I've used TRLog on the same computer since 1998 and never ONCE had it crash
during a contest. Until this weekend, when I had 3 crashes.
Each time, the TR screen disappeared and was replaced by a screen that said,
"EMM386 DMA buffer is too small. Add D=64 to your EMM386 line in
config.sys."
I was using the new release (6.72) with the same PC I've used for the past 5
years. The PC has remained unchanged during this period of time.
I was doing the same thing each time the program crashed: operating S&P in
CW mode, had just typed the other station's exchange info into the exchange
window and then hit enter to send my info. Boom! When I rebooted and
restarted TR, all of the bandmap info was gone.
The first and second crashes occurred during the RAC Winter contest. Don't
recall the QSO number on the first crash but I was in QSO #185 on crash #2.
The third crash occurred during the Stew Perry, QSO number #25. I was using
the bandmap in both contests. By contrast, I made over 700 QSO's in SS CW
using version 6.69 and the bandmap without a problem.
The PC is a Pentium (about a 100) with WIN95 although I was operating in
DOS, not a DOS window.
After rebooting from crashes #2 and #3 I finished each contest operating in
a WIN95 DOS window with no further problems.
One thing that is different in my setup since SS CW: I acquired an
IC756ProII right after SS. Used it in the ARRL 160 (93 QSO's) and the ARRL
10 (206 QSO's) along with version 6.69 and the bandmap without problems.
After the ARRL 10, I switched from serial port keying to LPT port keying, so
I operated this weekend using a different keying interface. Always low
power (100 watts).
Any insight or advice would be greatly appreciated. Three questions that
occur to me:
1. Is something different about the way version 6.72 operates that might
explain these crashes?
2. Could the crashes have been caused by RF interacting with the LPT keying?
3. Should I make the recommended changes to the EMA386 line in my config.sys
file? For the record, here is my config.sys file:
[common]
device=c:\windows\himem.sys /testmem:off
dos=high,umb
DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\EMM386.EXE RAM I=B000-B7FF
device=c:\vcos\rr.oem\dspconf.sys
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DRIVERS\CDROM\OAKV111.SYS /D:CDIDE001 /P:170M /V /M:S
Thanks and 73 de Tim, K9WX
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