[Dxspider-support] Modem Access to cluster

[Dirk Koopman]

On Fri, 2004-07-09 at 09:42, Martin Davies G0HDB wrote:
> On 8 Jul 2004 at 22:26, Keith Le Boutillier wrote:
> 
> > Hi All
> > 
> > Just a quick question
> > 
> > For various reasons for a contest I have been asked if I could set-up
> > a telephone modem access to the GB7DXG cluster the reason for this is
> > telephone calls in GU are unlimited and fixed at 5 pence per call.
> > 
> > Is their an easy way to achieve this.
> 
> Hi Keith, if all else fails then there is one solution you could adopt, but it's 
> perhaps a bit heretical to mention it in this group(!) - set up another node 
> running G8PZT's XROUTER DOS-based s/ware alongside GB7DXG and 
> connect the two systems via a wired serial link or AXUDP over a LAN.  
> XROUTER has built-in support for dial-in (as well as TCP/IP) and is pretty 
> easy to configure and get running.
> 

Xrouter has other features like the ability to talk directly to a
DXSpider box over an ethernet connection. I found that this works really
quite well. It also has the advantage that it is NET/ROM style radio
node and connections from there also can be 'autoconnected' via the
ethernet to the cluster node.

> I believe XROUTER will also run in a Win95/98 DOS box or under DOSEMU 
> but I have no experience of it in these configurations.

It does work on win95/98, but it is best done on a separate old
millenium bugged 386 that you should have thrown away several years ago
under DOS. Remember that it is possible to get a DOS system floppy out
of a Win9x box and Xrouter will work perfectly well off one of those.

Having said all that (as a general plug for xrouter) I would go the
linux + mgetty route myself. This is a well tried and tested mechanism
and to be recommended.

Dirk G1TLH