- PLEASE READ CAREFULLY:
- The node setup has changed in so far that it now runs the SVXLINK software. This means a few diffencies between the Echo-Link Win software. SVXLINK was choosen over Echo-Link Win because it is running on a LINUX operating system, that has a number of advantages over Microsoft® Windows™ operating system aside from the Price difference.
- The utmost advantage is that it runs with minimal maintenance. It will update in the background without the all so well known Windows™ reboot and pray that it will start again. Its been around as long as Microsoft®. And a large percentage is performing their tasks for years on the Internet as Webserver etc.
- To access the system you'll still have to use the same frequency and PL tone as before.
- Let me begin with the SVXLINK feature list:
- There is a PARROT module that lets you record a few kind words that are played back to verify your signal and audio into the system. It also can read back (spoken words) your DTMF codes.
- The Echolink module, once activated, will hook you to the Echolink system in similar fashion as before.
- A VOICE MAIL module, allows the storage of Voice messages. Only local messages can be stored at this time. Since development of the SVXLINK software is ongoing, there might be a chance that messages from the Internet/Echolink can be stored in the future. To store messages on the system you'll have to contact the SysOp
to
get a user ID and Password to access the module. My paricular voice mail service is free to licensed Amateur Radio Operator.
- There are more features but they are irrelevant for a simplex node.
- Here is the general usage of the system.
- To access ECHOLINK enter 2# on your DTMF pad while transmitting. The system will announce the success or failure in speech. Every module has help available that
can be activated by entering (zero) 0# from the DTMF pad. Once activated you can use the system almost as it was before. To connect to a station enter its node number and here it comes end it with a pound
sign #.
- The pound sign represent something like an ENTER key on a computer keyboard. Everything you enter will have to be concluded with the # sign. For example: To connect to KJ6ZD-L you would enter 135548# to tell SVXLINK that's the entire string, end it with the pound sign # as shown in the example.
- There are some search features that I think are easier to use as it is with Echolink Win.
- For example: You want to find a station with partial call sign KJ6Z you would enter *5569*# where the number system is similar to the telephone dial pad layout. In fact you can use the same layout as found on the Telephone. Dashes or other symbols like / are mapped to "1" so you'll have to enter something like this for
 the dash has been interpreted as 1.
- You'll have to deactivate and reactivate the Echolink module if you want to change your search pattern, otherwise SVXLINK will search over and over again the last entered search pattern. It might be unintended or even a bug in software, but that's the way it is.
- The parrot module is accessed using 1# and will announce when active. After that you can simply speak and listen to the audio played back to you. If you want to check your DTMF codes simply enter them from 0-9 ending each string with the #(ABCD) is not played back in this version.
Example: 0123456789# will read back ZERO ONE....NINE if it was decoded correctly.
- The voice mail module is accessed using DTMF 3# and announces some initial help after it is active. This module is pretty much guided throughout its use. First you'll have to enter your user ID and password to login. If you don't have a user ID you can request one from the sysop
and we'll add it to the user list. From here on the system will guide you through. The user ID is assigned using the last 3 digits of the Call
Letters. For example: KJ6ZD would be 6ZD = 693 the password can be 3-6 digits of either random numbers or any preferred number. So if you need for some reason to leave a message to a participant on this system, but only know the Call sign you may be able to guess the user ID. User ID works the same way as found on the telephone dial pad.
- If for some reason a call sign would produce the same user ID a 1 will be added to the last digit. I.e. 6ZD would become 693 + 1 (694) and so on.
- That's pretty much it and I think that the additional feature will well compensate for minor losses compared to Echo-Link Win.
- While any of the modules is active, you can request help by pressing 0#! Also, there can only be one module active at any time!!
- The Node Radio is a Hamtronics TX / RX at 3.5 W at the moment configured as a Simplex Transceiver. I haven't been brave enough to hook up the amplifier, since I had a lot of failures before for whatever reason. With the current system setup there is a 3 Minute Time out for continues transmission. The system will stay connected for 30 Minutes to a distant Node without activity registered unless the distant Node
has an inactivity timer set to less. This time can be anything and is up to the distant Node Sysop. I have seen timeouts as short as 10 Seconds and maybe related to the way connection time is charged by the Internet Service Provider. The Echolink module (not connected) will timeout after 2 minutes, this is to free up other modules since SVXLINK can activate only one module at a time.
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