Getting Started with MobileLog
for PocketPC
MobileLog is designed
with the mobile ham in mind, placing many of the same features and
functionality found in typical desktop logging applications into the PocketPC
platform while minimizing keyboard tasks (such as having to enter RST via
keyboard). With the dramatic drop in prices of PDAs and increasing popularity
of QRP, ham-backpacking and other forms of mobile hamming, MobileLog should
provide many users with the satisfaction of computerized logging on-the-go.
This tutorial
walks you through a typical installation scenario and the basic features of
MobileLog.
1) Install MobileLog
Run setup.
During the installation process, you will be asked whether you would like to
install MobileLog in the default directory (recommended).
2) Import ADIF log file (optional)
The
ADIFImport utility is provided to import logs from desktop packages. There are
several considerations with regard to ADIF import. First, larger desktop logs
will (obviously) require additional memory on your PDA and take longer to
import. A desktop log containing ~2400 QSOs will result in a 680 kb database on
a PDA and take ~25 minutes to import (due to database indexing during the
import process which improves search and report performance). Secondly, there
may be QSOs on your desktop that you do not want to include in your mobile log.
For example, you may not want to import 1995 Field Day QSOs in your PDA. If
this is the case, I recommend that you use logging software that is flexible in
how it creates ADIFs. For example, many desktop-logging apps will allow you to
specify a date range. You may want to create several ADIFs (based on date
ranges) or dump everything to a single, large ADIF file then manually edit it
to remove unwanted QSOs.
To import a
log, transfer your ADIF log to your PDA (activesync explorer will work).
COPY THE LOG FILE TO THE MOBILELOG DIRECTORY - RENAME IT TO MobileLogADI.adi.
Windows typically hides the file extensions, so be careful to make sure the adi
extension is properly added (don’t end up with a file named “MobileLogADI.adi.adi”).
Launch the ADIFimport utility by starting the PocketPC file explorer and
changing to the MobileLog installation directory. Select ADIFimport.vb. If
ADIFimport finds an existing log, it will ask whether to overwrite it (Yes) or
append QSOs to it (No) or abort the process (Cancel). If you choose to
overwrite the database, all previous QSOs will be dropped from the database and
you will be notified that the database file has been created.
Once the main
ADIFImport screen appears, press the Start button.
Several tasks
are completed as QSOs are imported (for example, the DXCC awards status is
updated, QSOs are indexed, …). As you can see, many of the ADIF fields are
reported as the import proceeds. Once the import has completed, use the Cancel
button.
Warning, do
not repeatedly import the same log file. In this release of MobileLog, the
ADIFimport utility does not discard duplicate QSOs.
3) Launch MobileLog
Your start
menu should have a MobileLog icon. Select it.
4) Use the Setup tab to configure MobileLog
Several
settings can be adjusted from the Setup screen.
Once you have
received a registration key, enter it along with your callsign.
Set your
timezone offset (hours from GMT). For example, to set MobileLog for Central
Standard Time (six hours behind GMT), enter "-6".
Set your
latitude and longitude (in decimal format) using the lat/lon fields. lat/lon
values in hours, minutes, and seconds format must first be converted. Use
negative values to represent east and south.
The bands, modes
and counties fields are comma-separated values that control the combo boxes
displayed on the QSO entry screen. Do not use spaces in these fields.
Modify the
bands and modes fields to your typical operating habits. You may want to
re-sort the fields to place your most used bands and modes at the top of the
combo boxes. For example, if you frequently operate 20m-CW, make sure those are
listed first. Note that renaming bands and modes to uncommon names will prevent
the reporting tools from working as expected. For example, if you rename the
"10m” band to "28mhz", the report will not credit those QSOs.
The Counties
field modifies the "cnty" field on the QSO entry screen. This value
(if set) will be added to the notes field when ADIF log files are generated. Of
course, if there is anything else that you'd rather track in "notes"
and lends itself to a combo box (your rig, power, etc.) the feature will be
handy.
Use the
Metric field to indicate whether you'd prefer distance in km.
Colors can
also be optimized for your PDA.
5) Add QSOs to your database
Fill in the
necessary fields to log a QSO.
- Callsigns
should be entered in the "Call" field. If the station is operating
portable (in another DXCC country), prepend the call with the appropriate
prefix. For example, if NŘHR is operating from VP5 (I wish!), enter it as:
VP5/N0HR.
- RST fields
can be modified manually (as you would modify any other field) OR by using the
RST arrows. To use the RST arrows, click once in either the "RST
Sent" or "RST Rcvd" then use either the left arrows to adjust
Readability or right arrows to adjust Strength.
