Hi Phil. This question is really for the WSJT development team to address. But, my personal opinion as a user differs a bit from yours. I'll offer it here as another perspective.
In general, I agree with your stated principle of backward compatibility. At the same time I tolerate breaking the principle for good reason. And, in this case, I believe there is good reason. First of all, WSJT-X is not a commercial product and the developers aren't compensated much (tongue-in-cheek) for their tremendous efforts. Second, this mode was invented 1-1/2 years ago and should rationally be considered as still in development. Third, the use cases for this wonderful mode are very diverse so a lot of conflicting requirements are being juggled. Fourth, the WSJT-X source code is fully open for others to use. There is no monopoly. I am delighted to be able to participate as a user in this state-of-the-art development and believe the developers try hard to maintain backward compatibility when they can. The exception we're traversing now is acceptable to me, even though it is a bit inconvenient and perhaps even annoying to some. When I start using a mode that is still being actively developed, my expectation is that there well could be migration bumps and other inconveniences. That's been my frequent experience when I choose to be an early adopter. My alternative would be to stick with a digital mode like RTTY that is unlikely to have backward compatibility issues. I think the FT8 backward compatibility issue is exacerbated by the explosive popularity of the mode on HF. I'm sure the WSJT-X developers understand this reality and respect user convenience balanced with striving to make FT8 the best it can be. Ed W0YK -----Original Message----- From: Phil Sussman [mailto:psuss...@pactor.com] Sent: 28 November, 2018 03:09 To: Ed W0YK Cc: 'WSJT software development'; r...@groups.io; 'NCCC Reflector' Subject: Re: [RTTY] "FT8 Roundup" mock contest [Two Sessions] Importance: High I am concerned that transition to Ver. 2.0 without backwards compatibility to previous versions is a serious shortfall. I do NOT plan to change because of the lack of compatibility. There is a principle involved. Not everyone is going to make the transition and I've spoken to others who feel WSJT software is trying to monopolize the mode. (Those using JTDX and some others.) Personally I don't care; however, as I mentioned backwards compatibility is a must. Complexities aside, it's a basic concept that should be respected. As someone who works with commercial software (e.g. Motorola, Harris, etc.) all can be upgraded, but is always backwards compatible. Of course, that makes future software revisions more complex, the price of maintaining a base of satisfied users who rely on support. Thanks for reading and understanding. 73 de Phil - N8PS --- Quoting Ed W0YK <e...@w0yk.com>: > In addition to this practice contest just prior to the actual FT8 Roundup > next weekend, there will be an identical practice on Wednesday evening NA > time (0200-0300 UTC Thursday, 29 November). > > Don and I feel another practice will be useful since we all need to ensure > we have installed and configured WSJT-X 2.0, rc5 correctly. (rc4 will also > work, but rc5 is preferred since it has improvements and bug fixes beyond > rc4.) > > 73, > Ed W0YK > Don AA5AU > > -----Original Message----- > From: Joe Taylor [mailto:j...@princeton.edu] > Sent: 26 November, 2018 13:55 > To: WSJT software development > Subject: [wsjt-devel] "FT8 Roundup" mock contest > > Hi all, > > Another one-hour "practice contest" is scheduled for Saturday, December > 1, 0200-0300 UTC (that's Friday evening, Nov 30, NA time). This session > will serve as a final tune-up opportunity for those planning to operate > in the "FT8 Roundup" on December 1-2 (more details below). > > DIAL FREQUENCIES > ---------------- > > The practice event will use dial frequencies 7.080-7.100 and > 14.130-14.150 MHz in 2 kHz increments -- the same as recommended for the > FT8 Roundup and the ARRL RTTY Roundup (January 5-6, 