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2. Improved the listing of add-on DXCC prefixes. git-svn-id: svn+ssh://svn.code.sf.net/p/wsjt/wsjt/trunk@119 ab8295b8-cf94-4d9e-aec4-7959e3be5d79
2461 lines
113 KiB
Plaintext
2461 lines
113 KiB
Plaintext
Changes in WSJT 5.9.3: January 26, 2006
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---------------------------------------
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This is a minor maintenance release.
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1. New Help screen provides a list of available suffixes and add-on
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DXCC prefixes.
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2. The occasional error message about "images do not match" has been
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trapped and should no longer occur.
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3. Code that required one's own grid locator to be entered with first
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two letters in upper case, last two in lower case, has been made
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case insensitive (as it should have been).
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4. Initialization of the PTT line to the "OFF" state has been fixed.
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Changes in WSJT 5.9.2: January 16, 2006
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---------------------------------------
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Enhancements
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------------
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1. Thread priorities have been adjusted for smoother operation.
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2. The JT65 decoder has been given improved immunity to garbage data
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(birdies, QRM, etc). It exhibits better performance on strong
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signals and provides more accurate estimates of their S/N.
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3. The FSK441 decoder produces less on-screen gibberish when
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processing mouse-picked decodes.
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4. The JT6M decoder now makes better use of Freeze and Tol. You can
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set the value of "Freeze DF" by using the Right/Left arrow keys.
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(This feature is also useful in JT65 mode.)
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5. On-screen font sizes can be set by using Windows Notepad to edit
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the file wsjtrc.win. If your screen has resolution greater than
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1024 x 768, or if you have old eyes like mine, you may want to
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increase the font sizes from 8 and 9 points (first three lines of
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the file) to, say, 9 and 10 points.
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6. A simulator mode is now built into WSJT for testing purposes. It
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is presently most useful in JT65 mode. By entering, say, "#-22"
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in the text box for Tx6, you signify that the program should
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generate its Tx audio files with the signal embedded in white
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gaussian noise, 22 dB below the noise power in a 2.5 kHz
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bandwidth. You can direct this signal into a second computer
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running WSJT, for example to test the decoder or to practice
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operating in JT65 mode. You can even have the two computers "work
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each other" in a simulated QSO, although changing messages of
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course requires operator action.
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7. Dividing lines are now provided on the waterfall display between
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spectra corresponding to wave files read from disk.
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8. The PTT line is explicitly set low on program startup.
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9. The F10 key brings up the SpecJT screen (if it was hidden) and
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toggles foreground and focus status between the WSJT and SpecJT
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screens.
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10. You can use the Alt-F and Alt-Z keyboard shortcuts to toggle
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"Freeze" and "Zap" on and off.
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11. "Accelerated decoding" has been removed from the Setup menu. In
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effect, this option is now always ON.
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12. Text windows are now cleared when switching between modes.
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13. Linux and FreeBSD versions (see below) offer PTT control via
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parallel port, as well as serial port. They offer sound support
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via ALSA and OSS.
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Bug Fixes:
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----------
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1. The use of non-threadsafe code for FFTs could cause occasional and
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unpredictable program crashes. Fixed.
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2. A bug in the JT65 decoder could (rarely) cause large errors in the
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reported level of strong signals. Fixed.
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3. The program could be made to crash by trying to read a very short
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wave file. Fixed.
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4. "Save None" now works as it should.
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Please note:
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------------
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When entering your grid locator on the Setup->Options page, use upper
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case for the first two letters and lower case for the last two. For
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example, for K1JT the locator is FN20qi.
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For Curious Users, and Especially for Programmers
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-------------------------------------------------
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WSJT is no longer a one-person effort, and the program no longer runs
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only under Microsoft Windows. WSJT is now a full-fledged Open Source
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project, with an active working group making contributions to future
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development. Source code is now stored in a public repository under
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control of a version control system called "Subversion," or SVN. You
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can learn more at http://developer.berlios.de/projects/wsjt/.
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The first significant result of the group effort has been to create
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versions of WSJT that run under the Linux and FreeBSD operating
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systems. Porting WSJT to the Macintosh platform should be
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straightforward, but has not yet been done.
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If you are interested in testing and using WSJT on your own Linux or
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FreeBSD system, we'd like to hear from you. Please note that the
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present Linux and FreeBSD versions are intended mainly for
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programmers. You need to know your way around these operating
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systems to be able to install them.
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If you feel that you can usefully contribute to the future development
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of WSJT on any platform, we would also like to hear from you! We
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could use help with documentation and website maintenance, as well as
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actual programming.
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The present WSJT working group consists of:
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Diane Bruce, VA3DB
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James Courtier-Dutton
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Bob McGwier, N4HY
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Jonathan Naylor, ON/G4KLX
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Stewart Nelson, KK7KA
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Joe Taylor, K1JT
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Kaj Wiik, OH6EH
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Changes in WSJT 5.9.0: November 16, 2005
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------------------------------------------
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1. JT65 decoding has been made faster and significantly improved in
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other ways. Three new options appear on the Decode->JT65 menu:
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"Fast", "Normal", and "Exhaustive". The program is most sensitive
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if you choose "Exhaustive". Choosing "Normal" will make decoding
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slightly less sensitive, but the loss is not great, and decoding
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can be twice as fast. The "Fast" setting is faster still, but can
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be less sensitive by 2 dB or more in some cases. If you have a 1.5
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GHz or faster computer, use "Exhaustive". With a slower computer
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you may want to experiment with the other settings.
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2. In JT65 mode, double-clicking on the waterfall (SpecJT window) or
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on the red curve (main window) sets "Freeze DF" to the selected
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frequency, turns Freeze ON, sets Tol to 50 Hz, and invokes the
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decoder. Using this feature, you can quickly decode a transmission
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at several different values of DF. I find this feature to be
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*extremely* useful.
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3. The range of DT values searched to establish synchronization has
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been doubled, now extending from -2 to +10 seconds. The reported
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values of DT are more accurate, as well. You should normally
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expect EME signals to have DT in the range 2 to 3 seconds, but the
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program will now synchronize properly even if DT is well outside
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this range.
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4. WSJT now offers the ability to correct for errors in soundcard
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input and output sampling rates. Numbers displayed in the first
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panel of the status bar (at lower left of the main screen) give the
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ratio of actual sample rates for input and output to the correct
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value, 11025 Hz. The numbers should stabilize within about one
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minute after program startup. If they fall in a "safe" range
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between about 0.9990 and 1.0010, you have a good sound card (at
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least in respect to sampling frequency). You can then leave the
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entry fields "Rate In" and "Rate Out" on the "Setup -> Options"
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page at their default values, 1.0.
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If your soundcard gives one or both numbers well outside the safe
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range, you should enter the displayed errant numbers as "Rate In"
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and/or "Rate Out" on the Setup->Options page. This needs to be
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done only once; subsequent changes in the last decimal place of the
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displayed values are not very significant, and can be safely
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ignored.
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The result of this procedure is that your Tx signal will be
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"trimmed" so that your tone spacings in time and frequency are more
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nearly correct. In addition, your digitized Rx signals will be
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adjusted so that the software can properly interpret them.
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This trimming is an important procedure. Some recent sound cards
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produce sampling error factors as low as 0.9932 or as high as
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1.0068. If uncorrected, such results can degrade your S/N in WSJT
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modes by 2 dB or more.
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If one of the measured sample rates differs from the corresponding
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value specified for "Rate In" or "Rate Out" by more than 0.1%, a
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red warning label will appear just below the graphical area on the
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main screen.
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5. The graphical display of information obtained during JT65 decoding
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has been enhanced. As before, a red line illustrates the maximum
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correlation between the pseudo-random sync tone pattern and the
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received signal at each value of frequency offset, DF. A blue line
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shows the correlation at the best DF, plotted as a function of time
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offset, DT. If a shorthand message is detected, two new lines
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colored magenta and orange replace the red and blue lines. The new
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lines illustrate phase-resolved spectra measured in each of the two
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phases of the shorthand square-wave pattern. A properly detected
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shorthand message will show a peak in the magenta curve, followed
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at a specified distance by a peak in the orange curve. The correct
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locations of the two peaks are marked by small yellow ticks.
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Unlike the alternating shorthand message tones, birdies will appear
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with approximately equal amplitudes in the magenta and orange
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curves.
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6. For the convenience of temporary DXpeditions, a new JT65 feature
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permits use of add-on DXCC prefixes that are not in the published
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list of supported prefixes. Both stations in a QSO must enter the
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required prefix (for example, PJ8 or FS) in a box on the
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Setup->Options page. The effect will be to temporarily add the
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entry to the table of supported prefixes.
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7. The Setup->Options page has new entry fields labeled "Source RA"
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and "Source DEC". You can enter the current right ascension and
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declination of a radio source to be used for system calibration, or
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perhaps a pulsar or a deep space probe that you wish to detect.
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The program will display (on the Astronomical Data screen) the
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current Azimuth and Elevation of the specified object at your
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station. The source Azimuth and Elevation are also written every
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second to the file azel.dat, in case you have automated tracking
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capabilities that depend on this information.
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8. For contest-style operations, the Setup->Options menu has an item
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labeled "F4 sets Tx6". If this item is checked, when you hit F4 to
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clear the To Radio box the program will turn Freeze OFF and set
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the Tx message number to 6.
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9. To facilitate the coming release of the full source code of WSJT
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under the GNU General Public License, the proprietary soft-decision
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Reed Solomon decoder has been removed from WSJT proper and made
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into a separate executable module, KVASD.EXE. This change is
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transparent to the user, and the full benefit of the soft-decision
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decoder is still available. An open source hard-decision decoder
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is also provided; it's what you get when you select the "Fast" JT65
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decoding option.
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10. In WSJT 5.8.6, if the value of "Freeze DF" (as displayed in the
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Status Bar) differs from the sync tone frequency by more than
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"Tol", shorthand decoding was suppressed even if Freeze was not
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checked. This is a bug, and it has been fixed.
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11. Earlier versions of WSJT had a bug that could cause the "Zap"
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function to notch out a valid sync tone. Fixed.
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12. The Help screens called up by F1 and Shift-F1 have been updated.
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Be sure to read these screens: they contain many operational
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conveniences that you may not have discovered!
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13. At scrolling speed 5, the time labels and "minute separator" lines
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were displayed erratically and the CPU load was excessive. Fixed.
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14. Signal strength measurements above -20 dB were formerly compressed
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and significantly underestimated. This has been fixed.
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15. Decodings of the average of many properly synchronized transmissions
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would sometimes go from "good" to "bad" after approximately 8-12
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transmissions. This was a bug, and it has been fixed.
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16. Several bugs in the FSK441 decoder have been fixed. Both
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automatic decoding and mouse-picked decoding have been improved.
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17. Changing WSJT modes now sets Auto to OFF, Tol to 400, and the Tx
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message number to 1.
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18. The generated audio for CW ID in FSK441 and JT6M modes has been
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moved to 440 Hz, to avoid possible confusion with the other tones
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used in these modes.
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19. Readout of "Rx noise" on the main screen is now highlighted in red
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if the level is outside the range -10 to +10 dB.
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20. The Monitor button is no longer highlighted in green while you are
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transmitting.
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21. No attempt is made to decode if the Rx level is very low -- for
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example, if your receiver is turned off.
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22. If the Grid box does not contain a valid locator, readouts of
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azimuth and distance are suppressed.
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23. Keying of the audio tone to produce Morse code has been softened
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to suppress key clicks.
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24. Transmitted messages recorded in the file ALL.TXT are now
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identified as to mode, and shorthand transmissions are noted as
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such.
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25. A number of other very minor bugs have been fixed.
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Changes in WSJT 5.8.6
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---------------------
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1. Audio input and output has been modified in a way that accommodates
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certain soundcards (e.g., SB Live!) that did not work correctly
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with WSJT 5.8.3.
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2. New item on Setup->Options menu to select whether GenStdMsgs forces
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Tx message number to 1.
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3. Status of all selectable items on Setup->Options menu is preserved
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on program restart.
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4. If a CQ is transmitted in JT65 mode, the Sked box is automatically
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unckecked.
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5. In v5.8.3, entering the same callsign and locator information in
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MyCall and ToRadio/Grid could cause the program to freeze. Fixed.
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6. If MyCall includes an extra prefix, as in 4X/ZL1RS, the standard JT65
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messages should not include a grid locator. Fixed.
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7. The "ms" parameter has been removed from the Soundcard status
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readout at bottom left. Separate sample-rate factors are now
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displayed for audio input and output, but only if "Enable
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diagnostics" is checked on the Setup menu.
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8. The SpecJT screen may now be made invisible by clicking on "X" in
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the upper right corner. To restore it to visible status, click on
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View->SpecJT on the main screen.
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9. Decoded text lines in JT6M mode were sometimes too long, causing
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end-of-line wrap-around. Fixed.
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10. Some diagnostic messages printed to console window have been
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removed.
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11. The values of S, Sync, Clip, Zap and NB are now preserved when the
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program is terminated and restarted.
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12. Version 5.8.3 was unable to read back its own recorded wave files.
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Fixed.
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13. A programming error in the JT65 shorthand message decoder has been
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fixed. Under certain conditions, this error could cause false
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decodes of shorthand messages.
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14. The logic of file saving commands Save Last, Save decoded, etc.,
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has been corrected.
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15. Wave files read from disk will now produce spectral plots on the
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waterfall display if Monitor is OFF.
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16. The CW ID feature has been implemented.
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17. The mapping of signal levels to pixel colors and its dependence
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on settings of Brightness and Contrast controls has been changed
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so as to improve sensitivity to very weak signals.
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18. In v5.8.3, changing Dsec would create erroneous results for the
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displayed soundcard sample rate factor. Fixed.
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19. Running in JT65 mode with Dsec>0 caused transmission errors
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(including a gap in transmitted tones at t = 38-41 s), and the
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resulting transmission was unreadable. Fixed.
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20. Undesired resizing of main screen could occur when a long FSK441
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message was transmitted. Fixed.
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21. The "yellow line" displayed in the graphical area in JT6M mode
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was computed incorrectly in version 5.8.3. Fixed.
