Spectrograph News 04/12/2024 Latest Spectrograph version: 02.09.80 Welcome to Spectrograph News! Come here to check for the latest version. _____________________________________________________ Version 2.9.80 This is an optional update This update fixes a number of bugs, especially in the drawing routines. ********Magnifier********** A magnifier option has been added and is available under the View menu item. If you use this option, it may request that you install the dot Net platform. Most will probably have this. If for any reason you wish not to install dot Net, don't use it. To configure the magnifier, right click on it. To capture a magnified image, point to it and type Alt+X to freeze the image, then right click on the image and select Save to a file or the Clipboard. Press Alt-X again to unfreeze. The magnifier is a seperate application and can be used without RSS. ******************************* http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_2_9_80.exe (Double-Click the URL above to install.) ___________________________________________________ Version 2.9.77 This is a recommended update. This update addresses problems in the way annotation files were being saved. Annotations are now lumped into one file within a given directory. In this way, annotations will be displayed in any files that have been extracted from the main sps file. If you want an extracted (Save View) sps file to have its own annotations, then move it to its own directory. Fixed labeling problem in Calibration window plot. A default Calibration file can now be assigned. This file will be loaded and applied to any sps file that you open that does not have a calibration file in its own directory. The default Calibration file can only be applied to sps files that have the same frequencies and number of channels. Forgot to mention that in the last update (76), I fixed the problem where just clicking on a sps file in File Explorer did not load the file into RSS. Now it does. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_2_9_77.exe ________________________________________________________ Version 2.9.76 This is a recommended update. Fixes incorrect times displayed in the tics display just below the spectrogram in zoomed out views. This does not affect the times for the cursor in the upper status bar which were correct. You can now have RSS automatically create a "full view" picture of the entire observation when it ends. Options / File Saving / Image AutoSave and check: "Save Full View image after every observation." Files are now automatically loaded after an observation stops, so you don't have to manually reload the file to inspect it. There is a new option to display the image using median offset processing. Click: Color / Apply Median Offsets. You will be given the option to apply a fixed offset in addition tho the median offsets. It is currently not possible to save the data in processed form other than as a picture file. Lots of other minor fixes. Because this update has so many changes, you should keep an eye on the sw for possible new issues. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_2_9_76.exe ________________________________________________________ Version 2.9.73 This is a recommended update. Fixes bug in 2.9.72 that failed to apply the Save View feature. Save View allows you to save a segment of a previously loaded SPS data file. In addition to the small Save View button in the navigation panel, this version also adds a menu item under file to access the same function. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_2_9_73.exe ________________________________________________________ Version 2.9.72 This is a recommended update. Fixes bug in 2.9.70 and 2.9.71 that caused files to not complete the saving process. Those files can be easily recovered. Use File / Load as normal but change the file type to "spt". The file should load. On the metadata window which pops up press the Template button and select one of the sps files which has the same antenna, name, etc. This will fill in the missing meta data. Press OK. The file will load. You should then delete the SPT and SPH files left over from the recovery. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_2_9_72.exe ___________________________________________________ Version 2.9.71 This is a recommended update. Fixes bug in 2.9.70 that prevented you from using a manually input date/time in the Chart View window. Fixes bugs in the File / Combine Files window. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_2_9_71.exe ___________________________________________________ Version 2.9.70 This is a recommended update. Fixes problem where attempts to save large segments of a data file failed. You have an option when working with large files to load a picture of the last full view of an observation rather than recalculating the image, saving lots of time. This can help faciltate reviewing a large file and keying in on particular areas. You can toggle this option from Options / File Saving / Use Full View Image File. To select a time region of a file to zoom in on, press the Shift key and drag your mouse (left button down) across the area of interest on the upper display. Each selected region has its time coordinates saved in a list on a chart navigation panel. Double click the entry to return to a particular view. For those who don't have screen real estate or don't care to see the bottom chart area, use "CTRL + H" keys (hide) to toggle it's presence. