For additional information please visit the official EzCoder support website at http://ducktronics.com/ezcoder .
EzCoder is a tool designed to assist a repeater owner in programming the MCC RC1000V (or RC1000) for proper control of a repeater station. The tool is meant to be used by a station using a personal computer with a sound card and a serial port, connected through a 'Rig Blaster' type of interface to a transceiver for repeater control via DTMF tones transmitted over the radio.
The purpose of the tool is to make it simple to quickly issue the appropriate commands to set the control codes without having to wade through complicated instructions.
Additionally, the program has additional functionality to assist the repeater owner in managing his control codes. Provision is made to print a listing of the control codes and also the speedial numbers for the autopatch. EzCoder also creates the data files that are used with the companion 'EzControl' program that makes issuing control commands as simple as pressing a properly marked button (no more fussing with confusing and illegible command sheets).
The EzCoder program was created using Microsoft Visual Basic version 6 and should install and operate without problem on most computers running versions of Windows from Windows-95 and newer. It has NOT been tested on every concievable type of system and there are likely to be systems that it will not work with.
Due to the fact that there have been a few updates to the RC1000 firmware since the units inception, some of the commands that the EzCoder displays may not be available, or accurate, in all versions of the RC1000 or RC1000V. Please keep this in mind if you find discrepancies between what commands your unit will accept and what EzCoder (and EzControl) will attempt to program. [for example-- early versions had the 'Force CW Ident' hard coded to #9, whereas newer versions it is programmable]
There is a separate file called 'VERSION-INFO.TXT' which makes note of the various variations in coding that have been found between different updates to the RC1000 firmware. Instructions on how to modify the data files are included so that the EzCoder you use will correspond to the controller you are programming.
EzCoder does NOT do very much error checking on the codes you enter. EzCoder does NOT check for the duplication of codes between functions. It DOES check that you have not exceeded the code length, or changed the required first letter of a code.
REQUIREMENTS:
At the present time, the program does require a serial port and a sound card to function.
INSTALLATION:
Depending on the update status of the operating system components on your computer, you may be asked to reboot your machine before the setup program can install the program. If you are asked to reboot, you will likely need to restart the setup program to complete the installation.
USING THE PROGRAM:
The program defaults to install its files into a subdirectory called 'DuckTronics' off of your 'program files' directory. It also creates a program group called 'DuckTronics' which is where the EzCoder (and EzControl if you installed that too) links will reside.
When you start the program it automatically reads the data file that you were using the last time you opened the EzCoder program. The first time you start the program it will read a default data file to give you a look at what you can expect. The default data file contains the data that generally corresponds to the default parameters the RC1000v is configured to when it has been restored to 'factory default' values.
You should review the information in the 'VERSION-INFO.TXT' file to determine which of the default rc1000V.tx1 files you should use as a 'seed' data file-- as different firmware revisions of the RC1000V have different ways of handling certain parameters. Just use the OPEN command and select the file that most closely matches your version of the controller.
When you wish to get started programming the codes for your own repeater you should pull down the SAVE AS selection from the FILE menu and save the data file in a convenient directory using a name that makes sense to you. The location of the file is then stored in your Windows Registry so that the next time you start EzCoder it will use that file. If you have numerous repeater files to access you will need to manually open the desired one every time you make the switch (likely this will be changed in future updates). It is strongly advised that you use the SAVE AS function (off the FILE menu) and name the data file for your repeater-- leaving the default file alone, should you ever reset the RC1000V to 'factory defaults' and want a fresh data file that reflects what's in the controller.
CONFIGURATION:
After starting the program there is a CONFIGURE menu which you should pull down to set your serial port parameters. All of these settings write their status into the Windows Registry when the 'OK' button is pressed.
SERIAL PORT CONFIGURATION:
The program defaults to using your COM-1 port for communications and with a 1.5 second delay between your transmitter PTT and the start of the first audio tone. There is a selection currently to allow for people who have existing setups that use the DTMF tones from 'Smartmodem compatible' modems to transmit to the repeater, but this function is currently non-functional. The ability to use the DTMF generated by a 'Smartmodem' is being undertaken for legacy support-- as it was the method typically used for these type of control programs in the days before sound cards and 'Rig Blasters'.
HELP:
Help for the program is available from the HELP menu. The 'Local Help' brings up a locally stored help file which has not been written as of this time. The 'Online Help' brings up the DuckTronics.com EzCoder help system on the website which will have the most up to date information on the program and how to make the best use of it.
MAKING USE OF THE PROGRAM:
Before you start programming, you need to click the GENERAL tab and make sure the codes entered in the 'Programming En #1' and 'Programming En #2' correspond to your RC1000. Similarly, enter the appropriate code in the 'Programming Disable' section.
