Using the Spot Database

SpotCollector Online Help Contents

 

Spots arriving from spot sources are used to create entries in SpotCollector's Spot Database. Each Spot Database Entry represents a single DX station operating in the same mode around the same frequency over an interval of time. When a spot arrives, SpotCollector

The information recorded in a Spot Database Entry is obtained from

A table describing each of a Spot Database Entry's fields is available here.

DXClusters running DX Spider software can be configured to append the spotting station's Maidenhead gridsquare to each spot. DXKeeper can properly decode spots with appended gridsquares, and will record such gridsquares in the Spot Database's OriginGrid field. To enable a cluster running DX Spider to append spotting station gridsquares, enter the following command:

set/dxgrid

 

the Spot Database Display

Access to and management of the Spot Database is accomplished via controls in the Spot Database Window . The most important of these controls is the Spot Database Display - a grid that displays several Spot Database entries. Expanding the height of the Spot Database window will increase the number of Spot Database entries visible in the Spot Database Display, and expanding the width of this window will increase the number of fields visible in each entry. You can reformat the Spot Database Display's field order and field widths.

The Spot Database Display shows a subset of all Spot Database Entries ; the number of QSOs in this subset is displayed in the main window's title bar. Specifying this subset is referred to as Filtering the Spot Database. You can control the order in which entries appear in the Spot Database Display, as well as the order of the columns used to display each entry's contents. Whether all columns in the Spot Database Display will be simultaneously visible depends on their number and width, as well as the width of the Main window. If all columns are not simultaneously visible, a horizontal scrollbar will be displayed along the bottom of the Spot Database Display; you can use this scrollbar to select the columns you wish to see.  The small black rectangle to the left of the horizontal scrollbar can be dragged to the right to split the Spot Database Display into two independently scrollable sets of columns. You can adjust the boundary between the two sets by dragging the black rectangle to the left of the horizontal scrollbar at the bottom of the right-hand set of columns; to eliminate the right-hand set of columns, drag its black rectangle all the way to the left.

Identifying Spot Database Display Entries for Needed stations

DXLab provides Realtime Award Tracking service for seven award families and for callsign leaderboard competitions. The creation of a Spot Database Entry for a station with whom a QSO would advance your progress towards one of these awards or competitions can trigger and audible announcement or email message; such an Entry will be highlighted as needed.

Callsigns whose leaderboard board competitions you're pursuing are identified with an entry in the Special Callsign List tagged with Leaderboard. SpotCollector interoperates with DXKeeper, DXLab's logging program, to obtain 

Award objectives are determined from information DXKeeper maintains in the Windows registry; thus DXKeeper need not be running for SpotCollector to appropriately characterize spots. realtime award tracking  information is obtain from a DXKeeper log file. You can configure SpotCollector to 

If you use only one log file in DXKeeper, then SpotCollector's out-of-the-box setting is appropriate (ask the operator for guidance when a log is opened in DXKeeper that is different than the one currently being consulted by SpotCollector). If you use DXKeeper to maintain logs of QSOs made from multiple DXCC entities, you'll find it convenient to specify that SpotCollector always consult the log associated with your home station; this keeps SpotCollector focused on the correct source of award progress when you use DXKeeper to open one of the other logs for QSO confirmation, QSL generation,  or other activities.

The term counter refers to the object of an award for which realtime award tracking information is provided in the currently-open log:

Using the objectives specified on the DXCC/Top panel on DXKeeper's Awards tab and realtime award tracking information from the specified log, SpotCollector places each Spot Database Entry into one of five categories

SpotCollector considers the Entry for a station that you've already worked on the Entry's band and in the Entry's mode to be unneeded, because another QSO with this station on the Entry's band and in the Entry's mode will not increase your chances of obtaining a confirmation of the Entity's counter(s), counter-band(s), or counter-mode(s).

When the currently-open DXKeeper log provides realtime award tracking information for more than one award -- e.g. DXCC and WAZ --  a Spot Database Entry's category  is determined by the award for which the  Entry is most needed. The unworked counter category is considered the most needed, and the verified category is considered the least needed.

By default, unworked counter Spot Database Entries and unworked band or mode or band-mode Spot Database Entries are rendered with a red font, unconfirmed Spot Database Entries with a blue font, and unneeded and verified Spot Database Entries with a black font; you can modify these colors via the Configuration window's Spot Database Display tab. A Color codes panel summarizing these font colors is displayed to the right of the Main window's Filter panel if window width permits; double-clicking the phrase Color codes directs SpotCollector to display the Configuration window's Spot Database Display tab.

Spot Database entries that would give you a duplicate QSO -- i.e. with a callsign you've already worked --  for an unconfirmed band, mode, or counter are categorized as unneeded rather than unconfirmed. For example, suppose you have already worked, but not yet confirmed VU4DX on 20m SSB.  Spot Database Entries for VU4DX on 20m SSB will be rendered in black - even though you don't have VU4 confirmed; that's because another QSO with VU4DX on 20m SSB will not advance your awards progress. However, Spot Database Entries for VU4DY on 20m SSB would be colored blue, as working this station would give you a new way to confirm VU4 on 20m and SSB.

There are three ways to determine why a Spot Database Entry is colored unworked counter, unworked band or mode or band-mode, or unconfirmed, each revealing progressively more information:

  1. Examine the contents of the Entry's  Needed field (assuming it's present in the Spot Database Display):

  2. Let the mouse cursor hover for a few seconds over the Entry's callsign field; an explanatory popup will appear that explains in more detail why the Entry is needed

  3. Right-click the Entry and select the Display Award Tracking menu entry; SpotCollector will display its Realtime Award Tracking window, which shows progress towards each award for which realtime award tracking information is provided in the currently-open log. 

If you have never installed or executed  DXKeeper, then the Seek everything setting determines whether SpotCollector assumes that every Spot Database Entry is needed or unneeded.

