













                           PD  -  POCSAG Decoder

                            User Documentation

                        Version 2.05 - February 2000










                              Contents


	1.		Introduction

	2.		Registration

	3.		Installation

	4.		Interfacing

	5.		Configuration
	5.1		PD.INI
	5.1.1		General Parameters
	5.1.2		Function Codes
	5.1.3		Colours
	5.1.4		Serial Output
	5.2		PAGERS.INI
	5.3		REJECT.INI
	5.4		TEXTSCAN.INI
	5.5		Language (.LNG) files

	6.		Running the program
	6.1		Starting
	6.2		Supported Keys
	6.3		Status Line
	6.4		Normal Mode
	6.4.1		Long Output (default)
	6.4.2		Short Output
	6.4		Debug Mode
	
	7.		Troubleshooting

	Appendix A	Version History
	Appendix B	PD and P_Base





1.	Introduction

PD,  together  with  a  receiver or scanner, allows the off-air decoding of 
POCSAG paging signals at 512, 1200  or  2400  bits/second.  This  makes  it 
extremely useful for the testing of paging transmitters and systems.

Decoding  of  both  numeric and alphanumeric pager data is supported, as is 
the hex dumping of raw POCSAG codewords.

PD uses a simple interface between a receiver or scanner's audio output and 
a COM port on the PC. In addition received pages may optionally be sent  in 
ASCII form to another COM port.

Received pages may also be logged on a parallel printer.

PD runs on an IBM PC or equivalent, anything  from  an  80286  upwards.  It 
requires  512K  of  conventional  memory and a small amount of hard disk or 
floppy. Hard disk is recommended.

PD runs under DOS or in Windows 95 MS-DOS Mode, running in  a  Windows  DOS 
session is not recommended.


2.	Registration

PD  is  freely  distributed  as  a shareware version. This has a timeout of 
about 15 minutes, after which a registration message is displayed  and  the 
program exits. Also the logging of pager data to disk is disabled. 

The fully functional registered version of PD is available on payment of a 
registration fee of either:-

a) 20 Pounds Sterling cash/cheque.
b) $30 U.S. cash.
c) $40 U.S. money order.

(NOT a "US Postal Money Order" - these are not negotiable in the U.K.)

The registration fee should be sent to:-

			Peter Baston,
			27 Higher Common Road,
			Buckley,
			Flintshire,
			CH7 3NG,
			U.K.

Please  note  that  the  software is registered by a key file, which can be 
sent out by E-mail. If  possible  please  give  your  E-mail  address  when 
ordering, and the version of shareware already in use.

PD may also be registered online via RegNet - The Registration Network,
using their secure server. The cost to register by this method is $29.95.

The online registration form for PD may be found at:- 

https://secure.reg.net/product.asp?ID=8563

Key files will normally be sent out by return email.

In addition RegNet may be contacted by phone or FAX:-

Tel: 1 800 WWW2REG (1 800 999-2734) or (719) 576-0123
FAX: 1 (719) 623-0399

*** The RegNet Program ID for PD is 8563 ***


 
3.	Installation

In order to install the program copy the following files into a directory
on a hard drive, or onto a floppy:-

README.1ST      -    List of files in release
PD205.TXT       -    This file !
CIRCUIT.GIF     -    Interface circuit schematic - GIF format
CIRCUIT.JPG     -    Interface circuit schematic - JPG format
POCSAG.TXT      -    A brief description of the POCSAG protocol
7100MOD.TXT     -    Discriminator output mod for Icom IC-R7100 receiver
9600MOD.TXT     -    Discriminator output mod for Yaesu FRG-9600 receiver
DISCRIM.TXT     -    How to find the disc. output on common scanners
PD.EXE          -    The PD program file
PD.INI          -    The main configuration file
REJECT.INI      -    List of RIC's to reject
PAGERS.INI      -    List of RIC's to highlight/beep/log
TEXTSCAN.INI    -    Configuration for TextScan feature
ENGLISH.LNG     -    Config file for English language
GERMAN.LNG      -    Config file for German language
SWEDISH.LNG     -    Config file for Swedish language
DANISH.LNG      -    Config file for Danish language
HEBREW.LNG      -    Config file for Hebrew language
THAI.LNG		-    Config file for Thai language
CHINESE.LNG		-    Chinese config file
RUSSIAN.LNG		-    Russian config file
SKYPER.LNG		-    Config file for German "Skyper" paging service

