RD Contest Logger
RD27.EXE - A logging program specifically intended for the VHF and UHF category of the Remembrance Day contest, where you can re-work the same station after two hours has elapsed.
There are dozens of other logging programs around, but none allowed for this re-work time limit - a re-work was simply a dupe... so I wrote this!
(I originally wrote Version 1.0 three days before the 1994 contest and was debugging it whilst participating in the contest!)
Preparation just prior to the actual contest
Program Operation
The program will start with three defaults;
  1. Band is 2MX
  2. Mode is Phone
  3. Prefix is VK3
Operational Notes
  • Any of these can be changed at any time.
  • Callsign entry can commence straight away.
  • All lower case characters are converted to uppercase.
  • Upon entering a callsign, the database is searched to see if you have worked this station on that band and mode in the last two hours.
  • If you HAVE worked in the last two hours, it will tell you how long you must wait for another contact and what number the station last sent you (invariably they ask that).
  • If you have NOT worked the station in the last two hours, then the program will automatically assign the next serial number to send to the station you wish to work.
  • For the contact to be logged successfully you must enter the serial number received.
  • If you simply press <Enter> the entry is cancelled (sometimes handy to do this, in case you preloaded the callsign of the station you were about to work and something else happened!)
Functions keys F1 - F8 are used as follows;
F1 - selects 6MX band for log entries.
F2 - selects 2MX band for log entries.
F3 - selects 70cm band for log entries.
F4 - selects 23cm band for log entries.
F5 - selects "other" band ie; 10GHz if your using that!
F7 - selects "Phone" mode.
F8 - selects "Digital" mode.
F9 - Changes default prefix from VK3.
F10- Will list the stations worked.
If there is more than one page of log, you can view just the last 16 entries only by pressing <End>.
Notes:
  • Minimum callsign length is 5 characters.
  • Maximum callsign length is 8 characters, eg VK9XYZ/3
No date information is recorded in the database, so if you want to use this on any other day (don't know why you would?) just bear in mind any new information will be appended to the existing file.
For the same reason, if you have a play before the actual contest delete the RD*.VHF files, otherwise old log entries will be; retained!
RD2PRN.EXE - A bare-bones utility program to print the results.
Either a coversheet only can be printed - or - the complete log and the coversheet.
Both programs were written, after many hours of slaving over a hot keyboard, using MS QuickBasic 4.5 - don't laugh - BASIC works just fine!