Author: k6aq

Due to an intermittent crash discovered immediately after v1.9.7’s release, v1.9.7.1 has been released. The crash is related to the filter functionality; when the TX or RX filters are modified, an assertion failure occasionally gets thrown because the old filters aren’t fully deleted by the time the new filters need to be created.

More information and download links for this hotfix release can be found here.

This release contains the following content:

1. Bugfixes:
   • Use double precision instead of float for loading frequency list. (PR #627)
   • Improve validation of frequencies in Options dialog. (PR #628)
   • Fix typo resulting in TX device sample rate being used for filter initialization. (PR #630)
   • Fix intermittent crash resulting from object thread starting before object is fully initialized. (PR #630)
   • Prevent creation of filters if not enabled. (PR #631)
   • Fix issue preventing Start button from re-enabling itself on audio device errors. (PR #636)
   • Fix issue preventing proper FreeDV Reporter column sizing on Windows. (PR #638)
   • Fix flicker in FreeDV Reporter window when tracking by frequency. (PR #637)
   • Update Filter dialog to better handle resizing. (PR #641)
   • Fix capitalization of distance units in FreeDV Reporter window. (PR #642)
   • Rename KHz to kHz in documentation and UI. (PR #643)
   • Avoid calculating distances in FreeDV Reporter window for those with invalid grid squares. (PR #646, #649)
   • Fix display bugs in FreeDV Reporter window when switching between dark and light mode. (PR #646)
   • Add guard code to prevent FreeDV Reporter window from being off screen on startup. (PR #650)
   • Fix issue preventing FreeDV startup on macOS <= 10.13. (PR #652)
   • On startup, only jiggle height and not width. (PR #653)
   • Fix issue preventing FreeDV from being linked with older versions of Xcode. (PR #654)
   • Fix issue preventing TX audio from resuming after going from TX->RX in full duplex mode. (PR #655)
2. Enhancements:
   • Allow user to refresh status message even if it hasn’t been changed. (PR #632)
   • Increase priority of status message highlight. (PR #632)
   • Adjust FreeDV Reporter data display to better match accepted UX standards. (PR #644)
   • Further reduce required space for each column in FreeDV Reporter window. (PR #646)
   • Provide an option Do save only certain FreeDV Reporter messages sent to the server. (PR #647)
3. Build system:
   • Include PDB debugging file for FreeDV. (PR #633)
   • End support for 32 bit ARM on Windows. (PR #651)
   • Begin performing CI builds for macOS. (PR #654)
4. Documentation:
   • Fix spelling, etc. mistakes in the documentation. (PR #640)
   • Update README to reflect latest state of codebase. (PR #654)
   • Move older changelog from user manual to separate file. (PR #654)
5. Code cleanup:
   • Move GUI related files into their own folder. (PR #654)
   • Move build scripts into cmake folder. (PR #654)
   • Remove no longer used scripts and patch files. (PR #654)

More information and download links can be found here.

This month, freedv-gui/FreeDV Reporter got the following bug fixes and feature enhancements:

• A minor tweak to the main window to have all section boxes be the same width.
• 800XA mode was added to set of modes used for the multiple receive feature.
• Serial PTT can now be enabled along with OmniRig.
• A delay can now be added prior to transmitting audio and before bringing the radio out of transmit mode (to avoid damage to accessories such as noise cancellation devices).
• A new feature to FreeDV Reporter to allow up to 15 character long custom messages to be reported to other users. (These messages go out solely over the internet, not over radio.)
• Frequency units can now be displayed and entered in kHz if the user enables the appropriate setting.
• A bug was fixed where the space bar was inappropriately putting the FreeDV application into transmit mode.
• Compiler errors with certain versions of MinGW (used to build Windows versions of FreeDV) have been fixed.
• A Windows-only issue was fixed that prevented the entry of very high frequencies (such as anything above 10 GHz).
• Extra column space was removed in the FreeDV Reporter window to better enable use on smaller displays.
• A new 60 meter frequency (5368.5 kHz) was added to the default calling frequency list to avoid interference on the previously used 60 meter frequency.
• Validation of input was enhanced when customizing the frequency list.
• A bug was fixed that caused the incorrect sample rates to be used for filters (when enabled).

ezDV also got the following new features:

• Morse code beeping of the last octet of the IP address on connection to the configured router (to make it easier to find on the network).
• Allow connection to be forced to FreeDV Reporter even if using a radio without CAT control support (e.g. non-Flex or Icom radios).
• Minor tweaks to the web UI to improve ease of configurability for supported Wi-Fi enabled radios.