xxxxxxxx.KEY    -    Your .KEY file if registered



4.	Interfacing 


The  PD program requires serial POCSAG data to be applied to either the CTS 
or DSR pin of one of the PC's COM ports. RS232 levels are required,  ie  at 
least  +/-  3v.   PD is insensitive to polarity, ie it doesn't matter which 
way up mark and space are.


As POCSAG is transmitted as direct FSK of the VHF/UHF carrier the ideal way 
is  to take the data direct from the discriminator, via a data slicer.  The 
following circuit,  however,  has  been  fairly  successful,  taking  audio 
directly from the receiver's speaker output:-


  0.1 uF                    |\ +12v
---||-----------------------|- \|
AF IN    |                  |741 \
----     |                  |    /--------------------- Data Out
    |    \            ------|+ /|  |                    CTS (pin 5/8)
    |    / 100K       |     |/-12v |                 or DSR (pin 6/6)   
    |    \            |            | 
   GND   /            ----/\/\/\----         GND ------ GND (pin 7/5)
         |            |    100K
         |            \                  N.B. Pin Numbers for com port are
        GND           /                  given as x/y, where x is for a 25
                      \  10K             way, y for a 9 way.
                      /
                      |
                     GND      
		     
The  above circuit is a Schmitt Trigger, having thresholds of about +/- 1v. 
If such a large threshold is not required, eg for a  discriminator  output, 
then  the  level of positive feedback may be reduced by either reducing the 
value of the 10K resistor or by increasing the value of the  100K  feedback 
resistor.

The +/- 12v for the op-amp can be derived from unused signals  on  the  COM 
port (gives more like +/- 10v but works fine !):-


    TxD (2/3) --------------|<-------------------------------------- -12v
                                     |                  |
    RTS (4/7) --------------|<--------       GND        - -
                   |                          |         _ +  10uF
                    --------->|-------        - -       |
                    Diodes 1N4148    |        - + 10uF  GND
                                     |        |
    DTR (20/4) ------------->|-------------------------------------- +12v
    
PD may also be used with interfaces of the  "Hamcomm"  type,  or  with  the 
Optoelectonics  "Optolinx". These interfaces provide data on the dsr pin of 
the COM port, which may be selected by setting the "input=dsr" parameter in 
PD.INI,  see  section  5.1.10  below.  Please  note,  however,  that  these 
interfaces generally do not have much positive feedback, and may give  poor 
results  with an audio feed. They should function fine with a discriminator 
output, however.


5.	Configuration

5.1	PD.INI

The PD.INI file allows the operation of  PD  to  be  configured.  Any  text 
editor can be used to edit this file. The file is divided up into sections, 
headed  by  a  name  in square brackets, eg [general], [functions]. In each 
section are parameters, set to a value with an "=" sign, eg:-

logbeep=100
func1=alpha

In PD.INI, and any of the .INI files, comments may be added by starting the 
line with "#' eg:-

# This is a comment.


5.1.1	General Parameters

These parameters come under the [general] heading. 


5.1.1.1		comport

This allows the COM port used by PD to be set. COM port 1,2,3 or 4 may be 
used, eg:-

comport=2

The default is COM1


5.1.1.2		bitrate

This alows the bitrate of POCSAG data to be set. Allowable options are 512, 
1200, 2400 or auto. If auto is selected then the bit rate is determined by 
PD at the beginning of each transmission. Examples:-

bitrate=1200
bitrate=auto

The default is auto.


