The 2T2R menu has a new command, Enable 2BSIQ Audio Routing. When enabled, certain other existing commands have added behavior that manipulate the listen-to configuration. See the Two Transmitter topic in the Operating Modes section of Help. Thanks JH5GHM.
OpMode preferences adds radio buttons for associating Radio 1 and Radio 2 with any one of the four radio ports of the YCCC SO2R Box. Thanks GØDVJ.
Logging preferences adds the "Position cursor at end of entry field" check box. When a QSO entry field is focused, the cursor is moved to the end of the field content instead of selecting the field content. This preference does not apply to the call and report entry fields. Thanks JH5GHM.
The Preserve Transmit audio routing feature has been removed, as the new 2BSIQ audio routing option provides better functionality. Thanks JH5GHM.
The Band Change statistics table now also counts band changes.
The pitch for callers in Practice mode is now constrained to be larger than 200 Hz. Thanks JH5GHM.
None of the WAEDC CW QTC messages were functioning. Thanks JH5GHM.
The button for sending the next QTC was not being disabled after sending the first QTC in a series that had just one QTC. Thanks JH5GHM.
Function key messages sometimes did not play in 2T2R when the radio modes were different. Thanks WA1Z.
Grabbing a spot created when a QSO is logged was incorrectly setting the sent serial number. Thanks GØTPH.
Some features specific to WRTC 2018 have been hidden or removed in this release.
SkookumLogger now supports the IC-7610 radio. Thanks WD7K and NØEHX.
SkookumLogger now supports the IC-706m2g radio. Thanks WD7K and KE7BNP.
SkookumLogger now supports the KPA1500 amplifier via the USB connection. Commands on the Radio1 menu toggle power on/off and operate/standby, and trigger the ATU TUNE function.
I’ve made a pass through the Help documentation, cleaning up typos and cosmetic issues and adding a few topics in the Problems section.
A crash when closing a utility window containing a text field with invalid content has been addressed. Thanks WA1Z.
Correct mode was broken for 1T1R and 1T2R by a recent change; now correct.
A potential crash associated with displaying status in the Information window when updating databases has been addressed. Thanks W6FB.
The next update will not occur before WRTC 2018 unless a serious bug is discovered. The AS #6 team will be using SkookumLogger in that event, which occurs within the IARU HF Championship in July.
The Score breakdown now has a QP (QSO points) column. Thanks WA1Z and JH5GHM.
Rate tracker now has a set of meters that display QSO points per hour for various periods. Thanks WA1Z and JH5GHM.
The SkookumNet information table now has an additional column that displays QSO points per hour in the previous 10 minutes, for each of the other network members. Thanks WA1Z and JH5GHM.
For WRTC logs, when the Refuse to log any QSOs option is selected in Logging preferences, all out-going SkookumNet communication is disabled. This is termed Referee mode — it allows the referee to monitor the log on a separate computer while preventing any accidental changes.
The Rate Breakdown Report (File menu) now presents statistics for QSO points instead of QSOs.
Correct mode no longer modifies the End QSO message in 2T2R mode when the radio is in the pounce submode. Thanks JH5GHM.
QSO points for the ARRL VHF contests were not quite right. Thanks WA6AZP.
Enabling/disabling SkookumNet is now managed by a checkbox in Logging preferences, simplifying the use of the networking feature.
A Rate column has been added to the table in the SkookumNet window, showing the last-ten rate in QSOs per hour. The Rate Tracker window must be open on the corresponding host computer in order to compute the rate. Thanks JH5GHM.
For WRTC logs, when the Refuse to log any QSOs option is selected in Logging preferences, all out-going SkookumNet communication is disabled. This is termed Referee mode — it allows the referee to monitor the log on a separate computer while preventing any accidental changes.
Excessive redraws of the Great Circle Map were discovered and eliminated. The effect was sporadic variations in keyboard responsiveness.
Several documents have been added to the SkookumLogger Hints page at the web site.
Code for Kenwood TS-590 has been modified by JH5GHM to enhance support for the SkookumLogger 1T2R operating mode. That support requires an external Arduino-based interface between the computer and and radio, also developed by Katsuhiro.