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_2_9_70.exe ________________________________________________________________ Version 2.9.63 ** This is a highly recommended update. ** This version fixes more "out of memory" problems that were caused by large sps files. Files created with v 2.9.59 did save, but large files sometimes failed to convert the temporary (spt) files to their permanent versions (sps). Those files can be salvaged by loading the spt file and applying the known sample rate or end time. This version fixes a problem where users in countries that use a comma as the decimal separator, were receiving wrong Y axis scale values in the legend. This version allows streaming a single channel to Radio-SkyPipe via the UDS interface. Alternately, the entire average spectrum may be still sent to Radio-SkyPipe. JPG or PNG images created with Spectrograph camera button can be used to set the viewing area of a loaded SPS file to match that of the image. Sharing images made this way will allow others to quickly see if their chart has a corresponding feature. To trigger this action, select "File / Review JPG/PNG Comment" and then select the file shared by the other observer. The Session Log window has been enlarged and now has a "Copy to Clipboard" and a "View a Log" button to open an existing log in notepad. I urge you to allow your logs to be automatically saved so they can be shared when problem solving. Installations now force RSS to be Run as Administrator! Uninstalling now removes all registry settings for RSS. If you want to keep your settings, do not uninstall RSS between updates. Installations now come with backup copies of the default SDRPlay configuration files. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_2_9_63.exe ____________________________________________________________________ Version 2.9.59 This is a highly recommended update. This version fixes a bug where large files cannot be saved due to an out of memory condition. This version now saves large SPS files in 100MB chunks, eliminating the error. Fixes out of memory problems when rescuing a SPS file that was saved only as an SPT file and SPH file. SPS files are produced by combining the data (SPT) and header (SPH) files at the end of an observation. If you do not see an expected SPS file, look for a SPT file in the same directory. Loading the SPT file will initiate recovery options. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_2_9_59.exe ____________________________________________________________________ Version 2.9.57 Sorry for the quick update but there was a bug in 2.9.55 that allowed the temporary files (.spt and .sph) to remain on your hard drive. This update fixes that issue. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_2_9_57.exe ____________________________________________________________________ Version 2.9.55 Download and install this program. You should not need to uninstall a previous version. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph-2-9-55A.exe This is a full installation - not avaialbe as a update. Some files will move to a new folder in Documents\Radio-Sky\Radio-Sky Spectrograph\ Documents\Radio-Sky\Radio-Sky Spectrograph\ ____________________________________________________________________ Version 2.9.43 double click on this link to install: http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_9_43.exe A problem cropped in two recent updates (.41 and .42) . This is an attempt to correct the problem representing dual receiver data. If you serve data over the internet with RSS then this is an essential update. This update uses a new ip address determination method. Publishing with older versions may no longer work. Added the ability to use human readable internet addresses. If you set up a DDNS account you can acquire such a permanent web address. In Client Mode right click on the green list area and select Enter IP Manually. You may now use a human readable address in the address area. for example: radiosky.ddns.net ____________________________________________________________________ Version 2.9.30 double click on this link to install: http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_9_30.exe This is update includes a new version of SDRPlay2RSS that supports VHF to microwave bands. Updated error reporting in several routines. ____________________________________________________________________ Version 2.9.29 double click on this link to install: http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_9_29.exe This is update provides a missing dll file for the RTLW receiver. Updated error reporting in several routines. ____________________________________________________________________ Version 2.9.27 double click on this link to install: http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_9_27.exe This is update fixes a bug where the Atomic Clock feature could cause an error in file naming if it took too long connecting to a NTP server. Restores the presence of the Max Clients menu option. Look under Options/ Networking/ Max Clients. ____________________________________________________________________ Version 2.9.26 This is an important update. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_9_26.exe A new help file is available either through the Help menu or http://radiosky.com/RSS_Help.pdf New Annotations feature, allows you to attach annotations to specific points or regions in a data file. This feature is only available in review mode and not during live observations. Support has been added for the MK2 automatic calibrator. Bugs have been fixed in the Combine SPS Files function and in the Export to CSV file function. More information is available about the new features in the new help file. ____________________________________________________________________ Version 2.9.0 A significant update for many users. * Combine SPS files. New tool under File / Combine Files. * You can now hide lower display. Status bar moved to the top. View / Hide Bottom Display or use CTRL+H * You can now edit header information in the Chart Info form. View / Chart Info or use CTRL+I * SNTP (Atomic Clock) feature improved. * Fixed crash associated with slope tool. * Fixed numerous small bugs. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_9_0.exe _________________________________________________________________ Version 2.8.48 Fixes an important bug where when in server mode clients could not connect to you. This was introduced in recent versions. Makes a couple of improvements to the Slope Notepad Tool. