SmartCAT questions

dlwarnberg

I have a couple programs that recommend using the Com0Com program.  From what I'm reading the SmartCAT program will do the same thing, problem is I can not seem to get it to work.  In Com0Com the cat pair is a com port plus another at plus 10.. example com6/com16 pair.. now with the new SmartCAT program the pair is plus 100.. example Com6/Com106 pair.

Now here is issue I'm running into, I set the pair then setup the programs, one operating on com6, the other on com106.. yet the program on com106 throws an error or does not communicate properly.

And is it my imagination or did the previous version of SmartCAT make the offset of ports the same as Com0Com program does now?  i.e. a plus 10 offset rather then a plus 100 offset.. any reason for the change?

I wish I could get into more specifics but these are MARS programs and would need to discuss one on one with a fellow MARS operator.

Thanks

David

George KF2T

You don't need to specify the 1xx port. Just use the port defined in SmartCAT for your application.

dlwarnberg

Well... that works fine with one program.. yet the second "controlling" program specifies the second port otherwise I get a conflict...

Example, how would you go about setting AMT (Automated Message Terminal) and FLDIGI

DrTeeth

David, George is 110% correct. You must ignore the 1xx port as SSDR connects to it. When you create a COM port pair, ONLY use the lower one. I have never had to touch the 1xx ones and neither should anybody.

Use a different COM port for each program. I would need much more information to give specific advice; your first paragraph above is way too general.

dlwarnberg

I guess my biggest question here is what is the second port pair for in SmartCAT?

I connect a program to com10, what is com110 used for???

Al K0VM

David,
 the +100 port are already conneded to the radio... So for a 6/106 pair, you can only use the 6 to connect to your app.  If you have more than one app, you can create additional port pairs in the SSDRCAT GUI. All of the +100 port ends will be connected to the radio..

SSSDR CAT is not intended to allow you to inter connect two different apps that are independent of the radio.  You could still  use com0com for that.

AL, K0VM

dlwarnberg

I think I know what the issue is.. in my case com0com is used to tell one program to control another program as if it were connected to eachother... 

So, in my case Automated Message Terminal, would use a virtual com port to control FLDIG and fldigi uses a com port to control the radio....

DrTeeth

COM 110 is the other end of com 10. Your program connects to com 10 and SSDR connects to com 110.

The best thing you can do is what I do...ignore the three-digit com ports. You don't need to do anything to or with them.

Ken - NM9P

You need to establish a second port.  You are trying to connect your second program to the radio "end" of the same cable.

The "other end" of the COM pair of 6/106 is for the radio.  It is like having a physical serial cable.  each cable has two ends.  one end is called COM6 and is what is entered in your Digi program.  The other end of the cable is labeled COM106 and is connected to your radio.  When doing it with hard cables, the whole cable would have been connected to one physical serial port on the computer.  But with Software Defined Radio, the "Radio" is in your computer, so to speak, and the computer needs to have both ends defined with a different label.  Once you wrap your mind around this piece of "virtual" reality, it becomes simple.

If you want two programs to run at the same time, you need to establish a second port, for example 7/107 .    Then you have one program using COM6 and the other program using COM7.  A third program would need a third pair....8/108...etc.

The "other end" of the virtual port is used by the radio and never entered into any of your programs.  Some of the digital programs out there do not have a CAT Command TX trigger and require a COM Port PTT.  SSDR allows you to configure a port dedicated as a virtual PTT Com port for these cases.    

Ever since the newer CAT program allowed the user to specify the "other end" of the cable with splits as wide as 100 or more, I have reconfigured all of my ports in order to make room for more ports with a low number.  This makes life easier with some of the older, more restricted programs.  Some of them still will not recognize a port number higher than 10 (or 16 in some cases).  Now it is nice to have several pairs such as 5/105  6/106  7/107  13/113  etc.

Hope this helps,

Ken - NM9P

Ken - NM9P

oops.  David.  I got interrupted for a while as I edited my previous post and didn't see any of the others that had been made before I finished writing.  My previous may not be responsive to your latest issue.  But at least I hope it helps explain the way SmartCat works, which may help you figure out your difficulty with AMT.

dlwarnberg

Ken, I think I'm starting to understand whats happening here.  I'm wanting to take a program and virtually connect it to another program that is virtually connected to the radio... i.e.  Program A connected to Program B connected to radio...  SmartCAT provides the connection between radio and program B only, I have to now use com0com or VSP to setup another port pair... gets confusing with multiple layers.

In my example... Program controls virtual modem that is virtually plugged into the radio..

Thanks

David

DonS

I see that CAT creates two com ports, i.e. com4 and com 14. I can no longer use the second port with the earlier flex radios: 5K, 3K, and 1.5K and the current release CAT v1.8.1.

Don - kx9q

Jay Nation

Don 
Correct, the higher numbered ports that SmartSDR CAT creates, are always used by the radio itself.
 SDRgadgets

73, Jay - NO5J