SpotCollector can also generate an audio alarm whenever a needed or special Spot Database Entry is created. Settings in the Audio Alarm panel on the Config window's General tab allow you to

Each Spot Database Entry includes award progress information obtained the log file referenced for award progress. If you modify or delete a logged QSO in DXKeeper, SpotCollector is automatically directed to update this award progress information. If you are planning to modify or delete many QSOs in DXKeeper, it may be more efficient to disable these automatic updates, perform one update after all changes have been made, and then re-enable automatic updates. If automatic updates are left disabled, SpotCollector may incorrectly identify Spot Database Display entries for needed stations.

If you change logs in DXKeeper while SpotCollector is running, SpotCollector will give you the choice of continuing to check progress against the previously-opened log, or switching to the new log.

 

Identifying Spot Database Display Entries for stations known to participate in ARRL's Logbook of the World (LotW)

The file LotW.mdb is a database containing callsigns known to participate in the ARRL's Logbook of the World (LotW); recent versions of this database include each callsign's "date of last upload to LotW". If at startup, LotW.mdb is present in DXView's Databases folder or in SpotCollector's Databases folder, then SpotCollector will set the LotW item of each Spot Database Entry it creates to indicate whether or not the entry's callsign is a known Logbook of the World participant; if LotW.mdb is not present in DXView's or SpotCollector's Databases folders, then each Spot Database Entry's LotW item will be set to 'N'. If the LotW Database includes "date of last upload to LotW" information, then you can also specify the maximum age of a station's last upload to LotW; callsigns listed in LotW Database but with a "date of last upload" older than the specified age will not be considered to be an LotW participant. You can obtain the most recent LotW.mdb via the Databases tab of DXView's Databases folder. 

By default, Spot Database Entries whose callsigns are not known to participate in Logbook of the World and not Authenticity Guaranteed members of eQSL.cc are rendered with a white background; Spot Database Entries whose callsigns are known to participate in Logbook of the World are rendered with a yellow background, unless they are also Authenticity Guaranteed members of eQSL.cc -- in which case they are rendered with a light blue (cyan) background. You can modify these colors via the Configuration window's Spot Database Display tab. 

Checking the Announce LotW participation box directs SpotCollector to identify announced Spot Database entries whose callsigns are known to participate in Logbook of the World

 

Identifying Spot Database Display Entries for Authenticity Guaranteed members of eQSL.cc

The file eQSLAG.mdb is a database containing Authenticity Guaranteed members of eQSL.cc. If at startup, eQSLAG.mdb is present in DXView's Databases folder or in SpotCollector's Databases folder, then SpotCollector will set the eQSL item of each Spot Database Entry it creates to indicate whether or not the entry's callsign is an Authenticity Guaranteed member; if eQSLAG.mdb is not present in DXView's or SpotCollector's Databases folders, then each Spot Database Entry's eQSL item will be set to 'N'.  You can obtain the most recent eQSLAG.mdb via the Databases tab of DXView's Databases folder. . 

By default, Spot Database Entries whose callsigns are not Authenticity Guaranteed members of eQSL.cc and not known to participate in Logbook of the World are rendered with a white background. Spot Database Entries whose callsigns are known to participate in Logbook of the World are rendered with a pink background, unless they are also known to participate in Logbook of the World -- in which case they are rendered with a light blue (cyan) background You can modify these colors via the Configuration window's Spot Database Display tab. 

Checking the Announce eQSL participation box directs SpotCollector to identify announced Spot Database entries whose callsigns are Authenticity Guaranteed members of eQSL.cc

 

Formatting the Spot Database Display

To change the width of a column in the Spot Database Display, position the cursor over the vertical line to the left or right of the column's caption; when properly positioned, the cursor will change to the Windows border adjustment cursor, allowing you to click and drag the column border to either expand or contract the column width as desired.

To change the order of columns in the Spot Database Display, click on the caption of a column you wish to relocate. Then click-and-drag the column until the two red positioning triangles indicate the desired new location.

To specify which fields appear as columns in the Spot Database Display, the caption appearing at the top of each column, and the alignment of each information in each column, use the Layout panel in the Configuration window's Spot Database Display tab.

To split the Spot Database Display into two independently scrollable sets of columns, use the black rectangle to the left of the horizontal scroll bar. Using the left mouse button to click-and-drag this rectangle to the right will create a second set of columns. To eliminate this second set of columns, click-and-drag this rectangle back to the left margin.

To change the format used to display dates and times in the FirstTime, LastTime, and RcvdTime fields, use the Configuration window's dates and times setting.

 

Sorting the Spot Database

Using the radio buttons in the Spot Database window's Sort panel, you can sort the Spot Database Display in order of

Sort Description Field Order
First sort by the UTC time (extracted from spot) each DX station was first spotted  FirstTime per Date & Time Sort Order panel
Last sort by the UTC time (extracted from spot) each DX station was most recently spotted  LastTime per Date & Time Sort Order panel
Rcv sort by the UTC time (from PC) each DX station was most recently spotted  RcvdTime per Date & Time Sort Order panel
Call sort by each spotted DX station's callsign Callsign ascending
Freq sort by each spotted DX station's frequency Frequency ascending
Az sort by each spotted DX station's azimuth (short path antenna heading) Azimuth ascending

You can sort by any column in the Spot Database Display by double-clicking on its caption. The first time you do this, the Spot Database Display will be sorted in ascending order of the selected column; if you double-click the caption again, the Spot Database Display will be sorted in descending order. The Sort panel's caption will indicate how the Spot Database Display is being sorted by displaying the caption of the Spot Database Display column you double-clicked, followed by the word desc if the order is descending. 

Filtering the Spot Database

Through the use of filters, you can direct SpotCollector to limit the display of Spot Database Entries to those that match specific criteria, such as

When you specify a filter, the Spot Database Display immediately hides all Spot Database entries that don't conform. Spot Database Entries created after you specify a filter are added to the Spot Database, but only appear in the Spot Database Display if they conform to the current filter. If you modify or clear the current filter, the Spot Database Display is immediately updated to show only conforming entries.  The number of entries in the Spot Database Display is shown in the Main window's title bar.

SpotCollector also provides a more fine-grained mechanism for controlling the Spot Database Display: any individual Spot Database Entry can be designated as hidden. You can further specify a set of keywords that, if found in a spot's notes, will automatically designate its Spot Database Entry as hidden; the words pirate and slim are good candidates for this list. You can review all hidden entries and, if desired, un-hide them.

