Low Cost Access to Winlink 2000 Global Email System

This short article reports on implementing the capability to connect to the WinLink 2000 Global Email System⁽¹⁾ using HF radio and an inexpensive sound card interface.

GOAL:

Implement the capability to connect to the WinLink 2000 Global Email System⁽¹⁾ using HF radio and an inexpensive sound card interface and equipment already on hand.

EQUIPMENT:

1. ICOM 756 PRO HF Transceiver (on hand)
2. Horizontal Loop Antenna, 268 ft perimeter, up 30 feet (on hand)
3. West Mountain Radio RIGBlaster PRO⁽²⁾ (on hand, MSRP: $299.95)
4. RMS Express Winlink 2000 (WL2K) radio email client.
5. MixW⁽³⁾ multi-mode software for PSK31 testing (free)

DISCUSSION:

From the time I had the idea to implement the capability to the time I sent my first message was a little less than a day. First, I had to find my RIGBlaster and all the cables. That was the hardest part. Then, I had to review the RIGBlaster documentation to relearn what I had forgotten. It has been idle for over three years -- the last time I did any PSK31 work.

The second challenge was to get RIGBlaster to work again with PSK31 on Windows 7 and, as well, to make sure all the cables were connected properly. My bad eyesight limits my ability to do that, sometimes.

I used MixW as a testbed for the PSK31. My first contact was to N7ZYS in Ketchikan, Alaska.

Once I had proved I could use PSK31 with the RIGBlaster, I moved on to downloading and installing RMS Express and obtaining a Winlink Email account. In order to get a Winlink account, you must connect using an  Email client, in my case, the RMS Express Winlink 2000 (WL2K) radio email client. In other words, you cannot simply register for a Winlink Email account online - the request has to come via radio.

Fortunately, the instructions for doing this are plainly covered on Winlink's site(4). The instructions lead you down the primrose path to the RMS Express download site. These links are found on Winlink's FTP site that is listed in the Getting Started document.

Now, I am not the sharpest tool in the drawer but I was able to follow the instructions and get RMS Express running. Within that software, a list of available Winlink stations is provided. My first choice, not really knowing what I was doing, was KE7XO, a station in Las Vegas, NV. I chose the station, made sure my rig was tuned, and pushed the Start button. My radio squawked and, lo and behold, the Saints be praised, I got a squawk back and had a connection.

The rest is history. I forget the exact steps that were requested of me to setup the account. From "Start" to disconnect and verification of an email back through my primary email account was about 10 minutes.

Way cool!

CONCLUSION:

While PSK31, RTTY, and other digital modes are fun, they don't interest me that much as I do not do contests and have little interest in chasing DX or rag chewing. I am active on CW nets and like to handle Radiograms over the ARRL National Traffic System. Now, I can do that digitally.

Having a Winlink Email account and the ability to send Email via radio makes it possible for me to do that when out in the sticks somewhere camping or, perhaps, when the infrastructure in my local area has collapsed and I need to get messages out.

With regard to hardware, I used what I had on hand  Other solutions are possible at higher and lower prices. If money were no object, I would prefer to have a dedicated TNC (Terminal Node Controller) rather than using the soundcard in my computer.

That said, my goals were met in that I was able to get active with Winlink Email in less than a day using equipment I already had on hand.

REFERENCES:

1. Winlink 2000 Global Email System
2. West Mountain Radio RIGBlaster PRO
3. MixW Multi-Mode Software
4. http://www.winlink.org/GetStarted