[WriteLog] PC Generates

[Hal Kennedy]

I could not agree with Wayne more.  IMHO Vista and Win 7, particularly
the 64 bit version that many corporate environments will not allow in
the front door because its buggier than a flea circus, will cause you
lots of grief for things like CW keying.  

The shack logging computers at N4GG continue to be 1 GHz P3s with four
serial ports and a real LPT port, running WIN 2K professional.  They
have performed perfectly for 10 years.  Never a blue screen, never a
glitch, never a chopped character.  They have been tested with 100K QSO
logs, SCP on, telnet on, call check on and a 6000 station history file
running and they respond instantly.  They have no virus checkers - they
don't need any - they are never allowed on the internet except to pull
spots.  Downloads are done on one of the home computers and moved across
the home network to the logging machines.

You can buy one of these for $100 at this point, or drag one out of your
closet.  Newer is not better, particularly when it comes to uSoft OS's
and hardware which continues to delete any remaining rational I/O.

Just one guys opinion - but I spend zero time troubleshooting computer
issues around here.

73 Hal N4GG
   

-----Original Message-----
From: writelog-bounces at contesting.com
[mailto:writelog-bounces at contesting.com] On Behalf Of W. Wright, W5XD
Sent: Wednesday, November 10, 2010 5:36 PM
To: writelog at contesting.com
Subject: [WriteLog] PC Generates

I don't want to sound uncooperative here, but at least 20 years have
passed 
since "PC Generates" was first a reasonable idea. Even from the
beginning on

Windows 3.1 there were applications and drivers (as I remember it was 
network device drivers in particular) that could lock down a machine for

more than the 5 msec to 10 msec that is enough to disrupt the sound of a
CW 
transmission. It was not easy to track them down and eliminate them.

Now there are virus scanners, ethernet adapters and who knows what else
in an endless list of intrusions possible on a Windows box that can
prevent an application from getting the 5 msec response time required
for PC Generates. There are even very subtle programs that use operating
systems hooks to consume resources under Windows while at the same 
time removing themselves from ability of the operating system's
monitoring
tools to show they are even present. (When was the last time you
saw your virus scanner in Windows Task Manager taking up a measureable
CPU load? Be a while? there is a reason. And it is NOT because it 
no longer needs CPU to do its job.)

I have come to the end of my ability to catalog and track down those
things and will, in fact, be uncooperative on this count: if 
"PC Generates" doesn't work on your machine, I am very sorry. But its
time for you to consider some other mechanism to generate CW. Or
get yourself an old ME or XP machine and NEVER install any new
software are hardware on it. (Where NEVER also means no Microsoft
security updates--they can--and have--caused subtle performance issues
as well).

On the other hand, I have to add that any hardware you buy new today
to solve this problem will likely have a K1EL Winkey underneath. It
remains possible that WriteLog is driving such hardware improperly
and I am especially interested in understanding and tracking down any
issues with those drivers. 

Wayne, W5XD

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