[WriteLog] Problem with erratic cw

Mon May 31 10:43:14 EDT 2004

1. RFI can cause some keying problems; did you try without an amp? 
2. I recall some reports of problems with USB to Serial
 for certain manufacturers, that they were too slow for
 either rig control or CW sending, but have no specific
 reference for you.
3. I used Belkin F5U103 USB to Serial with Dell Inspiron,
 WIN/XP Pro in WPX this weekend, and had no erratic keying,
 but:
 Twice, after hitting an unknown combination of keys
 (the second time, I think it was ESC and the
 Squiggle Character keys, maybe)
 I got blue screen with BUG_CODE_DRIVER error that
 required re-boot.
4. I had started out WPX using internal COM1 for CW Keying and
 USB-to-Serial COM4 for radio control, because the current
 combination of WriteLog 10.47E and Orion 3.170 requires
 two COM ports. 
 But I measured a 2.1 second delay in changing frequency
 using the USB-to-Serial COM port for the rig, so on
 Saturday morning, I exchanged ports and measured the
 rig control delay at about .95 seconds with the internal
 COM port, and didn't notice any problems keying the rig
 with the USB to Serial for a couple of hours.
 Until I accidentally hit an unknown combo of keys, and
 key combo that gave me the blue screen.
 On my second blue screen, I reverted back to using
 USB-to-Serial for rig control, internal COM for CW,
 and experienced no further problems nor blue screens,
 and learned to tolerate the 2 second rig change time.
Barry, W5GN