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22. When running at speeds 1-5, the waterfall spectrum may optionally
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be "flattened" to remove rolloff at edges. To enable this
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feature, check "Flatten spectra" on the SpecJT Options menu.
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COMMENTS ON SOUND CARDS
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-----------------------
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In general, "high end" sound cards offer no advantages when used with
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WSJT. Motherboard AC-97 compliant sound systems are cheap and work
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well. If you do need to buy a sound card for use with WSJT, my advice
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is to get a simple one. You do NOT need 8-channel surround-sound,
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wavetable synthesis, special effects, etc. Those features are for
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games and listening to music, and they will be wasted on WSJT.
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Likewise, you do not need 24-bit A/D and D/A conversions.
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Specifications having to do with signal/noise ratio are quite
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irrelevant to use with WSJT, as you should never be operating in a
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regime where A/D quantizing noise (or any other noise generated in the
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sound card) contributes significantly to the system S/N.
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If you have a choice, get a card that offers a *native* sampling rate
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of 44100 or 11025 Hz, or both. (Unfortunately, it is often very
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difficult to tell from the manufacturer's literature whether this
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capability is present or not.) If native sampling at 11025 Hz is
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available -- or if the manufacturer has at least provided a
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well-designed resampling capability -- the soundcard sample-rate
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factors (displayed by WSJT in the bottom left corner, if
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"Setup->Enable diagnostics" is checked) should both be very close to
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1.0000.
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Changes in WSJT 5.8.3
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---------------------
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1. The Dsec parameter was not working properly in v5.8.1. Fixed.
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2. CPU load at high waterfall speeds has been substantially reduced.
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3. Saving cumulative file of decoded text is no longer optional. The
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file name has been changed to ALL.TXT, to reflect use of this file
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for transmitted as well as decoded text.
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4. Logic for green bar illustrating region searched for sync tones has
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been corrected.
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5. Bug producing index error in "plot_yellow" is fixed.
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6. Bug causing crash in CW mode if TRPeriod > 60 s is fixed.
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7. Tabular listing of Audio devices has been clarified.
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8. Name at top of waterfall screen has been changed to "SpecJT" so
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that its icon can be distinguished from that of main screen.
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9. VOX control of T/R sequencing is now permitted by setting the COM
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port to 0.
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10. Exit from program with the "To Radio" box empty caused error
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message and substitution of default parameters on restart. Fixed.
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11. Default FSK441 message #5 for EU has been changed to "73 MyCall"
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(which I am told conforms with standard EU practice).
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12. Lower case letters are now acceptable in entries on Setup->Options
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screen, and will be translated appropriately to upper case in
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transmitted messages.
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13. The file AZEL.DAT has been moved to the WSJT6 installation
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directory.
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14. The "Sh Msg" box was always checked when entering FSK441 mode. It
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now remembers its state if you had unchecked it.
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15. Keyboard shortcuts have been implemented for most on-screen
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controls. Use F1 to see a full listing.
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16. "Gen Std Msgs" now sets the Tx message to #1 in all WSJT modes.
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17. Self-echo doppler value has been replaced by "Dgrd" in the
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astronomical data displayed on the main screen.
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18. The audio stream has been trimmed by 0.5 s at the start of FSK441
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and JT6M Rx sequences, to prevent possibly copying one's own Tx
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signal. (Is this enough?)
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19. Two header parameters in wave files recorded by WSJT have been
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corrected so that the files can be read correctly by Windows Sound
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Recorder.
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20. Four-digit grid locators no longer produce incorrect azimuth
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headings.
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21. Logic error in the waterfall's horizontal scrolling mode fixed.
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23. The active Tx message box is now highlighted during a
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transmission, as in WSJT 4.x.
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24. Green ticks marking range of JT65 tone frequencies and red ticks
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marking shorthand tones may optionally be displayed only if Freeze
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is checked. (Select on waterfall screen's Options menu.)
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25. "Tool-tip" readout of full entry in CALL3.TXT is now provided
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after Lookup, if mouse pointer hovers over the ToRadio box.
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26. Parameter RDsec was removed from the screen, as it is not
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implemented.
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|
|
27. Some additional diagnostic information is now displayed. A
|
|
parameter "ms" following the "Soundcard x.xxxx" readout is a
|
|
measure of the maximum time between successive servicing of the
|
|
audio callback routine. The nominal value is about 186 ms, but
|
|
somewhat larger values are normal owing to granularity of the
|
|
Windows system clock. Values larger than 330 ms cause a warning
|
|
message to appear in the console window. Large values of this
|
|
parameter may be related to audio input problems (see below).
|
|
|
|
28. The latest version of DL8EBW's CALL3.TXT database is included with
|
|
the distribution. It will be installed only if there is no file
|
|
named CALL3.TXT already in your WSJT6 installation directory.
|
|
|
|
|
|
KNOWN PROBLEMS
|
|
--------------
|
|
|
|
1. Some fraction of WSJT 5.8.1 users -- perhaps 5-10%, it is hard for
|
|
me to judge -- have had problems with erratic audio input. I am
|
|
having difficulty tracing the problem because I have not been able
|
|
to reproduce it on any computer to which I have access. Typical
|
|
symptoms are that after startup WSJT 5.8.1 runs normally in Monitor
|
|
mode for a minute or so, but then the reported audio level jumps to
|
|
a much higher value and perhaps fluctuates wildly.
|
|
|
|
Two users have switched todifferent sound cards and made the
|
|
problem go away. Several others have discovered that if they first
|
|
start WSJT4 and leave it running (in Monitor mode, I believe), and
|
|
then start WSJT 5.8.1, the new program behaves properly. One user
|
|
corrected the problem by turning off an "AGC" feature on his sound
|
|
card. Apparently most of the newer SoundBlaster cards have this
|
|
AGC feature, and it is turned ON by default. I am told that it can
|
|
be turned OFF by using the supplied utility CTMIX32.EXE.
|
|
|
|
I do not yet understand the cause of the erratic audio problem. It
|
|
is possible that it has been fixed in v5.8.3, as several minor
|
|
changes have been made to the audio input routines; but I think
|
|
this is unlikely.
|
|
|
|
If you had this problem at your station and have now solved it,
|
|
please let me know what you did! If you still have problems when
|
|
running version 5.8.3, let me know about that as well.
|
|
|
|
2. I do not yet have a good definition of the "minimum computer"
|
|
required to run WSJT6. Several people have told me that they are
|
|
using the program successfully on 300-500 MHz machines. Those with
|
|
computers slower than about 600 MHz will do best to avoid the
|
|
higher waterfall speeds and not run many other programs while using
|
|
WSJT.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Beta Release 5.8.1
|
|
------------------
|
|
|
|
Beta release 5.8.1 is an entirely new program, dsesigned to preserve
|
|
the features and the "look and feel" of version 4.9.8, but also to add
|
|
many new features and do so in a way that will make for easier for
|
|
program maintenance and future development. After a period of beta
|
|
testing, the program will become known as WSJT 6.0. I will refer to
|
|
it here as WSJT6.
|
|
|
|
Many features of WSJT6 will be familiar to present users of WSJT4.x.
|
|
However, the user interface and other real-time portions of the
|
|
program have been entirely re-written, so you may find a few things
|
|
that look different or work differently than before.
|
|
|
|
WSJT6 is a multi-threaded program. This architecture permits much
|
|
better timing control and much better sharing of the CPU among the
|
|
program's many tasks. A real-time waterfall is provided, optimized
|
|
for each of the WSJT modes. You can measure and set the Rx gain in
|
|
real time. You can decode FSK441 pings immediately after hearing
|
|
them.
|
|
|
|
The decoders for JT65 and JT6M are essentially the same as those in
|
|
recent versions of the program. (I have many plans for enhancements
|
|
to the decoders, but these must wait for future updates.) The FSK441
|
|
decoder has intentionally reverted back to approximately version
|
|
3.8.1, because it has been shown that recent versions did not perform
|
|
quite as well.
|
|
|
|
WSJT 5.8 is a stable release. Extensive tests by a small group of
|
|
early beta testers have already shown that it works well. However, it
|
|
contains many thousands of lines of new code, and most likely that
|
|
code has some bugs. Nevertheless, I think you will find many
|
|
operational advantages to using it. Over the past 2.5 months, all of
|
|
my own MS and EME QSOs have been made with the new version.
|
|
|
|
If you decide to participate in the beta testing period, please accept
|
|
the responsibility of reporting any bugs that you find, as well as
|
|
telling me of features you would still like to see. I would
|
|
appreciate hearing about new features that you like, as well.
|
|
|
|
|
|
PRELIMINARY INSTRUCTIONS AND COMMENTS
|
|
-------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
1. I suggest installing WSJT6 to a new directory such as C:\Program
|
|
Files\WSJT6. After installation you will probably want to copy
|
|
your version of the callsign database, CALL3.TXT, into the new
|
|
WSJT6 directory, replacing the one that is supplied.
|
|
|
|
2. When you start the program you should get three windows on your
|
|
screen. One has a black background and I will call it the "console
|
|
window"; it is mainly used for debugging messages. You can
|
|
minimize it and generally ignore it. You should, however, look
|
|
there for messages if the program crashes (see also items 9 and
|
|
11, below). The other two windows are a Spectran-like waterfall
|
|
and the more-or-less familiar WSJT window. It is no longer
|
|
necessary or desirable to run Spectran simultaneously with WSJT.
|
|
|
|
3. FSK441, JT65, and JT6M are all present and functional. I have made
|
|
many QSOs with FSK441 and JT65, so I know they are working well.
|
|
JT6M has been tested somewhat less, but I have seen no problems as
|
|
yet. EME Echo mode and the CWID feature are not yet implemented.
|
|
|
|
4. To start the real-time spectral display, click Monitor. Normally
|
|
you can leave Monitor on all the time.
|
|
|
|
5. There are two ways to set the Rx Audio gain. You can call up the
|
|
Windows mixer as before, using the "Rx Volume Control" item on the
|
|
Options menu. There is also a digital gain control near the
|
|
bottom right of the waterfall screen. You should aim for around 0
|
|
dB, as before -- but with 16-bit audio sampling it is no longer
|
|
very critical. Use the "S-meter" at the lower right of the
|
|
waterfall display, or the familiar box labeled "Rx noise" at
|
|
bottom center of the main screen.
|
|
|
|
6. You should be able to make FSK441, JT65, and JT6M QSOs more or
|
|
less as usual. In FSK441 and JT6M you will want to run the
|
|
spectral display at speed "H1" or "H2" (speed is selected at the
|
|
top of the waterfall screen). (The "H" means horizontal
|
|
scrolling.) Scrolling speeds "5" and "H2" use a lot of CPU time,
|
|
so you may want to avoid them unless your computer is pretty fast.
|
|
I generally use speed "1" or "2" for JT65 and "H1" for FSK441 and
|
|
JT6M.
|
|
|
|
7. When running FSK441 in the horizontal scrolling mode, the spectral
|
|
display shows current data in the top half and the previous Rx
|
|
sequence in the bottom half. The most recently decoded sequence
|
|
is shown also on the main screen, as in version 4.x.
|
|
|
|
8. You can decode FSK441 pings right away by clicking on any of the
|
|
2-dimensional spectral displays, or the accompanying green lines.
|
|
You can click on the top half, the bottom half, or in the main
|
|
screen's graphical area.
|
|
|
|
9. If you have more than one sound card, you can select the desired
|
|
one. Look at the startup messages in the console window. You
|
|
should see a list of the available Audio devices and information
|
|
about which one has been selected. If you wish to change the
|
|
selection, enter the desired device numbers on the Setup->Options
|
|
screen, then terminate and restart the program.
|
|
|
|
10. If your display has resolution 1024 x 768 or less, you may prefer
|
|
to resize the waterfall window so that only its top portion
|
|
remains visible. The two main WSJT windows may then be kept
|
|
visible without overlapping.
|
|
|
|
11. Some program crashes can kill the console window so that you can't
|
|
read the error messages. If this happens, and if the crash is
|
|
repeatable, open a Windows Command-Prompt window; CD to your WSJT6
|
|
installation directory, and start the program from there by typing
|
|
"WSJT6". With this startup procedure, any subsequent post-mortems
|
|
will remain visible. Please report any such messages to me!
|
|
|
|
12. You may find decoding to be slightly slower than with v4.9.x. I
|
|
have not yet spent any time optimizing the new code for speed; it
|
|
will get faster when I turn attention to that task. If you have
|
|
an older computer you may wish to check the menu item
|
|
"Setup->Accelerated decoding", which will suspend updating the
|
|
waterfall during the decoding process.
|
|
|
|
13. Be sure to look at the screens called up by function keys F1 and
|
|
Shift-F1. These screens are also available from the Help menu.
|
|
They list some useful keyboard and mouse commands that you might
|
|
otherwise overlook.
|
|
|
|
14. Be sure to explore all the menus and on-screen controls, and try
|
|
out the commands listed on the help screens. Until I can find
|
|
time to write a new manual, this is the best way to learn about
|
|
some of the new features.
|
|
|
|
15. In JT65 mode, a horizontal green line on the frequency scale shows
|
|
the range of frequencies that will be searched for a sync tone.
|
|
You can set the "Freeze DF" value by clicking on the main screen's
|
|
red curve (as in WSJT 4.x) or by clicking on the waterfall with
|
|
the shift key held down. If "Freeze" is checked, vertical green
|
|
ticks will mark the selected sync-tone frequency and the
|
|
corresponding frequency of the highest data tone. Red tick marks
|
|
denote the frequencies of the RO, RRR, and 73 shorthand messages.
|
|
|
|
16. WSJT6 can read and process WAV files produced by earlier versions.
|
|
The converse is not true, however, because earlier versions of
|
|
WSJT are not equipped to read the 16-bit data files produced by
|
|
WSJT6.
|
|
|
|
17. When you click "Log QSO," a line with date, time, HisCall,
|
|
HisGrid, frequency, and mode is added to the file WSJT.LOG in the
|
|
installation directory.
|
|
|
|
18. Every second, a short file named "c:\azel.dat" is updated with
|
|
time, moon and sun coordinates, frequency, doppler, and doppler
|
|
rate information. This file could be used by other software to
|
|
make your antenna track or your radio follow doppler changes.
