Frequently Asked Questions

Help & Support

Q: I have a problem with Shortwave Log.  How do I get support?

A: Support is provided via the suport forum.  Click on the support tab, which is located at the top of this page. 

Installation

Q: Does Shortwave Log work with wide-screen monitors?

A: Yes. 

Q: What is the minumum supported screen resolution?

A: It is currently 800x600; however 98% of all visits to the web site are at resolutions of 1024x768 or greater, so that will probably soon become the minimum supported resolution.

Q: What are the recommended system requirements?

A:

Q: What other things do I need to download other than the installation package?

A: Nothing.  The installation package will automatically download things like the .NET Framework, SQL Server Express, and other items if necessary.  Everything that would be downloaded is a Microsoft Product or licensed by Microsoft (Crystal Reports).  Rest assured, absolutely, positively nothing bad or evil will be downloaded and installed.  And everything that is installed (e.g. SQL Server, Crystal Reports) can be removed. 

Q: What is SQL Server Express?

A:  SQL Server Express is a completely free version of SQL Server that is upwardly compatible with the higher end versions of SQL Server (Workgroup, Standard, and Enterprise).  While SQL Server Express most likely was released to fend off attacks from the free open source databases, it is nonetheless still free to use and it is quite powerful. 

Q: Are there any limitations to SQL Server Express?

A:  Yes, there are several limitations when comparing Express to the Workgroup, Standard, or Enterprise editions.  But SWLog is not a world-wide, enterprise application and as such only has mild database requirements.  SQL Server Express is more than powerful enough to support SWLog and any other personal databases that you may wish to create and use.  From a purely technical perspective, SQL Server Express is limited to one CPU (although it will use both cores in a Dual Core CPU), is limited to 1 GB of memory, and has a database size limitation of 2 GB. 

Once SQL Server is installed, many performance options can be tuned.

Adding Records to the Logbook

Q: What is this blinking icon? How do I get rid of it?

The blinking icon denotes an error in the field.  This is most likely an empty field or malformed data, such as entering a letter in the kHz/MHz field.  The error condition must be cleared to proceed. 

Q: Why can't I close the form when the red icon is blinking?

A: As you've surely read or heard, Microsoft has taken quite a bit of heat for the lack of security and error-checking in its products.  As such, this new error handler must be cleared (i.e., the error has to be fixed) before anything else can happen.  (That's my attempt at explaining the real reason - You just have to.)

Q: Why isn't there an option to get rid of the blinking icon, to perform all error-checking at the form level rather than at the field level?

A: I spent three solid days working on such a version.  Aside from wasting a weekend away, I found that removing the field-level checks rendered the auto-populate functionality useless.  Being that the auto-populate feature is central to Shortwave Log, the field-level checks remain. 

Q: Why do I have to enter data top-down? Why can't I add information the way I want to?

A: Shortwave Log is designed to auto-populate frequency, station, transmitter, and power information from FCC, HFCC, ILGRadio, and your personal frequency databases.  It expects this information to be added in a specific order, and that order that is top-down.

Q: Why is a particular field required? Why can't I leave it blank?

A: This answer is a bit of an oversimplification, but still valid: A log entry could be added to the database, but if certain fields are blank, none of the reports would "see" the entry, effectively sending the log entry to the database equivalent of Bermuda Triangle.  Some fields (e.g.  Mode, Transmission Type) can be blank, but Shortwave will convert the blanks to "Unknown" when the record is added to the database.  (For those of you with a background in relational databases, I simply want to prevent a null value being entered as the resultant record would not show up in any queries.)

Q: When the program searches for matches, I get several results from [Logbook] that do not match the date/time.  Why is this?

A: When searching, all logbook entries for that frequency -- regardless of time -- are returned.  Say that a broadcast occurs from 0000 to 0100 GMT.  You have previously logged this station from 0010 to 0015 GMT and 0022 to 0035 GMT.  For your third log of this station, the time frame is 0040 to 0050 GMT.  If time were included in the search, the entry would not be listed as an option. Thus all [Logbook] entries are matches for the frequency, regardless of time.  Note that there is a System Settings option to limit the number of logbook entries that are searched.  You can limit the search to only recent logs, e.g.  those within three months.  This will prevent old logs from the 1980s or 1990s, like the BBC on 6175 or 9590 kHz, from showing as possible matches. 

Q: Why are countries used? Why can't I use "radio countries" like the ARRL, DXCC, or the NASWA Country List?

A: Alaska and Hawaii are not countries! There is no such thing as a "radio country."  Your author does not believe in or support these fake country lists or fake country contests.   

Q: Why can't I use my own names for countries? For example, why do I have to use United Kingdom instead of Great Britain?

