[SD-User] Re: Oddities in SDC 10.14

[Martin Davies G0HDB]

On 14 Mar 2004 at 12:00, sd-user-request at contesting.com wrote:

> Reply-To: Paul O'Kane <paul at ei5di.com>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Martin Davies G0HDB" <g0hdb at amdavies.demon.co.uk>
> 
> > I worked the HQ station GB5CC on 40, 20 & 15m.  SDC flagged up the
> > QSOs on 40m and 15m as earning bonuses, but not the 20m QSO. 
> 
> Can't explain that at the moment - SDC seems to be working OK
> here. Please send me your .ALL and BERU.CTY files and I'll do
> some more tests.

Hi Paul (and everyone), it's most odd - I've just re-edited the entry in my log 
(and hence in the .ALL file) and the first QSO with GB5CC, on 20m, is now 
flagged as a bonus!  I changed the call from GB5CC to GB5HQ; this was 
recognised as a bonus and then when I changed the call back to GB5CC it 
remained showing as a bonus.  When I did the same thing last night it had no 
effect!  I'll send you the .ALL file if you wish; the BERU.CTY file is as per the 
V10.14 release.

> > When using the keyer (driving LPT1) I noticed that the speed
> > of the Morse was varying slightly when a string of characters
> > was being sent.
> 
> This often happens when SD/DOS (or SDC) is run in a DOS
> window (or full-screen) while Windows is running.  In my
> experience, there is no variation in speed if the computer is
> started in MS-DOS Only mode.  Of course, if you were running
> in "pure" DOS, then I need to do some more testing.

The problem's not a Windoze-related one - I don't use the aforesaid O/S for 
my radio PC.  All my packet and logging s/ware (SD for contests, LOG-EQF 
for general everyday logging) runs under a variant of DOS (OpenDOS 
V7.03); this permits task switching but only one task is active at a time so 
there *shouldn't* be any interaction between them.  I usually run paKet 6.2 in 
one virtual DOS 'session', with its own full-screen window, on the PC with the 
logger in another, and switch the tasks (a two-key combination) when I want 
to toggle between the apps.   Apart from the one earlier release of SD that 
exhibited Morse speed variations I've never before noticed any problems with 
running SD in this environment.

I've just rebooted the PC, to make sure that the effect was still there on a 
'clean' machine and it was.  Interestingly, the Morse speed variation effect 
seems much less pronounced (or even non-existent) when CWTEST is on 
and the Morse is being emitted by the PC's speaker.  Is there perhaps a slight 
difference between the code that drives the speaker and that which drives 
the LPT1 port for keying the rig?

--
73, Martin G0HDB