|
About this software:
--------------------
The enclosed DIGIFLOP.EXE version 1.3 is a self extracting 1.44 Mb disk image, build with a Freeware program called "DI" which can be found on the disk after creation. Use a fresh formatted 1.44 Mb floppy for this (format a: /U)!
After creation of the disk you will have a bootable DISK with a complete DIGI_NED digipeater. As DOS Caldera DR-DOS 7.03 is used; this version of DOS is free for non commercial personal use. Read LICENSE.TXT, please respect Caldera's License. Also read README.TXT on the disk.
After booting the first time a configuration screen appears. You can fill this in. Navigation is done with TAB and Shift-TAB and function keys. F3 gives help on a field. You can choose 16 different predefined configurations.
You can also make customized floppies by editing DNCONFIG.INI and making a matching "RUN.BAT" (in the DIGI_NED directory). You can make your own disk-image with the included disk image tool.
After configuration the DIGI_NED files are copied to Ramdisk, this is also done after a reboot. For this to work your PC shall be at least a 286 with 1 Mb memory.
Don't be alarmed if files seem to be copied to "C:", it just means that the Ramdisk was created as "C:" because your harddisk was not recognized; Caldera DR-DOS does not understand FAT32 disks. If you have many harddisks and even use drive "F:" then you should be carefull, the floppy checks from "F:" down to "C:" to find the ramdisk. If not sure make a backup copy of your "\Autoexec.bat", "\Config.sys" and "\Command.com" files, that are most likely the only ones that are overwritten should the software use your harddisk instead of the ramdisk.
This floppy includes a new "AX25_MAC" driver. It is possible to use a TH-D7, TM-D700 or TS-2000 as intelligent digipeater. A limitiation is that the TH-D7 has to understand KISS like the TH-D7E V2.0 does. The US TH-D7's do not seem to work. As far as I know the TM-D700 and TS-2000 should not give a problem with KISS. Note that the serial line speed is 9600 baud for the TH-D7, TM-D700 and TS-2000; otherwise it will not work! During operation you may notice that the TH-D7/TMD700/TS2000 is reinitialized. There are 2 possible reasons for this:
- The TNC hangs and does not send any RX data anymore, this is the build-in recovery procedure
- There is just no RX data and the internal watchdog runs off, this happens when there is low traffic. Initialisation takes about 3 seconds and since it is low traffic anyway this is I think acceptable (and there is just no other option...).
There is no sofisticated way to know if the TNC hangs so the drives watches if still data is received after it did a transmission. The away the driver is now it was possible to run for one day without any TNC hangup (disabled the watchdog and looked if it kept running). Watchdog time is 30 seconds after the last transmission.
If you use KISS, then the software will put the TNC in KISS mode. It will try different methods; first the method for the TheFirmware/WA8DED, then "KISS = ON" followed by "RESTART" and finaly "KISS ON" followed by "RESET". Be sure not the switch on the TNC on half way during this process as "RESET" will wipe all information in the TAPR TNC-2. In the normal sequence this is not
a problem since by the time the RESET is reached the TNC is already in KISS and ignores it.
If you TNC remembers KISS mode and you want to get it out of KISS again, use:
.\kissinit -PCOM1 -K
(for COM1, for documentation of KISSINIT look in the KISS directory on the floppy disk)
If you want to run the configurator again, remove DNCONFIG.BAT from the root directory of the floppy and reboot.
This is as out-of-the-box it gets! Good luck!
Kind regards,
Henk - PE1DNN | 