2019). Start at the > low end, dial frequency 7.080 or 14.130. If/when the lower sub-bands > fill up, QSY upward in 2 kHz increments (7.082, 7.084, etc.). (Use > keyboard shortcuts Ctrl+Shift+F11 and Ctrl+Shift+F12 to move dial > frequency down/up by 2 kHz.) > > Everyone works everyone. Do not use a compound or nonstandard callsign > in this event. > > To participate you must use WSJT-X 2.0 RC5 (or RC4, but RC5 is > preferred). Installation packages for RC5 in Windows, Linux, and macOS > can be found near the bottom of this web page: > https://physics.princeton.edu/pulsar/k1jt/wsjtx.html > > A revised "Quick-Start Guide to WSJT-X 2.0" for RC5 is posted here: > https://physics.princeton.edu/pulsar/k1jt/Quick_Start_WSJT-X_2.0.pdf > Be sure to read this entire document before using WSJT-X 2.0. > > PREPARATION FOR THE MOCK CONTEST > -------------------------------- > > Detailed setup instructions for the FT8 Roundup are posted here: > https://www.rttycontesting.com/ft8-roundup/preparation/ > They serve equally well for the practice session. > > Rules for the FT8 Roundup specify 100 W maximum power output. We > recommend the same limit for the practice session. > > OPERATING PROCEDURES > -------------------- > > Best operating practices for FT8 in contests will surely evolve as users > gain experience. As initial suggestions we recommend procedures > slightly different from those used for everyday FT8 operation. CQing > stations ("Run" stations) should check TX EVEN/1ST and HOLD TX FREQ, and > select audio Tx frequencies 200, 400, 600, ..., integral multiples of > 200 Hz. Search-and-pounce (S+P) stations should uncheck TX EVEN/1ST and > HOLD TX FREQ and should call a CQing station at 0, 60, or 120 Hz above > the CQ frequency. These procedures should help to contain the > mini-pileups around Run stations to relatively small frequency ranges. > S+P stations can use Shift+F11 and Shift+F12 to move their Tx frequency > down/up by 60 Hz. > > If a 2 kHz segment becomes too full of stations, users should QSY upward > in 2 kHz increments, thus establishing new operating sub-bands. Again, > you can use Ctrl+Shift+F11 and Ctrl+Shift+F12 to QSY between > dial-frequency sub-bands. > > THE FT8 ROUNDUP, DECEMBER 1-2 > ----------------------------- > > The FT8 Roundup starts at 1800 UTC on Saturday, December 1 and ends at > 2359 UTC on Sunday, December 2, 2018. Power limit is 100 W output: no > high-power amplifiers! Full contest rules are posted at > https://www.rttycontesting.com/ft8-roundup/ . > > LOOKING TWO WEEKS AHEAD > ----------------------- > > We are planning to make the full General Availability (GA) release of > WSJT-X 2.0 on or before December 10, 2018. The necessary transition > from from WSJT-X v1.9.1 to WSJT-X v2.0 protocols for FT8 and MSK144 > should take place by the end of calendar year 2018. > > THEREFORE: As soon as possible after December 10, and certainly by > January 1, 2019, everyone should be using WSJT-X 2.0 or a compatible > v2.0 version of derivative programs such as JTDX or MSHV. As of today, > PSKreporter statistics show roughly 3000 users of WSJT-X versions older > than v1.9.1, 9500 users of v1.9.1, and 3000 users of v2.0-rc#. Please, > everyone, help us to spread the word that upgrading to v2.0 after > December 10 is very important. There will be no looking back! > > -- 73, Joe, K1JT > > > _______________________________________________ > wsjt-devel mailing list > wsjt-devel@lists.sourceforge.net > https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/wsjt-devel > > > -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- > Groups.io Links: You receive all messages sent to this group. > > View/Reply Online (#47281): https://groups.io/g/RTTY/message/47281 > Mute This Topic: https://groups.io/mt/28411891/860099 > Group Owner: rtty+ow...@groups.io > Unsubscribe: https://groups.io/g/RTTY/unsub [psuss...@pactor.com] > -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________ wsjt-devel mailing list wsjt-devel@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/wsjt-devel