A: Shortwave Log supports many different types of external databases.  Some databases call the U.K.  the United Kingdom, some Great Britain, and some England (even if the transmitter is in Wales, Scotland, or Northern Ireland).  In order to make all these databases coexist, Shortwave Log maps all these various permutations to a master country list, which is based upon the spellings in the CIA World Factbook, which in turn is based upon the official United States Department of State spellings for each country.  Shortwave Log does a lot of behind the scenes magic to make HFCC, ILGRadio, Fineware, Prime Time Shortwave, NIMA, FCC AM, FCC HF, FCC Amateur, and Canadian Amateur to work as a single, unified database.  In order to make everything work, a master country list is required. 

Reports

Q: Why do the reports show up in kHz even though I've selected MHz?

A: All frequencies are stored and manipulated in the database as kHz.  The MHz option is merely a cosmetic setting that divides by 1,000 when a frequency needs to be displayed on the screen.  The reporting engine (Crystal Reports) is a separate product and pretty much acts as a black box: the report is written with a wizard and any post-wizard configuration is quite difficult.  At present, the reports merely display the frequencies in the manner they're stored in the database: in kHz. 

Q: Why do the reports appear in English instead of my chosen language?

A: At this time only the user interface has been made multi-lingual.  Changing the reports is much more involved. 

Propagation, Sunrise/Sunset, and TerraServer Utilities

Q: Why are some of these locations wrong? For example, why are Delano, California and Greenville, North Carolina listed as being in Greece?

A: Garbage in = garbage out.  ILGRadio in particular is fond of mislabeling transmitter sites. 

QSL Functions

Q: What is the recommended resolution at which to scan QSL cards?

A: This is really up to you, but 300 dpi works well for me.  Scans at 300 dpi result in images between 300k and 700k in size.  If you're just interested in viewing your QSL cards on the screen and not printing them, then you need no resolution higher than 72 dpi. 

Miscellaneous

Q: Why does the clock pause for several seconds then start again?

A: The clock is coded to run only when the program is idle.  If Shortwave Log is processing data, importing, printing, etc., the clock will not be updated until the program becomes idle again. 

Q: Is Shortwave Log available in any other languages than English?

A: Yes - Norwegian, Italian, Spanish, Russian, German, Portuguese, and Swedish; however, none of the documentation (like this FAQ) has been translated. 

Backup & Restore

Q: How do I backup my logs?

A: You can backup SQL Server Express in a number of ways. 

  1. Use Management Studio Express. 
  2. Use the T-SQL BACKUP DATABASE command. 
  3. COPY/XCOPY the swlog.mdf and swlog_log.ldf files once the database has been closed or detached.  (Stopping the MSSQLSERVER service will easily do this.)
There is also a backup option in Shortwave Log; however, this is more of an export than a pure backup in that individual datbase tables are converted to XML files rather than formally backup up the database.

There is a full demonstration of this available.  Check the main web page for details.

Q: My computer has crashed and/or I wish to move my logs to another computer.  How do I do this?

A: The answer is pretty much the same as above, but in reverse.  Neither this FAQ nor this program is meant to be a primer on SQL Server.  There is ample information about this on the Internet.

Radio Control Client

Q: I want to listen to a remote radio.  Do I need to do anything to my firewall or router?

A: For the firewall in Windows XP SP2 or Windows Vista or the NAT servers found in Linksys, Dlink, Belkin, and other routers -- no.  Absolutely nothing needs to be done to a firewall or router listen to receivers being published by other Radio Control users.   If you are running Zone Alarm, you're on your own.  Zone Alarm is absolutely, positively not supported with SWLog.  

Q: My audio player gives me an error when I click on the "Play Audio" button of a remote receiver.  Why?

A: Each person who uses Shortwave Log to publish a recevier chooses his own audio format.  It is quite possible that the audio player that you are using is incompatible with the audio format used by the remote receiver.  You may want to try the Audio Recording & Scheduling application that is included with Shortwave Log.  In the Net Radio module of this program, you will find all active receviers listed with the swlog:// prefix.  The Audio Recording & Scheduling application can play audio streams in the MP3, AAC, AACPlus, Ogg Vorbis, and WMA formats.  That is pretty much everything except for Real Audio and Teamspeak.  For those formats, you will need to use a specialized audio player.

Radio Control Server (RCS)

Q: Why doesn't the Radio Control Server support all the functions of my receiver?

A: Radio Control Server differs from traditional radio control software in that it has two primary functions: 

1.  Integrate with Shortwave Log, thereby aiding the logging process. 

2.  Support control over TCP/IP, thereby allowing remote control over your home network, the Internet, or the web via the RCSweb application. 

It is not a goal of the program to support every single function for every single receiver.  The goal is to support a basic subset of commands to allow for general tuning.  If you need a specific feature that is not available in the Radio Control Server program, use the software that came with your receiver.  It should be noted that in the 2+ years that Radio Control Server has been available, the policy of providing a basic level of functionality -- but with SWLog and Network/Web integration -- has proved to be quite positive.  Radio Control Server will never be the best software available for your particular radio, but it is the best with respect to integrating into Shortwave Log!

Q: While Radio Control Server does not support my receiver, Ham Radio Deluxe (HRD) does.  Can I use HRD with Shortwave Log?

