WeatherFax ...

[emuzychenko]

Originally Posted by rgleason

Virtual Audio Cable is a very good suggestion

Just for information: this is VB-Audio Virtual Cable (a completely different product, suitable in most cases). "Virtual Audio Cable" is here.

[Maelruan]

We should develop a section for this in the Wiki.[/QUOTE]

I'm afraid we'll be overtaken by technology whether we like it or not. Thuraya do a "sleeve" to convert your smartphone into a satellite phone with some data capability for a price well under that for a HF SSB transciever (https://www.globaltelesat.co.uk/thuraya-satsleeve). No licence of any sort required. Some of the contestants in the ongoing Golden Globe round the world race, and their shore based contacts, ran into regulatory problems for operating on HF bands they were not licenced for.

[Franziska]

Even though for the Thuraya you will need a costly Sat phone connection.
Satellites will slowly take over, but I do not think in a snap.
Further there are still many many fishing boats in less developed countries who are likely to receive weather via SSB.

If you only run a receiver there are no licensing issues.

I don't think SSB is really dead yet.

By the if you put a how to Wiki together you might want to include these two postings in my other thread:

Here is a procedure for PC:

1)

Get SSB radio (Tecsun PL-880 or similar) & add external antenna if necessary.

2)

Install Audacity freeware on your PC

3)

Connect radio line out to PC radio line in.

Adjust volume level. See here:

https://www.hagensieker.com/wo...lin...ng-short-wave/

4)

Switch radio on (or set time when it should switch on if it has a timer built in).

5)

Dial in broadcast frequency

6)

Start Audacity & set its timer to start recording a little before broadcast.

7)

Leave PC on or set it to wake from sleep at a given time & start Audacity.

8)

Save broadcast recording file and decode HF weather fax image by playing it back to OpenCPN weatherfax plugin or SeaTTY.

This minimises power consumption and avoids another expensive electronic box for recording.

Enjoy.

&

The Target probably works as well but has no timer to wake up as far as I am aware off. Correct me if I am wrong.

Apart from that it's 60€more expensive than the more versatile and more modern Tecsun PL-880.

But, you are right, it is another option.

I tested the above mentioned PC procedure.

Works fully automatic and can even switch the PC off after recording.

Three things though I just found out:

1)

When you use the "radio alarm", on the PL880 make sure to set sufficient running time for the alarm (which is basically the radio playing on a set frequency /station). It can run up to 90min which should be way more than enough for most HF fax receptions.

2)

When you use windows task scheduler to wake up the machine from standby, you need to manually go into the energy plan which you use and set explicitly the option to wake up from any scheduled event.

Otherwise it does this only for windows system processes, which means it keeps sleeping on user scheduled events.

3)

You can set the windows wake up task even to daily at the same time. Similar you can set the PL-880 radio alarm to run daily.

So you get an automatic weather fax every day for free over the air, even without internet or VHF reception.

The only thing you need to do apart from decoding at a moment convenient to you is give the file to be recorded with Audacities timer module a new name for each recording.

[HUR450502]

.... just one addition to the Thuraya "Sat-Sleeve".

Besides the cost of GBP 365,- you need to consider the connection cost:

If you buy one of the "packages", the price for one minute will be:

For the 11 minute prepaid package GBP 1,64
For the 35 minute package GBP 0,97
For the 70 minute package GBP 0,84 and finally
for the 200 minute package GBP 0,74.

Again, these are the prices for one minute connection time PLUS the VAT and - not to forget, the package is valid for 365 days only.

Even though, the British Pound is pretty low in exchange-rate currently, one cannot expect this will last forever. Further - it is questionable, if you really will get a good connection everywhere, everytime with this relatively limited antenna and converter connected to your smart-phone.

In my opinion this is a good backup solution, to have a sat-phone at hand, but I still would - at least currently - rely on HF and SSB.

This will last for a while in my opinion AND the equipment is not necessarily more expensive - for GBP 365,- you will almost get a veritable HF transceiver (Icom IC 78 e.g (if you don't buy it in Europe...))...

