Re: [amsat-bb] software rig- & rotor-control questions

["George Henry" <ka3hsw@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Pretty displays are highly overrated....  I'll take compact, fast, and "does 
everything I need without wasting HD space or processor power on frills & 
pretty graphics" any day!  I really don't need to see a pretty screen show 
of where the bird is:  I need the program to tune my radio and point my 
antennas.

Tried Nova - yeah, it's pretty, but it needs significant memory & a fast 
machine to run well (not well-suited to dirt-cheap old laptops).  I am a 
registered SatPC32 user & love it (runs just fine on an old Win98se P133 
laptop with only 48MB RAM), but also still use InstantTrack for Field Day & 
other portable ops- can't get any more compact, fast, and all the rest than 
IT! (It''ll run on ANYTHING, even an original IBM PC with only 512K RAM, 
monochrome display and a single floppy!)  Can't help you with the GS-232, 
though...  I use an FOD-Track interface.

George, KA3HSW

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Dave NØRQ" <n0rq@sbcglobal.net>
To: "AMSAT-BB" <amsat-bb@amsat.org>
Sent: Thursday, October 13, 2005 2:16 PM
Subject: [amsat-bb] software rig- & rotor-control questions


> Thanks to several of you for giving me some good ideas
> on my horizontal boom question -- I'm exploring options.
> (And I didn't mean to start a metalic vs. non-metalic war! :-)
>
> Now my next question, related to software.  I have download
> current versions of Nova and SatPC32, both yet unregistered,
> but both working.  I'm trying to decide which one to use and register.
>
> Nova seems the most popular, and has prettier display, but
> as far as I can tell, it won't do rig control to manage Doppler
> shift (for a Yaesu FT-736R).  SatPC32, though is running the
> CAT on the 736 just fine -- nice to see the freq adjust
> automagically!
>
> However, for rotor control (Yaesu G-5500 with GS-232B interface),
> Nova is working (on a normal serial port), but I cannot get SatPC32
> to do anything to the rotor.  It seems to require a printer port, which
> I tried, but nothing goes.  If somone that runs SatPC32 to a GS-232
> has some settings suggestions, that would be great.  If SatPC32
> will control the rotor via a standard serial port, that would be even 
> better.
>
> Or maybe I'm overestimating the value of automatic Doppler
> correction...?  I'm trying to make it as easy to run as possible,
> so my two Technician children can get on without it being
> overly complicated.
>
> Thanks again for patience and advice!
>
> - Dave N0RQ
> AMSAT #35947
> ----
----
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