Image: YAAC (Yet Another APRS Client)
APRS returns to the Garden Route Area with an Igate, Objects, Digipeater, New Client Program and Build A Pi Operating System!!
APRS/PACKET/AX25 has a rich history in the Garden Route Area. Unfortunately it fell along the wayside for some or other reason. I ran both a BBS and APRS system at my QTH about 10 years ago. Both systems prove to be very popular and useful. In a future post I will write about the history of APRS and Packet Radio in this area. In this post I will as the title indicate provide detail of the return of APRS to the Garden Route Area.
I recently decided to look at APRS again. For those thinking that APRS is just a "tracking" program, I suggest you read more about APRS. I was looking for new client firmware and a software TNC as to setup a low cost and good working system that could easily be setup and used by new and not so new radio amateurs. The other important factor was that all the firmware must run on a Raspberry Pi 3 as I do not want to dedicate a laptop or desktop computer for this purpose. Now there are several firmware programs that can be used with a Raspberry Pi. I decided to use the following:
- Raspberry Pi OS = "Build a Pi" by Jason KM4ACK
- APRS Client Software = YAAC 1.0 -beta 68 by Andew KA2DDO
- Software “soundcard” AX.25 packet modem/TNC and APRS encoder/decoder = Direwolf by John WB2OSZ
The hardware will be:
- Raspberry Pi 3 B
- VHF Motorola or Baofeng HT Radio
- The DuinoVOX Homebrew USB Soundcard Interface
I chose the "Build a Pi" firmware and installed it as described by Jason KM4ACK . Build-a-Pi was quick to install and easy to setup. Rather than downloading a pre-built image where I have no choices in the build, I decided that Build-a-Pi was the route to follow. Build-a- Pi gives me complete control over the build. It allows me to choose the applications I want to install. Once installed all I had to do is to open YAAC and Direwolf and setup both programs as recommended by KA2DDO and WB2OSZ. A hour or two later I had bothYAAC and Direwolf setup and working great.
Currently it is running in Igate Mode without any RF Connections. The next step would be to setup the RF side of things after I decided what radio I will be using. The YAAC software has several interesting features. To know more about them download the following PDF file:
YAAC: The Development of "Yet Another APRS Client", an Open-Source Cross-Platform Application
Dire Wolf is a modern software replacement for the old 1980's style TNC built with special hardware.
Without any additional software, it can perform as:
- APRS GPS Tracker
- Digipeater
- Internet Gateway (IGate)
- APRStt gateway
It can also be used as a virtual TNC for other applications such as APRSIS32 , Xastir , APRS-TW , YAAC , PinPoint APRS , UI-View32 , UISS , Linux AX25 , SARTrack , Winlink Express (formerly known as RMS Express, formerly known as Winlink 2000 or WL2K) , BPQ32 , Outpost PM , Ham Radio of Things , Packet Compressed Sensing Imaging (PCSI) , and many others.
More information on Direwolf can be obtained from the GitHub site of WB2OSZ by clicking HERE.
Update and images to follow once I decided what radio I will be using for the RF section and what APRS functions I would like to implement.
Finally: I wrote this article to hopefully encourage new and not so new radio amateurs to join the ranks of APRS. Why? Because you can and it is fun!! Do not forget about all the capabilities of APRS. More on this also in a future posting. There are currently only a few local radio amateurs using APRS but in the past week several mobile stations from other areas were observed traveling in the Garden Route Area.
The stations were: Rassie ZS1YT, Charles ZS1CF, Thys ZS1TBP and Jimmy ZS1RB
Image: Spotted Rassie ZS1YT visiting the Garden Route Area
Image: Direwolf ready to do its thing.
Image: Direwolf in action
Image: Build A PI on the Raspberry Pi
(Click on images for larger view)
