The MESTOR subsystem controls the basic operation characteristics and, optionally, also the timed recordings.
The user can define his/her basic operation environment with "SET declaratives" and the timed recording commands with "MESTOR scripts" in the [MESTOR] section of JAGUAR.INI. The SET declaratives define the bandwidth used, the centre frequency, the recording folder, QTH (the user coordinates), the default VFO frequency list and more. If the SET declaratives are missing, JAGUAR will use its internal default values.
The MESTOR scripts for timed recordings are not mandatory but most users leave JAGUAR running overnight in order to record TOHs (top-of-the-hours), BOTs (bottom-of-the-hours), or any other desired time periods, or even the whole night, according to predefined recording script(s). The defined script is repeated daily. JAGUAR.INI may contain several [MESTOR] sections, and the user can also schedule the change of [MESTOR] plan itself.
JAGUAR’s full installation package contains a JAGUAR.INI template with a simple example [MESTOR] section. The user should modify this section after the installation.
• the [MESTOR] section can contain comments. A comment is any line starting with //.
• the [MESTOR] lines must start from the beginning of each line, and they must not contain special characters (tabs, line breaks, etc).
The most common JAGUAR start-up or operation failures are due to invisible special characters in JAGUAR.INI. This is also why they are hard to spot.
SET DECLARATIVES IN THE TEMPLATE
[MESTOR] // Give name to Mestor section) SET NAME MESTOR1 // Use sampling rate 2 MHz, center frequency as 995kHz SET SAMPLING 2000 CENTER 995 // Define recording disk and overflow disk (if you use folders in path, f.eg. // "SET DISK C:\RECORDINGS OVERFLOW D:", you must first create the folders manually SET DISK C:\ OVERFLOW D: // Define your QTH (location, lat, lon) SET QTH LEMMENJOKI, 68.7667, 26.3167 // Set your favorite frequencies into VFO dial SET VFO 1230,1240,1340,1400,1450,1490
SET VFO also accepts "SET VFO OVERSEAS": if you want to do VFO scans for all overseas frequencies, except local continent frequencies, you do not have to enumerate the frequencies one by one. This also works for North American users: SET VFO OVERSEAS will include 531,549,558, etc.
When the primary disk becomes full, recording continues on the OVERFLOW disk. When the user wants to record again to the original primary disk (after making some free space on that disk), he/she must switch back to it by visiting the INFOBOX and checking the "active disk marker" (the asterisk (*)) back to the primary disk (see INFOBOX help for mor details). Note that normally JAGUAR’s advanced time jumps can cover only the files from either disk.
Furthermore, JAGUAR automatically maintains JIXHISTORY.LOG and JIXMAX.LOG for saving the J-Index data (see JIX for more informaton).
In addition to the SET declaratives, the [MESTOR] section can contain an unlimited number of recording timers. The template JAGUAR.INI contains two examples.
MESTOR SCRIPTS IN THE TEMPLATE
// Recording timers --- here are two examples (uncomment and modify what you want) // Record 8 minutes at each top of the hour 10 times starting at 21'58 21:58 (8) x10 // Record two hours starting at 30 minutes before sunrise //SUNRISE-30 (120)
TIMED RECORDING EXAMPLES
To give you an idea of what you can do with MESTOR, here are a few of example scripts. You can creatively combine them for your own purposes. Place all of your MESTOR scripts in the [MESTOR] section after the SET declaratives.
An important note about the time format in the MESTOR scripts: We strongly recommend that you always use the colon (:) as a separator between hours and minutes (hh:mm). The apostrophe (') is supported but there has been some confusion earlier due to some apostrophe-resembling characters such as single quotation marks or accents which do not work in the scripts. Using the colon is the safest option.
Example 1: Extended top-of-the-hour
TOH 21-05
This script will record "extended top-of-the-hours" using the defined centre frequency and sampling rate. The start time is at xx:59 (including 2059 and 0459 UTC) and the duration of each recording is 8 minutes (if the bandwidth of 2 MHz is used) or 10 minutes (if the bandwidth of 1.6 MHz is used).
Example 2: Short top-of-the-hour
TOP 22-06 22:54 COPE (7) M-F
We will create "short top-of-the-hour" (2-minute) recordings between 2200 and 0600 UTC (starting at xx:59). There is one exception, however. 2300 UTC will not be included in the top-of-the-hour recordings because another function overrides it: 22:54 COPE (7) M-F. This command will record the COPE local break which starts at 2254 UTC and lasts for 7 minutes. The filename for this function will be suffixed as ".... COPE.WAV" and is recorded only from Mondays to Fridays as per the " M-F " definition. Consequently, standard TOPs starting at 2259 UTC will be run only on Saturdays and Sundays.
