[CQ-Contest] World Contest Station Database -- new and improved

[Pete Smith]

At 09:44 AM 12/9/01 -0000, EI8IC wrote:
>
>The database entry-form may be fixed, but what about the output ??????????
>
>If I want to see what other stations are doing, I have to (a) know their
>callsign, and (b) enter it into to the 'Query Database' box. One station at
>a time ! Quite frankly, this is stone-age computing, Pete !!

>From a stone-age Web programmer, Tim.  I'm working right at -- some would
say beyond -- the edge of my current knowledge.  As I learn, I'll improve
things.

>
>If you want to make this database useful, you, or your database-guru, might
>like to think about a variety of display options, such as:
>* List all stations in a specified country
>* List all stations in a specified CQ or ITU zone
>* List all stations with antennas on, say, 160m.
>* List all stations with towers over 100' high
>* List all stations using the xxxxx transceiver or amp
>
>etc. etc. etc.
>
>This shouldn't be too difficult with today's software tools..

A lot of folks feel the database is very useful as is, Tim, but I'm well
aware it could do a lot more.  I'm exploring adding some of the tools you
describe.  For example, listing stations with antennas on 160 (and what
they are) is easy.  Specifying the country and zone would require building
in a cty.dat file to perform that lookup, which may be doable.  It will
probably never be possible to do quantitative searches like "towers over
100 feet high" because the data are not in the database in sufficiently
consistent form.  I can do searches for make of transceiver or amp, or
model number, but only if the data are in there in the form sought.  If
you've been exposed to SQL you'll appreciate the complexity of the problem.

My "database guru" has, out of sheer kindness, written a utility for me to
do the upgrading.  He can doubtless be helpful with some of the other
issues, and I'm sure he will be, but he doesn't get paid for this...

Thanks for the ideas, Tim.


73, Pete N4ZR
www.qsl.net/n4zr


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