The Spot Database window's Filter panel provides the means by which you specify the current filter. The Filter panel's caption displays the current filter within square brackets, for example

Filter: [call=SV2ASP/A]

which means that the Spot Database Display only shows entries whose callsign is SV2ASP/A and that have not been individually hidden . If the current filter is empty, then the Filter Panel's caption will be

Filter: None

which means that the Spot Database Display shows every Spot Database Entry except those that were hidden

The Spot Database window's filter panel provides three groups of  filters: General, Context, and SQL. The General and Context filters work together, with the relationship between them being AND; when applied, an SQL filter completely governs the display of Spot Database Entries, independent of the General and Context filters.

Filtering by Need, Callsign, DXCC entity, Frequency, and Tag

The five General filter buttons let you choose one of five criteria; some of these criteria reference the contents of the General Expression textbox, located on the left side of the Filter panel.

Button Description General Expression
Need When clicked without the Ctrl key being depressed, displays only unhidden Spot Database Entries with whom a QSO would advance your progress towards the DXCC, IOTA, Leaderboard, Marathon, VUCC WAS, WAZ or WPX awards on the bands and modes specified on the Awards tab of DXKeeper's  configuration window.

When clicked with the Ctrl key being depressed, displays only unhidden Spot Database Entries for needed DXCC entities.

In either case, the Need Filter Mode setting determines whether unworked, or both unworked and unconfirmed Spot Database Entries are displayed.

When unchecked, the Mrthn checkbox beneath the Need filter button removes CQ DX Marathon as a consideration in identifying and highlighting needed Spot Database Entries; this is useful early in the year when the large number of entries needed for CQ DX Marathon might make it difficult to notice entries needed for DXCC or WAZ.

not used
Call

Displays only unhidden Spot Database Entries for DX stations whose callsign is specified in the General Expression textbox

callsign
DXCC

Displays only unhidden Spot Database Entries for DX stations whose DXCC entity is the same as the DXCC entity of the callsign or callsign fragment  specified in the General Expression textbox (taking Overrides into account)

DXCC prefix
Freq

Displays only unhidden Spot Database Entries for DX stations spotted on frequencies near the current transceiver frequency as reported by Commander and younger than a specified age (this option is not available if Commander is not running)

not used
Tag Displays only unhidden Spot Database Entries for DX stations that contain a Special Callsign Tag that matches the tag specified in the General Expression textbox
  • if the tag in the General Expression textbox contains a hyphen, then the Tag filter displays all Spot Database Entries whose Tags field contains the specified tag surrounded by angle brackets

  • if the tag in the General Expression textbox does not contain a hyphen, then the Tag filter displays all Spot Database Entries whose Tags field contains the specified tag surrounded by angle brackets or contains the specified tag preceded by an angle bracket and followed by a hyphen and a membership number.
General Expression textbox Spot Database Entry Tag List Match ?
EPC <EPC>, <FOC> Yes
EPC <FOC> No
EPC <EPC-2640>, <FOC> Yes
EPC-2640 <EPC-2640>, <FOC> Yes
EPC-2123 <EPC-2640>, <FOC> No

 

 

 

 

You can use * (asterisk) as a wildcard character when specifying either callsigns or DXCC prefixes in the General Expression textbox. For example,

    *K6MIO*

will match KH6/K6MIO, K6MIO, and K6MIO/KH6.

Typing a callsign into the General Expression textbox and striking the Enter key is equivalent to clicking the Call filter button. In addition, the following keyboard shortcuts are effective in the General Expression textbox:

CTRL-C - equivalent to clicking the Call filter button

CTRL-D - equivalent to clicking the DXCC filter button

CTRL-F - equivalent to clicking the Freq filter button

CTRL-S - filters the Spot Database Display with the SQL expression in the General Expression textbox

CTRL-T - equivalent to clicking the Tag filter button

With Commander  running, enabling both the Frequency Filter and Frequency sort automatically shows recent spots near your transceiver frequency as you QSY. You can enable the Mode and/or Origin filter for additional specificity.

When you right-click on a Spot Database Entry, SpotCollector displays a pop-up menu, once of whose items will display unhidden Spot Database Entries for DX stations spotted on frequencies near the Entry's frequency and younger than a specified age.

To clear the General filters, click the button labeled X to the immediate right of the General Expression textbox. When the these filters are cleared, Spot Database Display shows all unhidden Spot Database Entries that conform to the four Context filters: Band, Mode, Continent, and Origin filters.

Filtering by Band, Mode, Continent, Origin, Age, LotW, and eQSL-AG

SpotCollector six Context filters let you specify criteria independent of the General filters. When more than one Context filter is enabled, the is result is the AND of each enabled filter; for example, if you specify a band filter of 80m and a mode filter of CW, then the resulting filter will be "band is 80m AND mode is CW".

Filtering by Band

The Band Filter enables you to display only unhidden Spot Database entries for DX stations spotted on frequencies within specified bands; clicking the Filter panel's Band button displays the Band Filter window, with Enable checkboxes for each amateur band from 160m to 12cm. This window also provides buttons that toggle groups of band checkboxes on or off; these allow you to, for example, enable all three WARC bands with a single mouse click, or disable the 6m, 4m, 2m, and 1.25m VHF bands with two mouse clicks. The Spot Database Display will not show Spot Database entries with frequencies in bands having Band Filter boxes un-checked. If Commander is running, checking the Transceiver Band Only box will automatically keep the Band filter set only show spots for your transceiver's current band; this feature is currently limited to 160m through 2m. SpotCollector retains a history of the most recent 16 Band filter configurations; you can navigate within this history using the Band filter's  and buttons to travel backward and forward respectively. Moving backward means returning to a filter configuration that you have previously applied. Moving forward is only applicable after you have moved backward, effectively "undoing" each backward move..

