8-1
Version 1.73 Copyright © 1997 Link Communications Inc. 1/18/97
Chapter 8: Macros
How Macros Get Executed:
Macros can be executed just like any other commands: you can enter the name of the macro
from a radio and unkey (or press the force execution digit), you can enter the macro name from
the serial port, you enter an 'N' followed by the macro number from the serial port, etc. In
addition, the controller will automatically execute macros at certain times, such as to send an
ID or a courtesy beep. The macros that the controller calls in this way are called "automatic
macros" because they are called automatically. The automatic macros are listed in this chapter
along with descriptions of when they get executed. When the controller is reinitialized (at the
factory or if you do it), many of these macros are programmed with examples of what you
might want to do: the ID macros speak sample ID's, the courtesy beep macros send beeps and
the I/O macros send messages that tell you what changed. You can change what is in any or all
of the automatic macros to make them do what you want.
Macros numbered 400 and higher are not listed with descriptions, because the controller doesn't
have a specific purpose for them; they are called "user macros". They are extras that can be
used for anything else you might want to do. You will probably want to keep a list of what you
use each one for so you can remeber it later. After you program them, you may want to change
their names and execute them from your radio with DTMF, program the automatic macros to
execute them, or tell the controller to execute them at certain times using the event triggers (see
Chapter 20).
What a macro is:
There are at least two common understandings of what a macro is. The RLC-Club currently
supports the more flexible of the two types; eventually it may support both. The kind the RLC-
Club supports could be called a "multiple command macro" because it provides a way to
execute a sequence of internal commands in response to one command from the user. In other
words, this kind of macro contains a list of commands that are executed in order when the
macro is executed. If you commonly want to connect your repeater port to a link port and turn
DTMF muting on and change your courtesy beep, you could program a macro to execute the
appropriate commands. This type of macro is very similar to the macros that many word
processors and other computer programs allow you to make to automate things that you do
often.
The other commonly used kind of macro (that the RLC-Club does not currently support) could
be called a "snapshot macro". It allows you to set up the controller the way you like it, take a
snapshot of it, and restore the controller to that configuration at any time by recalling the
snapshot. While this may be convenient, it is also limiting. Consider an example: you have
two stand alone repeaters running off of one RLC-Club controller. You are setting up one
repeater repeater today and plan to set up the other tomorrow. You set up the repeater with a
certain courtesy beep and take a snapshot. You then set it up with a different courtesy beep and
take another snapshot. Now you can easily switch back and forth between the two courtesy
To Next Page
Loading...
Need help?
General
