

The WCS-2820 Programmer is designed to give you the ease and convenience of programming the memories and set menu options of your radio from your PC including settings for D-Star operations. The D-Star calculator built into the program gives you D-Star information from all around the world to use. You can easily set up your D-Star channels with just a few mouse clicks. Memory Channels Include: 500 Memories with D-Star options* 20 Limit Memories (10 pair) with D-Star options 7 VFO Channels (each A and B) 2 Call Channels with D-Star 100 GPS Memories Other Menu Item Categories Include: Common DTMF * Icom UT-123 required in radio for D-Star. The Radio Programmer Is for so Much More than Just Memory Management.		The programming process begins by first installing the program then installing (and allowing) the drivers for the cable. Be sure to complete both of these steps. Next, make all the connections between the radio and the computer and complete Communications \| Get data from radio. This “syncs” the radio and computer. Even if the radio is not yet set up with memory channels, there are details that the programmer needs to get from the radio. Start setting up details for your radio in a “factory fresh” file (File\|New) or in the file that was created when you did Communications \| Get data from the radio. Begin by entering a receive frequency (that will be the frequency published for the repeater). When you press Enter or Tab to leave the Receive frequency field, the program will complete details for the channel. Then customize Name and Tone to match the details you have for that local repeaters. Use the links to external data sources (File \| External data) built right into the programmer to access repeater details for your area or for a location you plan to visit. Then with just a few button clicks, you have a file with hundreds of entries and all you typed was your location (i.e., zip code or city).

Save your file as you work. This is a computer, after all, and you would hate to lose your work should the system fail. Actually, create and save as many files as you want or need. You could have one file for home, a different one for the vacation house, another for the trip to your son’s house, another for the yearly 3K run and picnic where you help direct traffic and want the radio to be programmed with only the frequencies for that event. Remember, radio programming is an overwrite process. Everything in the radio is replaced by everything in the file.

Limit Memories

Limit Memories are used by the radio for Program Scan. Program the same details for Limit Memories as for regular memory channels. Many of the Limit Memories are preprogrammed in the radio and while the frequency can be changed to another within the band, they cannot be left blank.

VFO A and VFO B

The program makes available the same VFOs as in the radio (usually one per band). Remember these are not real memory channels since the details are lost as soon as you tune the radio manually. There is no one button recall for these. You do not need to program into VFO Before programming details into a memory channel. These channels are preprogrammed in the radio and while the frequency can be changed to another within the band, they cannot be left blank.

Call

Home/Call channels are special memories accessed through one button recall on the radio. These channels are preprogrammed in the radio and while the frequency can be changed to another within the band, they cannot be left blank.

GPS Memory

Once stored in the radio during GPS operations, these channels are read from the radio with the other details.

Memories and D-Star Columns

The IC-2820 handles D-Star and FM memories in the general memories. It is here in the Programmer that the D-Star specifics for each channel are found. The D-Star columns become active once Operating Mode is set to DV.

D-STAR Settings

D-Star Settings Set "My Callsign" to your FCC issued callsign. The lists of Your Callsigns and Rpt Callsigns are just storage. The callsigns used during a transmission are programmed in the memory channel. These lists are available to make a selection from; however, the callsign does not need to be entered here first. Tx messages, name/location/equipment details, etc., scroll on the radio receiving your call.

D-STAR Calculator Advanced

Source and Destination: The D-STAR Calculator automatically sets up the Talk, Echo, Info and Unlink channels for your "Source" repeater. The "Source" is the repeater you access to begin your adventures. Just like with analog repeaters, you must be able to hit the "Source" repeater. Talk - the CQ channel for talking with others. Echo - a test function that repeats your transmission back to you. Good for letting you know that you are, or are not, hitting the repeater. Info - The function that triggers a status response from the repeater (i.e. linked to where?... not linked). Unlink - Disconnects the current link of the repeater (where allowed). More widely used to disconnect a link you establish. Remember... if you link, it's always polite to unlink (hang up the phone) when you're done unless someone has joined you locally. Then you might leave it to them to unlink. The calculator sets up the same channels for a DVAP hotspot. You enter your frequency only once.
Route/Link to Repeaters: Now that you identified your "Source", let's set up your Destination. In D-STAR you can Link to Repeaters or Route to Repeaters. To set up channels that link or route, use the drop down at the top of the first tree to select your function, then select your repeaters by checking a country, region, state, city or individual repeater. A counter below the list keeps track of how many you have selected.
Link to Reflectors: For even more fun, and a great way for a beginner to get started, Link to Reflectors. D-STAR reflectors are a special type of Internet connected gateway that rebroadcasts each signal to all the other linked nodes or repeaters. Remember... EVERYBODY is listening... but that's what makes it fun. You have a whole world to talk to through your local repeater, "Source", linked to a reflector. To set up a channel that links your repeater to a reflector, check the box for that reflector in the Link to Reflector tree. Click Apply once to set up all these channels for the radio.
The Resulting File:
The resulting channels are set up and ready to go. Your callsign, Rpt 1 Callsign and Rpt 2 Callsign are set automatically... No wondering which suffix goes where, or if it is positioned correctly. That is all done for you. Name can be edited here to better identify the station. Name is what you see on the radio. It is not part of the D-STAR commands for use of the system. It may be all you have to identify the function of a channel. (Notice the frequency is the same for ALL these channels although they each do something different on the D-STAR network.) Make the Name something you understand. Note: Be sure to turn ON the name display for the radio to use what you enter in the name field. To Use these Settings for D-STAR Fun: Save and send the file to the radio Listen on the talk channel. Be sure your callsign is registered on the system. Check repeater status on info channel. Check your connection to repeater on Echo channel. Link repeater to a connection of your choice. Talk on Talk channel. HAVE FUN!

Radio Menu Settings

F1 Common and F2 Common

Use these screens to customize other set menu features of the radio. Check boxes toggle features on or off, drop down menus list all selections and blank boxes for personalized entry add to the ease of setting up your radio exactly like you want it.

The entries on the Settings screens are made for you to "Set and Forget". Once settings are customized, you are prompted to save before exiting. The saved settings will be there every time you create a new frequency file.

Use F1 and F2 columns to configure the settings for different activities.

DTMF

Enter DTMF memory details and customize options for this function of the radio.

Bank Names and Linking

Set up Name for bank selection on radio, scanning links, and Active Bank. Use F1 and F2 for different configurations for separate activities.

Preferences

Grid Display

RT Systems now available in English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and Japanese.
Set colors for text (Fore) or background (Back) of alternate rows for easier viewing across the columns.
Freeze columns to keep information on the screen as you scroll to the right of the page.
Hide columns you don't use. Customize your printout: hidden columns do not print.
Use Combo for Check boxes - changes the grid to eliminate check box selections that are disabled on some systems.

Memory Defaults

Set options to control auto fill information for memory channel entries.

Font

Set options to control the font in the column headers of the channel entry screens. Select any font and font size available on your computer.

Other

Set options to control how the programmer handles the global Radio Menu Settings file.
- Separate (default) handles the global settings of the radio in a "set and forget" fashion. Once you set these up and save the file you won't have to reset them for a new frequency file.
- Together as one gives you the ability to create files that are complete with frequencies and customized global settings. In this mode, each file Begins with factory defaults for every option of the radio.
Check "Get data from Radio" new file option to prevent data loss when you read from your radio into the programmer.
Check "different window" option to make the programmer for a different radio run in completely separate window rather than in a separate tab of the same window.