|
|
|
|
19. In the lower left corner of the main screen you will see a message
|
|
of the form "Soundcard: x.xxxx", where x.xxxx is a number close to
|
|
1.0000. This number is the ratio of the soundcard's measured
|
|
sampling frequency to the nominal value, 11025 Hz. The displayed
|
|
value should stabilize after the program has been running for a
|
|
minute or so. If you see values less than about 0.9990 or greater
|
|
than 1.0010, please let me know about it and tell me what kind of
|
|
computer and sound card you are using.
|
|
|
|
20. Callsigns for Swaziland (prefix 3DA0) can now be used in standard
|
|
JT65 messages, and they will provide the full "deep search"
|
|
sensitivity.
|
|
|
|
21. The box labeled "NB" enables a software noise blanker. If your
|
|
receiver already has a good noise blanker, this may be of little
|
|
use; if it does not, you may find this one better than nothing.
|
|
It can be helpful when short, impulsive noise spikes are present.
|
|
|
|
22. The "QRN" parameter of older WSJT versions has been combined with
|
|
the "Clip" parameter. In FSK441 mode, Clip=0 corresponds to the
|
|
old QRN=5. If you want more FSK441 immunity to summertime QRN,
|
|
increase Clip above 0 just as you would have increased QRN above
|
|
5.
|
|
|
|
23. The "B" and "C" submodes of FSK441 have not been implemented. As
|
|
far as I could tell, they were little used.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Let me call your attention to the online WSJT Forums hosted by DK5YA
|
|
at www.vhfdx.de/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl. If you provide information and
|
|
post questions about WSJT 5.8 there, it will help others as well as
|
|
yourself -- and may help to reduce the load on my email inbox.
|
|
|
|
I do, of course, want to hear from you directly if you have found a
|
|
problem with the new program version or suggestions for its
|
|
improvement.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Changes in Version 4.9.8
|
|
------------------------
|
|
|
|
Version 4.9.8 is a minor maintenance release. The changes are:
|
|
|
|
1. Bug in JT65 decoder could (rarely) cause a correct decoding by the
|
|
Reed-Solomon decoder to be "overruled" by an incorrect decoding
|
|
from the Deep Search decoder. Fixed.
|
|
|
|
2. Bug in JT65 Reed-Solomon decoder could cause program to crash under
|
|
certain rare conditions. Fixed.
|
|
|
|
3. The standard "CQ" message generated for a callsign having an extra
|
|
prefix or suffix should not include a grid locator. Fixed.
|
|
|
|
4. Automatically generated CW messages for stations with callsigns longer
|
|
than 4 characters were improperly truncated. Fixed.
|
|
|
|
5. Bug in JT65 decoder could occasionally cause one or two extra
|
|
letters to be appended to a correctly decoded callsign. Fixed.
|
|
|
|
6. Grid locator entered in "Report" box in FSK441 mode (as used by
|
|
some in North American meteor scatter contest) would cause a crash
|
|
on program restart. Fixed.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Changes in Version 4.9.7
|
|
------------------------
|
|
|
|
1. The only change in version 4.9.7 is to add KC4 to the list of supported
|
|
DXCC prefixes.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Changes in Version 4.9.6
|
|
------------------------
|
|
|
|
1. WSJT 4.9.5 fails to decode some files that have relatively high S/N
|
|
and good Sync level. This is a bug, and has been fixed. For this
|
|
reason alone, you should definitely upgrade to Version 4.9.6.
|
|
|
|
2. New optional message formats are provided for conveying and
|
|
responding to signal reports.
|
|
|
|
It has been permissible for some time to send, for example,
|
|
|
|
VK7MO K1JT -24
|
|
K1JT VK7MO R-27
|
|
|
|
(The number after the minus sign must have two digits and must be in
|
|
the range -01 to -30.)
|
|
|
|
I plan to implement a quick way of copying the measured strength
|
|
of a decoded transmission into TX message #2, when desired. This
|
|
is not yet done in v4.9.6, however. You must edit the TX messages
|
|
by hand if you use these formats.
|
|
|
|
Enhancements in version 4.9.6 now allow you to send messages like
|
|
the ones listed below. Both stations will need to be running
|
|
v4.9.6 in order for these to work:
|
|
|
|
VK7MO K1JT RO
|
|
VK7MO K1JT RRR
|
|
VK7MO K1JT 73
|
|
|
|
3. Decoding by the deep search algorithm has been extended so as to
|
|
include messages of the types discussed in item 2.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Changes in Version 4.9.5
|
|
------------------------
|
|
|
|
1. Full support for long callsigns like ZA/PA2CHR and G4ABC/P is now
|
|
provided. When using such a callsign prefix or suffix, do not
|
|
include a grid locator in your transmitted message. Note that
|
|
4.9.5 and 4.9.2 do not handle prefixes in the same way; they are
|
|
not compatible. To get the benefit of the expanded capability,
|
|
both stations (TX and RX) must use 4.9.5. The correct message
|
|
format is "K1JT V5/ZS5Y" or "V5/ZS5Y K1JT". The extended callsign
|
|
must be present in CALL3.TXT or in "To Radio" for the deep-search
|
|
decoder to be effective.
|
|
|
|
2. If you double-click on a callsign in the decoded text window, and if
|
|
the word preceding the callsign is "CQ", then TX message #1 will be
|
|
selected after the messages are updated. Otherwise, TX message #2
|
|
will be selected.
|
|
|
|
3. So that you will be aware of what is happening, the background
|
|
color in the TX message box turns red whenever a message you have
|
|
entered is "non-standard" and will be sent as 13 characters of
|
|
plain text.
|
|
|
|
4. Items related to decoding have been removed from the Setup |
|
|
Options screen and replaced by a new menu labeled Decoding. Here
|
|
you may now select "No shorthands" for FSK441 and several options
|
|
for JT65 decoding.
|
|
|
|
5. In case you are upgrading directly from v4.9.0 or earlier to v4.9.5,
|
|
a callsign database file has been included as CALL3A.TXT. If you do
|
|
not already have a file CALL3.TXT, you should rename the supplied
|
|
file to CALL3.TXT. Otherwise, you will probably want to ignore
|
|
the supplied file, since you will have made additions to your own
|
|
copy.
|
|
|
|
6. The frequency of program crashes (for example, after a long period
|
|
of monitoring) is much reduced, possibly to zero.
|
|
|
|
Please, if you encounter a received wave file that reproducibly causes
|
|
WSJT to crash, send it to me.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Changes in Version 4.9.2
|
|
------------------------
|
|
|
|
1. In CW mode you can now set the desired T/R period by using the text
|
|
box provided. This feature did not work properly in v4.9.1.
|
|
|
|
2. Under some conditions using the "Add" button to edit information in
|
|
the file CALL3.TXT would cause a program crash with the message
|
|
"Run-time Error #53". Fixed.
|
|
|
|
3. Using the double-mouse-click on a callsign in the decoded text
|
|
window will now set the active Tx Message to Tx2. I believe this
|
|
will be most commonly what is desired, and will be an added
|
|
convenience for random JT65 operation.
|
|
|
|
4. The "Sked" box remained visible on the EME Echo screen, covering
|
|
part of the RIT box. Fixed.
|
|
|
|
5. The program generates two numbers to characterize its level of
|
|
confidence in decoded messages. In version 4.9.1, these numbers
|
|
appeared at the end of each decoded text line. They are not
|
|
displayed in version 4.9.2, but in the next version I will
|
|
probably display them if you have checked the "Aggressive decoding"
|
|
box. The first number is 0 or 1 according to whether the
|
|
soft-decision Reed Solomon decoder has failed or succeeded. The
|
|
second number represents a confidence level on a 0-10 scale for
|
|
messages decoded using the "deep search" algorithm. Anything under
|
|
3 is questionable; messages rated 6 and above are unlikely to be
|
|
wrong, unless you are processing "garbage" data containing strong
|
|
birdies, QRN, etc. In that case, you are on your own.
|
|
|
|
|
|
6. A bug was introduced when implementing the "Aggressive decoding"
|
|
check box. This bug caused a stray "OOO" flag to be sometimes
|
|
displayed even when no signal was present and synchronization had
|
|
not been achieved. Fixed.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Changes in Version 4.9.1
|
|
------------------------
|
|
|
|
1. A programming error in version 4.9.0 prevented the "deep search"
|
|
portion of the JT65 decoder from detecting some messages that include
|
|
the "OOO" signal report. The bug has been fixed, and consequently the
|
|
extra 4 dB of sensitivity will become available for those messages.
|
|
|
|
2. The callsign database, a file named CALL2.TXT in version 4.9.0, has
|
|
been converted to a comma-delimited format and is now named CALL3.TXT.
|
|
As has been true in the past, you should maintain your own copy of
|
|
this file according to your own needs. New calls may be added to the
|
|
file using the "Add" button of WSJT, and you can edit the file
|
|
directly with the Windows NotePad program. I apologize for the fact
|
|
that if you have already edited CALL2.TXT extensively, you will need
|
|
to do so again. The good news is that the programs WSJT, MoonSked (by
|
|
GM4JJJ) and Tracker (by W7GJ) will now use the same database file,
|
|
CALL3.TXT.
|
|
|
|
3. Two new JT65 check boxes have been made available to the user: one
|
|
labeled "Sked", located on the main screen, and one labeled "Aggressive
|
|
decoding" on the Setup | Options screen. Check "Sked" to signify that
|
|
you are trying to work a known station; the deep search decoder will
|
|
then look only for your own call and the one displayed in the "To
|
|
Radio" box. Check "Aggressive search" if you want to see all messages
|
|
found by the deep-search decoder, even if the confidence level is
|
|
moderately low. Leave this box unchecked if you prefer to see only
|
|
decoded messages that have been assigned a relatively high confidence.
|
|
|
|
4. The duration of T/R sequences in CW mode defaults to 60 s if the
|
|
Band is 50 MHz, 150 s if 432 MHz, and 120 s otherwise. However, an
|
|
on-screen box now allows you to override the defaults and set any
|
|
desired T/R period (in seconds).
|
|
|
|
|
|
Changes in Version 4.9.0
|
|
------------------------
|
|
|
|
On the outside WSJT version 4.9.0 looks nearly the same as its recent
|
|
predecessors. A "CW" entry now appears on the Mode menu. This is
|
|
presently a "transmit only" mode: it sends standard EME-style messages
|
|
at 15 WPM, by keying an 800 Hz audio tone, and it takes care of the
|
|
timing and T/R switching for you. Receiving is left up to you, the
|
|
operator. For me, this combination makes CW EME QSOs relaxing and
|
|
enjoyable. Presently the program uses 2.5 minute sequences if you are
|
|
on 432 MHz, 2 minutes on 144 MHz, and 1 minute on 50 MHz. (If you
|
|
want to run with 1-minute sequences on 144, set the band indicator to
|
|
50 MHz.)
|
|
|
|
Double-clicking on a callsign in either one of the decoded text
|
|
windows will cause that callsign to be copied into the "To Radio" box.
|
|
The call will then be looked up in the database and will be inserted
|
|
appropriately into the transmit message boxes Tx1 and Tx2. This
|
|
feature is designed to facilitate random JT65 operation by making it
|
|
easy to call a station you have just copied calling CQ, or responding
|
|
to your CQ.
|
|
|
|
The most significant program enhancements are those made to the JT65
|
|
decoder. It has been transformed into a multi-layered procedure that
|
|
takes better advantage of the structured nature of JT65 messages and
|
|
the substantial computing capability that most WSJT users have in
|
|
their hamshacks.
|
|
|
|
In version 4.9.0, if the initial JT65 decoding effort fails then
|
|
deeper searches are attempted using an entirely different approach.
|
|
The result is a net gain of about 4 dB over a wide range of
|
|
circumstances. My JT65 digital simulator, which has accurately
|
|
predicted the performance of previous versions of the software,
|
|
correctly decodes about 50% of simulated Rx files with the v4.7.0
|
|
decoder at a signal level of -24 dB. With the v4.9.0 decoder, it
|
|
correctly decodes more than half of the simulated data files at -28
|
|
dB. This very substantial improvement means that JT65's
|
|
message-averaging facility will be needed much less frequently than
|
|
with earlier versions of WSJT. Most of the time, if the transmission
|
|
synchronizes properly, it will also decode properly.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You will get better performance from the new JT65 decoder if you
|
|
understand a few things about how it works. The following is a very
|
|
brief description; more complete technical details will be forthcoming
|
|
when I find time to write it all down.
|
|
|
|
JT65 is capable of transmitting and receiving 2^72 (about 5 x 10^21)
|
|
distinct user messages. Instead of sending the minimum number of 72
|
|
information bits needed to to convey any one of those distinct
|
|
messages, the program actually sends 63 six-bit "symbols" for a total
|
|
of 378 bits in each transmission. The 302 extra bits comprise the
|
|
powerful forward error correction (FEC) capability of the JT65 mode,
|
|
allowing the system to function reliably with signals far below the
|
|
audible threshold.
|
|
|
|
One of the first tasks of the JT65 decoder is to measure the signal
|
|
level at each of the 64 data-tone frequencies during each of the 63
|
|
data intervals in a transmission. The program must then decide which
|
|
one of the possible 2^72 messages was most likely the one sent. This
|
|
procedure is necessarily probabilistic in nature. The best decoder
|
|
will go as far down into the noise as possible, but it must also know
|
|
when to give up so that it produces few false decodes.
|
|
|
|
The total of 2^72 distinct messages is far too many to permit each one
|
|
to be tested individually against the received signal. However, an
|
|
important characteristic of the Reed-Solomon FEC code used in JT65 is
|
|
that well-defined mathematical algorithms can be used to direct the
|
|
decoder toward the most likely candidate messages, based on the
|
|
available signal information. A mathematical inversion of the code is
|
|
made possible by the organization of the redundant information
|
|
contained in the 306 extra bits.
|
|
|
|
The new JT65 decoder goes far beyond the capabilities of normal
|
|
Reed-Solomon decoders. If the standard decoding procedure fails to
|
|
produce a high-confidence solution, the program proceeds to search
|
|
explicitly for each one of a number of messages that it considers
|
|
likely or plausible on other grounds.
