I beacon with a ARQ'd PSK63 signal on 30M this morning and Skip KH6TY (in 4-land) connected with me . I had seen FLARQ work before , under Linux, when visiting Skip's shack in the summer. I tried hard to find others willing to test it on HF but only had partial success with a local ham on 6M and he had a drifting tube rig. A couple of other 40M tests did not go well , mostly pilot errors
So, today Skip and I worked PSK63, 125, and 250 , He with 25 watts and an attic 80M antenna and me with a 40M inverted V and 35 watts, both not with "the best" antennae. Each th PSK modes achieved a completed file transfer and , importantly, the received text was thus 100% accurate. PSK63 was without any re-tries. PSK125 was with a couple of re-tries, and PSK250 had several. The point is... that all worked ! When typing keyboard-style in PSK250 it was hard to decode more than 60% of the text but , obviously, with ARQ for the file transfer we achieved 100 copy. So, when we posted about this in September, we emphasized the potential for this software to become a reliable method for sending emergency communications without reliance on the Internet or without wide-mode digital methods. Skip also emphasized how useful this will be on VHF, the primary target frequencies for regional communications. I will try again to get my local ARES colleagues to download the new Windows version and see if I can persuade them to try it on local 2M and 6M frequencies. I recall that Skip's net in Mount Pleasant was having reliable communications up to a 150 mile range on VHF. So, folks. What Skip and Dave proclaimed appears to be true, I encourage all to try it and set up some email and file transfer tests. We have a simple to operate, narrow band, robust digital mode , with ARQ when needed. It will work when there is no Internet! Get the free software from http://w1hkj.com/NBEMS/ . It takes less that 2 minutes to configure the software, it is simple but give me a shout if you need help setting it up. -- Andy K3UK www.obriensweb.com (QSL via N2RJ) The NBEMS development team is pleased to announce the availability of a Windows NBEMS software suite for beta testing. The NarrowBand Emergency Messaging System (NBEMS) for Windows is a suite of software programs designed for point-to-point, fast, error-free, emergency messaging up to or over 100 miles distant, and takes up a very minimum of space on the ham bands, leaving more space for all other ham activites. The system is designed primarily for use on the two-meter band, or on HF with NVIS antennas, where there is a minimum of fading (QSB) to slow down message transfers. Two meters has the advantage that distances long enough to span disaster areas of up to 100 miles can be dependably covered with small, portable antennas. In hilly regions, if two meters is not workable over the distances required, NVIS antennas on HF can be employed instead, but are not nearly as portable. The system uses the computer soundcard as the modem and, other than a simple interface connection between the computer and transceiver, no additional hardware is needed. Composing and sending emergency messages on NBEMS utilizes the same Outlook Express, Outlook, or Windows Mail, email program used for Internet email, and is no more difficult than sending an email over the Internet. Messages just go over the radio instead, when the Internet, phone service, or repeater system is not locally reachable in an emergency. PSK63, PSK125, or PSK250 is used to modulate either two-meter SSB, or HF SSB transmitters, using horizontally polarized antennas for greatest range. Two meters is unique in that the propagation is more constant than on the lower bands from 6 meters on down, range is greater, and absorption less, than on the lowest UHF band, 70 cm, so much wider modes, that handle QSB by continuing to work far below the noise level, are not needed. This point-to-point system does not utilize repeaters, or email robots, for message forwarding. All forwarding is always done by stations manned by live operators on both ends, who can comfirm that a frequency is clear locally, negotiate a QSY if necessary to avoid causing interference, and confirm delivery of a message by the intended recipient. The system depends upon a multitude of radio amateurs providing the traditional public service function, similar to the way they always have, and gives more hams a chance to help out with emergency communications without requiring a large hardware investment. The software can also be used for daily casual communications on PSK31, PSK63, RTTY, or MFSK16 and is capable of sending flawless, high resolution, passport photo-sized color images, in less than 10 minutes over any path that can sustain PSK250 without excessive repeats. All the members on this digitalradio reflector are invited to participate in the beta test of the NBEMS. The NBEMS suite can be downloaded for beta testing from: http://w1hkj.com/NBEMS/ . Please give the system a try and send comments and bug reports to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Happy New Year to you all! The NBEMS Development Team Skip, KH6TY Dave, W1HKJ