5.1.1.3		filter

This allows the PD screen to display either all pages or, if filtered, only 
those with matches in PAGERS.INI or TEXTSCAN.INI. To turn filtering off set 
"filter=0" or to turn on set "filter=1".

The default is 0 (no filtering).


5.1.1.4		toneonly

This allows tone-only pages to be globally rejected, to reduce screen/log 
clutter. Set "toneonly=1" to allow tone-only pages, "toneonly=0" to reject.

The default is 1 (allow tone-only pages).


5.1.1.5		logbeep

This parameter allows the length of the "beep" to be set. PD can emit a 
"beep" when a received page has it's RIC listed in PAGERS.INI, or contains 
text matching the strings in TEXTSCAN.INI.

logbeep=<number>

eg:-

logbeep=100

Where <number> is the length of the beep in milliseconds. A value of zero
turns off the beeping, this is the default.

5.1.1.6		logging  (Registered Version Only)

This parameter turn on or off logging to a daily log file. It can take the 
value 0 (no logging), or 1 (enable logging). Example:-

logging=1

Daily log files have filenames of the form DD-MM-YY.log, or MM-DD-YY.log if 
U.S. date format is selected. All decoded pages are logged to this file. At 
midnight the daily log file is closed, and a new one opened.

The default is 0, logging off.


5.1.1.7		log_path  (Registered Version Only)

This parameter allows the path for the storage of log files to be set. This 
may be either an absolute path or may be relative to the current directory. 
If the path does not end in a "\" then this will be added automatically. 
Examples:-

# Log files stored in subdirectory "logs" off the current PD directory:
log_path=logs\

# Log files stored at an absolute location:
log_path=C:\logfiles\

Please note that if the directory referenced does not exist then no logging 
will take place.

The default is the current directory.


5.1.1.8		expire  (Registered Version Only)

This parameter allows daily log files to be automatically deleted  after  a 
given  number  of  days. This will occur either when PD is started, or just 
after midnight. The format is

expire=<number of days>

eg:-

# Expire any daily logs over 5 days old:
expire=5

The default is 0 (don't expire).

5.1.1.9		language

This parameter allows PD to be customised for the language in use. The name 
given selects a special language configuration file, having the extension 
.LNG. This file allows the character set to be customised, as well as other 
special language features. See section 5.4 for a description of the .LNG 
file syntax. Example:-

# Select the file ENGLISH.LNG

language=english

Please note that the correct display of special characters for a particular 
language may require the PC to have the relevant code page for that 
language loaded. For example to display the Danish character set code page 
850 or 865 is required.


5.1.1.10	accept

This parameter determines whether decoded addresses (RIC's) are allowed to 
contain corrected errors. This can have two values, 0 (don't accept errors) 
or 1 (accept errors). Eg:-

accept=0

The default is 0. This is recommended.


5.1.1.11	date  (Registered Version Only)

This parameter allows the format of the date used when writing to log files 
to be set. Two formats, uk or usa, are allowed, eg:-

# Use U.K. date format:
date=uk

# Use U.S. date format:
date=usa

The U.K. date format is DD/MM/YY, the U.S. date format is MM/DD/YY.

The default is the UK format.


5.1.1.12	input

This parameter allows the pin of the com port used for reading the input 
data to be selected. This can either be the CTS pin or the DSR pin, eg:-

# To use standard PD interface on CTS pin:
input=cts

# To use "Hamcomm" type interface, or Optoelectronics Optolinx:
input=dsr

By default PD uses the CTS pin for it's input.