|
|
|
|
Nearly 2^28 (over 250 million) different callsigns can be accommodated
|
|
in each of the two callsign fields of a JT65 message. Once again,
|
|
this is far too many to permit an exhaustive search for them all.
|
|
Consequently, the "deep search decoder" takes the callsigns listed in
|
|
the file CALL2.TXT (located in the user's WSJT directory) as being the
|
|
most likely alternatives in the message's second field. A correlation
|
|
algorithm is then applied to find out if one of these calls and its
|
|
associated grid locator are present, combined with either "CQ" or the
|
|
receiving station's callsign in the first field. High-confidence
|
|
matching of this kind can be accomplished down to about -28 dB on the
|
|
WSJT scale, in a single transmission, with a very low error rate.
|
|
|
|
The bottom line is that for any arbitrary callsign the new JT65
|
|
decoder performs at least as well as the one in WSJT version 4.7.0.
|
|
Message averaging works just as it did before, and if you are
|
|
listening in to a "third party" QSO between two other stations, the
|
|
sensitivity will be the same as in version 4.7.0. However, if a
|
|
station that is listed in the file CALL2.TXT is calling CQ or is
|
|
calling you, your sensitivity will be about 4 dB better on average.
|
|
|
|
Please note that the decoder is given no information whatsoever about
|
|
what station you may be trying to work. Its heart is "as pure as the
|
|
driven snow," even if you are working a sked. However, the decoder
|
|
does presume that the callsign of the transmitting station is more
|
|
likely to be one listed in CALL2.TXT than some other callsign
|
|
constructed at random.
|
|
|
|
The program always attempts to decode a purely arbitrary message
|
|
first. Failing that, it will look more deeply in the noise for the
|
|
presence of a message that includes the callsign of a station listed
|
|
in the database file.
|
|
|
|
It is no accident that the algorithm just described bears close
|
|
resemblance to the thought processes (conscious and otherwise) that we
|
|
use to copy very weak CW by ear. Familiar combinations like CQ and
|
|
one's own callsign are always easier to dig out of the noise than
|
|
random combinations of characters. Callsigns that we have seen or
|
|
heard before are more easily recognized than arbitrary calls generated
|
|
at random. The new JT65 decoder behaves similarly, except that it
|
|
is kept fully in the dark about who you are trying to work.
|
|
|
|
All decoders make mistakes, and this one is no exception. Just like a
|
|
human copying CW, the JT65 decoder has a "grey area" in which it finds
|
|
a solution but may have only moderate confidence in it. In such cases
|
|
the decoder appends a "?" to the decoded text, and the operator must
|
|
make the final decision as to whether the decoding is correct. Be
|
|
aware that because of the mathematical message structure, incorrect
|
|
decodings will not just differ from the correct one in a few
|
|
characters; more likely, they will exhibit a whole incorrect callsign.
|
|
As you gain experience in recognizing the graphical and numerical
|
|
indications of proper message synchronization and the effects of
|
|
"birdies" and other interference, you will become adept at making
|
|
these decisions when necessary. With added on-the-air experience I will
|
|
probably be able top reduce the decoder's error rate, as well.
|
|
|
|
A final note: the file CALL2.TXT replaces the file CALLSIGN.TXT used
|
|
by earlier versions of WSJT. The format has been changed to permit
|
|
extended callsigns such as those sometimes used by DXpeditions, for
|
|
example ZA/PA2CHR. The name of the database file has been changed so
|
|
as not to "break" an earlier version of WSJT that you may wish to keep
|
|
available. Full support for extended callsigns (i.e., calls with an
|
|
extra prefix or suffix) is planned for a future version of WSJT.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Changes in Version 4.7.0
|
|
------------------------
|
|
|
|
1. New feature: WSJT can now be used simultaneously with Spectran on
|
|
the same computer. You can start Spectran by selecting "Use Spectran
|
|
for input" on the Setup menu. This feature also allows the user to
|
|
select the sound card to be used for input.
|
|
|
|
2. Bug fix: in some circumstances, switching from a JT65 long-format
|
|
message to a shorthand message did not work properly. Fixed.
|
|
|
|
3. Bug fix: for operators in the southern hemisphere and longitudes
|
|
more than 90 degrees east or west, the wrong "Hot spot" was sometimes
|
|
identified as the best direction for sporadic meteors. Fixed.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Changes in Version 4.6.1
|
|
------------------------
|
|
|
|
1. Bug fix: I mistakenly shifted the RX data by 2 seconds, rather
|
|
than the intended 1 s, when changing the DT range. Therefore in
|
|
v4.6.0 the actual DT range is not -1 to +5 s as stated, but rather 0
|
|
to +6 s; moreover, the displayed values of DT are too small by 1.0 s.
|
|
This has been fixed.
|
|
|
|
2. New feature: thanks to Akira, JM1SZY, I learned that occasionally a
|
|
file (or an average of several files) will decode better with the AFC
|
|
feature turned off. Consequently I have added a checkbox that must be
|
|
ticked to activate AFC in the JT65 modes. If you can trust the
|
|
frequency stability of the signal you are receiving, and especially if
|
|
you are trying to receive a signal at -27 dB or weaker, leaving this
|
|
box unchecked may yield a slight improvement in decoding. In most
|
|
cases, especially at 144 MHz and above, I recommend leaving the AFC
|
|
turned ON.
|
|
|
|
3. Thanks to Chris, GW4DGU, for pointing out that the Gx series of
|
|
prefixes is no longer legal for reciprocal license operating in the
|
|
countries of the UK. The valid prefix series for such operation is
|
|
now the M-series, i.e., M MD MI MJ MM MU MW. I have changed the
|
|
prefix table accordingly.
|
|
|
|
Version 4.6
|
|
-----------
|
|
|
|
This is the first full release of WSJT since version 3.0. New users
|
|
can install Version 4.6 directly, without upgrading from a previous
|
|
installation. Of course, you can also upgrade from an earlier version
|
|
in the usual way. All download files can be found on the WSJT home
|
|
page, http://pulsar.princeton.edu/~joe/K1JT.
|
|
|
|
The new release includes an entirely new "WSJT 4.6 User's Guide."
|
|
This document is about one third the length of the former "User's
|
|
Guide and Reference Manual," but contains nearly everything you need
|
|
to know to use the program. A copy of the new Guide is included in
|
|
the version 4.6 distribution files. You can also download it directly
|
|
from http://pulsar.princeton.edu/~joe/K1JT/WSJT_User_460.pdf. Even if
|
|
you are an experienced WSJT user, you should definitely print and read
|
|
this document.
|
|
|
|
New features in WSJT Version 4.6 include the following:
|
|
|
|
1. Improved automatic frequency control in JT65 modes. If you have
|
|
lost JT65 QSOs because of unstable oscillators, this is for you.
|
|
|
|
2. The acceptable range for DT in JT65 mode is now -1 to +5 s. This
|
|
range is a better fit for EME communication than the former -2 to +4
|
|
s. It will allow for somewhat greater clock errors before
|
|
inter-station synchronization fails on an EME path.
|
|
|
|
Note to experienced users: this means that the plotting scale for the
|
|
"blue curve" now runs from -1 to +5 s. EME signals should normally
|
|
produce a blue peak near the center of the plot area.
|
|
|
|
3. When the blue window displaying moon coordinates has been toggled
|
|
to display coordinates for the DX station as well as the home station,
|
|
it now displays MaxNR in place of SD. MaxNR is the maximum path
|
|
non-reciprocity in dB. This effect arises from the combination of
|
|
spatial polarization shift plus Faraday rotation; it is what causes
|
|
"one way propagation" between stations that use fixed linear
|
|
polarization.
|
|
|
|
4. A facility for generating the file ID.WAV for station identification
|
|
is now built into WSJT.
|
|
|
|
5. The "Save Decoded" menu item now saves files with decoded shorthand
|
|
messages as well as normal messages.
|
|
|
|
6. JT65 has a new shorthand message "ATT" (for "Attention!"). It is
|
|
intended as an aid to help two stations find each other by determining
|
|
the correct DF.
|
|
|
|
7. Visual aids for evaluating JT65 shorthand messages "by eye" are
|
|
provided if you click on the sync-tone frequency in the Big Spectrum
|
|
display.
|
|
|
|
8. For DXpeditions: a country prefix preceded by "/" may be
|
|
substituted for the grid locator in a type 1 JT65 message.
|
|
|
|
9. Alternatively, a signal report of the form "-NN" or "R-NN" may be
|
|
substituted for the grid locator in a type 1 JT65 message. For
|
|
example, -24 might indicate that signals were being received at -24
|
|
dB. The minus sign is required, and NN must lie between 01 and 30.
|
|
|
|
10. The receiver noise level reported by Measure mode (the level of the
|
|
"green line") has been increased by 2 dB to be consistent with levels
|
|
reported by the other operating modes.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Changes in Version 4.5.1
|
|
------------------------
|
|
|
|
Bug fixes:
|
|
|
|
1. JT6M did not transmit properly in version 4.5.0 because the program
|
|
failed to switch its wavefile generator into JT6M mode. Fixed.
|
|
|
|
2. WSJT consumed a large fraction of CPU time in JT65 mode, even when
|
|
the program was supposedly doing nothing. Fixed.
|
|
|
|
3. Monitoring for long periods in JT65 mode would occasionally produce
|
|
a Fortran "output conversion error". Fixed.
|
|
|
|
4. Clicking the "Add" button with nothing in the Grid box would cause
|
|
a program crash. Fixed.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Enhancements:
|
|
|
|
1. In the FSK441 modes, messages longer than 3 nonblank characters and
|
|
starting with R26, R27, RRR, or 73 are no longer transmitted as
|
|
shorthand messages.
|
|
|
|
2. Onscreen labels now indicate active status of the "Save Decoded",
|
|
"Save All", and "Save text in File DECODED.CUM" features.
|
|
|
|
3. Small improvements have been made in the decoding of shorthand
|
|
messages in modes FSK441B and C.
|
|
|
|
4. Alphabetic characters in message templates (on the Setup | Options
|
|
screen) are now case-insensitive.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Principal New Features in WSJT Version 4.5
|
|
------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
1. The JT65 modes employ an entirely new decoding algorithm that uses
|
|
"soft decisions" to recover the transmitted message. The message
|
|
format and Reed-Solomon encoding are unchanged, so the JT65A, B, and C
|
|
modes are fully compatible with earlier versions. However, the new
|
|
decoder is more sensitive by slightly more than 1 dB. It is based on
|
|
software licensed from CodeVector Technologies, LLC, and protected
|
|
under United States Patent 6,634,007. As usual, however, I am making
|
|
WSJT freely available for amateur radio use.
|
|
|
|
Changes to the JT65 modes are "under the hood," and except for the
|
|
improved performance you will find them mostly invisible. The new
|
|
decoder can be somewhat slower than the one in v4.3.4, depending on
|
|
details of the received data.
|
|
|
|
|
|
2. Like JT65, FSK441 now provides three submodes. FSK441A is
|
|
identical to the "classical" FSK441. The two new modes, FSK441B and
|
|
FSK441C, use the same 4-tone frequency shift keying at 441 baud.
|
|
However, they use forward error correction (FEC) on a
|
|
character-by-character basis, to improve message reliability. They
|
|
also provide shorthand messages which are more robust than the
|
|
single-tone messages of traditional FSK441. Cross-mode communication
|
|
will not work: a transmission in FSK441B must be received in FSK441B,
|
|
etc.
|
|
|
|
FEC information in FSK441B and FSK441C is conveyed by sending
|
|
additional channel symbols (tones) for each character, using special
|
|
codes designed to optimize the error rate and sensitivity with very
|
|
short pings. The additional symbols are redundant when the S/N is
|
|
high, but they allow recovery from transmission errors when the S/N is
|
|
low.
|
|
|
|
FSK441A, which provides no redundancy, transmits 3 symbols per
|
|
character. Modes B and C use 4 and 7 symbols per character,
|
|
respectively. The raw throughput of user information is summarized
|
|
in the following table:
|
|
|
|
FSK441A FSK441B FSK441C
|
|
----------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
Sequential tones per character 3 4 7
|
|
User data rate, characters/second 147 110 63
|
|
Time for a 12-character message, ms 82 109 190
|
|
|
|
|
|
The shorthand messages in FSK441B and FSK441C use alternating tones at
|
|
two specific frequencies, as follows:
|
|
|
|
Shorthand Low tone High tone
|
|
message (Hz) (Hz)
|
|
------------------------------
|
|
R26 861 1206
|
|
R27 861 1550
|
|
RRR 861 1895
|
|
73 861 2239
|
|
|
|
Tests with my digital simulator show that shorthand messages in
|
|
FSK441B and FSK441C are several dB more sensitive than the ST messages
|
|
of FSK441A. At the same time they give a far lower rate of false
|
|
positives.
|
|
|
|
With multi-tone messages the sensitivities of the three submodes are
|
|
nearly the same, but they have different trade-offs. Mode A is 25
|
|
percent faster than mode B, but mode B is more accurate and will
|
|
produce much less on-screen "gibberish". Mode C is about half the
|
|
speed of mode A but has still stronger FEC code. Parameters of the B
|
|
and C modes were selected in the expectation that FSK441B might become
|
|
the mode of choice for meteor scatter work on 144 MHz (and possibly
|
|
also 222 MHz), while FSK441C will likely prove best at 50 MHz where
|
|
the pings are longer. These suppositions need to be tested, of
|
|
course.
|
|
|
|
Experienced WSJT users should have no difficulty making the new modes
|
|
work. Just select the desired mode from the Mode menu (or use the
|
|
appropriate hot-key combination), and away you go.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Other Changes in Version 4.5.0
|
|
------------------------------
|
|
|
|
1. Bug fix: In JT65 mode, if you sent 73s and then started a QSO with
|
|
a new station, the program would sometimes continue sending the 73
|
|
message even though TX message #1 had been checked. This has been
|
|
fixed.
|
|
|
|
2. Performance enhancement: Shorthand messages in JT65 were sometimes
|
|
suppressed because of an apparent low-value Sync detection that
|
|
produced no decoded message. This has been fixed; there is no longer
|
|
any need to set your Sync threshold to a higher value when you are
|
|
expecting to receive a shorthand message.