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_8_48.exe _________________________________________________________________ Version 2.8.45 Fixes bug in previous version where the CML and Io Phase values were not being exported to the CSV file when using the Slope Not Pad tool in conjunction with Radio-Jupiter Pro. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_8_45.exe Version 2.8.44 This fixes a problem with the new SlopeNotePad tool where it was not working properly on a two antenna chart. To fully utilize the SlopeNotePad tool you should use the latest version of Radio Jupiter Pro, and run it alongside RSS. This update fixes a problem where files were not displayed when using File \ Load Data File. Also included. You may now optionally add the Observatory Name in Identity to the file name such as 170606224312-WCCRO.exe To turn on thos feature go to Options / File Saving and select Append Local Name to File Names. This feature is turned on by default so you must change this setting to disable it. Note in the example above we used a dash - rather than the underscore _ character we were using. The underscore causes a problem in related software. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_8_44.exe ____________________________________________________________________ Version 2.8.30 This update adds functionality when used with Radio-Jupiter Pro. version 2.5.9 or later. Right clicking on the upper chart when a file is loaded reveals a new menu choice, Get RJP Charts. Clicking this selection causes RSS to try and establish a link with RJP using the RJP Jupiter Information Server. (In RJP you should set the JIS to start automatically.) Once RJP receives the correct time from RSS, it produces a Sky Map, a CML-Io Phase chart, and a Alt-Az chart for the appropriate time. Note that if you do not have RJP running then RSS will attempt to start it for you. It can do this but you will have to click Get RJP Charts a second time to actually produce the charts This update also allows you select the number of significant digits displayed in the MHz frequency scale on the right of the chart. Go to View / Freq Display Significant Digits. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_8_30.exe ___________________________________________________________________ Version 2.8.27 This update primarily of interest to users of the SDRPlay receiver. We are now back to having SDRPlay2RSS started by RSS. There is a 15 second delay between the the startup of SDRPlay2RSS and the connection to its data stream. Subsequent connections do not have the delay. You do NOT need to press the Integrate button in SDRPlay2RSS. The SDRPlay2RSS application has also been updated with bugfixes. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_8_27.exe ____________________________________________________________________ Version 2.8.22 This update only is of interest to users of the SDRPlay receiver. Fall back from 2.8.20 which accumulated a new SDRPlay2RSS window each time a new chart started in RSS. So now you need to manually start SDRPlay2RSS and press its Integrate button before you start a chart in RSS. Once SDRPlay2RSS is running and integrating you can start and stop new charts in RSS without any problems. The version of SDRPlay2RSS supplied with this update can accept some command line parameters. To have SDRPlay2RSS start in Integrating mode without pressing the INtegrate button, use a command line like this: SDRPlay2RSS.exe -run ConfigFileName Where ConfigFileName is the path name for the configuration file you want to use. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_8_22.exe ____________________________________________________________________ Version 2.8.20 Adds some improvements to SDRPlay usage. A new version of SDRPlay2RSS has been added to this installation (ver. 1.10.0). Now when you select SDRPlay as your receiver, you must also select a configuration file to use with SDRPlay2RSS. You may thus have several frequency ranges, integration times, windowing, etc. that you can choose from. When SDRPlay2RSS is started, it will use the assigned config file until you assign another. Config files are created from the File menu in SDRPlay2RSS. You no longer have to press the Integrate button in SDRPlay2RSS. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_8_20.exe ____________________________________________________________________ Version 2.8.19 Fixes problem in 2.8.18 that prevents the use of FS and FSX receivers in stand alone or server mode. Fixes error message that reminds you that your correction file does not match the number of channels you are using. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_8_19b.exe ____________________________________________________________________ Version 2.8.18 Fixes time markers on dual receiver averaged views. Fixes problem with Banner text command in Schedule Files. Adds support for the SDRPlay software defined receiver. This utilizes Nathan Townes SDRPlay2RSS application, the latest version of which is installed with this update. The help file for SDRPlay2RSS is available under Help / SDRPlay Help. Read carefully how to set up SDR2RSS in Nathan's instructions. For starters I suggest the following settings: Center Frequency - up to you and your antenna. Span MHz - 8.000 BandPass - 8 MHz Sample Rate - 9 MHz FFT frame Size - 2^9 Integration Time - 0.05 sec. Offset - 0 Gain - 1 You will have to do some experimenting to get the best setup for your purposes. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_8_18.exe _______________________________________________________________________ Version 2.8.16 Adds support for Antenna Azimuth, Antenna Elevation, and Antenna Polarization metadata. For now antenna parameters are grouped with Identity. Removed Antenna Orientation metadata fields. Revamped the publishing code, especially portions related to WAN address aquisition and changing. This should fix the problem with WAN IPs that change. Added metadata fields to the PNG and JPG files. Please note that this metadata is not embedded when you use other picture saving methods such as the Windows Snip Tool or ALT-Print Screen. You can view the embedded metadata using File / Review JPG/PNG Comments. Fixed difference in color between averaged screens on dual polarization displays. Fixed problem where Link Controls was sometimes disabled. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_8_16.exe ______________________________________________________________________ Version 2.8.14 Fixes correction file error that displayed when passing from Client to Stand Alone mode. Fixes bug were offset was not being applied to bottom spectrum display when in Averaging mode was selected. In addition to checking the Avg box you may also now use CTRL+A to toggle the averaged display. (Switching or DPS receivers) You may now use CTRL+I to bring up the Info screen for a loaded file or connected server. There is a new option for creating a seed file for later conversion to a correction file. This feature allows you to create the seed file from all or part of an existing sps file. Just load the sps file you want to use and use the navigation controls to display the portion of the file that you want. Then click this menu item: Options/Correction File/Save Correction Seed File from Loaded File View The file will begin to scroll as in Movie Mode as it proceses the data for the seed file. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_8_14.exe _____________________________________________________________ Version 2.8.13 Unlinked Normalization function from Color Offset function. Previously, when you clicked on the Color Offset control, the normalization would be erased and a fixed offset applied instead. You may now use Normailzation (CTRL+N) and the apply a Color Offset. When normalizing, the Color Offset is set to zero but the Color Gain is unaffected. Live normalization now toggles with CTRL+N or clicking Color / Normalization. When Normalization is in effect a Green N appears between the upper spectrum and the control area. I have fixed the right click menu Normalize to Scan and Normalize to these 10 Scans functions. These are how you normalize when viewing a file. Clicking the Identity menu Item now brings up a window with the identity parameters displayed as a form. This allows much easier editing There is now a Detect Time Zone option. This should eliminate having to manually change the time zone when DST changes occur. This option is found in the new Identity parameters window. Many convenience changes to Correction File operation. - When a correction file is available a small C appears between the upper spectrum and the control area. - When the C has a green background the correction file is being used to display the data otherwise it is the same color as the window. - You can now toggle Use Correction File with CTRL+C. - Correction Files are saved within the header of newly saved files. - Correction Files are transmitted by servers and captured by clients. - In Client Mode, Normalization and Correction Files act exclusive of each other. Turning on one will turn off the other. New CTRL+R (View / Reset Colors to Server / File) Feature. - Color Offset and Gain settings used by the server are captured by the client and saved in the file header. - If you manually change color gain and/or offset they can be restored to the file or servers settings by pressing CTRL+R, or using the menu item under View. Known issue: Still no display of the underlying value when moving the mouse over the spectra. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_8_13.exe ____________________________________________________________ Version 2.8.11 More tweaks to correction file implementation. Banner changes now work with fewer clicks and you may save banners for later recall. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_8_11.exe _____________________________________________________________ Version 2.8.1 This release of RSS has some important updates. - SNTP Client usage is easier. If Atomic Clock is selected under Options, your computer clock will be updated by the program just prior to and immediately after an observation. This even happens in Client Mode. Use of the atomic clock will put this timing information in your file's metadata. - Correction Files These are files that can be used to correct for non-uniformities in the receiver system. Their creation is beyond what can be described here. - All Correction File related menus were moved under Options / Correction Files. - Com Port conflict resolved. Be aware that some minor changes were made in the spacings of the display and this could affect your picture presentations slightly. - Data Directory now saves correctly. - Fixed timing problem with switching FSX image saves. - Fixed problems with linking color controls. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_8_1.exe ____________________________________________________________ Version 2.7.4 http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_7_4.exe A new world record in new releases (hours apart)! -Gets Rid of LogIn bug in 2.7.3 -Makes it easier to disable the SkyPipe UDS feature. If you experience a long pause in your setup, please send me a copy of your Session Log from startup. Trying to trace the source of the delay some people experience. Perhaps turning off the UDS feature (which few probably use) will speed the startup. To disable the UDS start up, go to Options/Network/ and make sure Act As SkyPipe UDS is unchecked. Restart and see it the delay is fixed. ____________________________________________________________ Version 2.7.3 http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_7_3.exe -Fixed bug that prevented loading of old DPS files. -Fixed bug that prevented seeing a DPS (dual polarization spec) when in Client Mode. -Known problem: Dragging the screen to select a region of a loaded file for