Batboard

In Astro Saber CPS under user settings I see a listing for SamrtRib (sp?)

This particular laptop has been used before to program using CPS software for 1225's and MTS2000. Both of those particular versions used "ribless" serial connectors.

With the Astro Saber software mentioned above I attached the RIB to the serial port, then the cable drom the RIB to the radio.and it appears to be passing data all the time (red data light stays on) and software says it cannot communicate with the radio. Again I do not use the RIB with the other two models.

Any clue what to do to inhibit "smartRib" when using this CPS version?

There is such a beast as the SmartRIB. We have one in the shop. It looks like the standard RIB, but double height because there is a pack of AA cells in it. What the difference is electronically / logically I don't know. But, when you need it, you need it.

The SmartRIB is only needed for software and/or flash upgrades. It is not needed for normal programming.

Your programming issue will be caused by something else.

As Astro Spectra says, the standard RIB is all that's needed for regular programming. The SmartRIB is only needed for firmware upgrades, although it is also used for regular programming if desired. Is it possible you are using a regular Saber cable instead of the Astro Saber cable? The pinout is different.

The Astro Saber cable isn't the issue..for some reason the cable from the RIB to the laptop's serial port (Com 1) passes data (turns the data light on the RIB) with nothing happening. Even with no RSS or CPS running..Same laptop programs MDS2000 a d 1225 radios fine with no RIB required. My cables for those radios connect directly to the serial port of th elaptop.

Weird. May need to check the integrity of the RIB. It still works fine on a really old computer with DOS. It's a home made unit with Repeater Builder schematic.