If you check the Enable Start/End & Max Origin DX Filtering box, then you can optionally specify the following additional filtering rules for each band individually:

 When you specify a band's Start UTC or End UTC settings, Spot Database Entries whose frequencies are in this band will only be visible when the current UTC time is after the Start UTC and before the End UTC specified for that band. To temporarily disable "Start/End UTC" filtering for all bands, check the Ignore panel's Start & End times box.

You can only modify a band's starting UTC time, ending UTC time, or maximum distance to closest spotting station if that band's Enable box is unchecked. Typically, one would uncheck a band's Enable box, specify or update these settings, and then check the band's Enable box to put those settings into action. To specify an absolute UTC time, simply enter that time; for example, if you want to filter out Spot Database Entries that occur on 80m before 0900Z, then enter 0900 into the 80m band's Start UTC textbox. To specify a UTC time relative to sunrise or sunset, use the format SR+X, SR-X, SS+X, or SS-X where SR refers to the current sunrise time, SS refers to the current sunset time, and X is an offset in minutes. To filter out Spot Database Entries that occur on 160m starting 45 minutes after sunrise, for example, type SR+45 into the 160m band's End UTC textbox. 

You can specify the current sunrise and sunset times in the Band Filter window's Sunrise & Sunset panel, but you must check the Ignore panel's Start & End times box before modifying the Sunrise UTC or Sunset UTC and then uncheck the Ignore panel's Start & End times box after completing these modifications. If you are running DXView version 2.8.9 or later, the Sunrise UTC or Sunset UTC will automatically be updated at 0Z each day, eliminating the need to manually keep these settings up to date;. Double-clicking  the Sunrise UTC or Sunset UTC with the Ignore panel's Start & End times box unchecked will obtain an updated Sunrise or Sunset time from DXView, if running.

If you specify an invalid starting or ending time, it will be rendered in red font.

If you type a distance into a band's Max origin DX textbox,  the band's Enable box will be disabled. After completing the entry or modification of this distance, check the band's Enable box; only Spot Database Entries on this band whose distance to the closest spotting station is equal to or less than the specified Max origin DX will be visible in the Spot Database Display. To temporarily disable "maximum distance to closest spotting station" filtering for all bands, check the Ignore panel's Max origin DX box.

SpotCollector can be configured to determine a spotting station's location as a Maidenhead gridsquare by

If desired, you can place the set/dxgrid command in the Spot Sources tab's initial cluster command so that SpotCollector will automatically configure all enabled clusters to provide spotting station GridSquares when connecting to the cluster.

Filtering by Mode

The Mode filter enables you to display only unhidden Spot Database entries for DX stations spotted in specified modes; clicking the Filter panel's Mode button displays the Mode Filter window, with checkboxes for several amateur modes. The Spot Database Display will not show Spot Database entries with modes having Mode Filter boxes un-checked. 

Filtering by Continent

The Continent filter enables you to display only unhidden Spot Database Entries for DX stations located in specified continents; clicking the Filter panel's Cont button displays the Continent Filter window, with checkboxes for each of the seven continents. The Spot Database Display will not show Spot Database entries with continents having Continent Filter boxes unchecked. Unchecking the Continent filter's ? (unknown) checkbox is an effective way to suppress the display of Spots whose callsigns do not map to a DXCC entity; such Spots are generally bogus.

Filtering by Origin

The Origin filter enables you to display only unhidden Spot Database entries for DX stations spotted from specified geographic locations; clicking the Filter panel's Origin button displays the Origin Filter window, with checkboxes for the geographic locations shown in the following table. The Spot Database Display will not show Spot Database entries not spotted from any geographic location having Origin Filter boxes checked. Note that a particular DX station may have been spotted from multiple geographic locations.

Origin Checkbox Geographic Location
NA-E the North American east coast, including North American stations in CQ zones 2, 5, and 8
NA-M the North American mid-west, including North American stations in CQ zones 4, 6, and 7
NA-W the North American west coast, including North American stations in CQ zones 1 and 3
SA South America
EU Europe
AF Africa
AS Asia
OC Oceania
? unknown

 

Filtering by Age

Enabling the Age filter by checking the Filter panel's Age box will hide all Spot Database Entries whose RcvdTime is older than the specified Maximum age. If the Filter panel's caption is not 

Filter: None  

or 

Filter: SQL  

and the specified Maximum age is greater than 0, the current filter will be re-applied at the beginning of each new minute, hiding Spot Database Entries whose RcvdTime has become too old unless AutoScroll is disabled or activities like recomputing, pruning, or compacting the Spot Database are underway.

Filtering by LotW Participation

If the LotW callsign Database LotW.mdb is present in DXView's or SpotCollector's Database folder at startup, you can limit the display of Spot Database Entries to those whose callsigns are known to participate in the ARRL's Logbook of the World by checking the Filter panel's LotW box.

Filtering by Authenticity Guaranteed eQSL.cc Participation

If the Authenticity Guaranteed eQSL.cc Callsign Database eQSLAG.mdb is present in DXView's or SpotCollector's Database folder at startup, you can limit the display of Spot Database Entries to those whose callsigns are Authenticity Guaranteed members of eQSL.cc by checking the Filter panel's eQSL box.

Filtering with SQL expressions

SQL filters enable complete control over the display of Spot Database Entries through the specification of SQL expressions that reference Spot Database Fields. You can specify up to 32 SQL expressions, organized as 4 groups of 8,  that can used to filter the Spot Database Display by a button click. You can also directly type an SQL expression in the Filter panel and use it to filter the Spot Database Display by striking CTRL-S.

The Filter panel provides 4 buttons around the letter S:

Depressing the Ctrl key while clicking an SQL filter button displays SpotCollector's SQL Filter window, which allows you to specify a button caption and SQL expression for each of the 4 groups of 8 SQL filters.

When you click one of the Filter panel's 8 SQL filter buttons, the Spot Database is filtered using the SQL expression associated with the clicked button, completely ignoring the Need, Call, DXCC, Freq, Band, Mode, Continent, Origin, LotW, eQSL, and Hidden filters. The Filter panel caption indicates an active SQL filter with the word SQL followed by the caption of the SQL filter button you clicked within square brackets, for example

Filter: SQL [DX 80]

An SQL filter remains in force until you click another SQL filter, or until you click the Filter panel's Need, Call, DXCC, or Freq filter buttons.

