” and you will be able to put your custom values.
The software is free to use, and is based on a german version, that is much older but suited for German antenna safety regulation, that looks like to be very strict.
I’ve enjoyed playing with varing Output Power, coax cable and band and noticing the changes in EIRP or Ant. Input power… very interesting.
You can directly downoload the software from here or by visiting the IARU Page where the software is hosted under the EMC section.
The ICNIRPcalc is a MS windows application of aprox 900Kb, I’ve tested under Windows XP (running on a virtual machine under my MacOS) and is Multilingual too, having an English German and French translated interface.
Choose your feed line
ip-sound
IP-Sound is a windows based application for audio exchange in a pont to point mode.
It has been designed to work over a TCP/IPv4 network (internet).
The main purpose of IP-Sound is to provide low quality audio 8-16kHz, with low latency for use together with remote control software for amateur-radio amateur equipment.
I’ve used this cool application exactly to test my radio remote control over the internet.
IP-Sound is developed by SM5VXC and can be downloaded fron here IPS-v0.57a
Ham Radio Deluxe 5
Ham Radio Deluxe, a software suite for ham radio operators, become quickly popular among the amateur radio community thanks to the powerfullness of it’s features.
Born mainly as a radio-control tool with the CAT commands interface, it has been joined by a complete log-book tool, and a complete multimode decoding/encoding system named Digital Master 780, and many other accessories like rotor control, mapping tools and interfaces to many ham-gadgets and tools.
HRD permitted to many hams to open their windows to the digital modes, in particular to PSK31 and RTTY. DM780 is in any case an excellent CW decoder as well, and can operate in many other modes, like olivia, packtor, packet, SSTV and many many ham radio digital modes.
Originally developped by Simon Brown HB9DRV, GD4ELI and distributed as a freeware, source code has been sold to HRDSoftware LLC that developed latest versions and release the new commercial version 6.
Since HRD Software LLC announced to dismiss the file hosting of the free version of Ham-Radio-Deluxe 5.x, I’ve decided to host these files for your and mine convenience. Latest available free Ham Radio Deluxe build is the 5.24.38
Google glass are wearable computer, with a built-in Android OS on it, and in this movie N3WG Nick Garner show us a sample application of a ham radio related application written for the Google Glass platform.
Practically Nick is able to remote control an Elecraft KX3 radio via the Pigremote connected via Wi-Fi, of simply give commands to the Android OS to display latest dx spots, or show GMT time.
I already wrote a post some months ago about the first ham radio app for google glass, QSL query by AE5DY, but this app is a real example of a practical implementation of this new google interface.
Well done Nick !
I’ve been asked by some friends about latest windows D-Rats program, since main web site, looks like is off-line or not responding.
D-RATS is a small multi platform application designed to provide digital data communication using the D-STAR protocol.
D-RATS supports text chatting, file-transfer, GPS reporting and mapping
Well, here you can download the latest version of D-Rats for MS Windows (v 0.3.3)
The post D-Rats 0.3.3 Download appeared first on IW5EDI Simone - Ham-Radio.
Last night I’ve finally found the time to start experimenting the new FT8 digital mode, directy from my iMac.
FT8 QSOs
It’s still too early to give a feedback, but I’ve been really impressed by the automatic (auto sequence) mode, that allows automatic QSOs starting from the Calling CQ till the final 73!.
Well, honestly I’ve found it very easy to setup, but also too much automatic, allowing my iMac to conduct several QSOs in behalf of me without requiring my interaction. Absolutely inpersonal and totally asectic.
At the very first, I’ve downloaded the current stable WSJT-X version 1.7, but I’ve suddenly realized that FT8 was not implemented in that version, and therefore I’ve decided to download the 1.8 rc2.
Configuration, required some changes on OSX settings, and a reboot, while the connection to my TS-590S required some tricks. I copied the settings from the RUMlog configuration, and it worked immediately.
TS-590S MacOSX
The post Getting started on FT8 appeared first on IW5EDI Simone - Ham-Radio.
