diff --git a/doc/user_guide/en/make-qso.adoc b/doc/user_guide/en/make-qso.adoc index fb3ed4110..da4c0ada5 100644 --- a/doc/user_guide/en/make-qso.adoc +++ b/doc/user_guide/en/make-qso.adoc @@ -82,7 +82,7 @@ fully automated QSOs. [[CONTEST_MSGS]] === Contest Messages -The new FT4, FT8, and MSK144 protocols support special messages optimized +The FT4, FT8, and MSK144 protocols support special messages optimized for *NA VHF* and *EU VHF* contests. FT8 also supports messages for *ARRL Field Day* and the *ARRL RTTY Roundup*. The decoders recognize and decode these messages at any time. Configure the program to diff --git a/doc/user_guide/en/new_features.adoc b/doc/user_guide/en/new_features.adoc index fc44dccab..4bc78be2d 100644 --- a/doc/user_guide/en/new_features.adoc +++ b/doc/user_guide/en/new_features.adoc @@ -3,31 +3,32 @@ *Improvements to decoders* *FT4:* Corrected bugs that prevented AP (_a priori_) decoding and/or -multi-pass decoding in some circumstances. Improved the algorithm for -AP decoding. +multi-pass decoding in some circumstances. Improved and extended the +algorithm for AP decoding. *FT8:* Decoding is now spread over three intervals. The first starts 11.8 s into an Rx sequence and typically yields around 85% of the -possible decodes, so you see all of these decodes much earlier than -before. A second processing step starts at 13.5 s, and the final one -at 14.7 s. Overall decoding yield on the most crowded bands is -improved by 10% or more. Systems with receive latency greater than -0.2 s will see smaller improvements, but will still see many decodes -earlier than before. In FT8 DXpedition Mode, AP decoding is now -implemented for Hounds when the Fox has a compound callsign. +possible decodes, so you see most decodes much earlier than before. A +second processing step starts at 13.5 s, and the final one at 14.7 s. +Overall decoding yield on crowded bands is improved by 10% or more. +Systems with receive latency greater than 0.2 s will see smaller +improvements, but will still see many decodes earlier than before. SNR estimates no longer saturate at +20 dB, and large signals in the passband no longer cause the SNR of weaker signals to be biased low. Times written to cumulative journal file ALL.TXT are now correct even -when the decode occurs after the T/R sequence boundary. +when the decode occurs after the T/R sequence boundary. In FT8 +DXpedition Mode, AP decoding is now implemented for Hounds when the +Fox has a compound callsign. + *JT4:* Formatting and display of averaged and Deep Search decodes has been cleaned up and made consistent with other modes used for EME and -extreme weak-signal work at VHF and above. +extreme weak-signal work on microwave bands. *JT65:* Many improvements have been made for averaged and Deep Search -decodes and their display to the user. For details see <> -in the <> section. +decodes, and their display to the user. For details see <> +in the <> section of this guide. *WSPR:* Significant improvements have been made to the WSPR decoder's sensitivity, its ability to cope with many signals in a crowded @@ -36,37 +37,24 @@ three decoding passes. Passes 1 and 2 use noncoherent demodulation of single symbols and allow for frequency drifts up to ±4 Hz in a transmission. Pass 3 assumes no drift and does coherent block detection of up to three symbols. It also applies bit-by-bit -normalization of the single-symbol bit metrics, which has proven -helpful for signals corrupted by artifacts of the subtraction of -stronger signals and also for LF/MF signals heavily contaminated by -lightning transients. With these improvements the number of decodes in a -crowded WSPR sub-band typically increases by 10 to 15%. +normalization of the single-symbol bit metrics, a technique that has +proven helpful for signals corrupted by artifacts of the subtraction +of stronger signals and also for LF/MF signals heavily contaminated by +lightning transients. With these improvements the number of decodes +in a crowded WSPR sub-band typically increases by 10 to 15%. *New message format:* When *EU VHF Contest* is selected, the Tx2 and Tx3 messages -- those conveying signal report, serial number, and 6-character locator -- now use hashcodes for both callsigns . This -change is not backward compatible with earlier versions of _WSJT-X_. -See <> for details. - -*New modes FT4W and FT4S* are now available for use with extremely -weak signals on the LF and MF bands. - -*FT4W* behaves like WSPR but uses different schemes for coding and -modulation. On the AWGN (Additive White Gaussian Noise) channel and -with 2-minute T/R sequences, FT4W is about 1.5 dB more sensitive than -WSPR, even with the enhanced decoder outlined above. With 5-minute -T/R sequences FT4W reaches a threshold sensitivity close to -37 dB. - -*FT4S* is desighned for 2-way QSOs on the 620 amd 2200 m bands. It -uses the same message formats as FT4, FT8, and MSK144, but different -coding and modulation and much slower T/R sequences lasting 2 minutes. -We intend FT4S to be a replacement for JT9 on the LF and MF bands. +change is *not* backward compatible with earlier versions of _WSJT-X_, so +all users of *EU VHF Contest* messages should be sure to upgrade to +versiion 2.2.0. See <> for details. *Minor enhancements and bug fixes* - *Save None* now writes no .wav files to disk, even temporarily. -- An explicit entry *WW Digi Contest* has been added to *Special +- An explicit entry for *WW Digi Contest* has been added to *Special operating activities* on the *Settings | Advanced* tab. - The contest mode FT4 now always uses RR73 for the Tx4 message. @@ -77,6 +65,10 @@ We intend FT4S to be a replacement for JT9 on the LF and MF bands. - The *Status bar* now displays the number of decodes found in the most recent Rx sequence. +- As an aid for partial color-blindness, the "`inverted goal posts`" +marking Rx frequency on the Wide Graph's frequency scale are now in a +darker shade of green. + === Documentation Conventions In this manual the following icons call attention to particular types