If you're looking for pictures of my TinyTrak II, click here.
This is an attempt to provide information and a good starting point for new users of the TinyTrak (available from byonics.com).
Note that these are not necessarily the best (or even good) values for your particular region. But hopefully it's a safe starting point.
Let me know (see email address at the bottom) how well these settings work for you.
Note that these settings were based on the TinyTrak II, but these same values apply to the TinyTrak3 and the PocketTracker (which is built around a TinyTrak3).
| Field | Suggested Value | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Callsign | Put your ham radio callsign here | NOCALL |
| Digi Path* | WIDE2-2 | WIDE3-3 |
| Symbol | Your choice | - |
| Table / Overlay | Your choice | / |
| Timing | ||
| Keyup Delay (TXD) | 250 | 250 |
| Transmit Every | 3600 | 60 |
| Quiet Time | 1500 | 1500 |
| Calibration | 128 | |
| Status Beacon | Your email address | TinyTrakII |
| Send Every | 3 | 3 |
| Transmit Altitude | Checked | Checked |
| Only Send Valid Position | Checked | Checked |
| MIC-E Settings | ||
| Enable | Checked | Checked |
| Time Slotting | ||
| Enable | Unchecked | Unchecked |
| Smart Beaconing | ||
| Enable | Checked | Unchecked |
| Min Turn Angle | 27 | 27 |
| Turn Slope | 255 | 255 |
| Min Turn Time | 5 | 5 |
| Slow Speed | 15 | 2 |
| Slow Rate | 3600 | 1800 |
| Fast Speed | 65 | 65 |
| Fast Rate | 60 | 90 |
This is a field where the only right answer is "it depends". It depends a lot on how the network of APRS digis is laid out, how many there are, and other factors. How up-to-date the digis' software is is a significant factor, too. In a reasonably up-to-date area, a path of simply "WIDE2-2" should work fine for the majority of users. If the two repeats from a WIDE2-2 aren't getting your packets as far as you need, try WIDE3-3. In most cases, WIDE2-2 or WIDE3-3 should be sufficient. Try to avoid paths any longer than those.
Use of RELAY or WIDE in any path is strongly discouraged these days, as they cause extra, unnecessary traffic on the digi network. In many cases packets from stations with RELAY in the path will get ignored entirely.
For more information on APRS path issues, read "Fixing the 144.39 APRS Network (the New n-N Paradigm)" by Bob Bruninga, WB4APR.
The "best" value for this is largely dependent on your radio. Some radios can switch from receive to transmit very fast, and a value of 150 milliseconds may work well. I suggest starting with 250 ms to get things working. If your packets aren't being decoded, try 400 or 500 ms. If that doesn't do it, either your radio isn't a good choice for packet or you have some other problem.
This controls how often your unit transmits, but only if Smart Beaconing isn't enabled.
3600 seconds = 1 hour. A fixed station shouldn't need to transmit much more often than that. Please don't use a value less than 1800 seconds (30 minutes) in an inhabited area!
I suggest putting your email address here, so that people can contact you (especially if your station is doing something naughty - you want to know about it, don't you?).
MIC-E was originally a cool idea to use a data burst at the end of voice transmissions, sending APRS position reports to properly-equipped voice repeaters. This allowed APRS functionality with only one radio. To optimize the system, a "compressed" APRS format was developed, in order to keep the data burst as short as possible. The MIC-E setting on the TinyTrak tells the TinyTrak to transmit in the MIC-E format. Some users report improved results using this format. In theory, a short packet is less likely to get clobbered by other packets.
This is a nifty algorithm for dynamically choosing when and/or how often to send position updates. In short, the faster you're moving the more frequently it will send out position data. It also knows to send out position updates when you make turns.
You can read more about Smart Beaconingtm by clicking here.
This is the speed below which you're effectively still. Due to GPS errors, I've seen my parked vehicle report as high as 13 MPH. I suggest a value above any such errors you see. I don't really spend much time driving less than 15 MPH.
This is how often your unit transmits when it's still (or nearly still - any speed below "Slow Speed"). Once an hour should be plenty. No need to repeat "I'm still here!" too often!
This is the speed above which you will transmit at the "Fast Rate".
60 seconds should be plenty often, and might be too often in a crowded area with digis covering a wide area. When in doubt, leave it 60 seconds or higher.
Then you'll transmit at a rate that's proportional to your speed, relative to your "fast speed". For example, if you're travelling at half your "fast speed", then you'll transmit half as often as your "fast rate" specifies.
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Last updated: 2005 May 17