Operators

A simple SQL query that shows only spots of OH2BH would be 

Callsign='OH2BH'

which employs the
= operator. We could have simply used the main window's Call filter to accomplish that query, but

(Callsign='OH2BH') AND (SpotTime > #2011-10-01 12:00#)

shows how to use the
AND operator to incorporate a constraint on the Spot Database Entry's reception time, in this case showing only Entries received after noon UTC on October 1, 2011. Notice the use of the ISO date format, which is YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS . In SQL, date constants must be enclosed between # symbols.

(Callsign='OH2BH') AND (SpotTime BETWEEN #2011-10-01 12:00# and #2011-10-02 12:00#)

illustrates the use of the
BETWEEN operator to see only Entries received within a specified date/time range.

(Callsign='OH2BH') OR (Callsign='OH2BE')

shows all Spot Database Entries for the Laine family, illustrating the use of the
OR operator. 

Here's a sample SQL filter expression an east coast DXer might use to display DX spots on 80m:

(Band='80m') and ((NAE='Y') or (NAM='Y')) and ((Cont='EU') or (Cont='SA') or (Cont='AS') or (Cont='OC'))

When activated, this SQL filter will display only Spot Database entries for stations 

and

and

Here's the full list of comparison and logical operators you can use to create 

 
Operator Meaning Example
= equal to Callsign='FT5ZM'
< less than LastTime < #2014-01-24 12:00#
<= less than or equal to LastTime < #2014-01-24 12:00#
> greater than FirstTime > #2014-01-25 1:00#
>= greater than or equal to FirstTime >= #2014-01-25 1:00#
<> not equal to Mode <> 'SSB'
Like used to match a pattern Callsign Like 'FT5*'
Between...And used to specify a range of values FirstTime Between  #2014-01-25 12:00# And  #2014-01-25 18:00#
In used to specify a set of values Mode In ('PSK','PSK63','MFSK8','MFSK16')
 
Operator Meaning Example
And both conditions must be true (Band='160m') And (Mode <> 'SSB')
Or either condition can be true (Region = 'Krasnodar') Or (Region = 'Krasnoyarsk')
Not logical inversion (DXCCPrefix='K') And Not (Primary='PA')
 

Wildcards

SQL provides the LIKE operator and wildcard characters to enable broader searches by specifying a pattern, for example

Callsign LIKE 'VK9*'

which shows all Spot Database Entries with callsigns whose first three characters are VK9. The Asterisk wildcard character matches 0 or more characters. The Question Mark wildcard character matches exactly one character. Thus

Callsign LIKE 'VK9?'

shows all Entries for VK9X, but not those for VK9DX or VK9RY.

(DXCCPrefix='VK9-N') AND NOT (Callsign='VK9NS')

uses the NOT operator to show all Entries for stations on Norfolk Island except Kirsti.

Besides the Asterisk and Question Mark, the LIKE operator provides wildcard characters that let you specify a single digit, or a range of characters, as illustrated in the table below:

To match... Example Samples that match Samples that don't match
one or more characters VU4*W VU4CW, VU4WWW, VU41W VU2CW, VU4DY
one or more characters *YV1DIG* YV1DIG, YV0/YV1DIG, YV0/YV1DIG/QRP YV0/YV1DX
one character OX1VHF/? OX1VHF/P, OX1VHF/5,OX1VHF/M OX1VHF, OX1VHF/MM
one digit A6#AJ A61AJ, A64JA A6JA, C61AJ
a range of characters A[A-L]6DX AA6DX, AF6DX  AM6DX, A6DX, AA6DY
outside a range of characters K[!G-H]4DX KC4DX, KK4DX, K$4DX KG4DX, KC4DY
outside the range of digits K5[!0-9] K5K, K5% K50
a pattern composed of several sub-patterns A[A-L]#[A-Z]* AA6YQ, AL7X  AM4DX, KH6/AL7X, AA6
characters that are wildcard characters [*]Footnote *Footnote Footnote, -Footnote

Note that you can combine multiple wildcards to specify more complex patterns.

Substitutions

Before executing an SQL filter expression, SpotCollector replaces any occurrence of 

<FILTERTEXTBOX>

in the expression with the contents of the Filter panel's General Expression textbox. This enables you to create SQL filters that reference a callsign, band, DXCC prefix, etc. that you specify.

Similarly, SpotCollector replaces any occurrence of

These substitution commands enable you to create SQL expressions that incorporate your current band filter, mode filter, continent filter, origin filter, or need filter settings. For example,

(Callsign='<FILTERTEXTBOX>') and <NEEDFILTER> and ((Band='160m') or (Band='80m'))

lets you specify a callsign in the Filter textbox and see all needed spots of that callsign on 160m and 80m, and

(BAND='<XCVRBAND>') and <NEEDFILTER>

will display all needed Spot Database Entries on the current transceiver band.

If you want an SQL expression to exclude Spot Database Display entries that are hidden, append 

and (Hidden <> 'Y')

Comments

Any characters between // and // are ignored, and thus can be used as explanatory comments, e.g.

//SSB only// MODE = 'SSB'

  Updates

If the Accept SQL Filter Updates option is enabled, other applications can update the contents of an SQL filter and invoke that Filter. DXKeeper uses this mechanism to update the SQL filter named NPOTA (if present) after it generates an NPOTA progress report.

Additional Information

An online reference for SQL as supported by the Microsoft Jet engine, which is incorporated in both DXKeeper and Microsoft Access, is available at

https://www.devguru.com/content/technologies/jetsql/home.html

Functions that can be used in SQL expressions are described in http://www.techonthenet.com/access/functions/

Clearing Filters

To clear the General filters, click the button labeled X to the immediate right of the General Expression textbox. When the these filters are cleared, Spot Database Display shows all unhidden Spot Database Entries that conform to the four Context filters: Band, Mode, Continent, and Origin filters.