Today I’ve been able finally to make some new QSOs on the air after a short period of QRX.
At the end of the day I decided to upload new QSOs to Lotw fom my RumLog (Mac OSX logbook by DL2RUM), but as soon I clicked on the menu command to “LoTW Out for the selected QSOs” I got the “TQSL Error” message:
I immediately remembered that this happened to me some years ago (3 years ago)
I searched for TQSL.app on my mac, and alog to the app I found also a file namel Tqsl_error_Log.txt
I immediately opened it and one of the latest lines of this log reported the cause of this error… my certificate was not valid anymore!
I then opened the TQSL.app and Clicking on my certificate propertied I discovered, the certificate was expired the previous month !
TQSL : my certificate was expired !
So, I decided to search the web for instructions on how to replace or renew my certificate.
I soon discovered that was not possibile to renew the LoTW certificate, because the certificate renew process is possible only if the certificate is valid.
In case the certificate is Expired, the only way is to request a new certificate.
To request a new certificate I used TQSL
This procedure generated in TQSL a pending certificate request
Pending Certificate request
I then logged in LoTW ati https://lotw.arrl.org/
and selected the Your Account menu voice and thenYour Certificates on the left menu .
the process take some hours, and probably a manual action on the ARRL side, so in the first hours your page will look like this, with a missing certificate on the LoTW page.
Some hours later, less than 24 in my case, you will receive an email from ARRL like this one
Email I received with the new certificate
and my LoTW Account changed to this
My Certificare is Ready
I then created a new folder named OLD and moved the old IW5EDI.tq6 certificare in, and then I moved the new one in place of the old. (in order to not overwrite the old one…. is not requested, but I do recommend it)
Old certificate moved to a new folder
Load New Certificate in TQSL
New Certificate Icon appears and JOB is done
Now the RumLog LoTW Sign and Upload QSOs complete the job Succesfully
Upload LoTW
Rumlog LoTW signed and uploaded my QSOs
The post My LoTW Certificate expired – It did it again! appeared first on IW5EDI Simone - Ham-Radio.
This nice software, developed by WB8RCR let you design and print your own QSL cards, allowing to personalize background, by importing pictures or just filling with a plain color, and let you personalize headings and address as well as your own callsign.
It can import ADIF log file for fields auto-filling during the print process, or allow you to insert directly QSO Data into a table.
It runs on Windows, I’ve tested it on Windows XP, and is completely Free !
The post QSL Maker appeared first on IW5EDI Simone - Ham-Radio.
The Yagi Designer program was first developed in 1992 on a DEC-Vax 3100 and written in Fortran, and the output was graphed in Mathematica 2.0. It has since been converted into a DLL with lightning fast speed compiled in the C language. It was written by a physicist that has always enjoyed dabbling in radio.
Can easily display E-Plane, horizontal radiation pattern, and H-Plane the vertical radiation patters, as well as to display antenna characteristics, in Gain, F/B ratio and feed point resistance and reactance.
The post Yagi Designer 2.0 appeared first on IW5EDI Simone - Ham-Radio.
The post Kenwood TS-570D RCP-2 software appeared first on IW5EDI Simone - Ham-Radio.
Even if outdated, is still a good program to calculate and desing yagi antennas elements dimensions, sizing and spacing.
I’ve used it to verify some antenna plans I’ve found on the net.
It’s particularity is that you at first need to tell the program the size of your antenna and then, you can calculate resonating frequency, expected SWR and optimize the design.
The post YagiMax appeared first on IW5EDI Simone - Ham-Radio.
A freeware dos program by John Agrelius released in early 90’s but still very actual.
It allows to quickly calculate dimensions for Quads antennas, Yagi antenna, Inverted vees antennas as well as J-poles and Traps to extend dipoles band coverage.
Just extract the antmaker.zip file and start the Menu.exe batch file.
The post Antenna Maker appeared first on IW5EDI Simone - Ham-Radio.