You will notice that the text changes to RED when you enter a code. Text in RED signifies a change that has NOT been uploaded to the repeater. Once it is uploaded, the text changes to BLUE. When you SAVE [or SAVE-AS] the data file, all the blue or red text is reset to BLACK.
Once you have the proper codes in the programming enables, the larger buttons near the top of the screen in the 'PROGRAMMING' area become functional. Hit the 'Enable 1' button and it will send the programming enable 1 code. Hit the 'Enable 2' button and it will send the programming enable 2 code. As you would expect, hiting 'Disable', will send the programming disable code.
You will notice that while the unit is sending a code the code it is sending is shown in the status bar at the bottom of the screen. The 'TX' button will also change to RED to signify that the transmitter should be transmitting. You can manually put the local transmitter into transmit by clicking on the 'TX' button. Similarly, you can click on the 'RX' button to put the local transceiver into receive.
There is a convenient DTMF 'pad' next to the 'TX' and 'RX' buttons for your use. You will need to manually hit the 'TX' and 'RX' buttons when using these DTMF buttons, as otherwise the tones will just come out your computers speakers.
When you enter a code in a white 'code entry window' you will notice that there already exists either an A, D, *, or #. These are there to remind you that those are the required first digits for those commands. The system will check to make sure you have the proper first digit for each command. It will also check to see that you have not exceeded the command length. It does not check to verify if your command is long enough, or if it duplicates another command-- so you will have to be thoughtful when choosing command codes.
If you let the mouse hover over the name of a command you will see an additional 'pop up help' which should assist in describing what the command does, or its limits.
From the FILE menu are two print selections. You can make printouts of the repeater command codes or the autodials from these selections. The printed pages are not customizable and the displayed 'form' on your monitor may exceed your monitors size. Sadly, there are no scroll bars at present. The pages should print on a standard sheet of paper-- which is their intent (they're not really meant for viewing on screen). When you hit the PRINT button you can select which printer you wish to use. The autodial printout has spaces to write in (manually-- pen and ink) what the autodial number is used for.
There is a selection on the menu bar for Ez Control. When you select this button you are greeted with a form that allows you to create the command data file for use with the companion EzControl program. EzControl is meant to be used by the routine control operators of the repeater for generating the commands without having to refer to a printed command sheet.
On the EzControl configuration sheet you should enter the repeaters callsign and frequency and then you can check which control commands your control station is authorized to use. There is a 'Check All' button that will save you time if you wish to make all commands available to the control stations. Please keep in mind that if you only enable a few commands on your system, it would be less cluttered for your control operators screen if you just enabled the commands that they would actually be using.
You will also note that there are many commands that are NOT on the EzControl configuation form. Since commands like 'A Equivalent' or 'CW ID Program' are not the type of commands that a control operator would routinely use from his PC (even control ops with God-like authority) they are left off the list and not made available on the EzControl screen.
Hitting the 'Make File' button on the EzControl configuration screen allows you to create a file (with a '.TX2' extension) that you should distribute to your control operators with the EzControl installation package.
EXTRAS AND CAVEATS:
The '.TX1'and 'TX2' files that EzCoder and EzControl uses are simple text files. These file extensions were chosen to make it easier for users looking for data files on thier computers that are useable with EzControl/EzCoder to sort them apart from normal text files. You can edit these files in Notepad if you wish to manually change the button top text or the command codes. The file is a 'comma delimited' file which means that you need to remember to leave the commas alone. The default file (rc1000v-original.tx1) includes all the available commands that EzCoder can provide. With regard to the files created by the EzControl configuration tool, the file may not contain all available codes that the program can handle. When this is the case, the EzControl 'control panel' will have missing buttons. Spaces where a button would have been are available for ancillary uses if you are adept at the art of tinkering with config files.
The section of the Windows registry where the EzCoder and EzControl parameters are stored is at:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\VB and VBA Program Settings\duckyRc1000 .
DISCLAIMERS:
This copyrighted program is being made available as FREEWARE. Use of this program is at the users risk and absolutely NO WARRANTIES are implied.
The program source code is not available for download.
There currently are no versions of this program for the Macintosh operating systems or for any flavor of Unix.
The author of the program is NOT in any way affiliated or associated with Micro Computer Concepts, the manufacturer of the RC1000 (and RC1000v) repeater controllers. The authors interest in the RC1000V is solely that of a happy owner of one of these fine microprocessor controllers. The EzCoder program is no more than a pretty smart 'speedialer' that saves the users of the RC1000V time and effort.
EzControl and EzCoder is copyright 2005 by DuckTronics and the Get Odd Company of Empire Michigan USA. The author of the program is John Martin KF8KK. For additional information, please visith the DuckTronics website at: http://ducktronics.com .
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