[ct-user] CT and NETTSR on modern computers - dis_pkt?

[W2RU - Bud Hippisley]

Based on our experience at W2BC this past weekend, I'd say CTWin still has
some limitations that make CT-DOS preferable:

     1.  No DVP capability.  (I like not having to speak at all when
operating phone contests; I haven't seen any other voice keyers that provide
the full capability of the DVP card.)
     2.  No serial port CW keying.  (I happen to prefer serial port keying
because I associate the key line with a specific rig, which is what the
serial port is used for, and the parallel port is _not_ used for.  I build
the keying interface into the IF-232 level translators for my Kenwoods.)
     3.  We found some CW stuttering and/or missed characters or parts of
characters running CTWin on a 2+ GHz HP multimedia machine that was doing
nothing else during the contest except ethernet communications.  Perhaps we
could have adjusted priorities on the PC to minimize or eliminate that
problem, but we didn't have the time or the IT professional available.  I
don't recall ever having a CW timing problem with CT-DOS.
     4.  It appears that some other refinements (such as some of the DEFINE
key capabilities) in CT-DOS have not yet made their way into CTWin.

The last time we ran networked PCs at W2BC we used dual-boot PCs in the DOS
mode, CT-DOS, and the serial port networking interface.  It was a mess of
serial cables but it worked flawlessly.  Previously I had tried to use
Dave's NETTSR, but wasn't smart enough to get it running.

Dave's point about not being able to put a DVP card in a laptop is a strong
one when thinking about the near-term future of logging programs.  The same
goes for disappearing serial and parallel ports.  But USB-to-serial port
devices seem easier to find than USB-to-parallel ones.  The ideal future CT
for us at W2BC would be a windows-based version using ethernet plus a
software implementation of the full DVP function via a PC soundcard, and a
K1EL keying module interface to each rig.  A "splinter" opinion from one of
our operators at W2BC would change that by having it run on a Mac instead of
a PC....

Bud, W2RU   

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Mark Bailey
> > Subject: Re: [ct-user] CT and NETTSR on modern computers - dis_pkt?
> 
> Hi David:
> 
> Actually, no, I hadn't seriously considered that. Simply 
> didn't occur to me.  How stable is it these days?  :-) DVP 
> support obviously doesn't matter on newer hardware, we'll use 
> external voice keyers or DVK's. How's the CW keying under Windows XP?
> 
> Fear of the unknown is also an issue!  :-)
> 
> 73,
> 
> Mark
> 
> 
> David Robbins K1TTT wrote:
> > Have you considered ctwin instead?  It runs in windows, 
> uses the built 
> > in windows networking, and in a laptop the limitation of no dvp 
> > support won't matter.
> > 
> > David Robbins K1TTT
> > e-mail: mailto:k1ttt at arrl.net
> > web: http://www.k1ttt.net
> > AR-Cluster node: 145.69MHz or telnet://dxc.k1ttt.net
> >  
> > 
> > 
> >>-----Original Message-----
> >>From: Mark Bailey
> 
> >>I have decided to try to get CT's ethernet network working on my 
> >>fairly new laptop. I have it dual booting Windows XP and 
> DOS and that 
> >>works great.  The nettsr program requires a DOS packet driver, and 
> >>there are not any packet drivers for a lot of the new 
> ethernet chips.
> >>
> >>There are, however, NDIS2 DOS drivers for the chip I am 
> interested in 
> >>(Broadcom 570X Gigabit Integrated Controller) and an interesting 
> >>little program called a "shim" that translates NDIS2 drivers to DOS 
> >>packet drivers (dis_pkt.dos).
> >>
> >>Has anybody tried this?  Anyone gotten it to work? It looks like it 
> >>SHOULD work... :-)
> >>
> >>config.sys ought to contain something like:
> >>DEVICE=\B58\dis_pkt.dos
> >>DEVICE=\B58\B57.dos
> >>
> >>with an appropriate protocol.ini file.
> >>
> >>(I am actually exploring this for potential use at Field 
> Day next year 
> >>on more modern computers running CT.)
> >>
> >>Help?!?!? :-)
> >>
> >>
> >>Thanks in advance.
> >>
> >>73,
> >>
> >>Mark, KD4D