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Welcome
Thanks for stopping by the web site of CQ/X de NO5W an amateur radio contest logging program developed specifically for the mobile operator in state QSO parties with emphasis on fully integrating GPS devices and mapping information into the planning, operating, and post-contest phases of these types of contests. Here you'll find a description of the features of the program, the contests and peripheral devices (GPS, radios, keyers) it supports, detailed documentation files, and, of course, the capability to download the software. You'll also find links to various route plans that were created by the program and exported in a form (KML) that can be processed by Google Maps for publication on the web. You'll also find documentation describing another amateur radio application (PileUpNet) that I've developed which is a networked solution to providing a real-time scoreboard for pile-up competitions. BackgroundSometime around 2003-2004 I decided to try the Texas QSO Party sponsored by Houston's Northwest Amateur Radio Society (NARS) as a mobile operator. The QSOs that I made in that event were my first ever mobile QSOs, contest or otherwise, and I discovered that I'd been missing out on one of the most enjoyable types of contest operation -- mobile contesting. Not only was the operating great fun, with pileups at every county change, but I realized that there was a need for a logging program that addressed some of the unique challenges of mobile contesting. More than that it was also a potential application for the fascinating GPS technology that was then entering the mainstream with lots of neat new affordable devices. I thought it would be cool to have a logging program that could take information from a GPS and automatically determine which county in a given state or region that the operator was in and to automatically update this information as the operator traveled around from county to county. So I decided to make that, along with many other Features of interest to the mobile contester, the main goals of the project. I thought that, if the project was a success, I'd share the software with others interested in mobile contesting. The project has been a bit of work and has been challenging in several respects but it has gone very well. After successfully testing and using the software during 2004-2007 as a mobile in a number of QSO parties including Texas, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Georgia, Louisiana, and Florida I decided it's time to spread the word of it's availability and to release it to others by a more modern means than the snail mail approach that I'd used on a limited basis to distribute the software to some early adopters. What's In a Name?In case you're wondering about the name, CQ/X is derived from the somewhat standard way that mobiles in QSO parties use to call CQ while at the same time letting the followers know the mobile's current county location. So the CQ in the name is just that and the /X represents the county with the variable X being supplied automatically by the program based on the GPS latitude and longitude. So here it is, CQ/X de NO5W, available for a mere download. However, before downloading the program it's recommended that you review some of the documents described on the Documentation page. In particular you should play the basic CQ/X tutorial by N5NA and review the What You Need document. The tutorial will walk you through basic operation of the program including dynamic GPS data to illustrate some of the GPS-enabled features. The latter document will describe, for various scenarios, what you'll need to get the program up and running and ready for use in your favorite QSO party. If you decide to download the software and become, or want to become, an active user let me know how it's going, any problems you've encountered, and any suggestions you might have for improving the program. You can send that information as well as any questions to:
Copyright C.W Sanders, NO5W Last Updated: 06-March-2014 |
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Since 30-November-2011 |