 
5.1.2	Function Codes

These parameters come under the [functions] heading.  Four  parameters  are 
supported  - func0, func1, func2 and func3. These allow the decoding of the 
pager data to be determined  by  the  function  code,  transmitted  in  the 
address codeword. The format for setting these parameters is:-

funcx=<string>

Where <string> is one of:- 

alpha		-	The message will be decoded as alphanumeric ASCII 
			data.

numeric		-	The message will be decoded as BCD numeric data.

raw		-	The message will be dumped in raw form, as hex
			codewords.

auto		-	PD will attempt to decide whether the message is 
			numeric or alphanumeric, and decode accordingly.

reject		-	Any pages having this function code will be 
			rejected.
			

eg:-

func0=raw
func1=auto
func2=auto
func3=alpha

The program defaults to decoding all function codes as "alpha" data.


5.1.3	Colours

These parameters come under the [colours] heading and may each  be  set  to 
one of the following values:-

  BLACK		0
  BLUE		1
  GREEN		2	
  CYAN		3	
  RED		4	
  MAGENTA	5	
  BROWN		6	
  WHITE		7	
  GRAY		8	
  LIGHTBLUE	9	
  LIGHTGREEN	10	
  LIGHTCYAN	11	
  LIGHTRED	12	
  LIGHTMAGENTA	13	
  YELLOW	14	
  BRIGHTWHITE	15

These parameters are in pairs, setting the foreground and background colours 
for a particular screen area:-

status_fore/status_back		Set the colours for the status line at the 
				bottom of the screen.
				
page_fore/page_back		Set the colours for the first line of a 
				received page. This line contains the 
				received RIC, function code, bit rate and 
				decoding format.
				
message_fore/message_back	Set the colours for the message part of a 
				received page. Also sets the colours for 
				the debug display, data with no errors.
				
log_fore/log_back		Set the colours used to display a RIC code 
				that appears in PAGERS.INI.
				
corrected_fore/corrected_back	Set the colours in debug mode for codewords 
				containing bit errors believed to be 
				corrected.
				
errored_for/errored_back	Set the colours in debug mode for codewords 
				containing un-correctable errors.				


5.1.4	Serial Output

These parameters come under the [serial] heading and configure the optional 
sending of messages in ASCII form to a COM port on the PC. This cannot be 
the same COM port as used by the PD interface.


5.1.4.1		port

This  option sets the COM port used for serial output. Allowable values are 
0 - 4. Setting this parameter to 0 turns the facility off.


5.1.4.2		baud

This option sets the baud rate for serial  output.  Allowable  options  are 
110, 150, 300, 600, 1200, 2400, 4800 or 9600.


5.1.4.3		parity

This option sets the parity for the  serial  port.  Allowable  options  are 
none, even or odd. 


5.1.4.4		data

This  option  sets  the  number  of  data  bits for ASCII output. Allowable 
options are 7 or 8.


5.1.4.5		stop

This option sets the number  of  stop  bits  for  ASCII  output.  Allowable 
options are 1 or 2.


5.1.4.6		ric

This option allows the received RIC code to be sent out to the serial port. 
To enable output of the RIC this option should be 1, otherwise 0.


5.1.4.7		func

This option allows the received function code to be sent out to the  serial 
port.  To  enable  output  of  the  function  code this option should be 1, 
otherwise 0.


5.1.4.8		filter

This option determines whether all pages are sent to the  serial  port,  or 
only  those  having RIC codes listed in PAGERS.INI/text matching strings in
TEXTSCAN.INI. 

This has the same effect on the serial output as the "filter" option in the
[general] section has on the screen display.

This  option  should  be  set  "filter=0"  for  all  pages to be output, or 
"filter=1" for pages selected by PAGERS.INI/TEXTSCAN.INI (filtering on).


5.1.4.9		date

This option allows the date to be output on the line sent to the serial 
port. To enable the date output set "date=1", to disable set "date=0"


5.1.4.10	time

This option allows the time to be output on the line sent to the serial 
port. To enable time output set "time=1", to disable set "time=0".


