That software was becoming a key component of communications occurred to me back in the late 1980s whe were playing with old packet radio networks. Soon we had TCP/IP over packet through our TNCs. In the '90s we began talking about software defined radios - which are now mainstream. And now we have "radios" that aren't exactly radios eit…
That software was becoming a key component of communications occurred to me back in the late 1980s whe were playing with old packet radio networks. Soon we had TCP/IP over packet through our TNCs. In the '90s we began talking about software defined radios - which are now mainstream. And now we have "radios" that aren't exactly radios either! As I write this, I'm on 7.074 Mhz FT8 - where to a large extent, much of the the "radio" is my PC! There is much innovation yet to come - and we will see it across the board, in analog and digital radio - and much more.
Edward - In my mind, there have been three distinct phases up through present day. The first was software defined networking, such as the TCP/IP operations we both enjoyed back in the 1990s and early 2000s, but the radios and the modems were fixed function.
Then came the software defined modems which got progressively more capable as we got better, fast sampling audio interfaces (once upon a time, actual "sound cards"), but the radios were still fixed function.
Then the first wave of Software Defined Radios where radio manufacturers substituted software on processors / DSPs / FPGAs for discrete components and custom ICs. But in those radios, the software was proprietary and only did what the manufacturer intended. And what they intended was to offer the same old, same old functionality with better performance such as more sensitivity and selectivity, and a few nice features like fully remote operation. But most telling to me that those weren't much of an advancement, THOSE SDRs did not incorporate any modems - that was left to outboard audio interfaces and host computers - like FreeDV, FT8, VARA, etc.
In the mid 2020s now, we have USER Software Defined Radios - like the zBitx. The user can alter the function of the radio solely through software that they choose (or develop themselves). I'm truly more impressed with the technology of the zBitx by including modes like FT8 and FreeDV in the radio, than I am with the "powerful" Software Defined Radios made by Flex, Yaesu, Kenwood, Icom, etc.
This era is finally where Amateur Radio can make a difference in advancing radio technology once again.
That software was becoming a key component of communications occurred to me back in the late 1980s whe were playing with old packet radio networks. Soon we had TCP/IP over packet through our TNCs. In the '90s we began talking about software defined radios - which are now mainstream. And now we have "radios" that aren't exactly radios either! As I write this, I'm on 7.074 Mhz FT8 - where to a large extent, much of the the "radio" is my PC! There is much innovation yet to come - and we will see it across the board, in analog and digital radio - and much more.
Edward - In my mind, there have been three distinct phases up through present day. The first was software defined networking, such as the TCP/IP operations we both enjoyed back in the 1990s and early 2000s, but the radios and the modems were fixed function.
Then came the software defined modems which got progressively more capable as we got better, fast sampling audio interfaces (once upon a time, actual "sound cards"), but the radios were still fixed function.
Then the first wave of Software Defined Radios where radio manufacturers substituted software on processors / DSPs / FPGAs for discrete components and custom ICs. But in those radios, the software was proprietary and only did what the manufacturer intended. And what they intended was to offer the same old, same old functionality with better performance such as more sensitivity and selectivity, and a few nice features like fully remote operation. But most telling to me that those weren't much of an advancement, THOSE SDRs did not incorporate any modems - that was left to outboard audio interfaces and host computers - like FreeDV, FT8, VARA, etc.
In the mid 2020s now, we have USER Software Defined Radios - like the zBitx. The user can alter the function of the radio solely through software that they choose (or develop themselves). I'm truly more impressed with the technology of the zBitx by including modes like FT8 and FreeDV in the radio, than I am with the "powerful" Software Defined Radios made by Flex, Yaesu, Kenwood, Icom, etc.
This era is finally where Amateur Radio can make a difference in advancing radio technology once again.