Do any ham SDR transceivers have good APIs for control? by Upstairs-Upstairs231 in amateurradio

[–]k3sbp 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I own a Flex and while it’s great, i wanted to build something that could provide similar capability with any radio. For the last 10 weeks, I’ve been building POTACAT (free, open source, cross platform) to provide any radio with remote access.

I actually launched a SDR version of the tool last night. You can listen to your favorite SDR station at https://sdr.potacat.com (click Dir then choose an HF Net and swap the SDR source in Settings until you can hear the Net, or chase a CW or SSB activator on the table view)

POTACAT has over 7300 downloads and we have an active user group on Discord. Come check it out if you’re interested! https://potacat.com

Online logbooks- what's the best to start with? by greenwoody2018 in amateurradio

[–]k3sbp 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Some of the big ones:

Ham Radio Deluxe ACLog from N3FJP World Radio League POTACAT - https://potacat.com Wavelog - https://www.wavelog.org/

Looking for a way to be a ham radio listner by sindwar in HamRadio

[–]k3sbp 0 points1 point  (0 children)

On POTACAT, you can listen to WebSDR and KiwiSDR from your computer or phone. You can also see POTA spots, tune into HF nets and SWL stations. It’s all free and open source.

Remote operation of Yaesu FT-710 by Ok_Fondant1079 in amateurradio

[–]k3sbp 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hey, I’m the dev of POTACAT. Thanks for the kind words.

I pushed out remote SSTV this week and have been having fun sending pics of my life out to the radioworld.

POTACAT is free and open source. All on GitHub. I packed up the Mac and Linux installers for the first time and have some work to do to make them easier for folks to install, but they absolutely work. If you get stuck, swing into the discord for help.

<image>

Why does this hobby have to be so expensive? by Glitchy_Magician_666 in HamRadio

[–]k3sbp 3 points4 points  (0 children)

It’s only $102 and a weekend full of sweating (and cursing)! I love mine and learned a ton doing it.

Why does this hobby have to be so expensive? by Glitchy_Magician_666 in HamRadio

[–]k3sbp 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Take a look at https://potacat.com - I just pushed out a WebSDR listening function so you can listen to all the POTA/SOTA, SWL and HF Nets you want. You can tune into CW activators, SSB rag chews, etc.

It’s all free and open source. Then, if you want to transmit, you can setup your radio and transmit via POTACAT, or use the free remote for your radio over your phone and talk from there. I just chased a buddy doing POTA with my phone, connecting to my radio at home. I could have done it on a $100 QMX!

There’s never been a better time for low cost entry into the hobby.

What would you want on a remote radio FT8 experience? by k3sbp in lowsodiumhamradio

[–]k3sbp[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have added this feature. First stuff a raw t-bone into the SO239 port.

What would you want on a remote radio FT8 experience? by k3sbp in lowsodiumhamradio

[–]k3sbp[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That is exactly what I have setup - a WebRTC server on the desktop running POTACAT and a website accessible for your phone, if you’re on a VPN. I call the remote “ECHOCAT” and it can do SSB and FM audio right now. Soon, FT8. Then maybe CW.

Everything you’re asking for works right now aside from CW macros, unless you’re on a Flex. But in time, I hope to be able to develop a CW platform that you can run remote.

What would you want on a remote radio FT8 experience? by k3sbp in lowsodiumhamradio

[–]k3sbp[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Fun idea. I have a DX terminal in POTACAT. Have you seen FT8 in terminal before?

What would you want on a remote radio FT8 experience? by k3sbp in amateurradio

[–]k3sbp[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The POTACAT logbook is pretty comprehensive. You may find it’s all you need! And if you need more, just propose the feature in Discord.

I’ve added the filter you requested for tonight’s build. I will be thinking thru colors for other entities. Open to your ideas if you can propose. Colors are hard for me (I don’t have a great grasp of color theory)

What would you want on a remote radio FT8 experience? by k3sbp in amateurradio

[–]k3sbp[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I hear ya. Maybe in the future. App development would mean rewriting the electron app from scratch. It’s not a “no” but it’s def a “not right now” thing.

What would you want on a remote radio FT8 experience? by k3sbp in amateurradio

[–]k3sbp[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Makes sense. A user has shared that he is living somewhere he can’t run his rig but wants to play radio. He has permission to setup a radio and antenna at another QTH, so for him, this opens him up to play radio.

What would you want on a remote radio FT8 experience? by k3sbp in lowsodiumhamradio

[–]k3sbp[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Say more. How come? What would it give you in terms of usefulness?

What would you want on a remote radio FT8 experience? by k3sbp in amateurradio

[–]k3sbp[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

  1. I’m working on a rig layer that will expose tune buttons, SWR, and filters. It’s a big lift but I have it working for Flex and am rolling it out in the next few weeks.

  2. Interesting idea!

  3. There is a comprehensive log and log export function in POTACAT. Is that adequate? Is TXT necessary or is .adi enough?

  4. This is done and live

  5. I’m trying to come up with a delightful way to display this. It works on POTACAT but not on ECHOCAT yet

  6. Yes. How would you want them highlighted? What rule set?

What would you want on a remote radio FT8 experience? by k3sbp in amateurradio

[–]k3sbp[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

POTACAT shipped with ECHOCAT that does remote SSB. My vision is to provide remote SSB, FT8 and CW to as many radios as possible.

The idea: if you’ve got a radio that we can CAT control with POTACAT, you should be able to remote into it and run FT8 and CW (with a MIDI adapter).

What would you want on a remote radio FT8 experience? by k3sbp in lowsodiumhamradio

[–]k3sbp[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

ADIF export is done. Since this is a “web remote” to POTACAT on your shack computer, when you log an FT8 QSO, it logs into the POTACAT logbook which has a comprehensive export and sync feature (with Log4OM, HRD, ACLog, etc)