5.1.5	Printer Output

These parameters come under the [printer] heading and configure the optional
logging of received pages to a parallel printer. This printer must be
connected to the primary parallel printer port (LPT1). 


5.1.5.1		enable

This option enables printer output. Set to 1 to enable, 0 to disable.

# filter - allows either all decoded pages to be sent to 
# the printer, or only those selected by PAGERS.INI or TEXTSCAN.INI.
# filter=0 - print all pages
# filter=1 - print only selected pages


5.1.5.2		filter

This option allows either all decoded pages to be sent to 
the printer, or only those selected by PAGERS.INI or TEXTSCAN.INI.
filter=0 - print all pages
filter=1 - print only selected pages


5.1.5.3		width

This option sets the width at which each printed line will wrap. Set
dependent on printers form width. Example:-
width=79


5.1.5.4		pagelen

This option sets the number of lines per page, a form-feed is output
to separate pages. If set to zero no form-feed will be output, and 
printing will be continuous.

 

5.2	PAGERS.INI

This file contains a list of pager addresses to be logged and is  simply  a 
list  of  7  digit  RIC's.  Each RIC must begin in the first column and any 
characters after the 7th are ignored, and may be used  for  comments.  Also 
lines  beginning  in  "#"  may  be used for comments. RIC codes may contain 
wildcards, using the "?" character. Eg:-

# A few pager numbers....

1234567 Fred's pager
0012345 Joe's pager
111???? Any pager number beginning "111"

This  file  may  contain  up  to  250  addresses.  Every  time one of these 
addresses is encountered it is highlighted on the screen, a beep is sounded 
if configured, and the page is logged to disk with a date/time  stamp.  The 
log  filename  is  <RIC>.LOG,  eg  1234567.LOG. Wildcards are translated to 
underscores in filenames, eg 111____.log.

Please note that a page will be logged by the  first  match  found  in  the 
file.  For example if this file contained 12?????, and then 1234567 further 
down, then pages to RIC 1234567 would go into 12_____.log  and  _not_  into 
1234567.log.  It  is therefore best to put any entries containing wildcards 
towards the bottom of the file so that the individual  entries  will  catch 
them first.

5.3	REJECT.INI

This  file  contains  a  list of pager addresses to be rejected, eg to save 
screen clutter. This file has the same format as PAGERS.INI,  described  in 
5.2 above.

5.4	TEXTSCAN.INI

This file allows the TextScan facility to be configured. This looks for 
particular text strings in received pages and highlights those pages having 
matching text. In the registered version all received pages having text 
matches are logged to individual log files named TEXTxx.LOG, depending on
which string was found to match.

TEXTSCAN.INI has two parameter sections:-

5.4.1	[general]

5.4.1.1		enable

This parameter is used to enable/disable the TextScan facility. Set 
"enable=0" to disable, "enable=1" to enable.

The default is 0 (TextScan disabled).


5.4.2	[strings]

5.4.2.1		string1 - string100

These parameters allow up to 100 text strings to be entered. Each string can 
either be a single word, eg:-

string1=hello

or a sequence of words separated be spaces, eg:-

string2="the quick brown fox"

TextScan is case insensitive, eg:-

"hello" will match "HELLO"

otherwise the strings must match exactly.


5.5	Language (.LNG) files

Language files allow PD to be customised for the language in use. These 
files have the extension .LNG and are selected by the "language" parameter 
in PD.INI.

Several language files are provided with PD, but the user is free to create 
new ones. The easiest way is to copy one of the existing ones to a new 
filename and then edit.

*** The author would be grateful if anybody creating a new language file 
could send him a copy, so that these my be distributed with future releases 
of PD. ***

Language files are basically the same as .INI files, and have two 
sections:-

5.5.1		[general]

5.5.1.1		display_mode

This parameter selects how received pages are displayed to the screen. The 
options are as follows:-

display_mode=0  -  long form 2-line displays, as per version 2.03
display_mode=1  -  short form 1-line display, just <RIC>-<FUNC> <MESSAGE>
display_mode=2  -  short form display, from right to left
display_mode=3  -  automatic selection of left-right, or right-left.
                   If received message contains 3 or more characters above
                   127 then display right-left, otherwise left-right.