To clear the General, Context, and SQL filters so that the Spot Database Display will show all Spot Database Entries, depress the CTRL key while clicking the button labeled X to the immediate right of the General Expression textbox; the Filter panel caption will be set to

Filter: None

Filter Panel Caption

To avoid long, complex expressions in the Filter panel caption's display of the current filter,  the following convention is used:

Thus if the Filter panel caption is

Filter: Band and Mode and [call='SV2ASP/A']

then the Spot Database Display is showing unhidden Spot Database entries whose callsign is SV2ASP/A with specific filtering by Band and Mode, but with no filtering by Continent or Origin. To see exactly which Bands and Modes are being filtered, you can click the Filter panel's Band and Mode buttons.

If no Spot Database Display filtering is active, the filter panel caption will be set to

Filter: None

Filter History

SpotCollector retains a history of the most recent 64 filter changes, excluding changes to the Band, Mode, Continent, and Origin filters; you can navigate within this history using the Filter panel's  and buttons to travel backward and forward respectively. Moving backward means returning to a filter that you have previously applied. Moving forward is only applicable after you have moved backward, effectively "undoing" each backward move..

Hiding Spot Database Entries: individually, or automatically by keyword

You can hide an individual Spot Database Entry by right-clicking it, and choosing the Hide option in the resulting pop-up menu. 

You can configure SpotCollector to automatically hide the Spot Database Entry for any spot whose notes contain one of 16 words you specify. To enable this functionality,

  1. click the  Filter panel's AutoHide button to display SpotCollector's AutoHide Filter window

  2. in the AutoHide Filter window's word list, key in the words that will trigger automatic hiding

  3. check the AutoHide Filter window's Enable Automatic Hiding... box

If you're using an SQL expression to filter the Spot Database Display, appending

and (Hidden <> 'Y')

will prevent hidden entries from becoming visible.

To un-hide one or more hidden Spot Database Entries, click the  Filter panel's AH button to display SpotCollector's AutoHide Filter window, and check the Display only hidden Spot Database Entries box; the Spot Database Display will now show only hidden entries that match the General and Context filters. You can un-hide an individual entry by right-clicking it, and choosing the Un-hide option in the resulting pop-up menu. Alternatively, you can click the AutoHide Filter window's Un-hide button to un-hide all entries shown in the Spot Database Display.

Audio Alarms

SpotCollector can be configured to announce via the default Windows soundcard the creation of Spot Database Entries representing

Be sure to disable audio announcements if you are operating digital modes with a single soundcard.

You can quickly enable or disable audio announcements by unchecking the Audio box in the Main window's Filter panel. If the Automatically re-enable Audio Alarm after 15 minutes option is enabled, disabling audio announcements by unchecking the Audio box will cause SpotCollector to re-enable audio announcements by re-checking the Audio box 15 minutes later; the word Audio will be rendered in blue font during this 15 minute interval. If SpotCollector is terminated during this 15-minute interval, Audio announcements will be enabled when SpotCollector next starts.

Selecting a Spot Database Entry

When you left-click on a Spot Database Entry, SpotCollector

When you right-click on a Spot Database Entry, SpotCollector displays a pop-up menu from which you can choose to

When you double-click on a Spot Database Entry whose mode is not a K1JT mode (FT4, FT8, JT65, JT65A, JT65B, JT65B2, JT65C, JT65C2, or JT9), SpotCollector notifies the DXLab applications DXView, DXKeeper, WinWarbler, Pathfinder, and Commander if they are currently running, and sends them information as described below. If you have specified a Digital Mode Application other than WinWarbler -- like MultiPSK -- then SpotCollector sends it information as described below.

When you double-click on a Spot Database Entry whose mode is a K1JT mode (FT4, FT8, JT65, JT65A, JT65B, JT65B2, JT65C, JT65C2, or JT9),


Double-clicking a Spot Database Entry disables AutoScroll mode if you depressed the Shift key when you double-clicked on the Spot Database Entry, or if you double-clicked on the Spot Database Entry's left-most column.

SpotCollector maintains a history of up to 64 selected spots. The and buttons traverse that history backwards and forwards respectfully, QSYing the transceiver if Commander is running. Depressing the CTRL key while clicking either button will enable AutoScroll mode.

 

Navigating the Spot Database

You can scroll through the entries in the Spot Database using the vertical scrollbar along the right-hand margin of the Spot Database Display. A set of four VCR-style buttons located above the vertical scrollbar give you one-click access to the first, previous, next, and last Spot Database Entry. Normally, SpotCollector operates with its Autoscroll mode enabled, meaning that the Spot Database Display is automatically scrolled so that the most recent addition is always visible.  While this is convenient when scanning for DX, the automatic scrolling can be problematic when inspecting an entry in detail.  Vertically or horizontally scrolling the Spot Database Display,  clicking or double-clicking a Spot Database Entry while depressing the Shift key or, clicking or double-clicking a Spot Database Entry in its left-most column all disable Autoscroll mode so that the selected Spot Database Entry remains visible even as new Spot Database Entries are added to the Spot Database.

When Autoscroll is disabled, the word "Autoscroll" blinks in blue font above the first, previous, last, and next buttons; the "strike through" means disabled. If new Spot Database entries are added while Autoscroll is disabled, the word "Autoscroll" blinks in red font. Enabling Autoscroll mode by clicking either the last or first button (depending on the Sort selection and Sort order as described above) will display the new Spot Database entries, and clear the "Autoscroll" notification.

Right-clicking a Spot Database Entry disables Autoscroll mode until you invoke a function from the right-mouse menu; if you right-click a Spot Database Entry and decide not to invoke one of the right-mouse menu functions, select the Enable Autoscroll function from the right-mouse menu.

The Autoscroll panel's Enable on newly-needed Entry option, when enabled, will automatically disable Autoscroll mode at the creation of a new Spot Database Entry that is needed - meaning that a confirmed QSO with the Entry's station on the Entry's band and mode would advance your progress towards your award objectives.

 

Generating a Spot Database Report

Clicking the Report button generates a report with one entry for each visible Spot Database entry, and places that report in a file in SpotCollector''s Reports subfolder. This fixed-format report includes the following items:

Deleting a Spot Database Entry

You can  delete a Spot Database Entry, by right-clicking it, and choosing the Delete option in the resulting pop-up menu. If the Confirm spot deletion setting is enabled, a dialog box will appear asking you to confirm the deletion. This can be used to eliminate erroneous spots.