- Frequency
is entered in the "f MHz" field. As long as valid MHz (not kHz)
values are entered, the "Band" field should reflect the frequency.
- The band
can be set with the Bands combo box. Some ops prefer to enter only the band (as
opposed to the exact frequency), which is fine.
- If
applicable, set the Cnty box.
- Enter any
notes that apply to this QSO.
- If you
would like to track the other operator's county or have a lengthy note, use the
".." button after the notes field.
- If the
operator's DXCC prefix is incorrect, change it. Be certain to use the valid
prefix representing that DXCC entity. If unsure, the prefixes are shown on the
DXCC reports.
- Once a
valid DXCC entity is displayed, the ".." button may be used to get
country information (heading, distance, zone, latitude/longitude, timezone,
...).
- The WAS
combo can be used to set the state.
- The QSL
flag indicates whether the QSO has been confirmed.
- The IOTA
fields can be used to track IOTA awards.
NOW ENTER THE
QSO BY USING THE "+" BUTTON.
6) Explore your log
If you do not
have QSOs in your database, create a few (above). Use the
<<,<,>,>> buttons to scroll through your QSOs.
7) Delete a QSO
Create an invalid
QSO by following step 5 above (use today's date for this example). Scroll
through the log to "lookup" this invalid QSO. Select the
"Del" button to delete the QSO from the log.
8) Search for previous QSOs
Use the Clear
button to clear any data on the QSO entry screen. In the "Call"
field, enter the callsign or partial callsign of a QSO in your database. For
example, if you have worked "W1AW" enter that call. Note that the
search process looks for partial call matches. That is, a search for
"W1AW" could pull up contacts with: W1AW, KW1AW, and W1AWA which all
contain the string of characters "W1AW". Because of this, if your log
contains thousands of QSOs, narrowing your search by providing as many
characters as possible will be beneficial, as opposed to simply entering
"1" which would return every QSO containing a "1".
Columns are
resized or hidden by moving the bars that separate the column headings.
Select “Cancel”
when you are finished viewing the results.
9) Reports: Using the "DXCC by mode" button
The
"DXCC by mode" button is located on the Reports screen. Choose the
Reports tab and select it. This screen can also be used to determine the
"primary prefix" of various DXCC entities. The scroll-box in the
center of the screen contains the country report itself. Each column is
"sortable" and "resizable". To resize a column, click the
dark line behind the column name in the header and drag it until the columns
are the desired size. To "hide" a column, resize it until it
virtually disappears.
To sort the
report based on a column, click on the column heading. For example, to sort the
report based on CW worked/confirmed, click on the CW heading. Column sorting
can be either ascending or descending. Click on the heading again to toggle.
For example, to display countries that have not yet been worked or confirmed on
CW at the top of the report, click on the CW heading a second time.
Statistics
for the various modes are displayed at the bottom of the report.
Use the
"Cancel" button to revert to the previous screen.
10) Using the "DXCC by band" button
This report
displays DXCC status on a band-by-band basis and is similar to the "DXCC
by mode" report. Running this report requires slightly more processing
time than the "by mode" report. Use the Cancel button to exit the
report.
11) Tools: Temperature conversion
Open the
tools screen using the “Tools” tab. Use the slider to quickly convert degrees
Fahrenheit to degrees Celsius.
12) Display the ARRL bandplan using the
"Bandplan" button.
13) Recalculate awards status
As new QSOs
are added to the MobileLog database, the awards status is automatically
updated. That is, if the QSO is for a new country, that country's award status
is changed. However, to optimize performance, as a QSO is deleted from the log,
the country award status does not change (which would require MobileLog to perform
additional time consuming operations to determine whether the sole QSO for that
country, mode, band combination was deleted).
Recalc time for
a ~2000 QSO log is approx. 3 minutes.
14) Export Log to CSV
Choose the “Export
-> CSV” button. The program will prompt you to determine the scope of the
export.
To export
only the new QSOs (since the last export action), choose Yes. To export all
QSOs in the database, choose No. If you frequently add QSOs to the database
will on the road, choosing Yes will allow you to create a small log of your
recent QSOs to resync with your desktop logging application (via CSV format).
The “Save As”
dialog will then prompt you to store the file on the PDA.
15) Export Log to ADIF
This feature
is similar to the “Export -> CSV” utility except that it creates a file in
ADIF format.
16) About screen
The About
screen displays the build registration information.