TS-590-sAs a proud owner of the brand new Kenwood TS-590 of course I now have to follow the release of new firmware for this rig. This morning I noticed there is a new one out. It addresses at least one thing I noticed: an unstable USB-data connection when I switch between N1MM logger and Ham Radio Deluxe. Sometimes I have to turn the radio off and back on to get a connection with the other program. Other fixes according to Kenwood:

1. In [SSB-DATA] mode, Speech Processor might not be disabled internally.
2. At the end of TX tune mode, carrier output returns to normal mode level after a short delay.
3. When the TS-590S is turned ON, the USB port connection may be unstable.
4. When the built-in electronic keyer is set to Mode A, CW keying may not work properly.
5. TX rise time power spike activates some linear amplifiers’ input power protections.
(The firmware Ver.1.02 revises the ALC response characteristics to reduce the power spike.)
6. When a separate RX ANT is connected, TX output power may be fed back to the RX ANT connector and might affect internal circuits.
(The firmware Ver.1.02 deactivates (opens) RX ANT relay every time the radio transmits.)

Let’s upgrade here!

Ham Radio DeluxeAccording to the Ham Radio Deluxe website there is a new version of Ham Radio Deluxe 5: 2777.
Release notes say:
After a lot of hard work with incredible support from Terry G4POP and Chuck K7PT this beta is now available.
Logbook

* Country file upgraded with support for Unique Calls
* ALE window now correctly supports entries with a / in the callsign
* Award tracking rewritten and tested almost to extinction
* ALE custom field titles now user-definable

Ham Radio Deluxe

* Rigblaster support where RTS is toggled instead of sending a CAT command. See Options, COM Port TX.
* Initial support for TS-590S and FTDX-5000

Needless to say I’m cheering of joy because I love to see the award tracker updated. And of course since me catching the TS-590S-virus the initial support for the TS-590S makes me smile! Installing right now, maybe I can report on the changes later.

Ham Radio DeluxeSome regular visitors of this blog know I’m working on a WordPress Plugin to show your HRD Logbook online. Finally version 1.0 is out now. A brand new page on this blog is dedicated to the plugin. It is a typical 1.0-version so no bells and whistles yet. Just put the php-file in your plugin dir and enable it on your pluginpage.

On the wish list:

– adding visitors interaction with selecting periods, search for call etc.
– adding admin-panel to alter layout and columns;
– adding a log-entry on admin-panel for web entry of qso’s;
– adding the plugin to the central WP-plugin directory.

If you have feature requests, please post them as a comment or mail me from the contactpage. I promise I’ll take a look at it and see if I be able to integrate it in the code.