[TRLog] Alt D in SO2R

[Dale L Martin]

> On Sun, Nov 05, 2000 at 12:47:17PM +0000, Clive Whelan wrote:
> >
> > I notice that sometimes entering a call after Alt D in two radio
> > mode actually halts the CQ on the run radio, but other times it
> > doesn't.
>
> N5KO is here doing the SS and he is not seeing this or
> as least not often enough to say it does this.
> He said he might have seen alt-d get in some "confused state" but
> it could just be Trey's confused state.
>
> How often can you make it happen?
>
>

I used alt-d extensively during the SS---CQ on radio1 and s&p on radio2;
being QRP, the S&P radio was the more active radio. :-)

What I noticed was that if I tried to do an Alt-D near the end of a CQ
(alt-Q or alt-c/f1), the next CQ run would not start until I had entered the
call and hit <enter>.

I did notice the bar with the countdown showing some strange stuff, but
don't recall what made it happen (basically, the end of the message before
the countdown timer just had a couple of numbers in the area where the end
of the sentence once was.).  It would come and go and I never really noticed
when it happened or even when it went away and the bar contained the normal
auto CQ info.

There was a time when I went to Ctl-J menu and came back.  All the info at
the top of the screen between the top 'toolbar' and the the log was gone:
remaining mults; qso needed box (why does "SSB: all" get highlighted for all
QSO's made during the CW SS?  Why is it even there for the CW contest?)

Then while I did something 'normal' -- probably actually working someone, I
noticed the info had returned.

What would be handy is that the auto CQ resumes after making a QSO.  It
seems like an extra step to have to restart the auto cq.   There were times
when I forgot to do it and went merrily S&P'ing on radio2 not realizing the
one CQ after the completed QSO had gone, but no others followed.  I 'lost'
at least one frequency by forgettng to restart the auto CQ.

It's nice to know Trey is sometimes challenged by that mode, too.  Makes me
feel much better.

There were times my fingers were dancing around like crazy trying to stop
some action that I start3d and meant to stop...  Thank goodness the guy on
the other end only had to work me once in the contest...had he experienced
that end of it on more than one band, he'd be convinced that I'm a klutz on
the keyboard.


Now, explain to me, please, why is it that you can sit there with auto CQ
going for a dozen cycles and just when you find a station to work on the S&P
radio, check the call with alt-d and press the spacebar just as the outgoing
CQ finishes, there's a station calling you on the CQ radio???  This happened
about a dozen times...I was gettng suspicious that there was something more
than a CQ SS and my call in the CQ message telling other stations to hold
off and really make KG5U look (more) goofy.

Suggestion to those who may find themselves in similar straits:

Forget the guy you found on the S&P radio and work the calling station.  It
didn't take me long to realize that the QSO's I had lost (and there were
about 8 or 10) might not and likely would not be there when you're finished
with the S&P station and may likely not come back to find you later.  "bird
in the hand...."

Otherwise, it was great SO2R in this contest.

73,
dale, kg5u







>


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