The default is display_mode=0

 
5.5.1.2		logging_mode 

This parameter selects how received pages are logged:-

logging_mode=0  -  long form 2-line entries, as per version 2.03
logging_mode=1  -  short form 1-line entries, just <RIC>-<FUNC> <MESSAGE>

The default is logging_mode=0

N.B.  No logging modes are currently defined for languages which read from 
right to left. These will be added as requirements become clearer.


5.5.2		[mapping]

This section allows the mapping between received 7-bit characters and 
displayed 8-bit characters to be set up. It consists of a series of 
statements of the form:-

<7-bit code>=<8 bit code>

Where decimal coding is used.

Each line may be followed by a comment if required, after a space. For 
example:-

[mapping]

125=129 If character 125 received display character 129
124=148       "      124             "              148 
123=132       "      123             "              132 

Any characters not mapped display as themselves, this is the default.




6.	Running the Program


6.1	Starting

PD is run from the DOS prompt by simply typing:-

PD<Enter>

No command line options are supported, if any are given then PD displays 
the message:-

*****************************************************
*** All PD Configuration is now by editing PD.INI ***
***    No Command Line Switches are Supported     ***
*****************************************************


6.2	Supported Keys

The following keys are supported whilst PD is running:-

ESC		Exits the program

F1		Toggles between NORMAL and DEBUG modes

SPACE BAR	Toggles PAUSE mode on and off

N.B. PAUSE mode stops the output of paging messages to the screen and 
printer. Any logging to disk will still carry on, and is not affected.


6.3	Status Line

After PD starts up it displays a status line along the bottom of the screen,
with a data area below. The status line is as shown below:-


NORMAL  COM1  1200  REJ  PAUSE  13-01-96.LOG 280890   100.0  \ 13:50:39    


The items on the status line are described below, from left to right:-

*  NORMAL/DEBUG indicator - shows which mode PD is currently operating in.

*  COM port currently in use.

*  Current POCSAG bit rate.

*  REJ indicator - appears when a pager address matches one listed in
   REJECT.INI

*  RUN/PAUSE indicator - indicates when paused by the space bar.	

*  Filename of current daily log file, and current file size.

*  Indication of receiving efficiency. 100% indicates that all received 
   codewords contain no errors. Any codewords containing errors, whether 
   corrected or not, will drive this figure down.

*  Rotating signal indicator. Appears to rotate when data is being
   received on the correct pin of the COM port. This is no indication of
   good data, just that the levels are correct.

*  The current time from the PC's real time clock.


6.4	Normal Mode

In Normal Mode decoded pages are displayed on the screen. The way they are 
displayed depends on display_mode, in the current language file. There are 
two basic display options, plus the ability for right-left text etc.

Before data is displayed in NORMAL mode the address codeword is checked for 
errors.  If the "accept" parameter in PD.INI is set to 0 then this codeword 
must be error free, thus ensuring that the correct RIC is always displayed. 
If "accept" is set to 1 then address codewords will  be  accepted  even  if 
they  had  correctable  errors. This means there is a chance that the wrong 
RIC will be displayed - if a large number of bit errors are present.

Subsequent data codewords are decoded irrespective  of  any  errors.   This 
means  that  some "garbling" of data will occur in the presence of a lot of 
errors. All codewords are, however, error corrected.  This means  that,  in 
the presence of 1 or 2 bit errors, the orignal codeword will be recovered.