|
|
|
|
3. The JT65 "Filter" function has been removed. It was confusing to
|
|
some, and anyway was generally deemed of little value. The new
|
|
decoder provides a much better solution.
|
|
|
|
4. The "suggested report" has been deleted from FSK441 decoded text
|
|
lines. It is replaced by S/N, the measured signal-to-noise ratio in
|
|
dB. Note that the familiar "dB" measurement of (S+N)/N is still
|
|
available, as well.
|
|
|
|
5. Finer adjustment intervals are provided for "S", the FSK441 ping
|
|
detection limit. As in earlier version, these numbers refer to
|
|
(S+N)/N. In contrast, the "Single Tone" or "Shorthand" detection
|
|
limits refer to S/N, a more useful parameter at very low signal
|
|
levels. (See below for more details on signal to noise ratios, if
|
|
interested.)
|
|
|
|
6. A button labeled "Add" just below the grid locator box will cause
|
|
the displayed callsign and grid to be entered into the CALLSIGN.TXT
|
|
database.
|
|
|
|
7. A date and time stamp is now added to the DECODED.CUM file at
|
|
program startup or when you first enable writing to this file.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Request to Users
|
|
----------------
|
|
|
|
As usual, I will appreciate hearing from users about the new features
|
|
in WSJT. Let me know, of course, if you find bugs or other problems
|
|
in the program. In particular, let me know of your experiences with
|
|
FSK441B and FSK441C. Remember, my guess is that FSK441B should work very
|
|
well on 2 meters, while FSK441C may work best on 6 meters. After
|
|
you have gained some experience with FSK441C on 6 meters, I would be
|
|
interested to know whether you think JT6M should be retired. In North
|
|
America, at least, I do not think it is being used very much.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Why use both S/N and (S+N)/N ?
|
|
------------------------------
|
|
|
|
WSJT has traditionally measured the level of FSK441 signals as the
|
|
ratio (signal plus noise)/(noise) = (S+N/N), in dB. This quantity is
|
|
approximately what S-meters try to measure; it has the advantage that
|
|
it goes to zero when there is no signal, while at high signal levels
|
|
it increases as you would expect, in proportion to signal strength.
|
|
|
|
At low signal levels, however, the numbers for (S+N)/N in dB behave in
|
|
a way that may be counter-intuitive. When WSJT reports that a meteor
|
|
ping had strength 3 dB, it means that signal plus noise was 3 dB
|
|
higher than noise alone. That means that signal and noise were equal
|
|
in power, so the corresponding value of S/N must be 0 dB. If the same
|
|
signal had been transmitted with half the power, it would have had S/N
|
|
= -3 dB, and (S+N)/N would have been 10*log(0.5+1.0) = 1.76 dB. Yes,
|
|
cutting the TX power in half would only reduce the ping level from
|
|
3.0 dB to 1.76 dB! That's why, for many purposes, S/N is a more
|
|
useful number -- and why I am now listing both numbers in FSK441
|
|
decoded text lines.
|
|
|
|
The table below will allow you to convert easily between S/N and
|
|
(S+N)/N, both as numerical ratios and as dB.
|
|
|
|
S/N S/N (S+N)/N (S+N)/N
|
|
(dB) (dB)
|
|
----------------------------------------
|
|
10.0 10.000 11.000 10.41
|
|
9.0 7.943 8.943 9.51
|
|
8.0 6.310 7.310 8.64
|
|
7.0 5.012 6.012 7.79
|
|
6.0 3.981 4.981 6.97
|
|
5.0 3.162 4.162 6.19
|
|
4.0 2.512 3.512 5.46
|
|
3.0 1.995 2.995 4.76
|
|
2.0 1.585 2.585 4.12
|
|
1.0 1.259 2.259 3.54
|
|
0.0 1.000 2.000 3.01
|
|
-1.0 0.794 1.794 2.54
|
|
-2.0 0.631 1.631 2.12
|
|
-3.0 0.501 1.501 1.76
|
|
-4.0 0.398 1.398 1.46
|
|
-5.0 0.316 1.316 1.19
|
|
-6.0 0.251 1.251 0.97
|
|
-7.0 0.200 1.200 0.79
|
|
-8.0 0.158 1.158 0.64
|
|
-9.0 0.126 1.126 0.51
|
|
-10.0 0.100 1.100 0.41
|
|
|
|
|
|
Beta Release 4.3.4
|
|
------------------
|
|
|
|
Beta Release 4.3.4 of WSJT is now available for free download at the
|
|
WSJT home page, http://pulsar.princeton.edu/~joe/K1JT. The principal
|
|
change from version 4.2.1 is to offer three JT65 submodes. The
|
|
submodes differ in tone spacing and total bandwidth as follows:
|
|
|
|
Mode Spacing Total BW
|
|
-------------------------
|
|
JT65A 2.7 Hz 177.6 Hz
|
|
JT65B 5.4 355.3
|
|
JT65C 10.8 710.6
|
|
|
|
Note that JT65A is identical to the original JT65. If you want to
|
|
work people who have not yet upgraded to v4.3.4, be sure to select
|
|
mode JT65A. Otherwise, be sure to use the same mode that your QSO
|
|
partner is using. Cross-mode contacts will not work.
|
|
|
|
JT65B should be nearly as sensitive as JT65A, and it will be twice as
|
|
forgiving of frequency instabilities. On balance, with existing
|
|
"stock" radios, JT65B will probably be better than JT65A. JT65C is
|
|
less sensitive by a small amount, perhaps 1 dB, but will be even more
|
|
lenient on stability issues. By all means experiment with the
|
|
different submodes, and be sure to let me know your conclusions about
|
|
them!
|
|
|
|
I am presently inclined to recommend that JT65B should become the
|
|
"standard" JT65 mode. If this tentative conclusion holds up, future
|
|
versions of the program may no longer support the A and C modes.
|
|
|
|
Other changes from version 4.2.1 include the following:
|
|
|
|
1. Further improvements have been made to the JT65 decoding
|
|
algorithm. These improvements apply to all three submodes. Some
|
|
wave files that would not decode with v4.2.1 now decode properly,
|
|
especially in averages over several minutes.
|
|
|
|
2. The frequency width W of the sync tone (the "red spike") is now
|
|
measured and displayed in Hz after DF in the main text box. In any
|
|
of the three JT65 modes, W should be no more than 2-4 Hz under good
|
|
conditions. Uncorrected frequency drifts, excessive oscillator
|
|
phase noise, and certain propagation effects can make the width
|
|
larger. Anything over about about 4 Hz will impair copy in JT65A.
|
|
Similarly, widths greater than about 7 and 15 Hz will begin to
|
|
impair copy in JT65B and C, respectively.
|
|
|
|
3. The utility program CWID.EXE now accepts lower case letters on the
|
|
command line. It also permits you to specify the audio frequency
|
|
of the tone in the wave file. You may wish to place the tone at
|
|
600 Hz or lower so that it lies well below the tones generated by
|
|
any of the WSJT operating modes.
|
|
|
|
4. The "Clip" function has been improved in several ways. The yellow
|
|
and magenta curves in the Big Spectrum display no longer disappear
|
|
when Clip > 0. Setting Clip = 3 does hard clipping, as before, but
|
|
it also blanks out any data regions with average power well above
|
|
the "baseline" of the green curve. Experimenting with different
|
|
values of Clip may help you to recover good copy from noisy data.
|
|
|
|
5. I believe that the text window displays in Monitor mode, and when
|
|
you are using the Include/Exclude buttons, now function correctly.
|
|
|
|
6. Minor bug fixes: the program no longer crashes in EME Echo mode if
|
|
you select "EME Calc | Load | Cancel". The correct "S" value is
|
|
listed on the status bar in JT6M mode.
|
|
|
|
7. The program's "Fit and finish" is improved in several not very
|
|
important ways.
|
|
|
|
|
|
WSJT Version 4.2.1
|
|
------------------
|
|
|
|
Version 4.2.1 contains a number of enhancements and bug fixes, mostly
|
|
related to the new JT65 mode. Changes from version 4.1.1 include the
|
|
following:
|
|
|
|
1.1 Message averaging now works correctly
|
|
1.2 Many small improvements to the decoding algorithm
|
|
1.3 Decoding speed improved by 50%
|
|
1.4 JT65 monitor mode is properly implemented
|
|
1.5 TX message can be changed up to t=59 s of preceding RX period
|
|
1.6 Switch to a shorthand TX message at any time
|
|
1.7 Freeze works properly for shorthand messages
|
|
1.8 Decodes with failed FEC (forward error correction) are
|
|
optionally displayable
|
|
1.9 "Garbage filter" provided so that questionable decodes appear
|
|
only if they contain some recognizable text
|
|
1.10 Automatic station ID, as in FSK441 and JT6M modes
|
|
1.11 Companion program to generate a CW ID.WAV file is included
|
|
1.12 The birdie zapper now works in JT65 mode
|
|
1.13 "Clip" function has been reactivated
|
|
1.14 F5 help screen updated to reflect JT65 practices
|
|
1.15 "OOO" message handled more transparently
|
|
1.16 Optional display of Moon Az/El at DX station, replacing Sun
|
|
Az/El
|
|
1.17 Right/Left audio out now works properly
|
|
1.18 DT displayed as blank rather than 0.0 for shorthand
|
|
messages
|
|
1.19 No program crash if ToRadio or Grid left empty
|
|
1.20 No program crash if attempting to decode 60 s file in JT6M
|
|
1.21 All other reported problems causing crash have been fixed
|
|
|
|
|
|
+-------------------------------------------------------------+
|
|
| Quick Start Guide to Using WSJT version 4 and the JT65 Mode |
|
|
+-------------------------------------------------------------+
|
|
|
|
Version 4 of WSJT marks a significant departure in the program's
|
|
evolution. The list of features is no longer a full superset of
|
|
those available in all previous versions. In particular, the
|
|
JT44 mode is gone; it is replaced by a new mode called JT65 that
|
|
I hope will be a significant improvement for making QSOs via EME
|
|
and extremely weak tropospheric paths.
|
|
|
|
The procedure for upgrading to version 4 is identical to previous
|
|
upgrades, with one exception: the setup procedure will install a
|
|
new program in your existing WSJT directory, but will keep the
|
|
old version alive as well. The two versions of the program can
|
|
coexist peacefully. During a testing period you will probably
|
|
want the older version and JT44 to be available as well.
|
|
|
|
|
|
What is different about JT65, compared to JT44? Here's a short
|
|
list:
|
|
|
|
1. T/R period 60 s; actual TX audio duration 46.8 s. (Yes, this
|
|
will put somewhat more stress on your PA. If its cooling is
|
|
marginal, take appropriate action.)
|
|
|
|
2. Modulation uses 64 data tones plus a sync tone.
|
|
|
|
3. Tones are spaced by 2.7 Hz in frequency and 0.372 s in time.
|
|
The total occupied bandwidth of a JT65 signal is about 180 Hz.
|
|
|
|
4. Transmissions consist of 63 data tones or "symbols," each
|
|
carrying 6 bits of information. In addition there are 63 sync
|
|
symbols for establishing time and frequency synchronization.
|
|
|
|
5. Software AFC (automatic frequency control) can follow drift
|
|
rates up to about +/-10 Hz/minute.
|
|
|
|
6. User messages are tightly "source coded" into 72 bits.
|
|
|
|
7. Strong FEC (forward error correction) coding is used to
|
|
mitigate transmission errors.
|
|
|
|
8. User-level message formats are designed to permit maximum
|
|
possible efficiency in EME or similar QSOs. A valid message must
|
|
be be one of three possible types:
|
|
|
|
1. "Call1 Call2 Grid" or "Call1 Call2 Grid OOO"
|
|
2. "RO", "RRR", or "73" (so-called shorthand messages)
|
|
3. "any text you want" (up to 13 characters selected
|
|
from a 42-character alphabet)
|
|
|
|
Instead of a callsign, the first field of a message type 1 may
|
|
contain "CQ" or "QRZ". Other such "special tokens" may be added
|
|
later. The available alphabet of characters for message type 3
|
|
is:
|
|
0123456789ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ +-./?
|
|
|
|
9. Instead of JT44's very effective intra-message averaging of
|
|
the even, odd, and "last N" characters of a message, JT65 offers
|
|
even more powerful special shorthand messages for RO, RRR, and
|
|
73. These have much higher sensitivity than the other message
|
|
types. They work reliably down to about -30 dB. If you
|
|
succeed in exchanging callsigns and "OOO" by means of type 1
|
|
messages, you should certainly be able to complete the QSO.
|
|
|
|
10. Message averaging over subsequent transmissions works as it
|
|
did in JT44, with one exception. The "OOO" signal report
|
|
typically used for EME can be appended to message #1 and the
|
|
message will continue averaging without any need to start over.
|
|
The presence or absence of "OOO" will be detected if sync is
|
|
achieved, whether or not full decoding has been successful.
|
|
|
|
11. Receiving FEC-decoded transmissions takes some getting used
|
|
to. You will find *much* less gibberish on your screen in JT65
|
|
than in JT44. The FEC algorithm has a good idea whether it has
|
|
succeeded or not, and the program will suppress output unless it
|
|
is "pretty sure" that it has got the message right. You will
|
|
discover that when the FEC procedure fails and the program has
|
|
not realized it, text is occasionally produced looks like
|
|
plausible (but quite wrong) callsigns or grid locators. You must
|
|
mentally reject such garbage messages, when they occur. In the
|
|
small amount of on-the-air testing that JT65 has enjoyed so far,
|
|
my experience is that that only a few percent of decoded messages
|
|
are displayed incorrectly. Most of the time, received text is
|
|
either "letter perfect" or is left blank.
|
|
|
|
12. You may optionally have the program display text for instances
|
|
when the decoder in uncertain of its results. Doing so makes use of
|
|
an "expected message", and you can specify a minimum number of
|
|
characters thst must match before uncertain text is displayed. By
|
|
default the expected message is "MyCall HisCall HisGrid" where MyCall
|
|
is your own callsign, HisCall is the one entered in the onscreen "To
|
|
Radio" box, and HisGrid is the first four characters of the grid
|
|
locator in the "Grid" box.