Logic for identifying candidate QSOs in QSO Parties for outside entrants now declares “YES” when the call has been worked before.
For WRTC logs, the score posting document is now additionally broadcasts to localhost as a convenience for testing. The broadcast interval has been changed from 1 minute to 5 minutes.
The ACOM 2000A module now ignores the OPR-STB-OPR message sequence generated by the amplifier when it changes bands, for subtle reasons — meaning I can’t remember why I made that change.
The Edit ► Find ► menu has been removed, freeing up use of ⌘G as the shortcut for the Toggle Gab command.
The SkookumNet window has several cosmetic tweaks. Host names are uppercase. The “Do you really want to merge“ alert closes immediately when you make a choice. Additional messages report the progress of the merge. The Join checkbox has been replaced by a pushbutton titled either Join Net or Leave Net. The joined status of the network is now remembered across restarts.
SkookumLogger does not support call history files. There is one exception, SkookumLogger can import a text file containing calls and IARU Society Codes for use in pre-filling exchanges in the WRTC 2018 contest. That import now handles either the N6TV format or the N1MM+ format.
Code for several QSO parties was incorrectly identifying candidate QSOs for outside entrants: GAQP, OHQP, Salmon Run, TNQP, FLQP, HIQP.
The scheme for muting callers in Practice mode was pausing play instead of silencing play. Thanks JH5GHM.
Changes in previous releases addressed CW message sending for normal mode and practice mode. The same logic now applies to sending SSB messages in normal mode using your radio’s DVR. This change resolves several inconsistencies in SSB message sending, including non-functional alternating CQ and CQ counter in 2T2R mode. Except for one boat-anchor radio, DVRs messages 1 through 8 are played by CQ, Exchange, Acknowledge, My Call, ?, Defend, Short Acknowledge, and the first user-defined message after Unstack QSO, respectively. Radios that have fewer than 8 DVR message slots, or no DVR at all, ignore messages for the missing slots. Thanks JH5GHM.
When opening the serial connection to an Elecraft K3/K3s radio, DTR and RTS are now explicitly unset. SkookumLogger does not use those signals, but leaving either of them set forces the radio into transmit mode if CONFIG:PTT-KEY is set to anything other than OFF-OFF. Thanks N1JM.
Logic for identifying candidate QSOs has been revised for outside entrants in FLQP, GAQP, and VAQP.
The Problem Reporter window and its Help page have been clarified. Thanks WA1Z and W2RU.
Preference panes have been reorganized, again. A new pane named New Log contains three tabs with all of the settings that are used when you create a new log. The New Log Cabrillo tab replaces the previous Cabrillo pane. The New Log Sent Exchange tab replaces the previous Exchange pane. The new Log CW Messages tab replaces the previous Morse tab in the Messages pane. As before, you can customized these settings for existing logs using Log ► Cabrillo Settings…, Window ► Show Sent Exchange Editor, and Window ► Show Morse Messages Editor, respectively.
When the call field for the QSO entry box with keyboard focus ends with a comma, Log ► Grab Partner Call now appends the partner call after the comma instead of replacing the entire call field content. This sets up Call Stacking (see Help).
Changing the Contest Spacing option in WinKeyer preferences was not noticed by WinKeyer until the next time SkookumLogger was restarted. Now SkookumLogger is more alert.
Word space duration when using the YCCC SO2R Box Keyer was misshapen by an ill-advised hack meant to apply only to WinKeyer. That hack has been whacked. Thanks GØDVJ.
Attempting to change WinKeyer PTT preferences caused a crash. Thanks W6TN.
Removing all of the entries in the Operator Calls table in the Log Settings sheet caused a crash. Thanks CT3HY.
Creating a new UKEI DX Contest CW log selected the wrong contest date. There were two bugs: the mode information in the contest name was being ignored, and the special case of a contest starting on the last day of the month was being treated as starting on the last full weekend of the month.
SkookumNet was sometimes failing to establish a complete network when there were more than two network members.
New features and changes will be focused on supporting WRTC 2018 until after the contest in July.
Initialize Pounce QSO mode to match Run QSO mode when SkookumLogger starts (was defaulting to CW).
Decrease K3 poll interval from 0.1 seconds to 0.02 seconds to improve frequency display update rate.
