Hi all. I’ve been using RC4 for a while now for JT65, FT8, and MSK144, and wanted to report a few issues. 1. On both FT8 and JT65, often it skips sending 73 at the end of a QSO. Mostly it seems to do that when I would be sending 73 last, but not sure if it also happens the other way. When it skips sending 73, it also does not auto log.
2. As shown below, on JT65, working EME, I am seeing an odd second decode at times. In all cases the second line does not actually decode, but it is for the same frequency within a Hz or two, and usually a stronger signal is indicated. It often a much stronger signal, like 5 dB stronger, but in this example there is only 1 dB difference. 1106 -21 2.4 1276 #* RD3FD IK4WLV JN54 f 1106 -20 2.4 1275 ## 1107 -30 6.6 1087 # 1108 -19 2.5 1274 #* RD3FD IK4WLV JN54 f 1108 -20 2.5 1275 ## 3. When working EME, WSJT-X should not automatically turn off transmitting when it detects a signal on my frequency that is not calling me. Due to doppler shift it is unlikely that my signal is causing any QRM, and it is common for many EME stations to all be calling the same station in contests or expeditions. It is rather upsetting to finally get an answer from a dx station and then discover that your transmitter has been turned off. (Note that this situation may not be as noticeable for operators who listen to their signal or sit next to their equipment, as they will notice the change. But when operating remotely, there are no audio indicators that something has changed.) The same argument can be made for FT8 and MSK144 operations. Even though doppler is not an issue, on FT8 it is common for two stations to share a frequency with opposite sequencing. But most often both stations are working someone on a different frequency so there is no interference. This is much more likely to be the case than any actual QRM. In general, software should not assume that it is smarter than the operator, who usually knows what he is doing… For MSK144, meteor scatter operations there is no reason to ever shut off the transmitter, except if the operator has specified to shut off after sending 73. Due to the way meteor reflections work, there is almost never QRM between multiple stations all on the same frequency. Again, the software cannot be smarter than the operator. 4. For MSK144, and FT8, the flag to not stop transmitting after sending 73 does not work. It makes no difference if it is checked or not. Very often I need to continue sending 73 for a few transmissions, but I have to manually change the message and restart the transmitter to do so. Since sequences are every 15 seconds, this becomes a big burden when trying to log a contact, maybe respond to a comments on chat, observe other calling stations, and having to manage the transmissions manually all at the same time. When the flag to stop tx after 73 is not checked, the program should not advance to TX6, and should continue sending 73 until the operator decides to stop – or the watchdog timer stops it. 73, Russ K2TXB
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