6.4.1	Long Output (display_mode=0) Mode (default)

As long as good POCSAG data is being received, lines of the following  form 
are displayed:-

RIC: <RIC code> FUNC: <func code> RATE: <bit rate> <decoding type> [auto]

Where:-

<RIC code> 	is the 7-digit pager address

<func code>	is the single digit function code 0,1,2 or 3

<bit rate>	is the data rate at which the page was received:
		512, 1200 or 2400

<decoding type>	specifies how the message data is being decoded:

		Tone	-	Tone - only page 		
		Numeric	-	BCD numeric page
		Alpha	-	ASCII alphanumeric page

[auto]		is appended to the line if PD is making an automatic 
		alpha/numeric decision for this function code.

In the case of numeric or alphanumeric pages then another line or lines of 
message data follow.

eg:-

RIC: 1234567 FUNC: 3 RATE: 512 Alpha:
Please call 1234 - 5688
RIC: 0345678 FUNC: 1 RATE: 1200 Tone
RIC: 0000123 FUNC: 2 RATE: 2400 Numeric (auto):
555-123-1212


6.4.2	Short Form Output (display_mode=1)

This display mode allows simple one-line output of received pages. The 
lines output are of the form:-

<RIC>-<FUNC> <Message - if any>

For example:-

1234567-0 Please call Pete - Urgent.
1111111-3 111-555-1212
1122334-0
1122335-0 Test page




6.5	Debug Mode.

In  Debug mode the batches of raw POCSAG codewords are dumped to the screen 
in hex form, eg:-

7A89C197 7A89CI97 7A89C197 7A89C197 7A89C197 7A89C197 7A89C197 7A89C197
7A89C197 7A89C197 14083EE2 7A89C197 7A89C197 7A89C197 7A89C197 7A89C197


Any codewords containing errors will be displayed in different colours,  as 
configured  in PD.INI. By default codewords containing corrected errors are 
displayed as yellow on white  whilst  codewords  containing  un-correctable 
errors are displayed as red on white.

The  debug mode is very useful for setting up, as it gives an indication of 
the number of errors currently being received. The shareware  version  will 
not time out while in debug mode.

Please note that no logging will take place while in debug mode.


7.	Troubleshooting

This section provides help with some common problems encountered when 
running PD.

7.1  "The signal indicator is not rotating"

The signal indicator will rotate when any signal having the correct RS232 
levels is received on the correct pin of the correct COM port. The signal 
does not have to be POCSAG and even white noise will suffice. Double check 
your interface and check that you're using the right COM port and pin, as 
defined in PD.INI.


7.2  "The signal indicator is rotating, but I'm not getting any decoded
      data on the screen"

Basically a signal is being seen, but it's not good POCSAG data. This could 
be down to several reasons:-

1) The receiver is not tuned to a POCSAG signal.

2) The data is very distorted, due to poor signal strength, interference 
etc.

3) The audio level is not correctly adjusted - this can be very critical.

4) A "Hamcom" type interface, with little/no positive feedback is being 
used with louspeaker audio. Try the recommended interface or use a 
discriminator output.

These symptoms could also be caused by attempting to run PD in a Windows 
"DOS Box". PD will only run successfully under DOS, or in Windows 95 "MSDOS 
mode".


7.3  "I'm getting decodes, but a lot are garbled"

This could be down to the error rate, check the figure at the bottom of the 
screen, to the left of the time. If this is not at least 80% then you need 
to improve your signal/interface. See section 7.2 above.

Some garbling could also be down to alpha pages being decoded as numeric, 
and vice versa, if the "auto" mode is being used. It's best to fix the 
decoding to "alpha" or "numeric" if you know what you need.



                              APPENDIX A
                         PD Software History


VERSION 1.02	Initial Released Version


VERSION 2.00	Jan 1996 Major Release 

* Now supports 2400 baud and has auto bit-rate detection.
* Will now attempt to correct up to 2 bit errors in a codeword.
* Will now attempt to auto-detect numeric or alphanumeric data.
* Now supports logging of all messages to daily log files.
* Logging now continues whilst in PAUSE mode.
* PAGERS.INI and REJECT.INI will now allow comments after pager addresses.
* PAGERS.INI and REJECT.INI will now allow wildcards in pager addresses.
* PAGERS.INI and REJECT.INI will now accept up to 250 entries each.
* Date format may now be configured for the US market.
* Will now correctly display "umlaute" characters used in German.
* Screen colours may now be configured.