|
|
|
|
13. At least one design choice used to define the JT65 algorithm is
|
|
still subject to change. If the 2.7 Hz tone spacing turns out to be
|
|
problematic because of propagation anomalies or inadequate oscillator
|
|
stabilities, the spacing could be increased. There are significant
|
|
advantages to the smaller spacing, however, so I am sticking with it
|
|
for now.
|
|
|
|
Beta Release 4.1.1
|
|
------------------
|
|
|
|
+-------------------------------------------------------------+
|
|
| Quick Start Guide to Using WSJT version 4 and the JT65 Mode |
|
|
+-------------------------------------------------------------+
|
|
|
|
Version 4 of WSJT marks a significant departure in the program's
|
|
evolution. The list of features is no longer a full superset of
|
|
those available in all previous versions. In particular, the
|
|
JT44 mode is gone; it is replaced by a new mode called JT65 that
|
|
I hope will be a significant improvement for making QSOs via EME
|
|
and extremely weak tropospheric paths.
|
|
|
|
The procedure for upgrading to version 4 is identical to previous
|
|
upgrades, with one exception: the setup procedure will install a
|
|
new program in your existing WSJT directory, but will keep the
|
|
old version alive as well. The two versions of the program can
|
|
coexist peacefully. During a testing period you will probably
|
|
want the older version and JT44 to be available as well.
|
|
|
|
|
|
What is different about JT65, compared to JT44? Here's a short
|
|
list:
|
|
|
|
1. T/R period 60 s; actual TX audio duration 46.8 s. (Yes, this
|
|
will put somewhat more stress on your PA. If its cooling is
|
|
marginal, take appropriate action.)
|
|
|
|
2. Modulation uses 64 data tones plus a sync tone.
|
|
|
|
3. Tones are spaced by 2.7 Hz in frequency and 0.372 s in time.
|
|
The total occupied bandwidth of a JT65 signal is about 180 Hz.
|
|
|
|
4. Transmissions consist of 63 data tones or "symbols," each
|
|
carrying 6 bits of information. In addition there are 63 sync
|
|
symbols for establishing time and frequency synchronization.
|
|
|
|
5. Software AFC (automatic frequency control) can follow drift
|
|
rates up to about +/-10 Hz/minute.
|
|
|
|
6. User messages are tightly "source coded" into 72 bits.
|
|
|
|
7. Strong FEC (forward error correction) coding is used to
|
|
mitigate transmission errors.
|
|
|
|
8. User-level mesage formats are designed to permit maximum
|
|
possible efficiency in EME or similar QSOs. A valid message must
|
|
be be one of three possible types:
|
|
|
|
1. "Call1 Call2 Grid" or "Call1 Call2 Grid OOO"
|
|
|
|
2. "RO", "RRR", or "73" (so-called shorthand messages)
|
|
|
|
3. "any text you want" (up to 13 characters selected
|
|
from a 42-character alphabet)
|
|
|
|
Instead of a callsign, the first field of a message type 1 may
|
|
contain "CQ" or "QRZ". Other such "special tokens" may be added
|
|
later. The available alphabet of characters for message type 3
|
|
is:
|
|
0123456789ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ +-./?
|
|
|
|
9. Instead of JT44's very effective intra-message averaging of
|
|
the even, odd, and "last N" characters of a message, JT65 offers
|
|
even more powerful special shorthand messages for RO, RRR, and
|
|
73. These have much higher sensitivity than the other message
|
|
types. They work reliably down to -30 dB and below. If you
|
|
succeed in exchanging callsigns and "OOO" by means of type 1
|
|
messages, you should certainly be able to complete the QSO.
|
|
|
|
10. Message averaging over subsequent transmissions is intended
|
|
to work as it did in JT44, with one exception. The "OOO" signal
|
|
report typically used for EME can be appended to message #1 and
|
|
the message will continue averaging without any need to start
|
|
over. The presence or absence of "OOO" will be detected if sync
|
|
is achieved, whether or not full decoding has been successful.
|
|
[Note: message averaging is only partially functional in the
|
|
first beta release of the JT65 mode. I will need some experience
|
|
with the mode in order to optimize the code here.]
|
|
|
|
11. Receiving FEC-decoded transmissions takes some getting used
|
|
to. You will find *much* less gibberish on your screen in JT65
|
|
than in JT44. The FEC algorithm has a good idea whether it has
|
|
succeeded or not, and the program will suppress output unless it
|
|
is "pretty sure" that it has got the message right. You will
|
|
discover that when the FEC procedure fails and the program has
|
|
not realized it, text is occasionally produced looks like
|
|
plausible (but quite wrong) callsigns or grid locators. You must
|
|
mentally reject such garbage messages, when they occur. In the
|
|
small amount of on-the-air testing that JT65 has enjoyed so far,
|
|
my experience is that that only a few percent of decoded messages
|
|
are displayed incorrectly. Most of the time, received text is
|
|
either "letter perfect" or is left blank.
|
|
|
|
12. The program makes use of what it calls the "expected
|
|
message". By default this message is "MyCall HisCall HisGrid"
|
|
where MyCall is your own callsign, HisCall is the one entered in
|
|
the onscreen "To Radio" box, and HisGrid is the first four
|
|
characters of the grid locator in the "Grid" box. The AFC
|
|
algorithm, in particular, can work more effectively when the
|
|
actual message received matches the expected message.
|
|
|
|
13. Several design choices used in defining the JT65 algorithm
|
|
are still subject to change. If the 2.7 Hz tone spacing turns
|
|
out to be problematic because of propagation anomalies or
|
|
inadequate oscillator stabilities, the spacing could be
|
|
increased. About 1 dB of additional S/N could be obtained by
|
|
omitting the "Grid" field of the standard message format. This
|
|
would also reduce the maximum "plain text" message length from 13
|
|
characters to 10.
|
|
|
|
14. Please note that the "Clip" and "ST" are not functional in
|
|
WSJT v4.1.1. Their settings do not affect program operation.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Beta Release 3.8.1
|
|
------------------
|
|
This release contains the following new features:
|
|
|
|
1. An optional large spectral display. Its axes are reversed with
|
|
respect to those of the FSK441 and JT6M waterfall displays; in the new
|
|
plot, frequency runs from left to right and time from top to bottom.
|
|
|
|
2. A new birdie zapper that is especially effective in the FSK441 and
|
|
JT6M modes. You can watch what it is doing by observing the waterfall
|
|
displays before and after the "Zap" box is checked. Click "Decode" to
|
|
refresh the displays after checking or uncheking "Zap".
|
|
|
|
3. Message decoding in FSK441 mode has been improved in several ways.
|
|
DF is more accurately determined. Better synchronization is achieved
|
|
with the precise timing of 25-sample tone bursts comprising each
|
|
message symbol. Folding of messages is no longer attempted. (It
|
|
seems that whenever a ping is long enough to make folding effective,
|
|
it's also strong enough to make folding unnecessary.) As in previous
|
|
versions, the left mouse button allows decoding of single-tone
|
|
messages while the right button suppresses them.
|
|
|
|
4. It is now permissible to click "Gen Std Msgs" while transmitting in
|
|
FSK441 or JT6M mode. When this button is clicked, the Tx message
|
|
number will reset to #1 if and only if the callsign in "To Radio" has
|
|
changed.
|
|
|
|
5. Message formatting templates for FSK441 and JT6M may now include
|
|
the special codes %G and %L to insert your 4-digit grid or full
|
|
6-digit locator, respectively, in the message.
|
|
|
|
6. "Reset Defaults" now resets the QRN level to 5, as it should.
|
|
|
|
7. The decoding parameters in use are no longer listed in the Status
|
|
Bar at lower right. This listing had become redundant.
|
|
|
|
8. In Monitor mode, the name assigned to the Rx wave file begins with
|
|
"Mon_" instead of the "To Radio" callsign.
|
|
|
|
9. In FSK441 mode, all messages with more than 3 non-blank characters
|
|
are transmitted in multi-tone mode.
|
|
|
|
Beta Version 3.6.4
|
|
------------------
|
|
|
|
The previous version had the threshold set very low for all mouse-picked
|
|
decoding attempts in JT6M mode. This was useful to me for testing, but
|
|
produced excessive gibberish. Version 3.6.4 has a reasonable threshold and
|
|
produces much cleaner output. In addition, the message averaging algorithm
|
|
has been improved. I find that I seldom need to use either "Freeze" or
|
|
"FixAve" now. These buttons are still present in version 3.6.4, but unless
|
|
I hear that people are finding them useful I may remove them soon.
|
|
|
|
An option has been added to the Setup menu so that you can determine
|
|
whether you want the "Tx Stop" button to kick you out of Auto Mode, or
|
|
not. The default is not to do so.
|
|
|
|
***IMPORTANT***
|
|
|
|
If you can make WSJT v3.6.4 crash in normal operation, please let me know
|
|
(and tell me how). Also let me know if you find anything that does not
|
|
work as intended. I believe the present code behaves well and is nearly
|
|
ready to be upgraded from "Beta" status to a full release.
|
|
|
|
WSJT Beta Version 3.6.3
|
|
-----------------------
|
|
Version 3.6.3 has a number of small improvements, many of them not
|
|
immediately visible. Several bugs have been exterminated. The JT6M
|
|
decoder works better and is more sensitive. JT6M now has a "FixAve"
|
|
checkbox; when this is checked, average messages will be sought only
|
|
at the lengths of the automatically generated messages.
|
|
|
|
|
|
WSJT Beta Version 3.6.2
|
|
-----------------------
|
|
Version 3.6.2 corrects a problem that on a few machines caused a
|
|
fatal error that could only be corrected by deleting the initialization
|
|
file, WSJT361.INI.
|
|
|
|
|
|
WSJT Beta Version 3.6.1
|
|
-----------------------
|
|
Version 3.6.1 corrects a problem that caused an immediate termination
|
|
on program startup on some users' machines (typically older ones). If
|
|
you need this upgrade, you need it bad!
|
|
|
|
It also fixes a minor bug that could cause a divide-by-zero error if
|
|
you clicked on the plot area when no data was available to analyze.
|
|
|
|
|
|
WSJT Beta Version 3.6.0
|
|
-----------------------
|
|
|
|
The JT6M mode is only a week old, but many hundreds of QSOs have been
|
|
made with it all over the world. This mode is expressly designed for
|
|
meteor scatter on 6 meters, but it may be useful with some other
|
|
propagation modes as well. It has characteristics that place it about
|
|
midway between FSK441 and JT44 in both speed and sensitivity. A
|
|
second beta release of WSJT with JT6M, Version 3.6.0, is now available
|
|
for downloading at
|
|
|
|
http://pulsar.princeton.edu/~joe/K1JT/UPD360.EXE
|
|
|
|
The download file is about 0.75 MB in length.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Comparison of Versions 3.6.0 and 3.5.1
|
|
--------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
1. Version 3.6.0 has a better and faster decoder for JT6M. Further
|
|
improvements in this area are still to come.
|
|
|
|
2. Several bugs that could cause crashes in V3.5.1 have been fixed.
|
|
Version 3.6.0 appears to be quite stable (at least on my own
|
|
computers).
|
|
|
|
3. Some buttons have been moved from their familiar positions.
|
|
|
|
4. Gadgets that Microsoft calls "Up-Down Controls" have replaced the
|
|
+/- buttons used for various decoding parameters.
|
|
|
|
5. You can now drag the mouse pointer across any portion of the large
|
|
plot area to cause decoding of that portion of a recorded file. This
|
|
works in both FSK441 and JT6M mode. The area you selected is marked
|
|
when the plot is refreshed.
|
|
|
|
6. A yellow curve now appears above the green curve in JT6M mode. The
|
|
yellow line represents measured power received at the sync-tone
|
|
frequency and in the sync-tone intervals.
|
|
|
|
|
|
I haven't yet written up any detailed instructions for the JT6M mode.
|
|
However, if you are an experienced WSJT user you probably won't need
|
|
any. Here are a few things it will be helpful to know about JT6M.
|
|
|
|
1. Like JT44, JT6M uses 44-tone FSK with a "sync tone" and 43 possible
|
|
data tones -- one for each character in the supported alphanumeric
|
|
set. The sync tone is at 1076.66 Hz, and the 43 other possible tones
|
|
are spaced at 21.53 HZ intervals up to 2002.59 Hz. The tones are
|
|
keyed at a rate of 21.53 baud, so each one lasts for 1/21.53 = 0.04644
|
|
seconds. The sync tone is ON during every 3rd transmission interval;
|
|
tones representing two data characters follow each sync tone. The
|
|
transmission rate of user data is therefore (2/3)*21.53 = 14.4
|
|
characters per second. The transmitted signal sounds a bit like
|
|
piccolo music.
|
|
|
|
2. Basic operation is very similar to FSK441. Just select JT6M from
|
|
the WSJT "Mode" menu (or use "Shift-F7") and then proceed as usual.
|
|
|
|
3. The green line and waterfall display have their usual meanings.
|
|
|
|
4. The program attempts to decode both single pings and an "average
|
|
message". The average is the last line displayed during each decoding
|
|
attempt, and is flagged with an asterisk as in FSK441. The number to
|
|
the right of the asterisk is the inferred message length (for example,
|
|
the number should be 10 for the message "W8WN K1JT "). If the program
|
|
finds the wrong length, the average will be garbled or meaningless.
|
|
All message lengths should be even numbers, because odd-length
|
|
messages are padded with an extra space at transmission time in order
|
|
to make them even.
|
|
|
|
5. Clicking with the left mouse button decodes a 4-second block of
|
|
data near the mouse pointer. The right button uses a longer segment
|
|
of 10 seconds. Drag the mouse with the button down to select any
|
|
desired region. Experiment for best decoding as necessary.
|
|
|
|
6. As soon as you see some properly decoded text, set the DF box to
|
|
the measured DF and check the "Freeze" box. Alternatively, you can
|
|
set the Tolerance to a low value (say 25 Hz) after the desired signal
|
|
has been identified. Use RIT, if necessary, to bring subsequently
|
|
measured DF's down to a small value.
|
|
|
|
7. Default settings for the decoder are S > -12 dB, Tol=400 Hz, DF=0
|
|
Hz.