Best regards, Uwe

[sailorF54]

Any reason why the WeatherFax plugin for O5 is not available ???


https://opencpn.org/OpenCPN/plugins/...ov50-win32.exe

[rgleason]

Sorry, try this link for Windows ov50

https://github.com/rgleason/weatherf...1.9.001-ov50-2


If you have additional wxfax internet urls or stations please advise.

[sailorF54]

Originally Posted by rgleason

Sorry, try this link for Windows ov50

https://github.com/rgleason/weatherf...1.9.001-ov50-2


If you have additional wxfax internet urls or stations please advise.

Thanks Rick !

[Gilletarom]

Hello,

Here is who falls well. I was preparing to update the page for this plugin in opencpn.fr.

I have read the page:
https://opencpn.org/wiki/dokuwiki/do...her:weatherfax

I remain on my hunger concerning "Preferences". And more particularly on the fixation of the datum of the probes.
It seemed to me that in the previous versions, the area to be filled had a drop-down menu allowing you to choose the content to enter in this area.
But this is not the case.

My mistake ? Or a regression of the plugin? A bug ?

[Gilletarom]

Hello,


1°) Sorry, in my previous post, replace the word "datum of the probes" by "datum of the sounds" or "sounding".


2° When a weather-fax is displayed, if I clic on the button "File", then "Edit", the window that opens is not large enough for the displayed texts to be readable. And it's impossible to resize it manually.

If a developer goes through the .... Can he improve that?

[Gilletarom]

Hello,

1°)
Here is a screenshot that shows that the link to some weather-fax Météo-France does not work (In fact Météo Polynésie françaisee).

It is not practical to copy the link in the alert window.

If a developer goes through here, could he make the link selectable and copiable in the Windows (or Linux or MAC or ...) clipboard. Thank you in advance.


2°)
Another question: The message that appears asks you to edit the "xml" file to modify it.

I guess this is this file:
ProgramData / OpenCPN / plugins / weatherfax / CoordinateSets.xml

In this file, for example, I read this part of the text:
"<Coordinate Name =" French Polynesia - South Pacific - 1 "X1 =" 93 "Y1 =" 203 "Lat1 =" - 10.00000 "Lon1 =" - 170.00000 "X2 =" 572 "Y2 =" 608 "Lat2 =" - 40.00000 "Lon2 =" - 130.00000 "Mapping =" FixedFlat "InputPoleY =" - 993 "InputEquator =" 83.00000 "InputTrueRatio =" 1.0000 "MappingMultiplier =" 1.0000 "MappingRatio =" 0.9700 "/>"

What kind of error can it contain?


Thank by advance.

[Gilletarom]

Hello,

I resume the subject of my previous post.

The link: http://meteo.pf/bulletins/marines/ exists.


But, it does not contain the image announced with the link

http://meteo.pf/bulletins/marines/preiso36.png

And so are the other 7 images.

[rgleason]

Gille, do you have an old version of weatherfax, the resize issue has been addressed!
Also I can't read your mind. What OS?

[Gilletarom]

More :

Looking on the website, I find this: https://meteo.pf/fr/isofronts.

And the image that appears is called preiso36.png if I want to save it on the hard disk.

All this can it serve ???

[Gilletarom]

RGleason

Originally Posted by rgleason

Gille, do you have an old version of weatherfax, the resize issue has been addressed!
Also I can't read your mind. What OS?

I would like to call myself an idiot ... But, I just realized that I downloaded several versions very close to each other.

I even wonder if there is not a link that is not up to date on the different pages of opencpn.org where this plugin is referenced.

And I just installed another one that I downloaded this morning too. And in this version, you're right, we can resize the window.

[Gilletarom]

Hello,


So with the latest version I found, which allows to resize some screen.

See the attached screenshots.

What role should be assigned to 1 and 2, visible in the "Device Index" and "Error ppm" areas?