Zakanaka, a digital mode decoding and terminal program written by Bob Furzer, K4CY. Bob is also the author of Logger, a logging program with a PSK31 decoding and terminal module that runs under Windows 95/98, Windows 2000, and Windows NT
Was originally intended to decode PSK31, RTTY, and CW. During November 2000, K4CY added RTTY capability to Zakanaka by incorporating the RTTY engine of MMTTY, which was written by Makoto Mori, JE3HHT, into Zakanaka. This changed Zakanaka from a PSK31 program to a PSK31 and RTTY program
Zakanaka includes new and powerful software tools. It can decode three signals simultaneously, and gives radio amateurs information that they can use to help themselves and other amateur radio operators to improve their equipment, adjustments, and operating procedures. Zakanaka exchanges information with Logger, resulting in
· One-click entry of callsigns for use in logging and in macros.
· Presentation of frequency information on the Zakanaka Display (requires a radio that communicates with Logger over the serial port).
· Automatic entry of data from the Zakanaka Rx screen to Logger.
RTTY
Zakanaka uses the encoding/decoding engine of the MMTTY program to operate RTTY. This program was written by Makoto Mori, JE3HHT, and we express our thanks for permission to use this software. If you need a copy of this program, please go to the link shown below in the section on internet links.
Download Zakanaka 1.24 (5.60 Mb)
The post Zakanaka appeared first on IW5EDI Simone - Ham-Radio.
A simple EH Antenna calculator that will help you in calculating turns a spacing of antenna traps
Download EH Antenna Calculator
The post EH Antenna calculator appeared first on IW5EDI Simone - Ham-Radio.
This freeware software performs DSP (Digital Signal Processing) on audio signals received from an input line on your computer’s sound card. It is specifically intended for processing audio signals from short wave, amateur (ham) radios, or any other radio to “clean up” or improve the listening quality of radio signals. It can also improve radio signal quality before the signal is sent to a radio modem or TNC (Terminal Node Controller)
Offer audio recording functionalities.
A logbook feature is incorporated so that radio contacts and transmissions may be recorded (something practically mandatory for ham radio operators and often practiced by short wave listeners as well). There are a great many other features available, just browse through the help file.
To properly use eSoftAnywhere DSP & More you will generally need to run an audio cable from your radio audio output jack to the microphone or other input jack on your computer’s sound card. The Audio Wizard can then fine-tune your sound card audio levels for use by the audio processing features of the software.
By Konrad Byers VE1EXE (sk)
Download eSoftwAnywhere DSP & More (3.8 Mb)
The post eSoftAnywhere DSP & More appeared first on IW5EDI Simone - Ham-Radio.
Oscilloscope, Realtime spectrum analyzer, Impedance meter, RLC bridge and signal generator for Windows. Is a Windows application that converts your PC into a powerful dual-trace signal analyzer (oscilloscope, FFT etc…) . Uses your PC sound card as an Analog-to-Digital a Converter to digitize any input waveform and as Digital-to-analog Converter for the signal generator. True 24 bit adc/dac 48K/96k/192k sampes/sec.
Download Wavetools.zip 4.42 Mb
The post Cobracom – Waveguide appeared first on IW5EDI Simone - Ham-Radio.
Freeware Kenwood TS-870 Control Program developed by EC4DFP
Download TS-870S.Zip (1.7 Mb)
The post TS-870S Remote control appeared first on IW5EDI Simone - Ham-Radio.
KSM Kenwood Smart Memory is a program to read and update the memory channels of a Kenwood amateur radio.
The current supported types are: TS-450S, TS-570D, TS-570S, TS-690S, TS-870S, TS-940S,TS-950S.
Software by PP1ETL has changed various download sites during years.
Kenwood radio memory manager software to manage kenwood radios memories can now be Downloaded from here
The post Kenwood Smart Memory KSM appeared first on IW5EDI Simone - Ham-Radio.
This free application developed by KA1DT is no more developped but still offer interesting features and is just 970Kb.
The post WinPSKse appeared first on IW5EDI Simone - Ham-Radio.
