I had two computer lockups during the contest. Clone 486DX4/100 running
DOS 6.2, TR Log 6.05. No DVP, DVK, Rig Interface, or CW interface hooked up.
Just an AEA PK-900 TNC on COM2. My intuition is that in this case it might
have been RF getting into the machine, though. Both lockups occured in S&P
mode, at the moment I hit the ENTER key to commit a new QSO into the log.
This created a solid tone on the PC's internal speaker and locked up the
program and keyboard. I had to hit the reset button on the case as the
tree-finger salute failed.
We've had RF problems with the PC in the past. Specifically, we had a
problem a while back with RF getting into the keybard cable while on high-power
20M CW, causing crazy characters to appear in the keyboard buffer and
eventually causing the buffer to fill setting off the internal speaker.
Ferrite toroids on the keyboard cable near the computer case seemed to have
fixed it. Maybe not. The other strange thing that happened a couple of
times Saturday afternoon was the rotor controller would decide not to
respond until I turned it off and waited a few minutes and then it would work.
I put a ferrite bead on the rotor cable, but I have no idea if that was RF
getting into the mechanism or what.
I'm not 100% sure that these lockups were caused by the same problem,
though - as I would have expected random garbage to get into TR and the
tone on the speaker would have been much more rough, and neither of these
happened.
I did use the packet functions and the bandmap, though. I have ferrite
beads on both ends of the TNC-PC cable. In fact, there are ferrite beads
on all the cables entering the PC except the mouse cable.
My LOGCFG.DAT file:
--------------------
MY CALL = KM5FA
MY GRID = EM10DG
CONTEST = CQ WW
VGA DISPLAY ENABLE = TRUE
PACKET PORT = SERIAL 2
ASK IF CONTEST OVER = TRUE
BAND MAP ENABLE = TRUE
BIG REMAINING LIST = TRUE
CONFIRM EDIT CHANGES = FALSE
CW ENABLE = FALSE
DISTANCE MODE = KM
FLOPPY FILE SAVE FREQUENCY = 5
MOUSE ENABLE = TRUE
MULTIPLE BANDS = TRUE
MULTIPLE MODES = TRUE
PACKET BEEP = FALSE
ASK IF CONTEST OVER = TRUE
RATE DISPLAY = QSOS
SINGLE RADIO MODE = TRUE
DISPLAY MODE = COLOR
--
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Kenneth E. Harker "Vox Clamantis in Deserto" kharker@cs.utexas.edu
University of Texas at Austin Amateur Radio Callsign: KM5FA
Department of the Computer Sciences President, UT Amateur Radio Club
Taylor Hall TAY 2.124 Maintainer of the Linux Laptop Home Page
Austin, TX 78712-1188 USA http://www.cs.utexas.edu/users/kharker/
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