On Mon, 30 May 2005 01:53:57 -0700, Greg Alexander wrote:


1) Is there an internet-based method of separating the physical
transmitter/receiver from the user (who needs his computer, mic, and
method to switch channels, adjust squelch etc)?
2) Are there software only and hardware based solutions?
3) what kind of costs are we looking at (besides the internet/pc cost)?

Well that all depends on what kind of interface, if any, the radio
provides. If the radio can be computer controlled using lets say a serial
com port, that would be much easier than other solutions. For that case I
would suggest you use a rig control program. The computer it's running on
would be set up to "remote" the desktop. In other words you can pull up
the remote computer's desktop at another computer on a network, or
Internet, and run any application as if you where sitting at the remote
computer's keyboard and display.

For Micro$oft Windows you would use "Terminal Services". The remote
computer, the one with the radio control software, would have to be
running the server and the computer the user is at runs the client
software. For sound you can interface the radio to a number of "chat
programs". I log into my company's network all the time like this and see
a nice graphical Windows desktop for the remote server pop up in a window
on the computer I'm using. It works great so long as you have a fairly
fast connection. For sound you can interface the radio to a number of
"chat programs".

Under Linux you would use either "XDMCP over "ssh" or just plain "XDMCP".
I run "XDMCP" just on my local LAN, no external access for this on my LAN,
so I can work on by Linux box, with the gnome windows manager running a
graphical desktop over a WiFi link to a laptop. There's no difference
between that and siting at Linux machine's keyboard and display. Works
great. Now all you have to do is find software that runs on Linux for
radio control and sound.

Beyond the above it gets a bit more tricky. If you don't have a way to
directly control the radio your options are much more limited without
getting in to a lot of custom build it yourself hardware interfaces and
software.

If your're satisfied with just single channel operation the solution may
not be so complicated. I would think a "chat" type program would work. It
would be simple in fact if the radio had built-in VOX capability. Just
putting the microphone up to the computer's sound system speaker for
transmit. Then put the computer's sound system microphone up to the
radio's speaker. A bit of foam insulation over the speaker microphone
combo to keep any external noise from messing things up would finish up
the job. So the way it would work is anything coming in to the chat
program for output on the speaker would trip he radio's VOX and transmit
it. Anything on the radio's speaker would be sent out to the remote
computer. Of course that would be about all the control you would have,
but it would be simple.

So the above is just an idea or two I had. Maybe some others here on the
group may a have good idea too, or know a specific hardware - software
solution you could try.

Regards,

Leland C. Scott
KC8LDO