Hi All,
I know this is generally a satellite specific list, but since a lot of you are APRS users, I am going to see if anyone can answer this question. I will try to keep it simple. Please email me if I don’t make sense.
I recently put up a digi on my property (KD8KSN-1). I am using a Kenwood TM-271 (25w – lowest power setting), Diamond F22A 6.7db ground plane on a 1112ft hill, and a Kantronics Packet Communicator 3 Plus TNC. From what I can tell, everything seems to be working fine from the RF side. Here is the issue:
On aprs.fi, when KD8KSN-1 is digipeated by station (eg) xx1xx, xx1xx shows up in KD8KSN-1’s “info bubble” as one of the stations who digi’d the most recent packet. (You can also view it by going into raw packets (http://aprs.fi/?c=raw&call=KD8KSN-1) and looking at what stations digi’d KD8KSN-1. Just in case you don’t know what this “info bubble” is I am referring to, follow this link http://aprs.fi/?call=a%2FKD8KSN-1 I am referring to the box in the middle of the screen with my digipeater’s status text, power/gain/HAAT/range.) Now, when I watch the TNC and the receive light comes on, then the transmit light comes on (which would indicate it is didgipeating a station), I monitor with the D7, and as soon as the TNC transmits, I receive a packet on the D7 with (eg) KB8TZE-9. I then immediately get on the computer, lookup KB8TZE-9 on aprs.fi, and according to his raw packets and “info bubble,” I am nowhere in the chain of digis that digipeated him. I have tried this with several different stations, and not once have a seen myself come up in anyone’s raw packets as a station that digipeated them. The *only* time I have seen KD8KSN-1 in the chain of digis that digipeated a station is when it has digipeated me (KD8KSN-7/-9).
Me and my other APRS friend speculated that it might be due to the fact that I live in the country and don’t live close to an internet gateway, but I am able to send myself email messages without issues, and I am also aware of at least three gateways that I am very frequently digipeated by.
I know this is probably not a huge issue. Having your call in someone’s raw packets or “info bubble” isn’t a big deal, but WHY its not working is what’s bugging me. Everyone else’s digi does this, so why isn’t mine?
Any help would definitely be appreciated. Please feel free to ask me any questions if I am not making sense. Just keep in mind that I am brand new to this, so please keep it in layman’s terms. ;-)
73!
Zack
KD8KSN