Detect lowercase ‘qsx’ in spot info strings.
Enable 1T BeginQSO and EndQSO use of DVR messages 2, 3, and 4 (exchange, acknowledge, my call, respectively) in SSB mode.
Replace the Morse Message Editor window with one that is nearly identical to the CW tab in Messages preferences. The result is a larger window, sorry. The benefits are that the same formatter can be applied to the Tokenized Message fields in the new window, and messages are updated as you type (no “apply” needed).
Update the table of multiplier codes for the Indiana QSO Party. Thanks KV9W.
When operating mode is 1T1R or 1T2R, ensure that audio routing in Practice mode is "Listen To Radio1.” That means you hear transmit audio, receive noise, and callers in both left and right audio channels.
In 2T2R, when entering Immediate Morse Mode, ensure that transmit focus matches keyboard focus. Thanks JH5GHM.
When a K3 timeout happened, polling was stalled until you closed and reopened the serial port. Thanks WA1Z.
The formatter for the Tokenized Message text fields in Messages preferences CW tab was causing inscrutable editing behavior. Thanks JH5GHM.
Handling of 2T2R audio routing in Practice mode was seriously dysfunctional. Thanks JH5GHM.
Preferences that may have been previously set for the now immutable morse message menu items titles were not being ignored. Thanks JH5GHM.
A CQ message sent by the MagicRunBegin message wasn't bumping the CQ count shown in the Score window. Thanks GØDVJ.
Activity ► Set Pounce with Run owning keyboard focus was changing keyboard focus to the Pounce call entry field. Thanks JH5GHM.
In 1T1R and 1T2R, the intelligent messages BeginQSO and EndQSO were choosing what to transmit using the kind of the QSO entry box that had keyboard focus; they should have been using transmit focus. Thanks JH5GHM.
In some US State QSO parties, SkookumLogger was failing to determine needed status properly when it had adequate information.
This version drops support for Yosemite (MacOS X 10.10).
www.k1gq.com now defaults to https.
The statistics report now includes the CQ count from the Score window.
A new command, Morse ► Set Pounce WPM, searches the activity table for the current band for a match to the call in the Pounce call entry field. If a match is found and the activity specifies WPM in the Info column, your WinKeyer is silently set to that speed. The command is hidden in 2T2R and disabled unless Pounce has transmit focus. The temporary override of Pounce WPM does not affect the displayed WPM or the ‘remembered’ WPM value that is set when you toggle transmit focus from run to pounce. Thanks GØDVJ.
Katsuhiro, JH5GHM, has provided code for the Kenwood TS-590 that supports using the second VFO in search-and-pounce. The frequency for that VFO is tracked by the <subrx> item in Activity windows.
The RSGB 160m Contest (Feb and Nov) is now supported. Thanks GØDVJ.
The terminology for “Configuration” has changed to “Operating Mode”. The corresponding preference panel is “OpMode”. Help has been suitably altered. The toolbar items in Preferences have been reordered alphabetically. These are all cosmetic changes. Thanks W2RU.
The 1T2R operating mode now supports highlighting activities within tolerance of the subreceiver pseudo-activity when the subreceiver frequency changes, and obeys the “Fills QSO from nearby activity” option. Thanks JH5GHM.
When a log for the WRTC2018 contest is opened, SkookumLogger unconditionally sets as many options as possible for the team that will be using SkookumLogger during the event. This version does a better job of “unsetting” those options when you change to another contest log.
SkookumLogger no longer explicitly disables app nap. Timers for items like the UTC display prevent app nap anyway.
Https is once again used when downloading cty_wt.mod.dat.
Diagnostic spewage no longer appears in the Information window when you upload a log to LoTW.
In 1T1R and 1T2R operating modes, when Run has keyboard focus and the band is changed, the frequency and mode are copied from Run to Pounce. Now that copy does not happen when you merely tune across a band edge. Thanks JH5GHM.
Start times for UKEICC 80m contests in March and April have been updated. Thanks GØDVJ.
In the RSGB Club Championship, QSOs with G?6XX are worth 5 points (all others are worth 1 point). Thanks GØDVJ.
