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Unofficial FAQ on Logger 32 (“L32”)
Q: I’m at version X
of Logger 32. Can I
install version Z using the
upgrade, or do I need to do a
full install?
A
: Why not try it and see? Here’s how:
1. Backup your log
and L32 configuration
files first to offline
storage media such as a
USB memory stick, CD-ROM
or floppy. ALSO
extract your entire log
to an ADIF file and store
that offline too.
That way, if anything
goes wrong during the
rest of this process, you
haven’t lost
everything. [You
should be doing this
regularly in any
case. Trust me,
it’s well worth it
if you lose a hard drive
or accidentally damage
your log file.]
2. Assuming you
have done your backups,
if X and Z are not
radically different (in
other words, if you have
missed only a few interim
upgrades) try the upgrade
first: download the
latest files from the L32
website, open the ZIP
file, then unpack the
enclosed zip files to
your L32 program
directory - usually
C:\Program
files\Logger32. Run
L32 and check if
everything works
OK. L32 displays
the version as it starts
up, or you can check
under
Help > Version:
3. If you have missed some major upgrades, if step 2 didn’t work, if strange things are
happening when L32 runs, or if you can’t be bothered to mess around with upgrades that
might not work, simply try a full L32 installation on top of your existing version. Download
the latest full install zip file from the L32 website, open it and unpack the contents to your L32
program directory. Run L32 and check it works OK.
By the way, the same process applies to downgrading: if you find or suspect a bug in the current
version, it is simple to go back to an older version by using the upgrade package or complete install
for that older version.
Q: K5D comes up as Texas not Desecheo Island. How do I fix it?
A: Open the
Country/Prefix maintenance
option under
Tools > Database maintenance
:
This opens a window showing the DXCC prefixes:
Scroll down the list to find the normal prefix for Desecheo, KP5, and click that line to bring up a
database edit window:
Now you need to get K5D into that empty box in the middle of the window. Just click in the box
and then type <K5D> (the angle brackets tell L32 it is a complete call not just a prefix):
Now before you close the database edit window, click the
Add
button on the far left of the same
line to save the change and add K5D to the prefix/country database. Finally, click the red and
white cross at top right to close the window and return to logging.
Note: if K5D is already explicitly defined elsewhere in the database, you will get a warning message
as it has to be a unique database key value.
Note: DXpeditions to S. Cook Islands such as Rarotonga are granted callsigns with the same E5
prefix as the much rarer N. Cooks. Logger32 unfortunately defaults to N. Cooks and exceptions
have to be entered manually in the same way.
Q: How do I correct my PC’s clock?
A
: In L32, right-click the shack clock (bottom left) and pick the “Get atomic clock time” option.
L32 presumably finds a convenient reference clock on the Internet and sets the PC clock to the
atomic reference. The L32 option is better than nothing (it gets within about 1 second on my
system anyway) but can be improved with other software - the best I’ve found is About Time,
synchronised to a local university’s NTP service and configured to resynchronise regularly and
automatically in the background. Others prefer a timekeeping utility called Dimension4.
Q: My PC clock is correct so why are so many DX QSLs arriving with the wrong times?
A
: If, like me, you sometimes spend ages calling some rare or weak DX before finally making a
QSO, make sure the log records the actual time of the QSO, rather than the time you started calling the DX. There’s an option to log the time of QSOs either when the callsign field loses focus
(i.e. when you tab to input the RST etc.) or when you hit enter to complete and log the QSO. The
second option is often more accurate than the first. To do this, right click in the log entry panel,
then select Setup --> QSO Start time --> When QSO entered in log:
Q: How do I do <whatever> in Logger32?
A
: First try right-clicking in the relevant place. Many additional options lurk behind the right click,
provided your cursor is in the relevant part of the screen at the time (e.g. hovering over a data
entry/input field to change data entry defaults; hovering over a report/output area to reformat the
outputs or choose new report fields). As Jim W5IFP put it: “When all else fails try a ‘Right click’.
You might be surprised at all the stuff you can find there.”
Next read the help inside L32. There is a lot of good content in there but quite often users
evidently either forget to look things up or can’t find what they are looking for, sometimes because
items are tucked away under headings you might not have considered checking. Try the search
function in help.
If that’s not working, try searching the archives of the L32 reflector/online discussion forum on
Yahoo! Groups, which for historical reasons is still named Hamlogger.
Finally, ask your question on the support forum but be prepared to be told either you shouldn’t
really be doing whatever you want to do, or else it’s in the help file!
Q: How do I get Logger32 to ding the bell when I’m spotted, or when someone else I am
hunting is spotted?
A:
Use the audio alerts in the DXcluster window. Right click in the DXcluster window, select Setup -
-> Audio alerts --> Enable audio alerts --> Select the Alert for callsigns option at the top and add
the relevant callsign/s to the list.
It’s a good idea to add your own call to the alert list. If you have been CQing for a while without
much response and are thinking of QSYing or going QRT but then get spotted, carry on CQing for a
few minutes more and you may be in luck.
I use VE7CC’s excellent Cluster User program to handle my cluster connections, and using VE7CC’s
DXcluster allows me to add Skimmer spots from the Reverse Beacon Network as well as regular
spots from the global DXcluster network. This significantly increases the number of raw spots while
VE7CC’s software and L32 togehter help to separate the wheat from the chaff. I have filled
numerous slots and bagged a few new ones thanks to the RBN spots.
You’ll see from the screenshot that I also like the PC to remind me with the Windows online.wav
noise whenever a new country is spotted (of course) and with the subtler recycle.wav noise
whenever someone spots a new “band country” (a new country for me on that particular band). If
you don’t like any of the sound effects on your PC or available on the Web, it’s not too hard to
record and save your own, but be careful with the audio levels. Frequent loud reminders can get
quite annoying, unless you are already in or nearing DXCC Honor Roll when you probably don’t
want to miss those really rare new ones.
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