VERSION 2.01	May 1996

* Minor bugs fixed, screen colours and restoring cursor.
* PAUSE now works while in DEBUG mode.
* Serial output of messages on second serial port now supported.
* Added support for Swedish and Danish language characters.


VERSION 2.02	July 1996

* Fixed problem causing poor decoding when running on some motherboards -
  particularly Pentium systems.
* Fixed problem with buffer overflow, caused by receiving long pages -
  this could cause strange behaviour or exit to DOS.
* Fixed bug whereby PAUSE did not work properly (introduced in 2.01)  


VERSION 2.03	September 1996

* Increased maximum size of paging message received to 1000 characters.
* Made input pin selectable between CTS and DSR for use with Hamcomm and
  Optolinx type interfaces.
* Increased timeout in shareware version to 15 minutes.  

VERSION 2.04	September 1997

* Made language features configurable by means of .LNG files.
* Re - introduced short single-line display and log formats.
* Added TextScan facility, allowing up to 10 text strings to be searched
  for in received messages.
* Serial output enabled in shareware version - allows evaluation with 
  Dave Evans' P_Base.
* Highlighting and beeping for selected pages now work in the shareware 
  version
* Added options for date and time on serial output.
* Added the "filter" facility to restrict decoding to only those RIC's 
  listed in PAGERS.INI or messages containing matching text strings.
* Added the ability to globally reject tone-only pages.
* PAGERS.INI and REJECT.INI may now each contain up to 1000 entries.



VERSION 2.05	February 2000

* Added support for parallel printer output.
* TEXTSCAN.INI can now have up to 100 strings.
* Logging of TEXTSCAN pages to separate log files.
* TEXTSCAN strings now work with space at beginning or end.
* Select logging of numeric, alpha or both via "logging" variable.
* Time stamping of received pages on screen.
* Fixed "Year 2000" bug in "expire" feature.
* Switching between two mapping tables, using control codes 
  (see CHINESE.LNG).
  


                                APPENDIX B
                              PD with P_Base
			      
Dave Evans has developed a companion pager database for PD, called P_Base. 
P_Base runs under Windows and can either receive data via the serial link 
from another machine running PD, or can analyse the log files produced by 
PD.

For information on P_Base, and to download, see Dave Evans' web page:-

http://www.devans.demon.co.uk/p_base.htm

Or contact Dave at the following address:-

Dave Evans
Glendale 
Mount Pleasant Road
Buckley
Flintshire
CH7 3ET
U.K.

E-mail: p_base@devans.demon.co.uk

In order for P_Base to work correctly with PD certain parameters have to be 
set correctly. These ensure that the log file and serial output are in the 
format expected by P_Base. Please follow the guidelines below:-


Log Files
---------

Make sure that logging_mode, in the language file being used, is set to 0 - 
giving the default (2 line) logging mode.


Serial Output
-------------

Set the following parameters, in the [serial] section of PD.INI:-

filter=0    >> This is the normal setting for all messages

baud=9600   >> pre-set speed etc. in P_Base
parity=none
data=8
stop=1

date=0      >> P_Base add its own date/time
time=0

ric=1       >> P_Base needs to know the pager number
func=0      >> P_Base doesn't filter on func code. 

(You can define what message types are sent to P_Base by editing the 
[functions] section of PD.INI).


Interfacing to P_Base
---------------------

Remember to use a crossover cable (null modem cable) or  in-line  crossover 
adapter when you connect your PD204 machine to your P_Base machine for real 
time operation.

  
                                 END
                           <<<<<=====>>>>>