|
|
|
|
8. JT6M can work with signals that are up to 13 dB weaker than those
|
|
required for FSK441. In the brief on-the-air tests I've made with
|
|
W8WN, we have both found that mouse-clicking on the smooth green line,
|
|
even where nothing was heard and nothing can be seen, sometimes causes
|
|
both callsigns to pop up out of the noise!
|
|
|
|
|
|
Version 3.0
|
|
-----------
|
|
|
|
A new major release of WSJT, Version 3.0, is now available for free
|
|
download. Instructions for upgrading and for complete installations
|
|
can be found at http://pulsar.princeton.edu/~joe/K1JT.
|
|
|
|
What's new in Version 3.0?
|
|
--------------------------
|
|
|
|
1. The "User's Guide and Reference Manual" has grown to 51 well
|
|
illustrated pages. The new manual includes four major new
|
|
sections which together cover:
|
|
|
|
a) the EME Echo mode, including the "Measure" sub-mode and the
|
|
"EME Calc" utility for estimating the strength of your echoes
|
|
from the moon;
|
|
b) the nature of the various astronomical calculations done within
|
|
WSJT, and a summary of their accuracies;
|
|
c) several pages describing availability of Fortran source code for
|
|
the DSP algorithms in WSJT, as well as a suite of test programs
|
|
for generating simulated data and testing the FSK441 and JT44
|
|
encoding and decoding algorithms;
|
|
d) a short essay on possible future developments for WSJT.
|
|
|
|
2. The astronomical calculations in WSJT have been overhauled and thoroughly
|
|
checked. In practice the differences from V2.9 will seem minor, but as
|
|
described in the new manual's Appendix B, the accuracies of
|
|
computed positions for the sun and moon, and for the EME Doppler
|
|
shift, are now well documented. Computed positions are accurate to
|
|
within about 0.04 degrees, and Doppler is better than 1 Hz at 144
|
|
MHz. Exactly what is meant by the displayed data is now described
|
|
in the manual, as well.
|
|
|
|
3. A new feature has been added on the Help menu. It pops up a screen
|
|
summarizing the standard message exchanges used for minimal QSOs
|
|
using FSK441 and JT44. No more excuses for not being sure about which
|
|
message you should send next!
|
|
|
|
4. The Measure mode can now be left running indefinitely, with its output
|
|
written to a file. A few individuals have been wanting to use the
|
|
program for radio astronomy purposes, and the new version provides a
|
|
minimal facility for doing this.
|
|
|
|
5. The display screen for the EME Calc utility has been cleaned and
|
|
tightened up.
|
|
|
|
6. A few other small niceties, all minor in scope.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Version 2.9.0
|
|
-------------
|
|
|
|
I am pleased to announce the availability of an upgrade to WSJT
|
|
Version 2.9. The upgrade provides most of the features of the
|
|
soon-to-be-released Version 3.0; I am releasing it now as Version 2.9
|
|
because many users have asked for early access to its new
|
|
capabilities. A full release of Version 3.0 must await some updating
|
|
of the Users Guide and Reference Manual. Probably a few additional
|
|
features will be added by then, as well. Please be patient!
|
|
|
|
Version 2.9 is available only as an upgrade. As usual, it can be
|
|
downloaded from the WSJT web site,
|
|
http://pulsar.princeton.edu/~joe/K1JT, or from the European mirror
|
|
site http://www.dk5ya.de. New features of the program include the
|
|
following:
|
|
|
|
1. EME Echo mode now works on certain computers (generally older,
|
|
slower ones) that previously refused to run Echo mode properly. The
|
|
new version runs fine under Windows 95 on my ancient 100 MHz Pentium
|
|
with 32 MB of RAM.
|
|
|
|
2. A new feature known as "Measure" can be selected from the main
|
|
screen in EME Echo mode. Click the Measure button and your system
|
|
will record the received audio for one second, compute the level of
|
|
the noise and display the result in units of dB relative to the
|
|
nominal WSJT "0 dB" level. The program will repeat this measurement
|
|
cycle every 2 seconds and plot the results as a green line in the
|
|
graphical screen area. You can use this mode to measure Sun noise,
|
|
antenna temperature, ground noise, preamp gain, and a host of other
|
|
useful quantities, relative to a chosen reference level.
|
|
|
|
3. A pop-up utility labeled "EME Calc" can be selected from the EME
|
|
Echo screen. It provides an easy way to predict whether you should be
|
|
able to detect your own echoes from the moon, as well as your ability
|
|
to work another station by EME. Boxes are provided to enter your TX
|
|
power, TX feedline loss, RX noise figure, RX feedline loss, antenna
|
|
gain, ground gain, ground noise, and sky temperature. Similar
|
|
quantities can be entered for a second station, and you must also
|
|
specify the operating frequency. When you click "Compute," the
|
|
program will calculate the maximum expected echo strengths for the
|
|
"Home Station" and the "DX Station" individually, as well as the
|
|
maximum expected signal strength of each station at the other
|
|
location. The program also estimates the averaging time that would be
|
|
required to detect echoes at the predicted signal level.
|
|
|
|
Signal strengths are quoted relative to the WSJT standard, the noise
|
|
power in a 2500 Hz bandwidth. If the computed result for your echo
|
|
exceeds about -38 dB, you have a chance of being able to detect your
|
|
echoes using WSJT. In comparison, echoes are detectable by the human
|
|
ear only if they exceed about -14 dB on the same scale, or
|
|
equivalently +3 dB in a 50 Hz bandwidth. Note that the estimated
|
|
signal strengths are supposed to be the maximum values expected for
|
|
the specified conditions. There are many reasons (Faraday rotation,
|
|
ionospheric scintillation, libration fading, ...) why the actual
|
|
signal strength may be different, and deviations are much more likely
|
|
to be downward than upward. The predicted echo strength for my
|
|
present 144 MHz station at a reasonably good time of the month is
|
|
around -25 dB. My experience has been that the predictions are fairly
|
|
good if enough time is spent to be sure of catching a Faraday rotation
|
|
peak.
|
|
|
|
|
|
A number of smaller enhancements have been made in the EME Echo mode
|
|
of WSJT. These include the following:
|
|
|
|
4. The program is much better behaved when operating at higher
|
|
frequencies, in particular 1296 MHz and above. If you fail to enter
|
|
an RIT setting or specify one that would make the return echo fall
|
|
outside the audio frequency range 900 - 2100 Hz, the program will
|
|
suggest a better RIT value for you to use.
|
|
|
|
5. The amount of programmed frequency spread of your transmitted
|
|
signal (the "Dither" magnitude) can be set to any value in the range 0
|
|
to 500 Hz. It defaults to 50 Hz.
|
|
|
|
6. Instead of accumulating average echo parameters indefinitely, you
|
|
can set a parameter "Tavg" that specifies a time constant for
|
|
averaging. The default value is 5 minutes; at this setting the
|
|
average echo spectrum will build up as before for the first 5 minutes,
|
|
but thereafter it will track the signal characteristics over the most
|
|
recent 5 minutes. In other words, the average gradually "forgets" the
|
|
signals received more than Tavg minutes ago. Setting Tavg to a large
|
|
number, say 999 minutes, will closely approximate the program's
|
|
previous behavior. If you can detect your EME echoes easily and want
|
|
to see how they vary with time, you might set Tavg to 1 minute, start
|
|
a "Measure" sequence, and take down the signal level readings at one
|
|
minute intervals.
|
|
|
|
7. Information sent to the main text window every 6 seconds now
|
|
accumulates, with the text window scrolling as necessary. The output
|
|
is also (optionally) written to file DECODED.CUM so that you can study
|
|
the data later.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Other miscellaneous improvements and bug fixes include the following:
|
|
|
|
8. In JT44 mode, if the "Grid" box is left empty then no EME Doppler
|
|
shift will be displayed.
|
|
|
|
9. The minimum "Dsec" increment has been reduced from 1 second to 0.5
|
|
second. This will permit more precise on-the-fly correction of the
|
|
Windows clock for use by WSJT, should that be necessary.
|
|
|
|
10. JT44 messages are always exactly 22 characters in length, and any
|
|
additional characters are ignored. To make this behavior more
|
|
obvious, any excess characters are now visibly removed from the screen
|
|
when transmission of a message begins.
|
|
|
|
11. In Version 2.3.0, hitting the F4 key while in echo mode would
|
|
cause the program to crash. Fixed.
|
|
|
|
12. Switching between modes could cause the Auto Period button to be
|
|
stuck in the disabled or "grayed out" state. Fixed.
|
|
|
|
13. The last character in a manually edited FSK441 message was not
|
|
sent if the default trailing blank and "<" character were erased.
|
|
Fixed.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Version 2.3.0
|
|
-------------
|
|
|
|
This release of WSJT is the first to include the EME Echo mode. This
|
|
mode allows you to detect and measure your own lunar echoes, even if
|
|
they are far too weak to hear. The mode can be highly useful for
|
|
evaluating your station performance, even if you prefer to use CW
|
|
rather than JT44 for your EME QSOs.
|
|
|
|
If you are a present user of WSJT with no interest in detecting and
|
|
measuring your EME echoes, you will find no significant advantages to
|
|
upgrading to WSJT Version 2.3.0. With the exception of a minor bug
|
|
fix, the FSK441 and JT44 modes are essentially unchanged.
|
|
|
|
You can download the upgrade from the WSJT home page,
|
|
http://pulsar.princeton.edu/~joe/K1JT, and soon also from the European
|
|
mirror site http://www.vhfdx.de/wsjt. To upgrade an existing WSJT
|
|
installation of Version 1.9.4 or later you should download and execute
|
|
the file UPD230.EXE, which will replace your existing files WSJT.EXE
|
|
and WSJT1.DLL with new files of the same name.
|
|
|
|
I have not yet produced a new full distribution of the latest version.
|
|
Doing this will require extensions to the User's Guide and Reference
|
|
Manual, and will probably be accompanied by further improvements to
|
|
the program. If you wish to do a full installation of Version 2.3.0
|
|
from scratch you should download the installation file WSJT222.EXE,
|
|
run it to install Version 2.2.2, and then upgrade to Version 2.3.0 as
|
|
described above.
|
|
|
|
Minor Bug Fix: In WSJT Version 2.2.2 and earlier, if you dismissed the
|
|
"Setup | Options" page by clicking on the "X" in the upper right
|
|
corner of the form, instead of by clicking the "Done" button, the home
|
|
station callsign ("My Call") would revert to its default value "K1JT".
|
|
(Contrary to popular opinion, this was not an subtle ploy designed to
|
|
increase my own VUCC totals; it was simply a coding mistake.) The bug
|
|
has now been fixed.
|
|
|
|
EME Echo mode is presently a plain, no-frills implementation. You can
|
|
activate it from the Mode menu or by striking function key F9. Most
|
|
of the familiar WSJT buttons will then disappear from the screen,
|
|
leaving just a few that are essential for controlling the Echo mode.
|
|
If your station is already operational in the FSK441 and JT44 modes
|
|
and you have provided the proper signal levels, all you need to do for
|
|
an echo test is to start WSJT Version 2.3.0, hit F9 to switch to EME
|
|
Echo mode, aim your antenna at the moon, pick a clear frequency, and
|
|
toggle Auto Period On. The program will then start cycling through
|
|
the following loop:
|
|
|
|
1. Transmit a fixed tone for 2.0 s
|
|
2. Wait about 0.5 s for the start of your echo
|
|
3. Record the received signal for 2.0 s
|
|
4. Analyze and plot the results
|
|
5. Repeat from step 1
|
|
|
|
The loop cycle time is 6 seconds, so the transmitter duty cycle is
|
|
only 2/6 or 33%. Your transmitter will think it is loafing. At the
|
|
start of each transmission the frequency of the transmitted tone is
|
|
randomly dithered by an offset up to +/- 100 Hz around a nominal value
|
|
of 1500 Hz. The programmed offset is removed from the computed
|
|
spectrum of each recording before it is added into the accumulating
|
|
average. This procedure helps to minimize the effect of birdies in
|
|
the receiver passband: in the average spectrum a fixed-frequency
|
|
birdie will be smeared out over a 200 Hz range, while the desired
|
|
signal remains sharply defined.
|
|
|
|
Two curves are plotted in WSJT's main plot area during each pass
|
|
through the Tx/Rx loop. Each represents the spectrum of received
|
|
power over a 400 Hz range centered on the expected echo. The curve in
|
|
gray is a reference spectrum that you can use to be sure you have
|
|
chosen a reasonably birdie-free passband. It is aligned so as to
|
|
remove the EME doppler shift computed at the start of your run. The
|
|
alignment will not be subsequently adjusted for changes in doppler
|
|
shift or for the random dithering of the transmitted frequency.
|
|
Stable birdies will therefore stay fixed in the blue spectrum, making
|
|
them easy to recognize and evade if necessary. The red curve displays
|
|
the desired EME echo signal. Spectra computed for each 2-second
|
|
receive period are shifted to correct for changing doppler shift and
|
|
for the programmed frequency dithering, and are then averaged. The
|
|
EME echo should appear as a narrow spike near the middle of the red
|
|
curve, close to DF = 0.
|
|
|
|
In addition to the graphical display, a line is presented in the WSJT
|
|
text window in the following form:
|
|
|
|
N: 16 Sig: -26.3 dB DF: -1.3 Hz Width: 0.7 Hz Q: 9
|
|
|
|
This information gives the number N of Tx/Rx cycles that have been
|
|
averaged, the mean signal strength in dB, the measured frequency
|
|
offset of the detected echo from the expected frequency, the spectral
|
|
width of the echo, and a relative quality indicator for the detection
|
|
on a 0 - 10 scale. Signal strength is measured in the same units as
|
|
used in the FSK441 and JT44 modes, i.e., in dB relative to the
|
|
received noise power in a 2500 Hz bandwidth. Low values of Q
|
|
represent dubious detections, in which case the values of signal
|
|
strength, DF, and width may be meaningless.
|
|
|
|
A note about doppler calculations will be helpful here. Most computer
|
|
programs in amateur EME stations use approximate formulae to compute
|
|
the position and distance of the moon and the expected doppler shifts
|
|
of echos. WSJT is no exception, and I cannot presently quote a firm
|
|
figure on the accuracy of its doppler calculations or describe how
|
|
their errors depend on lunar coordinates or the accuracy of your
|
|
station location. EME Echo mode uses a calculated doppler shift to
|
|
align received spectra so that the echo should appear at DF = 0. I
|
|
have found that on 2 meters the return signals generally fall within
|
|
10 Hz of DF = 0. Further improvements in accuracy of the doppler
|
|
routine will be forthcoming.
