Batboard

Ok, I've read the software primer you publish and it's helpful but please be patient as I try to understand this issue:

MT1000 and HT1000 RSS software: Older DOS program which uses really slow 8086/8088 or maybe 286 CPU, RIB and proper cable to radio. Slow but stable. Won't turn radio into a doorstop.

XTS3000 and XTS3500 software: WON'T run on the old, slow computer but wants 386, 486 or possibly Pentium machine with lotsa ram. But will NOT work with Windows, right? Still needs "TRUE" DOS as opposed to a virtual DOS window through an operating system. This still needs a RIB and proper radio cabling.

XTS3000 CPS software: Will work with latest Pentium-class computers, works through Windows XP and now can use RIB-less cables from either serial port or USB port.

Assuming the above statements are correct, in order to program different types of radios one would almost have to have 3 different computers. I've just upgraded to the XTS3000 radio and have two computers, one really slow with dark-ages MS-DOS and a whiz-bang Pentium-4 machine running at 3GHz, half terabyte hard drive and 2GB RAM. I have a standard RIB and a cable which works on the Jedi-class HT1000.

But seeing that life often isn't fair, my RSS software won't work on EITHER computer, right? It still wants DOS (is there actually DOS running under WinXP?) This computer started off life as a WinXP machine, not an upgrade. I mean, who would have a 486 or Pentium class computer WITHOUT Windows? And does this software require a RIB? In fact, aren't the RIB-less cables just cables with a RIB built into them???

So basically here's what I'm asking: Should I shop for a THIRD computer that is relatively fast but with DOS (gimmee a break) or get the CPS software, use my main machine and invest in a RIB-less cable? I'll still have 2 computers and will have to shell out a small fortune for the CPS but I won't have to worry about bricking the radio. If I had the CPS software and the WinXP machine, can I still use my RIB? This is very confusing. I'm so happy this discussion board exists.

As a side note, I've recently programmed 2 scanning receivers for friends, the RS Pro-96 and the Uniden 396T. The software was somewhat intuitive, allowed for cut-and-paste operation, drag and drop and lots of talkgroups and frequencies. The Motorola software is a nightmare in comparison.

Thanks for all your help.

Jim

Jim, there are lots of different ways to set up what you want. The simplest way involves a single computer, with a little bit of specialized software.

Most RSS packages' newest revision will work with a Pentium-class computer. That solves the problem of needing an old, slow computer. To see which revision of a particular RSS package is Pentium compatible, check here

Next, a program called System Commander allows you to install multiple OSs on a single computer, so that you can easily install DOS and Windows XP on the same machine (you'll need to create a small FAT partition on your HDD if you're using an NTFS partition for XP). That solves the problem of needing two seperate systems for RSS or CPS.

As for the RIBless cable, you pretty well have it correct. There is actually 'part' of a regular RIB built into the cable. Any radio that can be programmed with a RIBless cable, can be programmed with a regular RIB.

Last, no, there is no DOS, per se, in Windows XP, but there is a 'Command Interpreter' that works much the same way. You should be able to run most RSS under it, but I wouldn't advise trying to program the radio that way. Viewing/changing a codeplug that way isn't a problem, just don't try to read from/write to the radio. To access the Command Interpreter, click the 'Start button', select 'Run', and type 'cmd' into the box that pops up. You can, much like DOS, simply type 'help' and it will give you a whole list of commands that it recognizes.

Well....this is both informative and confusing at the same time. As of this writing I have MT1000, HT1000 and HT600 radios and their appropriate software which runs on my old 8088 machine. Reads/writes to/from codeplug (and front cover in the case of my MT1000) with no problem. Now with my XTS3000 my version R02.00.03 wants a 386 or better machine. So even though it's relatively fairly new it wants a faster DOS computer.

OK - I have access to a 486DX2/100MHz computer. Can this ONE computer be capable of running the "old" software and the latest RSS? If you had to put together a computer to run your XTS3000 software, what would it be?

I'll shelve the CPS idea until I hit the lottery.

JimmyL1011 wrote:Well....this is both informative and confusing at the same time. As of this writing I have MT1000, HT1000 and HT600 radios and their appropriate software which runs on my old 8088 machine. Reads/writes to/from codeplug (and front cover in the case of my MT1000) with no problem. Now with my XTS3000 my version R02.00.03 wants a 386 or better machine. So even though it's relatively fairly new it wants a faster DOS computer.

OK - I have access to a 486DX2/100MHz computer. Can this ONE computer be capable of running the "old" software and the latest RSS? If you had to put together a computer to run your XTS3000 software, what would it be?

I'll shelve the CPS idea until I hit the lottery.

The first 3 RSS packages you mention don't have a "minimum" requirement, as they are small, simple low-resource programs. The XTS3000 on the other hand is much more complex & resource intensive, so it does have a minimum requirement of a 386, along with 4MB of RAM.

As far as a "maximum" speed, it'll vary. The Pentium Compatibility Matrix kf4sqb provided a link to above shows which RSS should work on newer computers, and your 3 older packages are all compatible, provided you are using the latest version of each one. There is still some variance, such as the HT600 for example runs fine on my Celeron 1.7GHz laptop, but it won't work on my co-workers 1.3GHz Centrino laptop. "Newer" software such as the MTSX & XTS3000 runs perfectly on both.

So my advice, is to use the latest & greatest version of whatever RSS package you're using, to ensure maximum compatibility. Since you're only running DOS RSS, the 486 you mentioned is ideal. If you want to also run CPS at some point, I'd look for a "middle of the road" unit...a P-III 500MHz with 128MB of RAM & Win98SE on it, for maximum compatibility for both RSS & CPS.

Todd

Two. A 486 (both 33 and 66 mHz work for everything I've used them for, from P200 through MCS2000) and a Windows XP for CPS.

Note: the M1225, at least at one time, would only run under Win3.1. However, you can load Win3.1 on your DOS machine and just leave booting it out of your autoexec.bat file; machine comes up as a DOS machine. When you have to do a 1225, do win <enter> from the DOS screen and Win3.1 comes up.

RKG, I don't know what I've done wrong, but I've never been able to get the 1225 RSS to run under Win 3.1. I don't remember what the error message it gave me was, but it wouldn't run. Never had any problem running it under Win 95.

Jim, as Wavetar stated, the HT600, HT1000, and MT1000 RSS should all run just fine on a 486 machine, as should the XTS3000 RSS. I mostly run an old 25 MHz 486 laptop to do my programming here, with several older, non Pentium-compatible RSS versions, including older revisions of HT600, HT1000, and MT1000, and it works just fine.

I recall an install problem with the 1225 package: one of the library files didn't uncompress properly. The solution was to use a third-party extractor, and then copy the extracted file to the proper directory.

1225 may have come out with a later version that would work under 95 or later; I don't think much of 1225 radios and don't encounter them often enough to be current.

RKG wrote: 1225 may have come out with a later version that would work under 95 or later; I don't think much of 1225 radios and don't encounter them often enough to be current.

For many years the latest version was 3.2 & would run under Windows 3.1 & Win95...it would also work just fine under Win98, but wasn't "officially" supported. It would run under 2000 & XP, but you couldn't access the COM port to read/write a radio. As of about May '05, the latest version is 4.0 & it now works under 2000/XP.

Todd