Hi All,

Winter Field Day Contest Log 1.4 is Now Available!

Originally developed in 2006 and nurtured by the good folks at SPAR, management of Winter Field Day has transferred and is now sponsored by the Winter Field Day Association. The goal of the new sponsors for Winter Field Day is to build WFD up to the popularity of ARRL's Field Day summer classic! Towards that end, the Winter Field Day Association folks have dropped temperature from the exchange, bringing the Winter Field Day exchange in line with ARRL's June version.

I've updated the Winter Field Day Contest Log in version 1.4 to reflect the new rule changes. As always, upgrades are free to registered users. You'll find version 1.4 here.

For more information on Winter Field Day, please visit the Winter Field Day Association web site!

Nebraska QSO Party Abbreviation Changes.

The Nebraska QSO Party folks have updated their county abbreviations. It is not necessary to reinstall the software, 3.3 is still fine. Before the contest, just click File > Download County List File, restart the software and you will be all set!

ARRL's National Parks on the Air (NPOTA) 2016 event!

I've been receiving a lot of questions on which of my programs to use for NPOTA. Amateur Contact Log worked just fine for the ARRL Centennial QSO Party last year and it will be fine for NPOTA in 2016 too. NPOTA scoring is handled by upload to LoTW and Amateur Contact Log has all the features you need for that.

All the details on NPOTA are here.

Enjoy the event!

DX Spotting Settings and Click (or Tune) and Pounce Contesting - Block Contest Duplicates!

When contesting, anytime you can run a frequency, go for it! You'll likely see your highest QSO rates of the contest! For the times when you can't, or when you are seeking multipliers, there is a combination of DX Spotting filtering settings that will help keep your run rates higher. During CQ WW SSB, my friend Gary, WC3N, running 500 watts and a hex beam, consistently maintained Click & Pounce rates between 70 and 90 Qs per hour for big chunks of the contest!

Search & Pounce, without DX Spotting, consumes a lot of time tuning to the next station, waiting for him to give his call, only to find he may already be in your log. It's fatiguing too. DX Spotting speeds the process considerably and reduces fatigue as you only have to click on a DX Spot to check if he is a duplicate and, with rig interface, tune your rig right to the spot frequency. You aren't searching, DX Spotting is doing the searching for you, you're Clicking & Pouncing (or Tuning & Pouncing if you don't have rig interface enabled).

The DX Spotting filter setting in all my contest software that makes the process faster still is enabling the option to block contest duplicates. That way, you know that every new DX Spot that appears on the band map is a new station, not a duplicate! You don't have to click on a spot first to check if he is a duplicate and it keeps your band map cleaner, so you can move more efficiently from station to station.

With the block contest duplicates filter enabled, when Click & Pounce (or Tune & Pounce) contesting, using the band map in the vertical orientation, the sequence goes like this:

- Left click on the topmost spot to enter the call in the Call field and tune your rig to the spot frequency.
- Press space bar, work the station and press enter.
- Click Spot Last.
- Right click on the spot on the DX band map to clear it from the band map and move the next station to the top of the band map.
- Repeat

With these settings and sequence you can really fly! The band map essentially becomes your "to do" list or checklist of stations to work and allows you to systematically work right through the band. Once you've cleared off all the stations on one band, move to the next band. By the time you finish the next band, a whole new list of spots will have been posted to the first band, none of which are duplicates!

For complete details including narrative and videos on using the band map and DX Filter settings, please see my DX Spotting band map help page!

And in response to the questions we always receive when we neglect to include the following in our e-mail announcements...

Package Upgrade Information...

If you have registered one or more individual programs and would like to upgrade to N3FJP's Software Package or N3FJP's Software Package and CD for full use of all our Amateur Radio software, we would be glad to apply the amount that you have registered so far as a credit towards that purchase. Please send us an e-mail directly and we'll let you know your balance.

N3FJP's Software Package includes nearly 90 programs for contesting, net management, general logging and other Amateur Radio related applications. In addition to full use of all these programs, registered package customers are also entitled to receive free passwords for any new software that is added to the package and free upgrades to existing programs. You'll find all the details on the Register Now page at www.n3fjp.com.

Donations are Gratefully Accepted!

And in response to the often asked question for which Kimberly and I are very grateful...

"I know your upgrades are free, but I also realize how much time and effort coding these enhancements and new programs take and that your pricing policy doesn't fully reflect that. Can I send you something to show my appreciation for your continued efforts?"

Yes, thanks so much, your continued support in any amount is very welcome and deeply appreciated! You can use this page:

http://www.n3fjp.com/donations.html

or send your contribution by mail, payable to Affirmatech Inc., to:

G. Scott Davis
118 Glenwood Road
Bel Air, MD 21014-5533

Thank you so much for your continued support!

Thanks!

As always, thanks for your kind words, support, linking to our web site and spreading the word about our software. Kimberly and I really appreciate it!

73, Scott
N3FJP
http://www.n3fjp.com

Serving the Amateur Radio community with contesting and general logging software since 1997.