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| packet-radio-in-the-2020s [2022/12/29 17:57] – m0lte | packet-radio-in-the-2020s [2023/10/29 16:58] (current) – m0lte |
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| ====== Packet Radio in the 2020s ====== | ====== Packet Radio in the 2020s ====== |
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| | //This write-up is from the early part of the project, and as such may not be fully up to date.// |
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| Packet radio is a means of "networking" together amateur radio stations using inexpensive and potentially home-built equipment and open source software. Specialised applications can then operate over that network - commonly including keyboard-to-keyboard chat, and BBS including routing mail between remote BBSs and to/from the internet. Surfing from node to node is also possible - connecting from your own station through some arbitrary path of nodes to some other node far outside your own radio range, then doing keyboard to keyboard chat ("having a QSO"), is entirely possible, where a network of nodes exists. The nodes do not have to be pre-configured to allow connections from specific neighbours - it can be quite dynamic. | Packet radio is a means of "networking" together amateur radio stations using inexpensive and potentially home-built equipment and open source software. Specialised applications can then operate over that network - commonly including keyboard-to-keyboard chat, and BBS including routing mail between remote BBSs and to/from the internet. Surfing from node to node is also possible - connecting from your own station through some arbitrary path of nodes to some other node far outside your own radio range, then doing keyboard to keyboard chat ("having a QSO"), is entirely possible, where a network of nodes exists. The nodes do not have to be pre-configured to allow connections from specific neighbours - it can be quite dynamic. |
| ====== TNCs ====== | ====== TNCs ====== |
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| A fundamental building block in packet radio is a TNC. It is essentially a modem. | A fundamental building block in packet radio is a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terminal_node_controller|TNC]]. It is essentially a modem. |
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| A TNC can be software (sound card + PTT control) or hardware. | A TNC can be software (sound card + PTT control) or hardware. |
| A bunch of NET/ROM nodes, like G8BPQ, in proximity on the same frequency will become aware of each other. | A bunch of NET/ROM nodes, like G8BPQ, in proximity on the same frequency will become aware of each other. |
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| There are more prescriptive forms of network, such as that described by [[http://tarpn.net/|TARPN]] - a layer upon G8BPQ node software - which enforces that all links are dedicated point to point links and that nodes are all multi-port. | There are more prescriptive forms of network, such as that described by [[http://tarpn.net/|TARPN]] - a layer upon and around G8BPQ node software - which enforces that all links are dedicated point to point links and that nodes are all multi-port. |
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| ====== Links ====== | ====== Links ====== |
