At 10:29 AM 3/30/02 -0700, Stan Gantz wrote:
> This problem is on the WPX 'test.....When entering a call, after
> pushing just the space bar as usual, the bearing and sunrise/sunset do
> NOT come up as in every other 'test I have used NA on, It ONLY comes up
> AFTER I have entered the contact, and of course is of no benefit then. I
> need to know where to aim my rotor (by hand). As I said earlier all
> works fine on say ARRL DX 'test by entering "F=10" then it works for
> every query before entering, But NOT on WPX!!!
> I must be doing something wrong, but after reading the manual, I
> can't understand what I am not doing right! HELP!!
Stan,
You're not doing anything wrong. However, your description of what NA is
doing in WPX is not completely correct, either.
If you check a callsign with a prefix you've already worked, NA does show
the beam heading and sunrise/sunset times. However, if you check a
callsign with a prefix that has not yet been worked, this data is not shown.
Omitting this data was not intentional, however there is a reason behind
it. WPX is different from most contests, including ARRL DX that you
mention. When you start operating in ARRL DX, you know all the possible
multipliers you can work (i.e., DXCC countries). In WPX, there is no list
of multipliers - the prefixes are added as you work them. So when you
enter a callsign that has a prefix you have not yet worked, you can't check
it because its not yet a multiplier.
To put it another way, you're asking NA to find the beam heading for a
callsign, not to check a prefix. The two are not necessarily the same thing.
Not to put too fine a point on it, but the F10 window has worked this way
in WPX for ten years. During that time I can count on one hand the number
of people who have commented about it.
Having said all that, you do raise a good point and it would be an
improvement to be able to find the beam heading data in WPX for a station
which you've not yet worked. I've gone in and fixed the code so it does
work that way now.
I don't know whether you (or anyone else) is checking e-mail during the
contest, but if you want a copy of this new NA, drop me an e-mail and I'll
send it to you. I'll e-mail just the NA.EXE file to save time.
I've also improved the colors in the ANNOUNCEMENT WINDOW. See the separate
e-mail here on the reflector.
73,
Dave Pruett, K8CC
DATOM Engineering
datom@contesting.com
http://www.datomonline.com
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