More information can be found in the commit history below:

• freedv-gui
• ezDV
• freedv-reporter

(Note that all commit logs above were generated with the following command line:)

git log --author="member@email" --after "Month 1, 2023" --before "Month 31, 2023" --all > commit.log

Merry Christmas! This release contains the following content:

1. Bugfixes:
   • Use SetSize/GetSize instead of SetClientSize/GetClientSize to work around startup sizing issue. (PR #611)
   • Check for RIGCAPS_NOT_CONST in Hamlib 4.6. (PR #615)
   • Make main screen gauges horizontal to work around sizing/layout issues. (PR #613)
   • Fix compiler issue with certain versions of MinGW. (PR #622)
   • Suppress use of space bar when in RX Only mode. (PR #623)
   • Fix Windows-specific issue preventing entry of very high frequencies. (PR #624)
2. Enhancements:
   • Add option to add a delay after starting TX and before ending TX. (PR #618)
   • Allow serial PTT to be enabled along with OmniRig. (PR #619)
   • Add 800XA to multi-RX list. (PR #617)
   • Add logic to report status message to FreeDV Reporter. (PR #620)
   • Allow display and entry of frequencies in KHz. (PR #621)
   • Add 5368.5 KHz to the default frequency list. (PR #626)

More information and download links can be found here.

This month, the freedv-gui project got several good feature improvements and bug fixes:

• macOS: include entitlements to allow usage of audio devices on Sonoma.
• Added the ability to force RX Only reporting for FreeDV Reporter.
• Operating system usage is now logged with FreeDV Reporter (to help guide future development).
• New calling frequencies for 160 and (for IARU Region 2) 80 and 40 meters: 1997 KHz, 3850 KHz, 7197 KHz.
• A visible “Help” button has been added to the main window of the application that goes directly to a list of resources for obtaining assistance.
• Fixed an issue preventing FreeDV from compiling when using Hamlib 4.6.
• Fixed issues with reloading previous window sizing.
• Fixed issue preventing the reload of the previous manually-entered frequency.

Additionally, ezDV got some significant improvements as well:

• Improvements to reduce sleep/off power usage due to new “charging status” mode.
• Fixed check for battery fuel gauge chip to allow operation without it being included on the board.
• Now reports as running “other” for the OS to FreeDV Reporter.
• Added ability to customize the hostname of ezDV (in case a user has multiple devices on the same network).
• Added ability to select Wi-Fi networks from a list (instead of needing to manually enter the SSID).

FreeDV Reporter updates:

• Added link between Discord and FreeDV Reporter.
• Fixed website formatting issues.
• Added escaping for HTML to prevent scripting attacks.

More information can be found in the commit history below:

• freedv-gui
• ezDV
• freedv-reporter

FreeDV version 1.9.5 has been released, which contains the following content:

1. Bugfixes:
   • Fix bug preventing frequency updates from being properly suppressed when frequency control is in focus. (PR #585)
   • Fix bug preventing 60 meter frequencies from using USB with DIGU/DIGL disabled. (PR #589)
   • Additional fix for PR #561 to parse/format frequencies using current locale. (PR #595)
   • Add entitlements to work around macOS Sonoma permissions bug. (PR #598)
   • Fix bug preventing FreeDV Reporter window from closing after resetting configuration to defaults. (PR #593)
   • Fix bug preventing reload of manually entered frequency on start. (PR #608)
2. Enhancements:
   • FreeDV Reporter: Add support for filtering the exact frequency. (PR #596)
   • Add confirmation dialog box before actually resetting configuration to defaults. (PR #593)
   • Add ability to double-click FreeDV Reporter entries to change the radio’s frequency. (PR #592)
   • FreeDV Reporter: Add ability to force RX Only reporting in Tools->Options. (PR #599)
   • Add new 160m/80m/40m calling frequencies for IARU R2. (PR #601)
   • Add Help button to allow users to get help more easily. (PR #607)
3. Build system:
   • Upgrade wxWidgets to 3.2.4. (PR #607)
4. Other:
   • Report OS usage to FreeDV Reporter. (PR #606)

More information and download links can be found here.

The FreeDV project recently went to Pacificon in San Ramon, California to discuss the latest updates to the project as well as interact with its users. On the first day prior to the hamfest officially opening, we set up a FreeDV booth just down the hall from the ATV booth and across from Bioenno Power, which had several cool things on it:

(From left to right: DVB-T transceiver, Mel Whitten K0PFX, the latest SM1000, two separate ezDV setups with the Icom IC-705 and Elecraft KX3, and a display showing the latest FreeDV activity on FreeDV Reporter.)

Over the course of the weekend, the booth got significant traffic from hams from the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond interested in HF digital voice. One person (John AL7ID) even came from the Fairbanks (Alaska) area!

Mooneer Salem (K6AQ) also gave a talk introducing FreeDV and explaining how to get on the air using it, including discussing the software and hardware options available. As a result of the presentation and the presence at the booth, we were able to provide assistance to several users (some over email after the show concluded) who previously had difficulty getting FreeDV running:

As an additional surprise, the M17 project also had a booth at Pacificon this year, where they had their latest OpenHT project on display. Wojciech Kaczmarski SP5WWP, the person who started M17, also happened to be there and hung out with us at the booth for a bit:

All in all, it was definitely a fun and worthwhile experience. Hope to see you guys again next year!