Date: Sat, 21 Mar 1998 22:56:27 -0600 From: Ray Hoad Subject: A Change in the Format of the BID used in Keplerian Element data. In order to prepare for the year 2000 and to accommodate some file storage problems in the packet radio BBS world, two weeks ago I made a change to the BID naming format of the AMSAT and NASA 2-line Keplerian messages. My first change using a full four digit year was not successful and I learned a lot about the limits of packet radio BBS software. After receiving many comments (thanks to all for your comments and help), I think I have a suitable format for the BID. This is the best I can do with the various restrictions resulting from the packet BBS software used in the United States and in Europe. The new BID structure is orbyyjjj.x where yy is the last two digits of the year, jjj is the Julian date, and x is O for OSCAR, D for digital, W for weather, M for miscellaneous, or N for NASA 2-line. If you are searching for the distribution message titles, please note that the two title names for the distribution messages will now be orb98jjj.amsat for the AMSAT format and orb98jjj.2l.amsat for the NASA 2-line format. These changes may not be what you personally would like to see, but to the best of my ability this fits the majority of the users. In the past there have been very few changes to the Keplerian distribution process or the structure of the elements themselves. The above changes are necessary and are best made now before things get busy in last months of 1999. Thank you for your patience and the help in this matter.