A: Yes.  Choose Ham Radio Deluxe as the receiver type in the Settings form in the Radio Control Server.  Choose the appropriate instance of HRD.  If you are trying to connect to the first running copy of HRD, choose HRD_RADIO_000.  If you happen to have ten receivers and ten copies of HRD running at the same time and you wish to connect to the tenth instance of HRD, choose HRD_RADIO_009.  Although it's a pretty safe assumption that almost everyone will be connecting th HRD_RADIO_000 or HRD_RADIO_001.  Note that HRD only provides for a very limited feature set.  Only mode and frequency can be set.  HRD does not provide for filters, passband, volume, squelch, or anything else to be set remotely.  To set those features, you must use HRD itself.  Nonetheless, the integration is sufficient to allow features such as What's Playing Now to automatically tune the receiver via HRD, to have the SINPO value and frequency automatically populated when adding a new log, and it also allows any receiver supported by HRD to be published on the Internet via RCSweb. 

Q: Can I use a USB-to-serial port adapter?

A: It depends on the specific USB-to-serial adapter.  Some brands of adapters work better than others.  If you can find one, get an adapter made by Keyspan.  They work better than any other brand that the author has seen.  And Keyspan adapters are the only adapters that do not crash the computer when using the AOR 7030/7030+ receiver.  (The blue-screen crashes occur with all radio control programs, not just the Radio Control Server.)

Q: Why can't I read or write the memories in my receiver?

A: Because the Radio Control Server supports so many different types of receivers, a software-based memory model is used.  1000 memories are available to every recevier, regardless of whether a particular receiver can support that many memories in hardware or not.  (The theoretical limit on the number of memories is approximately 2 million; however, no one has yet expressed a need for more than 1000.) Another advantage of using software-based memories is that they can span receivers.  Memories can be manipulated on the AOR 7030 and 7030+ receivers. 

Q: My receiver is either not listed or is listed as "as-is".  Why is that the case?

A: Only those receivers that I has personally tested are listed as official, supported receivers.  If you would like to loan me your receiver for a couple of weeks, I could test it and then declare it offically supported.  No one has yet offered to do this, so these receivers remain "as-is". 

Q: My receiver is either not listed or is listed as "as-is" and is not working.  How do I my receiver added or fixed?

A: The only option is to loan your friendly author your receiver for a couple of weeks.  No more receivers will be added without having physical access.  It's just too hard and time consuming. 

Q: I am unable to get the radio control module to tune the radio when I go into the What's Playing Now function.  What's going on?

A: You most likely have a personal fireall installed.  The radio control module listens for connections on TCP port 21687.  You will need to open this port on your PC.  Try using the RCS.EXE command-line application to test.  Issue a query (RCS /Q).  If you cannot get a simple query to work, then there is definately a communication problem over TCP port 21687. 

Q: Radio Control Server hangs.  What do I do?

A: The Radio Control Server can hang for a variety of reasons: wrong port, wrong baud, wrong radio type, forcing CTS/RTS, not forcing CTS/RTS, etc.  1.  Use Task Manager to kill the RadioControl.exe process. 2.  Open a command prompt and change to C:\SWLOG 3.  Start RadioControl.exe with a paramater --> "radiocontrol x" Any parameter will do.  The program will then reset itself to demonstration mode and let you pick a radio and COM port. 

Q: Why does Radio Control Server hang? If there is an error, why is it not trapped?

A: It is a limitation of the technology.  The .NET Framework has no support for serial communication.  Thus all serial port communication is accomplished via P/Invoke calls to the Win32API.  Calling unmanaged code is fraught with peril in that if an error occurs, the program may hang. This is supposed to be fixed in late 2005 with the release of Visual Studio 2005 and version 2.0 of the .NET Framework; however, upgrading to this new tool will mean that the program would only work under Windows XP and the forthcoming Windows Vista. 

Q: Why can't I choose my own TCP/IP port for the Radio Control Server?

A: Many programs - like the web browser you're using now - operate on fixed ports.  Standardizing on a single port greatly simplifies development as well.  Plus I seriously doubt that 21687 is conflicting with anything on your PC. 

Q: Why is the Windows Media Encoder used?

A: Any streaming audio encoder can be used.  Full details on how to use the WinAMP/Oddcast/Shoutcast combination for MP3/AAC/Ogg Vorbis streaming are available in the RCSweb installation document.  And programs such as the Real Helix Encoder or the Apple Darwin Streaming Server can also be used.  The Windows Media Encder is used in all examples for the fact that it is so easy and simple to set up.  You can start streaming audio in under 5 minutes with the Windows Media Encoder. 

Q: Why is TCP port 21688 used for the audio?

A: Any TCP port can be used.  21688 is recommended simply because Radio Control Server uses port 21687.  For home users with a commercial router/firewall from LinkSys, D-Link, Belkin, or other companies, a single port fowarding rule can be created for ports 21687-21688, inclusive.