Posted by
kd1na on
Mar 15, 2009; 12:32pm
URL: http://elecraft.85.s1.nabble.com/K3-Time-tp2481285.html
Yesterday, I installed and tested David's K3 Timekeeper
program for Windows XP. It really works great and is very quick. You have to be sure your computer clock is right on before you execute the program.
73
Dave KD1NA
I've had a few requests for the K3 time updater I mentioned the other day. So I've made it available for download.
Mac version (OS X 10.3 or later)
http://sight.net/K3Time/K3Time.zipWindows XP/VISTA (maybe 98 not sure)
http://sight.net/K3Time/K3TimeWin.zipIt's very easy to use and should be self-explanatory.
Select the appropriate serial port and baud rate the first time the program is run. It will remember these settings, so they need to be set only once.
To display UTC time, click the "UTC" checkbox. To return to local time, uncheck it. Be sure the computer's system clock is set properly, and if applicable, set for Daylight Savings Time.
To setup unattended updates, click the "Auto-Update" checkbox. This will automatically update the time on the K3 whenever the program is run (if the K3 is attached and turned on, of course). When Auto-Update is enabled the program will automatically send the current system time to the K3 and then terminate after a 10 second delay. The delay allows time to turn off auto-update if need be. On Windows, you could use "Scheduled Tasks" in the control panel to set a time schedule for automatic execution of the program. On the Mac, a cron job (crontab) could be used. Cronnix is a nice Aqua frontend for cron if you're not familiar with creating crontabs from Terminal. I'm not sure how well the K3 clock keeps time. I never use it. But I would think updating the time once a week or even once a month would be sufficient.
Click the "Update K3" button to send the current system time to the K3.
That's all there is to it. The K3 time will not be *exact* with the computer, but it will get it close (within 0.5 second or so). I get the best results by clicking the update button as soon as a new second begins. Waiting until late into a second will result in the K3 being a second behind. Try clicking the update button several times until you get a good visual sync.
I've done very little testing of the Windows version. There could be bugs.
The program works by sending a sequence of CAT commands to the K3. Clicking "Update K3" begins this sequence:
K31; // Enables K3 extended mode
MN073; // Enters CONFIG:TIME Menu option
DS; // reads VFO A display area (now displaying TIME)
Parse DS; command response to get K3 HOUR, MINUTE and SECOND.
Determine computer HOUR, MINUTE and SECOND.
SWT13; // select SECOND
UP; or DN; until K3 SECOND = computer SECOND
SWT12; // select MINUTE
UP; or DN; until K3 MINUTE = computer MINUTE
SWT11; // select HOUR
UP; or DN; until K3 HOUR = computer HOUR
MN255; // exit menu
DONE..
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