The K3 module no longer sets radio mode unless the mode needs to change. The mode set command locks out transmit, potentially clipping the beginning of messages. Thanks W2RU.
The K3 module frequency setting logic has changed to make behavior simpler and less likely to leave the radio unexpectedly in split mode:
When you type a frequency into a call field, case 1 applies. When you precede the frequency with an asterisk, case 2 may apply — existing RX frequency is preserved and TX frequency is set. Thanks W2RU.
The logic that determines what call to send when the call field of QSO entry box with transmit focus is empty has been revised. The intended behavior is to send the call for the most-recently-logged QSO for the QSO entry box that currently has transmit focus. The candidate QSOs should probably also be filtered on “station” — but nobody has complained so far 🙂.
Activity tables were not obeying the Activity Age Threshold preference setting.
Recent releases broke support for the WinKeyer emulation built into the YCCC SO2R Box. Fixed. Thanks VE3MM.
Most timers have been replaced with -[NSObject performSelector:afterDelay:], with named delays specified in constants.m to eliminate magic numbers. The delay = 0 idiom is used to perform a method on the next past through the run loop so that the stack is unwound before the method is called.
[WinKeyerUSB sendCharacter:] has tested but commented-out code for sending a long dash. The implementation involves wrapping a ’T’ with speed change commands. The technique could be applied to support speed bumps in messages, but will not be made available unless needed by WRTC entrants.
For K3 with an attached P3, SkookumLogger now remembers the most recent choice per-band for the four P3 items in the Radio menu, and restores the choice when returning to a band. The restore step required an ad-hoc delay between receiving the band-did-change information from the K3 and commanding the P3 to change its settings. This new feature wouldn’t be necessary at all if the P3 remembered settings correctly (it doesn’t), and apparently it is necessary to wait for the P3 to get it wrong before telling it the correct values. Thanks W2RU.
When sending CW messages other than CQ messages, the color of the corresponding “CW” mode text changes to red while the message is sending, and while there are other messages remaining to be sent.
IARU call history file processing has been restored for the WRTC2018 contest due to a rules change. In that contest, the QSO for a call not already logged that exists in the call history file is pre-filled with the corresponding exchange information in the file. This pre-fill is disabled in Practice mode, in order to provide practice for copying those exchanges. Thanks WA1Z, JH5GHM.
The Messages section in SkookumLogger Help has been reorganized and updated.
The CW tab in Messages preferences and the Morse Messages Editor have been modified to better emphasize the roles of various messages. You may find that your existing preferences for new logs and your messages in existing logs are scrambled. Sorry.
The CW “Log QSO” message token has been removed and is ignored in existing messages. The predefined compound messages with Log QSO in their menu titles, and the End messages for Magic Message, implicitly perform the log action.
It is no longer required that the received call token be the first character in a morse message in order for type-ahead to work. It is now required that the token appear no more than once in a message.
Changing bands now updates the needed status adornments of a call left in the active QSO entry box. Thanks W2RU.
The location dot on the Great Circle Map is now not visible when the active call field is empty and the current band is one of the HF contest bands. Thanks W2RU.
The 2T2R receive gumdrops are now initialized when a log is opened.
Transmit focus is now set to Radio1 when a log is opened.
The help buttons in the preferences panes opened an empty Apple Help Viewer; now they show the appropriate topic in SkookumLogger Help.
Practice mode simulates CW pileups. When the mode is enabled, CW messages are handled by the practice mode processor instead of your WinKeyer. You hear transmitted messages via the audio device you have selected in the Output tab of your Sound system preferences. When transmission ends, you hear messages from callers in the pileup that depend on the kind of message that was transmitted. This mode (should) help you get comfortable using SkookumLogger for running on CW. Documentation is the Practice Mode topic of SkookumLogger Help. Thanks GØDVJ, JH5GHM, WA1Z, W2RU.
Everything relating to IARU call history files has been removed.
IARU Society code guessing based on the country of a call has been removed.
Many changes for various UK contests; mostly dates, one rules change, one new contest. Thanks GØDVJ.
Focusing a call entry field now restores the insertion cursor to the location it had when the field was last focused. Previously the cursor was always located at the end of the text in the field. Thanks JH5GHM.