When your TNC does receive an acknowledgment for a connect packet, it will
display a message on your screen like:
*** CONNECTED TO callsign
and your TNC will change to the Convers Mode (dependent on the setting of
NOMODE and CONMODE). Now what you type will be interpreted by the TNC
as data to be sent to the other station and not commands to the TNC. The MCON
parameter comes defaulted to OFF. Therefore once you are connected all you will
see is what you type and what the person connected to you sends you. Any pack
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ets sent by other people will not be monitored unless they are also connected to
you on another stream.
Two things determine when the data you send will be packetized. One is the pa
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rameter SENDPAC. This is defaulted as the return or ENTER key. So as you are
typing your message, whenever you hit the return or ENTER key, you are telling
the TNC to make a new packet. A second parameter, PACLEN, determines the
maximum length of any packet. If you enter data longer than this length, a packet
will be made even though you have not pressed the return or ENTER key.
When you have finished your conversation you need to end the connection. To do
this you go into the Command Mode and type a “d” for Disconnect. Remember
to press the return or enter key after any command to the TNC. Once your station
has received the acknowledgment for the disconnect packet the TNC will send
this message to your screen:
*** DISCONNECTED
Either station can issue the disconnect command, no matter which station origi
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nated the connect.
Digipeating
Everything we have done so far will only be heard by those within range to hear
your signal. With packet radio it is possible to go farther than that. The
DIGIPEAT parameter in the TNC comes defaulted ON. This makes your TNC a
possible relay station, or digital repeater — digipeater, or just digi for short. In
many VHF communities one or more of these is put up in a good, high location
and referred to as a dedicated digi. The TNC and radio is all that is needed for the
digital repeater to do its job. A computer would be needed if you wanted to
change a parameter, but it would not need to stay there for the digi to work. The
Overview of Packet Communication Packet Modes of Operation
KAM’98 v 8.3 147 User’s Guide
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