You can also delete a Spot Database Entry by clicking in it's left-most column - a black triangle will appear in this column, and the entire entry will be highlighted - and then striking the Delete key, or the CTRL-X key; the entry will be deleted without seeking confirmation.

Ignoring Future Spots of a Spot Database Entry's Callsign

 You can add an Spot Database Entry's callsign to the Special Callsign List with no tags, meaning that future incoming spots of that callsign will be ignored, by right-clicking the Entry, and choosing the Ignore option in the resulting pop-up menu. Occasionally review the Special Callsign List to ensure that spots of each call with no tags should still be ignored.

Spotting DX Stations

Controls in the Spot Database window's Outgoing spot panel  enable you to generate both local and DXCluster spots. In either case, enter the callsign of the DX station to be spotted in the panel's Call textbox, and information to accompany your spot in the panel's Notes textbox; the Notes textbox will not accept more than 29 characters, consistent with limits imposed by DXCluster software. Clicking the panel's X button will clear the Notes textbox. If Commander is running, the transceiver frequency will be used as the outgoing spot frequency, and is displayed in the panel; if Commander is not running, type the spot frequency in kilohertz into the freq textbox. 

Clicking the Cluster button will compose and forward a spot to the DXCluster whose Spot radio button is selected in the Telnet panel on the Configuration window's Spot Sources tab. If you are spotting via the CQDX IRC Channel, your spot will be handled by that channel's spotting robot, which is normally DXS. If DXS is unavailable, however, you must specify the DDX backup spotting robot. If the Cluster button is disabled ("grayed out"), you must specify the DXCluster that will convey your outgoing spots by selecting a Spot radio button.

Clicking the Local button will enter the spot in your Spot Database (or update an existing Spot Database Entry) as if it had been received by a spot source, with your callsign shown as the Source and local shown as the Network. Depressing the CTRL key while clicking the Local button prompts you to specify the frequency to be used when creating or updating the Spot Database Entry.

Clicking the Cluster or Local buttons enables Autoscroll mode.

Striking Ctrl-Enter in the panel's Call or Notes textboxes is equivalent to clicking the Cluster button. Striking Ctrl-Del in either of these textboxes will clear their contents.

If the Spot Xcvr split setting is enabled and Commander is running (version 5.9.2 or later), then the Notes textbox will track the current transceiver split frequency, e.g. "up 2.5" or "dn 1"; if Commander indicates that the transceiver is not in split mode, then the Notes textbox will be cleared.

If the Save Spot Notes option is disabled, clicking either the Cluster or Local buttons will clear Notes textbox so you can easily enter new notes for the next outgoing spot. If the Save Spot Notes option is enabled, clicking either the Cluster or Local buttons will leave the Notes textbox; this is useful when all outgoing spots will have identical notes, e.g. when spotting stations participating in a particular contest. Depressing the CTRL key while clicking the panel's X button will toggle the state of the Save Spot Notes option.

Spot Statistics

SpotCollector keeps track of the number of new Spot Database Entries created during the most recent 60 minutes. Two sets of statistics are computed: by-band and by-continent. The by-band statistics are captured for 160m through 2m and are subject to the Mode filter, Continent filter, and Origin filter settings; the by-continent statistics are subject to the Band filter, Mode filter, and Origin filter settings. Spot statistics are presented in the Statistics window, which you can view by clicking the Main window's Stats button. Newly created Spot Database Entries immediately update the spot statistics. Periodically, the statistics are updated to exclude spots older than 60 minutes; this rate is controlled by the Update Interval setting in the Spot Statistics panel on the Config window's Spot Database tab. When SpotCollector starts, it scans the Spot Database for any Entries less than 60 minutes old and initializes the spot statistics accordingly.

If Commander is running (version 6.6.4 or later), clicking the band button above a by-band statistic will QSY the transceiver to that band. CTRL-clicking a band button will filter the Spot Database Display to show only stations reported during the last 60 minutes that "pass" the Mode filter, Continent filter, and Origin filter.

The Statistics window's Reset button clears all spot statistics.


Propagation Analysis

To display a graphical analysis of DX stations in the Spot Database Display, click the Main window's Prop button; SpotCollector will display a "bands vs. time-of-day" or "bands vs continents" analysis in the Propagation window, depending upon which analysis was last chosen. If the contents of the Spot Database Display change, either because new DX stations have appeared or because you've altered the Spot Database Display filtering, click the DX in Spot Database Display panel's Analyze button to update the displayed analysis. 

To display a graphical analysis of DX stations active over the past 24 hours that were spotted by a station within a specified distance of your QTH, click the Bands vs Time button, set the DX active during the past 24 hours panel's Maximum distance box to the specified distance, and click this panel's Filter & Analyze button. SpotCollector will filter the Spot Database Display to contain only DX stations active during the last 24 hours and spotted by a station within the specified distance of your QTH, and then display a "bands vs. time-of-day" analysis in the Propagation window.  

To display a graphical analysis of the location of DX stations active over the last N hours that were spotted by a station within a specified distance of your QTH, click the Bands vs Continents button, set the interval to N, set the DX active during the past N hours panel's Maximum distance box to the specified distance, and click this panel's Filter & Analyze button. SpotCollector will filter the Spot Database Display to contain only DX stations active during the last N hours and spotted by a station within the specified distance of your QTH, and then display a "bands vs. continents" analysis in the Propagation window.  

In a "bands vs. time-of-day" analysis, double-clicking a bar or count associated with a band will filter the Spot Database Display to show only Spot Database Entries on that band at that time-of-day, spotted by a station within a specified distance of your QTH, and subject to current Mode, Continent, and Origin filters. Double-clicking while depressing the CTRL key will filter the Spot Database Display to show only Spot Database Entries on that band at that time-of-day.

To highlight the column for the current hour in a "bands vs. time-of-day" analysis, check the Highlight current hour box near the Propagation window's upper-left corner.