Example 3: Custom top-of-the-hour
SET ATT 1 21:54 (15) 22:54 (15) 23:54 (15) 00:54 (15) 01:54 (15) SET ATT 0 02:52 SUNRISE (200)
This is a more complicated script, filled with a number of useful functions. We have defined our own "top-of- the-hour" function: at every hour, the recording starts at xx:54 and lasts for 15 minutes. We have also defined a longer recording in the morning which starts at 0252 UTC and lasts for 200 minutes. This filename will be suffixed as "... SUNRISE.WAV". The overnight recordings will use the attenuation (ATT) level 1 (-10 dB) but, in the morning, the attenuation level will be 0 (zero = no attenuation).
Example 4: Extended top-of-the-hour and short half-hour
TOHH 21-08
This simple script is a good example of how to record extended top-of-the-hours from xx:59 to xx:07 (or xx:59 to xx:09 if a narrower 1.6-MHz bandwidth is used) as well as half-hour spots from xx:29 to xx:31.
Example 5: Super-scheduler
21:58 (12) x10
This script is an example of a super-scheduler which is of format hh:mm (mins) xnn. It will record [mins] minutes starting at [hh:mm] and recording takes place [nn] times, x = "multiplier", [nn] can be between 1...24, [mins] can be between 1...60. The hourly start (or BREAKPOINT) happens always at the minute given in [mm]. So 21:58 (12) x10 will record 12 minutes at each top-of-the-hour (TOTH), starting at 2158 UTC. This happens 10 times so the last recorded TOTH will be between 0658-0710 UTC.
Another example:
19:54 (60) x20
records 20 hours daily from 1954 UTC with breakpoints at every xx:54:00.
Example 6: Greyzone recorder
SUNRISE-30 SUNSET-30
This script, called GREYZONE RECORDER, is an example of a dynamic script. The recording time is determined by the sunrise and/or sunset times at the location (QTH) defined in SET QTH. The recording time will vary day by day. You can make your daily SUNRISE and SUNSET recordings run with a user-defined length (default = 60 minutes) and shift from the sunrise/sunset times.
In the example above:
SUNRISE-30 records 60 minutes daily starting 30 minutes before your local sunrise
SUNSET-30 records 60 minutes daily starting 30 minutes before your local sunset
Other examples:
SUNRISE records 60 minutes daily starting at your local sunrise
SUNRISE (30) records 30 minutes daily starting at your local sunrise
SUNRISE-15 (90) records 90 minutes daily starting 15 minutes before your local sunrise
SUNSET records 60 minutes daily starting at your local sunset
SUNSET+30 (45) records 45 minutes daily starting 30 minutes after your local sunset
Example 7: Overnight recording
21:57 (550)
A current mega trend in MW DXing is to record the whole night and use the JAGUAR spectrum analysis tool AUTOSCAN to pick up the interesting stations from the large amount of files which an overnight recording produces. This script starts recording at 2157 UTC and records up to 0707 UTC. The file breaks will never happen at the exact TOH hours because the file length is 8 minutes (with the bandwidth of 2 MHz) or 10 minutes (1.6 MHz).
JAGUAR PRO users can also use the [CUSTOM] parameter of REC_BREAKPOINT=57 (see CUSTOM help) so that the file breaks will always happen at XX:57. Another possibility is to define
21:57 (60) x9 06:57 (8)
This way all the file breakpoints would happen at the same minute. Note that the last TOH 07 must be added separately to the bottom.
CHECKING THE MESTOR SYNTAX
After you have created the MESTOR scripts in the [MESTOR] section of JAGUAR.INI, the program will check the script syntax and try to build the "MESTOR Control Tables" based on the given scripts. Sometimes, an error message may be displayed if a fatal error is found, for example, if the hard disk drive where you want to save your recordings is missing. After every change in the MESTOR scripts, it is always a good habit to check the content of the control tables by pressing the ? (QUESTION MARK) key in JAGUAR (and fix the scripts if the content is not what you have planned). If you are happy with the recording scheme displayed, just leave JAGUAR as is. You can leave it in the ARCHIVE mode or in the LIVE mode, running or paused. JAGUAR will take care of the recordings at the programmed times whatever mode JAGUAR is in.
MESTOR APPLET
The MESTOR applet is a small special window used to minimize the consumption of resources in an overnight 24/7 operation. The user can minimize JAGUAR and enter the MESTOR applet mode by clicking TOOLBAR > MESTOR, or selecting MENU > MESTOR, or pressing M (default for M is "MAPS" but JAGUAR PRO users can override the default by setting M=MESTOR in [CUSTOM]). JAGUAR also automatically enters the MESTOR applet mode if there is no user activity in one hour. The automatic entry to the MESTOR applet mode can be blocked by selecting TOOLBAR > SETTINGS > PREFERENCES > KEEP MAXIMIZED.
By default, the MESTOR applet shows the following information:
• REAL TIME
• REC DISK USED DATA %
• CPU %
The applet colour is either red (Recording), green (Idle) or grey (hardware not connected). When the mouse hovers over the applet, the info areas will change to the following buttons:
• SHOW
• STATUS
• RETURN
Clicking SHOW invokes the MESTOR info popup window, clicking STATUS invokes the JAGUAR status window, and finally clicking RETURN restores a full-screen JAGUAR operation.
