[aprssig] Password changed in WinAPRS & MacAPRS

[Jacob Tennant]

Very good and valid points to the quality of UI-Views capabilities and agree
that it is currently the better of the APRS apps. My only concern is that
without any current development of this or other APRS apps. We are going to
wake up one day and be stuck with a inoperative software.

In defense of AGWTracker, it does use the same static map system as UI-View
but you can zoom in/out of static maps with AGWTraker.

Jacob Tennant - K8JWT

-----Original Message-----
From: aprssig-bounces at tapr.org [mailto:aprssig-bounces at tapr.org] On Behalf
Of Stephen H. Smith
Sent: Thursday, April 08, 2010 7:26 PM
To: TAPR APRS Mailing List
Subject: Re: [aprssig] Password changed in WinAPRS & MacAPRS

Jacob Tennant wrote:
> I understand this fact about Win/Mac APRS but as a registered uder of 
> both Mac/Win APRS AND UI-VIew32 I would still like to be able to run 
> both so as to help anyone else in my local area that are running the 
> various version of APRS software.
>  
> I have noticed also that since G4IDE had passed away, there has nort 
> been any updates to UI-View either, so is it going to eventually 
> become a abandoned program as well?
Admittedly, the install process is an ever more baroque complex "kludge" 
of work-arounds now that Windows 7 is becoming the prevalent operating
system, and I live in dread of the future Precision Mapping release that
will finally break UIview's PMap Server. 

However, UIview is still a much more open and extensible system than 
other APRS apps.   It's documented API (applications programming 
interface) allows add-ons to continue to be developed.   It's symbol set 
can be updated since it is stored in external BMP graphics files. 

At the time it "died" five years ago, it was so far ahead of any other APRS
app in features and capabilities due to the vision and imagination of it's
author, that it is STILL the most comprehensive and functional APRS app.  It
is still the only one with a "commercial grade" built-in 
help system.   It is the only one that can use current zoomable vector 
maps without being tethered to the Internet (except for APRSpoint which
requires the expensive Microsoft MapPoint to function).


>  
> I have been working with XASTIR on linux as well as SV2AGW's 
> AGWTracker software as well as they are really coming into their own 
> as main stream APRS software systems.

I am distinctly underwhelmed by Xastir.  The fundamental problem is that
there is simply NOTHING in the Linux world equivalent to Delorme Street
Atlas, Precision Mapping or MapPoint; i.e. a ready-to-use compact vector 
mapping system with current data.   Despite Xastir's claim to work with 
"hundreds of map formats", they are all either obscure specialized bitmap
formats that require TERABYTES of hard disk space to cache static images at
varying resolutions on a local hard disk, or high-end professional GIS
vector formats like ArcView  for which comprehensive data is not available
to the average amateur. 

AGWtracker looks promising but it also is hostage to the Internet if you
want high quality maps.  

Background:  I consider being able to operate without an Internet connection
critical, since I run a mobile APRS installation with a laptop display, and
want to be free to travel cross-country with a 
fully-scrollable zoomable real-time mapping display.    It is very 
frustrating that NO   APRS app can do this other than UIview and 
APRSpoint. 

[While APRSpoint is more-or-less currently supported (though there are
intervals of 9 months or more between updates) and supports high-quality
vector maps from MapPoint,  it is so lacking in features (no digipeater
functions, no KISS support, no igate capability, no proper overlay 
support), that it is really no competition to the "dead" UIview.]     
>  
> I feel I need to keep up to date running most of the versions used in 
> my area so as to be able to help others trying to get started on APRS 
> as well as doing demo's for clubs that want one.

One shouldn't be helping newbies to adopt a completely dead, 
non-updateable app that can't even display current symbols.    [I am 
giving an APRS presentation next week to a radio club on the high desert
north of L.A. (Victorville) and will be live-demonstrating basic trackers,
full two-way messaging mobile setups and complete home station setups.  I
will be advocating UIview, APRSpoint and Internet displays for these
systems.]
>  
> Also, I am a firm believer in running software written for the 
> operating system being used. Have tried to run XASTIR in WIndows using 
> Cgywin better it never seemed to work write, and with getting a new 
> MAC laptop in a few weeks would like to run a version of APRS made to 
> run on MacOS.

Does MacAPRS even work correctly in System X?  I thought it was bound to the
classic pre-Intel Mac OS, but I'm not sure. 

On the Windows side, WinAPRS is going to be a total headache going 
forward.   WinAPRS was cross-compiled from the Mac version with a tool 
that spits out 16-bit Windows code (i.e. Windows 3.x!!!).  Among other 
things, this is why WinAPRS only supports the first four com ports.     

Until now, this hasn't been much of an issue.  The 32-bit OSs starting with
Windows 95 up to XP incorporated a 16-bit subsystem a.k.a. "WoW" 
(Windows On Windows) that allowed 16-bit Win 3.x code to continue to run to
run on these newer flavors of Windows.  

Vista and Win7 quietly dropped the WOW subsystem (in the interest of
stability and security), meaning ANY program containing 16-bit code (a
surprising number of "32-bit" programs contain bits and pieces of 16-bit
code recycled from their Win 3.x predecessors.) are now hopelessly broken,
unless you want to install a virtual machine running XP inside 
your new Win 7 setup.   This applies to both the 32- and 64-bit versions 
of both Vista and Win 7.
> But will use XASTIR if I have to.
>  
> Just my thoughts,
>  
> Jacob Tennant - K8JWT


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