Basic Operation
This section describes how to use the basic functions of EchoLink.
Callsign Validation
If you have never used EchoLink before, the callsign you entered will
need to be validated by the system before you will be able to access it.
This process may take several minutes or several hours, since each call
is individually validated by hand. During this time, the Station
List area of the screen will be blank, or may display a message
indicating that your callsign is being validated. Once validation
is complete, you will see the list of stations appear in the Station
List area, and you can proceed to use EchoLink.
For more information about guidelines for callsign validation, see
the Support section
of the EchoLink Web site.
Connecting to a Station
To connect to another station, find the station's callsign in the
Station List. Use the tabs at the bottom to select either Index
View or Explorer View, depending on your preference. Once you've
located the station you're looking for, double-click on the station's
callsign to connect to it. After a few seconds, you should see the
station's callsign and name appear near the bottom of the screen, and
you should hear the "connected" signal. You are now in
direct contact with the other station and you can begin conversing.
If, after about 30 seconds, you see the message "Cannot
connect" instead of "Connected", it means that the
attempt to connect to the other station failed. This can happen
for several reasons. The other station may have already
established a contact with someone else, or may have just
logged off the system. Another possibility is that a network
"firewall" problem is preventing your PC from receiving data
from the remote station. You may also be able to find solutions in the Support
section of the EchoLink Web site.
Speaking Back and Forth
Once you're connected, you can converse with the remote station as in
an ordinary QSO. The space bar works as a locking
"push-to-talk" switch. Tap the spacebar once to begin
"transmitting", tap it again to stop (don't hold it down).
A red TX indicator appears on the screen whenever EchoLink is
"transmitting", that is, sending audio over the Internet to
the connected station.
If you prefer, you can click the "lightning bolt" icon near
the upper left corner of the screen, instead of using the spacebar.
You can also change the software so that the spacebar is held down to
transmit and released to receive, more like a push-to-talk switch.
See Preferences for details.
You can switch to Transmit only when the other station is not already
transmitting. When the other station is transmitting, the letters
RX appear in the status bar at the bottom right, and the sound-level
meter moves from left to right to show incoming sound. If you see
that the other station is speaking, but you do not hear audio from your
PC speakers, you may need to increase the volume on your sound device.
Click the loudspeaker icon near the bottom right-hand corner of your
Windows screen to adjust. Also, be sure the volume knob on
your speakers is turned up.
While transmitting, speak into the microphone and watch the
sound-level meter at the bottom-center of the EchoLink screen. The
meter moves farther to the right as the sound gets louder. For
best results, adjust your Windows Recording Volume settings so that
the meter moves vigorously, but does not reach full-scale except on
peaks.
If you see the red TX indicator while transmitting, but see no
indication on the sound-level meter while speaking into the
microphone,
Chat
If the other station is also sitting in front of his PC (rather than
communicating over a radio link), you can "chat" while
connected by typing messages back and forth. Type a brief message
in the box near the bottom-right corner of the screen and click Send.
The message you sent, and any response you might receive, appear in the
Chat window just above it. Note that you can send a Chat message
even while the other station is transmitting.
Disconnecting
Once your conversation is finished, click on the red "broken
link" icon near the top of the screen to disconnect. You
should hear the "Disconnected" signal, and see the message
"Not connected" near the bottom of the screen.