The MESTOR info popup window shows the control declaratives and the recording schedule for the currently-active [MESTOR] section. You can change the values dynamically (without a JAGUAR restart) by answering "NO" to "((( MESTOR PLAN OK ? )))". The MESTOR edit window appears for changes.
ADVANCED USAGE
Besides controlling the wideband recordings, MESTOR also offers other timed start-up services and a support for multiple MESTOR recording schedules (plans).
RUN: Any program can be scheduled in MESTOR:
HH:MM RUN path-to-program
MESTOR: MESTOR plans can be changed
HH:MM MESTOR mestor-plan-name
POWERSAVE: Hibernate and wake-up at hh:mm
HH:MM POWERSAVE hh:mm
ANTENNA: Switch to antenna X
HH:MM ANTENNA X
SCANTARGET: Change AUTOSCAN’s target scope
HH:MM SCANTARGET MW9 (or MW10)
TINYTOP: Record only 1 minute at the top of the hours
TINYTOP HH-HH
TINYBOT: Record only 1 minute at the bottom of the hours
TINYBOT HH-HH
Additional notes:
• RUN requires a valid path to the desired software application
• MESTOR plan name given must be found in another [MESTOR] section (see below)
• POWERSAVE requires that the following OS settings are in place for correct functionality ie. your computer must support wakeup timers, and they must be enabled. Also, the wakeup logon must be disabled in Windows:
-- Control Panel > Hardware and sound > Power Options > Change plan settings > Change advanced power settings
-- Sleep: Allow wake timers: Enabled
-- (For current plan): Require a password on wakeup: No (This can be greyed out. If so, click "Change settings that are currently unavailable" > Now also "No" option becomes available)
-- Other sleep options should be "Never"
• ANTENNA requires a valid antenna definition in the Customisation > JAGUAR.INI > [ANTENNAS] section and a Velleman/Devantech control board to be configured for JAGUAR
• TINYTOP and TINYBOT will record one minute (XX:59:30-XX:00:30 and XX:29:30-XX:30:30) between the two given hours. For example, "TINYTOP 15-17" will record 14:59:30-15:00:30, 15:59:30-16:00:30 and 16:59:30-17:00:30.
MULTIPLE MESTOR PLANS
MULTIPLE MESTOR PLANS allow users to divide recordings to different output folders (for example, based on the antenna used). Also, if the user moves the receive location often, he/she can keep a [MESTOR] plan ready in JAGUAR.INI for both QTHs. There is no need to rewrite MESTOR settings when a change in receive locations happens, just activate the corresponding plan with ALT-M. The user can also schedule a change in [MESTOR] plan in MESTOR itself. The MESTOR plan names must not include spaces.
Below you will see an example where the user has three antennas, and each antenna is changed automatically by MESTOR, and the output (the recordings) is directed to respective folders. The MESTOR plans are also changed automatically. Note that the antenna changes require the Customisation > JAGUAR.INI > [ANTENNAS] section, and an antenna switch mechanism supported by JAGUAR (= Velleman, Devantech or a third-party program).
[MESTOR] //MIDDLE_EAST plan is launched at 15:00 SET NAME MIDDLE_EAST SET SAMPLING 1600 CENTER 1005 SET DISK E:\MEAST OVERFLOW C: SET QTH MYHOME, 60.1699, 24.9384 SET VFO 1287 SET ANTENNA 1 15:56 (8) X4 BOT 16-19 19:40 MESTOR AFRICA // Note: if AUTOSCAN is activated, user should add also SET TARGET MW9 // to MIDDLE_EAST plan in order to produce scan results for frequencies // that have the 9-kHz stepping (instead of the default 10-kHz stepping) [MESTOR] //AFRICA plan is launched at 19:40 SET NAME AFRICA SET SAMPLING 1600 CENTER 1005 SET DISK E:\AFRICA OVERFLOW C: SET QTH MYHOME, 60.1699, 24.9384 SET VFO 891,972 SET ANTENNA 2 19:56 (8) X4 BOT 19-23 23:45 MESTOR USA // Note: if AUTOSCAN is activated, user should add SET TARGET MW9 to AFRICA plan // in order to produce scan results for frequencies that have the 9-kHz stepping // (instead of the default 10-kHz stepping) [MESTOR] //USA is launched at 23.45 SET NAME USA SET SAMPLING 1600 CENTER 1005 SET DISK E:\USA OVERFLOW C: SET QTH MYHOME, 60.1699, 24.9384 SET VFO 1230,1240,1340,1400,1450,1490 SET ANTENNA 3 SUNRISE-70 (120) 23:56 (8) X5 BOT 00-05 15:00 MESTOR MIDDLE_EAST