|
|
|
|
If you can hear your own EME echoes you should see a spike in the red
|
|
curve within a few seconds after toggling Auto Period On. If your
|
|
echoes are 10-15 dB below the audible threshold you should see a
|
|
significant spike on the red curve within a few minutes. To give you
|
|
a better example of what to expect, consider the parameters of my
|
|
station. On 2 meters I run up to 400 Watts to a 17.6 dBd antenna (4 x
|
|
9 el yagis) aimed at the horizon. I have never heard my own CW echoes
|
|
with this system. However, when the moon is in my elevation window at
|
|
0 - 10 degrees I can easily detect my echoes at any time of the month
|
|
using WSJT in its EME Echo mode. Indeed, I can turn off the PA and
|
|
use my FT-847 barefoot, delivering 35 W to the antenna, and still
|
|
detect my echoes rather easily, even with the moon in a "bad" part of
|
|
the sky and the path degradation as large as -8 dB. I seem to be able
|
|
to detect my echoes reliably down to relative signal levels around -36
|
|
dB.
|
|
|
|
The spectral analysis done in EME Echo mode provides a frequency
|
|
resolution of 0.67 Hz. If your transmitter or receiver has short-term
|
|
frequency stability much worse than this value, so that something
|
|
drifts or wobbles by more than about 1 Hz in 2 seconds, your echo
|
|
sensitivity will be degraded. Most modern radios have no difficulty
|
|
in meeting this standard on the 6 and 2 meter bands, but the higher
|
|
UHF and microwave bands will be more problematic. I don't have enough
|
|
experience to know what the spectral width of an echo on the 432 MHz
|
|
or 1296 MHz band should be after averaging for a few minutes. I have
|
|
been measuring widths of 2 Hz or less on 2 meters.
|
|
|
|
By default WSJT will assume that your receiver and transmitter are
|
|
tuned to the same frequency. An on-screen box labeled "RIT (Hz)" is
|
|
provided so that you can inform the program of any offset receiver
|
|
tuning, for example to accommodate a large doppler shift. Suppose you
|
|
are running a test on 70 cm and the predicted doppler shift at the
|
|
start of the run is -1087 Hz. That would cause echoes from the 1400 -
|
|
1600 Hz transmitted audio tone to come back as low as 313 Hz, probably
|
|
well below the low-frequency cutoff in your receiver's passband. Use
|
|
your transceiver's RIT control to offset the receiver tuning by some
|
|
round number within a few hundred Hz of the predicted value -- say
|
|
-1000 Hz in this example -- and enter this offset in the RIT box
|
|
before starting the echo measurement. The program will accommodate
|
|
subsequent changes in the doppler shift up to 800 Hz or so, if
|
|
necessary, without any further adjustments. Your echo should appear
|
|
at the center of the red curve, as usual. You won't need to use
|
|
the RIT feature on 6 or 2 meters, where doppler shifts are much
|
|
smaller and echoes always fall well within the receiver's SSB
|
|
passband.
|
|
|
|
Please note that I have so far tested the EME Echo mode only on 2
|
|
meters. You will discover that the software implementation is not yet
|
|
highly polished; a number of improvements are already in the works,
|
|
but I want to gain the advantage of feedback from other users before I
|
|
go too much further. If you use the EME Echo mode -- especially on
|
|
bands other than 2 meters -- please send me your comments,
|
|
experiences, and suggestions! I am anxious to know how well it works
|
|
for you.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Version 2.2.2
|
|
-------------
|
|
|
|
This is a minor maintenance release. As usual, you can download it
|
|
from the WSJT web page, http://pulsar.princeton.edu/~joe/K1JT. In
|
|
addition to a short update file, UPD222.EXE, a full distribution of
|
|
WSJT Version 2.2.2 is available as WSJT222.EXE.
|
|
|
|
I had thought that Version 2.2.1 had already fixed a sometimes
|
|
baffling bug appearing in earlier versions: if WSJT was terminated
|
|
when in its "minimized" state, it could get "stuck" on your Windows
|
|
taskbar and refuse to return to a full size display.
|
|
|
|
It's not always easy for me to test program revisions on all available
|
|
versions of Windows, and it seems that the V2.2.1 fix did not solve
|
|
the problem on at least some versions of Windows 98. This time, with
|
|
V2.2.2, I believe it's *really* fixed!
|
|
|
|
If WSJT is stuck in the minimized state you should fix it as follows,
|
|
and then upgrade to Version 2.2.2:
|
|
|
|
A) Start WSJT. It should appear in minimized form on the taskbar at
|
|
the bottom of your screen.
|
|
|
|
B) Right-click on the WSJT taskbar label and select "Move".
|
|
|
|
C) Press the "left arrow" and/or "up arrow" keys a few times and
|
|
then move the mouse. You should start to see a "dotted frame"
|
|
indicating the location of the WSJT screen.
|
|
|
|
D) Click the left mouse button, and you should be back in business.
|
|
|
|
Then you should download and install UPD222.EXE and upgrade your
|
|
system to Version 2.2.2.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Version 2.2.1
|
|
-------------
|
|
|
|
This is a minor maintenance release. You can download it from the
|
|
WSJT web page, http://pulsar.princeton.edu/~joe/K1JT. In addition to
|
|
the short update file, a new full distribution of WSJT Version 2.2.1
|
|
is available, as well as a new version of the manual addressing the
|
|
new program features.
|
|
|
|
As always, I will be pleased to receive comments and suggestions at
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email address k1jt@arrl.net. Please note, however, that I will be on
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vacation and not reading email from July 7 through 21.
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Version 2.2.1 fixes the following minor bugs in Version 2.2.0:
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1. When first started without a valid INI file, the v2.2.0 would fail
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to "Generate Std Messages" when asked to do so. Once you have
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switched modes, say from FSK441 to JT44, the program worked correctly.
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2. Local hour angles greater than 180 degrees are now displayed as
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negative angles.
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3. If you did not check the menu item "File | Save text in File
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DECODED.CUM", the v2.2.0 would create an unwanted file named "fort.21"
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and write all decoded JT44 text there.
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4. If WSJT was terminated when in the "minimized" state, it could get
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"stuck" on your Windows taskbar. If you are stuck in this mode you
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should fix it as follows, and then upgrade to Version 2.2.1:
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A) Start WSJT. It should appear in minimized form on the taskbar at
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the bottom of your screen.
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B) Right-click on the WSJT taskbar label and select "Move".
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C) Press the "left arrow" and/or "up arrow" keys a few times and
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then move the mouse. You should start to see a "dotted frame"
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indicating the location of the WSJT screen.
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D) Click the left mouse button, and you should be back in business.
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Version 2.2.0
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-------------
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WSJT Version 2.2.0 provides several significant enhancements, a number
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of smaller improvements, and four minor bug fixes.
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To upgrade to v2.2.0 you should download the self-extracting zip file
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UPD220.EXE and execute it to extract its contents, directing the
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resulting files to your WSJT installation folder.
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The new version includes the following changes:
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1. The JT44 mode now has an adjustable parameter called "Clip." It
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can be controlled with +/- buttons just below analogous ones for the
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"Sync" parameter. The value of Clip defaults to 0, where it has no
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effect. By increasing Clip to 1, 2, or 3 you can introduce "soft,"
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"moderate," or "hard" clipping of any sudden increases in signal
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strength that might ruin the decoding of an otherwise usable signal.
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I have found that setting Clip to 2 or 3 permits me to use JT44 in the
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presence of summertime QRN that renders v2.0.1 useless. Clipping also
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helps to accommodate occasional meteor pings in a JT44 QSO, recovering
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the program's ability to synchronize on a weak residual signal. You
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can leave the clipping turned on; note, however, that using hard
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clipping on a signal that does not require it can cost you about 1 dB
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in message S/N. I recommend generally leaving Clip set to 0 and
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increasing it only when necessary.
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2. JT44 mode has a new checkbox labeled "Zap Birdies." It does just
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what you would hope such a command would do -- and it can turn a
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totally spoiled signal into good copy! (In the upgrade file I've
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included an example wave file recorded via EME from W7FG, in the
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presence of a strong birdie at my station. To become a believer, try
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decoding this file both with and without "Zap Birdies" checked. He
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was sending me the message "K1JT W7FG EM26 ".)
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The Zap algorithm works best with birdies that are steady in both
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amplitude and frequency. A sure indicator that you have a birdie
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problem is a persistent extra spike (or spikes) in the red-line plot,
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in addition to the one corresponding to the JT44 sync tone. If the
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birdie is higher in frequency than the sync tone by 20 to 465 Hz, you
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will probably see a number of identical garbage characters in the line
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of decoded text. If this happens, check the "Zap Birdies" box and hit
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"Decode Again", and your copy should improve. It will work best if
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you have already identified the correct value of DF and checked the
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"Freeze" box to lock onto the Sync tone.
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Do not expect miracles! Keeping birdies out of your receiver or
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QSYing to avoid them will always work better than trying to deal with
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them in software. Nevertheless, this birdie-killer can make the
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difference between a successful QSO and one that fails miserably.
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3. The JT44 mode has a second new checkbox labeled "Fold Msg." For
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messages having identical content in the first and second half, this
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feature can yield a signal-to-noise improvement of 1.5 dB. The JT44
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default message formats have been modified slightly to maximize the
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opportunities for useful message folding. For example, if K1AA is
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working G2ZZ, the first EME-style message will now be generated as
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"G2ZZ K1AA G2ZZ K1AA ". (Notice the two spaces in the middle of the
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message and at the end.) If the "Fold Msg" box is checked, the
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message will be decoded simply as "G2ZZ K1AA ". Try decoding a
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marginal signal both with and without the "Fold Msg" box checked. QSB
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conditions might make one or the other preferable at a particular time.
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4. In WSJT versions 2.0.0 and 2.0.1 the JT44 decode algorithm produces
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a single-character average of the last four character positions in a
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message. In Version 2.2.0 the averaging limit has been changed to
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equal the number of "O" characters (for EME messages) or "R"
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characters (for non-EME messages) at the trailing end of default TX
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message #2. For example, if clicking "Generate Std Texts" produces
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"G2ZZ K1AA OOOOOOOOOOOO" for message #2, the program will produce a
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single-character average based on the last 12 received character
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positions. This choice gives you the best possible chance of properly
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decoding an "O" or "R" report in message #2, and it also gives you a
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good chance at snagging the "RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR" message under
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very marginal conditions. For steady signals the procedure can yield
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a 5.4 dB S/N advantage over single characters and a 2.4 dB advantage
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over the four-character average.
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5. WSJT now remembers whether you were using FSK441 or JT44 mode when
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you last exited the program. On startup it restores the most recently
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used mode, including values of W, S, and Sync, as appropriate.
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6. All decoded text in JT44 mode is now written to the cumulative file
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DECODED.CUM. In previous versions of WSJT, text was saved only in
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FSK441 mode.
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7. The default Sync setting in JT44 mode is now 1 rather than 2.
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I believe nearly everybody runs with Sync = 1.
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8. WSJT v2.2.0 is more complete and more consistent about saving
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information about the starting directory and the form size of the
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"File | Open" dialog box.
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9. The displayed azimuths for "Hot A" and "Hot B" (direction headings
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to use for optimal sporadic meteor reflections) now wrap correctly at
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0 and 360 degrees. You will no longer see, for example, values like
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368 or -8 degrees if you are working someone to your north.
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10. In JT44 mode the program now displays the local hour angle of the
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Moon, in degrees. You will appreciate this if you have a polar
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mounted EME array.
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11. The UTC Offset may now be specified as a floating-point number --
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that is, with significant digits after a decimal point.
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12. The count of available records displayed in the average message
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window behaved illogically when "Decode Again" and "Include" were used.
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This has been fixed.
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13. There was a bug in the JT44 display routine that caused error
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messages to appear when the moon's right ascension was very close to
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00:00. The error could appear at most once a month, and it would
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persist for an hour or so. The bug has been fixed.
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14. There was an apparent logical inconsistency in program behavior if
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"Exclude" was clicked after "Clear Avg" had been executed. This has
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been fixed.
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15. In V2.0.1 if you hit F8 more than once and then hit F7, the
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"Width" parameter in FSK441 mode would be set to 200 ms. This has
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been fixed.
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Version 2.0.1
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-------------
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This is a minor maintenance release. Principal changes from Version
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2.0 include the following:
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1. The installation scripts for both the full installation and the
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upgrade to v2.0.1 are more robust and much easier to use.
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2. The decoding parameters for FSK441 mode are saved correctly after
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you have used JT44 mode.
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3. The controls for "Decode Again", "Include", and "Exclude" are now
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fully available during the Tx period.
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4. Certain colors (e.g., the backgrounds of a few labels) now display
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better on older machines.
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5. The background colors behind certain Tx messages in JT44 mode
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have been corrected.
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6. The manual has been updated to conform with the new installation
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scripts, and a number of other small changes (mostly correcting
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typos) have been made.
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7. The Tab key now moves the focus between various on-screen controls
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and text boxes in a rational way.
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Version 2.0
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-----------
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A major new release of WSJT, Version 2.0 is now available for free
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download. Instructions for upgrading and for new installations can be
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found at http://pulsar.princeton.edu/~joe/K1JT.
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What's new in Version 2.0 ?
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--------------------------
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The JT44 mode for extreme weak signal work was first introduced in
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beta release 1.8.0. This mode has now matured, the program is stable,
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and tons of EME QSOs (among others) are being made with it. New
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features and fixes in Version 2.0 include the following:
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1. Full monitor mode with separate averaging of 1st and 2nd sequences.
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2. Mouse-selected value of DF for decoding when "Freeze" is checked.
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3. Program is much faster at certain critical points, and now runs
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reliably on a 75 MHz Pentium with 24 MB of RAM.
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4. The dreaded "always starts minimized" bug has been fixed.
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5. Certain dates (such as "2002 VIII 21" now display properly in
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machines configured for European format.
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7. A number of other small niceties.
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