viewing causes problems. Should have this researched and fixed soon. Using the Camera button. The camera button is used to take snapshots of the top, bottom, or both charts. Right click on the button to select one of these options. Left Click the button to take the snapshot. ___________________________________________________________ Version 2.7.2 http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_7_2.exe -Added support for SNTP time correction. Options / Atomic Clock -Time corrections now in metadata. -Fixed problems with Correction Files -Sampling for period for creating correction files adjustable. -Re-arranged menus. -Fixed bug where files saved in Client Mode could have wrong number of channels. -Fixed bug the warns about "noise blanker". __________________________________________________________ Version 2.5.3 http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_5_3.exe -Renamed some of the receivers to a more logical scheme. -Fixed problem with menu check marks -Added option to link color gains in dual channel receivers. ___________________________________________________________ Version 2.5.1 http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_5_1.exe -Fixed SERIOUS bug that appeared in 2.5.0 where saved files have a corrupt header. If you saved any files in 2.5.0, I can probably fix them, just let me know and we will arrange it. Version 2.5.1 -Fixed bug which made the bottom spectra darker than the top. -Added metadata to the PNG files produced in RSS. -Updated metadata in JPG files produced in RSS. -Added Antenna and Antenna Orientation metadata names. ____________________________________________________________ Version 2.4.21 - Fixed Color Offset maximum problem caused because RSS could not determine the type of receiver the file came from. From now on files should have the name of the receiver type embeddded in the header. For older files, the Color offset maximum will be judged from the ADC resolution reported in the file. - Removed Remote Connection from the list of Network options. This configuration no longer has value. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_4_21.exe Version 2.4.20 - Changed Correction File from tab delimited to comma delimited format (*.csv) so that it can be directly loaded into a spreadsheet program. - Updated RTL Bridge to allow connection to a rtl_tcp stream from another computer. Previously RTL Bridge had to run on the same PC as rtl_tcp.exe using the fixed loopback address of 127.0.0.1 and port 1234. These are still the default values. Version 2.4.19 - Changed interface to Jupiter Information Server (JIS) which is part of Radio-Jupiter Pro. RSS can access information from JIS and display that information in the top and/or bottom banner. You may display any of the following fields from JIS: DATE TIME LMST JUPALT JUPAZ SUNALT SUNAZ JHA SHA CML3 IOPHASE ACTIVEMODE To select the fields you wish to display go to Options / Network /Radio-Jupiter Pro Information Server / RJP JIS Options. Check the boxes of the fields you want and click OK. To activate select Options /Network /Radio-Jupiter Pro Information Server / Connect to RJP. Then click on the banner(s) that you want to display the information and type the placeholder where you want the fields to start in your banner. For example your banner input might be: My Observatory Name The JIS fields are updated whenever the upper spectrum is completely renewed with data. - Corrected some cosmetic issues with the status bar. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_4_19.exe Version 2.4.18 - Fixed another problem with the banner display. Files saved with earlier versions may have their banner information corrupted. This can be fixed by loading the file, re-editing the banner(s) and doing File /Save File. Make sure the new file saving name matches the old one to overwrite it. - Fixed problem that could cause the program to hang when stopping an observation and using an SDR-14. - Fixed bug in Spectrograph News reader that caused it to fail to detect when an update was available. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_4_18.exe Version 2.4.17 - Default Data Directory selector now opens at its current location rather than at the root directory location. - If you have selected any images to automatically save in Options / File Saving Image Autosave, a check mark will now appear on the option. - Spectrograph News now remembers whether or not it is supoosed to check for updates. - Fixed some bugs in the review function that shows the underlying sample value when you move the cursor over a loaded file. - Fixed bug in the Voltmeter tool reported wrong values. - Upper and lower title bars now saving into file headers and being transmitted to clients in server mode. - Added camera button. Right click to configure which image you want the button to refer to; top, bottom, or both. In the both setting the top and bottom charts both appear in the same image file. Old picture saving methods still work. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_4_17.exe Installation Hint: In Vista and above operating systems, install and run this program "As Administrator". Version 2.4.15 - Added Spectrograph News and easier update capability. From now on use Help / Check for Updates to access this window. Double click the update URL to install. - Moving the mouse over a loaded chart now attempts to display the raw value of the pixel under the pointer. The pixel may not be the one at the very tip of the pointer. - The color scale in the lower right now reacts to the mouse by displaying the percentage of the color file range and the calculated raw value that would be approximated by the color under the pointer. http://radiosky.com/spec/Spectrograph_Update_2_4_15.exe ___________________________________________________________ RTL Radios and RSS You can use Radio-Sky Spectrograph with an inexpensive RTL dongle radio receiver. http://cygnusa.blogspot.com/2014/07/rtl-meets-radio-skypipe-and-rs.html