WC1M:
>Is Skimmer smart enough to distinguish between an operator who is
CQing and the
stations being worked? In other words, does it display all calls appearing
on a frequency, or can it be set to display only run stations?
Yes. You can see this on the graphic to the
right of the first screen shot on page below:
http://www.dxatlas.com/CwSkimmer/
You set that by clicking "Filter Labels" icon above the
text area. You can also set 599 which is useful in pileups
(see 3rd graphic down). Note "W6XA 599" which indicates he's
the current station being worked in the large pileup.
I may not be using Skimmer correctly yet but so far
I'm not impressed by its ability to decode weak signals quickly,
especially in the presence of QSB and QRN. This could be the
slow computer I'm using or maybe I don't have everything set up
correctly. When I say "weak" above, I mean signals that are
just above the noise floor but perfect Q5 copy by ear. It's
fun to set it on a station that's Q5 by ear and see how long it
takes to get the call (which I'm doing on 40m with 4M5M as I
write this). It does do a very nice job for stronger signals
but I don't think it will replace a good CW op who can rapidly
copy weak signals.
Skimmer will be great for a wide band view of strong
stations CQ-ing but I wouldn't want to depend on it for running
or for finding weaker DX CQ-ing. I believe it needs at least two
identical decodes of a call sign before it displays it. If that's
true, it would have an extremely slow rate when running unless
answering stations sent their calls at least twice. Of course
it will surely evolve and improve over time as the algorithms
improve and with more computer power.
73, Bill W4ZV
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