[Xastir] KISS setup help

[Tom Russo]

On Mon, Aug 24, 2009 at 07:35:10PM -0700, we recorded a bogon-computron collision of the <archer at eskimo.com> flavor, containing:
> On Mon, 24 Aug 2009, David Sprangers wrote:
> 
> > . When I try connecting to the KPC3 with Serial KISS TNC interface, I am
> > unable to view any incoming packets on the Display Packet Data window. The
> > Interface Control window tells me the device is up, but no incoming packets.
> > When I connect to the KPC3 using a Serial TNC inferface, I am able to view
> > incoming packers in the Display Packet Data window.
> 
> Did you set the TNC into KISS mode first?  You can't just switch one
> end without switching the other end.

And do be aware that the KPC-3 and KPC-3+ have a buggy KISS firmware.  Once
in a while, some condition or other will cause some sort of buffer overrun,
and the TNC will start delaying outgoing packets.  This condition is reset by
a power cycle.

I am running a KPC-3+ in KISS mode for my igate and WX station 
(http://www.bogodyn.org/blog/) and find that this problem surfaces every few 
days.  I'm in the habit of checking my TNC log every morning and evening to
see if the delayed packets are happening.  I can do this easily since I'm
using a timestamped packet format from Xastir (weather station with timestamp),
and if I see my digipeated packets with a different timestamp than the packet
I just transmitted, I know that the TNC is transmitting the previous packet
I sent rather than the current one.

If you have no real need for KISS operation, you're better off using the KPC-3
in regular converse mode.  That's not an option for me since I'm running
more than just Xastir on the TNC.  Ultimately I'll replace my TNC with one
that does KISS better and move the KPC-3+ to some other function.

-- 
Tom Russo    KM5VY   SAR502   DM64ux          http://www.swcp.com/~russo/
Tijeras, NM  QRPL#1592 K2#398  SOC#236        http://kevan.org/brain.cgi?DDTNM
  In some cultures what I do would be considered normal. 
                                  -- Ineffective daily affirmation