Will Maestro click-tune with a mouse?

Jerry W4UK

I haven't seen this mentioned, and I don't see any provision for plugging a mouse into Maestro (no USB port labels in the photos). Will Maestro click-tune with a mouse? Perhaps finger-pointing tune is available, but I doubt that would provide much precision.

Jerry

Jim Gilliam

Maybe Bluetooth can be programmed to accept a mouse.

Bob-N4HY

I believe a machine learning algorithm can train an AI to pick the most likely signal and out the filter on it.

Bob - W7KWS -

Got to have mouse click tune. I mentioned this to one of the Flex guys in their booth @ Dayton. He noted my comment in his notebook. This meant to me that he thought it was worth consideration. He mentioned Bluetooth was a possible way for connecting a mouse.

Walt - KZ1F

Gerald made the statement on here that the hardware was pretty much baked at this point, no wiggle room there. My understanding is the whole point of that form factor is capacitive touch, like an iPhone, iPad, Nexus, etc etc. I suspect how that would work is double tap for freq and slide for precision pointing.

Bob G W1GLV

I have a Bluetooth mouse, works very well.

Jim Gilliam

Does your Bluetooth mouse have a USB dongle or do you connect directly to you computer Bluetooth?

Jim, K6QE

Jim Gilliam

I think Flex should have canvased the opinion of the Flex owners before "baking" the hardware. I really hate getting my sweaty finger prints and buggars all over the screen.

Jim, K6QE

Tim - W4TME

That is exactly how it works that way today

Jerry W4UK

Perhaps those (legacy radio?) contesters that were consulted were not familiar with click-tuning, so didn't ask for mouse functionality.

Like you, I suspect that if Flex users/contesters had been asked, most would have placed mouse (and perhaps Flexcontrol) support very high on Maestro's wish list.

I think I speak for MANY Flex users/contesters when I ask that Flex rejigger the hardware design of Maestro to include two USB ports. And they should be full sized ports, not those mini/micro thingies that require the adapter I lost last week.

The mouse could even be a special Flex option model if necessary to simplify driver interfacing.

Jerry

Ned K1NJ

   Maybe one of the knobs can be configured to control the tuning cursors.
Touch tuning a couple of slices precisely will be awkward.

Ned,  K1NJ

Jay Nation

Would a touch screen stylus possibly work with the Maestro displays? The pointed tip of a stylus might be a little more accurate as pointing device than my grubby **** fingertip.

Jay - NO5J

Greg

Is there any definitive response to this question?  Will a Bluetooth mouse work for click tuning with Maestro?  And, will Maestro's BT connect to multiple BT devices at the same time?  I can see this being handy for mouse+headphones, 2x headphones in a contest.....etc.

Thanks
Greg

Norm - W7CK

I don't want to have to pick up a stylus every time I want to change something on the screen, but I would like to use the MOUSE just like I do currently.   The darn MOUSE as well as the FlexControl should have been engineered to work with the Maestro exactly the same way they work on my laptop or home computer. 

Tim - W4TME

We are not planning on supporting a pointing device (mouse) with Maestro.  It is being designed as a touchscreen application.

Greg

Thanks for the update Tim.  I tried using a touch screen for tuning with SSDR and it is horribly inaccurate.  You have to try to "roll" your finger to get it close to the right place.

Gerald-K5SDR

Maestro is designed for touch.  SmartSDR is not.  I am touch tuning whenever I demo.  I can demo how to run the entire radio in under one minute.  With touch, there is nothing to pick up or grab.  It is much faster than any other method I have ever used.  

Bob - W7KWS -

Gerald,

I trust what you say here but easy touch tuning is difficult to visualize given my experience using touch on a tablet.  On the tablet, I'd have to zoom in very tight to accurately tune to any signal.  CW is particularly difficult.  Tight zoom makes monitoring a large portion of the band a problem.  Big fingers I guess.  With my Bluetooth mouse & mouse wheel I can quickly tune with the entire band on the display. 

A video from you with some tips would help a lot.

Thanks

Gerald-K5SDR

I find that I can touch tune with the finger to the selected step size and quickly fine tune with the tuning knob.  I usually set SSB to 500 Hz step and can hit dead on most of the time.  It is the best of both worlds.  I can demo how to run the entire radio in 30-60 seconds from start to finish.  Have it a hundred times or so now.   It is easier to learn and use than any radio I have ever owned or seen.  We will probably do a video soon that shows how to run the radio with Maestro in 60 seconds or less. I did it for one of our UK distributors, Waters & Stanton who visited us in Austin on Monday and they did a video that they may post on their website.

Simon Lewis

direct BT connection

http://www.microsoft.com/hardware/en-us/p/arc-touch-mouse

Greg

Thanks Gerald. It will be interesting to see. I have a difficult time visualizing how it can be faster than a dedicated mouse that can be positioned directly next to the keyboard being used for logging. Ergonomically it is less movement than having to lift your hand and reach to the screen and then the knob.

Greg

By the way, I'm not saying or implying that touch tuning is bad. It just seems that it would be quicker and ergonomically less stressful making multiple movements to the mouse than it would be to the screen in the heat of a busy contest. Take a couple of hours and move your hand from the keyboard up to the screen than the knob then back to the keyboard a few hundred times and then do it again but only having to rotate your wrist or a slight movement of your arm from the keyboard to a mouse and back and you will see what I mean.

Jim Gilliam

The touch screen is a necessity for something like an iPhone or an iPad. But the Maestro, will not be a hand held device as much as it will be a table device and I would much prefer using a mouse. However, I will come to my final decision after I wipe all the oil and sweat from my screen.

Jim, K6QE