[aprssig] Point-to-point telemetry addressing

[Robert Bruninga]

Amir,
Forward *this one* to them.  I cleaned it up a bit...:

> I live outside Syracuse NY and with your permission, I will 
> forward your post to one of the guys who is taking care 
> of K2AMB-3 ... so maybe something might change there.
> 
> 73 de K9CHP, Amir Findling, member ARRL, AMSAT #36083
>
> -----Original Message-----
> Subject: RE: [aprssig] Point-to-point telemetry addressing
> 
> > There is a good APRS digipeter (K2AMB-3) near W9IP-1 and
> > another good one (KB2FAF-10) near W9IP-2.
> 
> Several comments come to mind about your area and why APRS
> is not working correctlly in that area for the now universal
> path of WIDE2-2 ...
> 
> Looking at KB2FAF-10 on FINDU.COM,
>  http://www.findu.com/cgi-bin/find.cgi?kb2faf-10
> 
> this does not appear to be a digipeater.  It is an Igate.  
> If it is supposed to be a digi, then it does not appear to
> support any of the modern APRS digipeating functions.  An
> APRS digi should use the DIGI symbol, should have an overlay
> character showing what kind of digi it is, should indicate in
> its beacons what type of support it has for WIDEn-N and most
> importanly, it should show its station PHG data which is
> fundamental to a digipeater so people can infer its relative
> coverage.  Without a digi symbol and without PHG data, it
could
> be an HT in someone's basement serving only as an IGate.
> 
> You say it is "near W9IP-2" but you also say the "terrain is
> rough". Since the KB2FAF-10 station has no  PHG data, the word
> "near" is questionable.  It could be 1 mile away by
> LAT/LONG, but could be in a basement on an HT and have a worse
> path by far than a good digi 20 miles away that is on a good
> high site.  This is why PHG (Power-Height-Gain data) is
> fundamental to APRS and why all fixed APRS stations (home and
> digis) should include this data in their beacons.
> 
> Looking at K2AMB-3:
> http://www.findu.com/cgi-bin/find.cgi?k2amb-3
> This digi has a good PHG, but it also has none of the modern
> APRS indication of the proper settings for an APRS digipeater:
> * it is using an obsolete WIDE,WIDE,WIDE path
> * It does not indicate the type of TNC in its header,
> * it does not indicate its support of WIDEn-N, or limits on N
> * it does not indicate its support of NYn-N
> * It does inidcate it is a TRACE digi which is obsolete
> 
> So it appears to me this digi does not support WIDEn-N in the
> first place.  This digi can be updated remotely in accordance 
> with the 2004 recommendations for the New-N Paradigm.  Since
it 
> is an old PACCOMM digi, it can be made to work using those 
> parameters found on this page:
> 
> http://www.ew.usna.edu/~bruninga/aprs/PacComm-settings.txt
> 
> Here is the page for all the reasons that old digis
> need to be set to proper settings..
> 
> http://www.ew.usna.edu/~bruninga/aprs/fix14439.html
> 
> Hope this helps.
> Bob, WB4APR