In a "bands vs. continents" analysis, double-clicking a bar or count associated with a band will filter the Spot Database Display to show only Spot Database Entries on that band from that continent during the specified interval, spotted by a station within a specified distance of your QTH, and subject to current Mode, Continent, and Origin filters. Double-clicking while depressing the CTRL key will filter the Spot Database Display to show only Spot Database Entries on that band from that continent.

You can configure SpotCollector to monitor a specific callsign, sending email messages reporting "where heard" information on the hour and half-hour, and recording these reports in a text file.


Pruning the Spot Database

The only limit to the growth of SpotCollector's Spot Database is the amount of free storage on its storage volume. Use the facilities of the Size Limit panel on the Configuration window's Spot Database tab to periodically prune the size of the Spot Database, or clear it entirely.

 

WWV Propagation Reports

SpotCollector monitors each DXCluster and the #CQDX IRC channel for WWV Spots. Data from the most recent such spot is shown in the Main window's WWV panel.

Parameter Description
SFI Solar flux index
A Boulder A index
K Boulder K index

SpotCollector maintains a history of these parameters in the file SolarHistory.txt; to graphically display the last 31 days of history, click the WWV panel's history button; depressing the CTRL key while clicking the history button ensures that the window containing the solar history display is never obscured by other windows. For each day, the solar flux index is shown in green, the A index is shown in red, and the K index is shown in blue. The daily range of each index is plotted as a vertical line, with the most recent daily value plotted as a solid circle.

The checkboxes below the display let you examine trends in the SFI, A, and K parameters either individually, or together. Since the sun completes a revolution every 27 days, its behavior 27 days ago is often helpful in predicting current behavior; this point in time is highlighted in red font.

Descriptions of these parameters and their role in HF radio propagation are described in the many links available in AC6V's excellent Propagation pagePropView automatically references these parameters when generating its prediction of openings over a 24-hour period.

DXCC and USAP Databases

SpotCollector performs lookups in a DXCC Database to determine a callsign's DXCC entity and as much location information as can be unambiguously determined from that callsign -- e.g. CQ zone, ITU zone, and IOTA tag. If DXView is installed, then SpotCollector uses the DXCC Database located in the DXCC.mdb file in DXView's Databases sub-folder; If DXView is not installed, then SpotCollector uses the DXCC Database located in the DXCC.mdb file in SpotCollector's own Databases sub-folder.

Due to the policies of the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the DXCC Database cannot unambiguously determine location information from callsigns issued to stations in the United States, Alaska, Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands, Baker Howland Island, Guam, Johnston Island, Midway Island, Palmyra Island, Kingman Reef, Hawaii, Kure Island, American Samoa, Wake Island, or the Marianas Islands. To accurately determine location information from callsigns in these DXCC entities, an optional US and Possessions (USAP) Database is available. When present in either DXView's or SpotCollector's Databases sub-folder, SpotCollector uses the USAP Database to determine location information for callsigns in these entities. The current USAP Database is available in https://www.dxlabsuite.com/dxview/USAP.exe . Note that DXView will report the presence of an updated USAP Database, and can be directed to download and install the updated Database with a single click.

Occasionally, stations use callsigns that the DXCC and USAP Databases cannot unambiguously or correctly map to the DXCC entity in which the station is operating; examples include callsigns like TO5M or E51DX. To address such situations, SpotCollector permits the definition of Overrides.

Spot Database Fields

Caption Field Name Content
Callsign Callsign the spotted DX station's callsign
Pfx DXCCPrefix the spotted DX station's DXCC entity prefix (determined from its callsign by performing a lookup in the DXCC or USAP Database unless there's an Override specified)
Freq Frequency the spotted DX station's frequency (if simplex) or transmitting frequency (if operating split)
QSX QSX the spotted DX station's receiving frequency (if operating split)
Band Band the spotted DX station's frequency band, as determined by the Sub-band Definition file
Mode Mode the spotted DX station's mode as determined by the Sub-band Definition file unless overridden by a mode designation like PSK or MFSK in the spot notes (if the DX station is operating split, then the QSX frequency's sub-band is used to determine the mode rather than the DX station's transmit frequency)
Submode Submode the spotted DX station's sub-mode, as extracted from a mode-submode designation like CONTESTI-4-500 in the spot notes (mode = CONTESTI, submode = 4-500)
FirstTime FirstTime the first UTC time at which this DX station was spotted in this mode close to this frequency, formatted as specified (see note 1)
LastTime LastTime the most recent UTC time at which this DX station was spotted in this mode close to this frequency, formatted as specified (see note 1)
RcvdTime SpotTime the most recent UTC time at which this DX station was spotted in this mode close to this frequency, formatted as specified (see note 2)
FirstOpLocationTime  FirstOpLocationTime  the first UTC time at which this DX station was spotted in this mode close to this frequency by a spotting station located in the same location specified in the Operator Location panel, formatted as specified (see note 1)
LastOpLocationTime  LastOpLocationTime  the most recent UTC time at which this DX station was spotted in this mode close to this frequency by a spotting station located in the same location specified in the Operator Location panel, formatted as specified (see note 1)
Source Source the callsign of the station that most recently spotted this DX station in this mode close to this frequency
LastOrigin Origin the likely geographic location of the station that most recently spotted this DX station in this mode close to this frequency (see note 3)
Notes Notes the notes taken from the most recent spot of this station in this mode close to this frequency; if Ignore empty spot notes is enabled, this item contains the notes taken from  he most recent spot of this station whose notes were not empty
Network Network the name of the PacketCluster, DXCluster, or IRC channel that supplied the most recent spot of this station in this mode close to this frequency; this field will contain WSJTX if an instance of WSJT-X supplied the most recent spot of this station in this mode close to this frequency
BandProgress BandProgress award progress for the DXCC entity on the spotted band (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • ? - unknown
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
  • F - confirmed
  • V - verified
 
ModeProgress ModeProgress award progress for the DXCC entity in the spotted mode (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • ? - unknown
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
  • F - confirmed
  • V - verified
BandModeProgress BandModeProgress progress for the DXCC entity in the spotted band-mode combination
  • ? - unknown
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
  • F - confirmed
  • V - confirmed

Note: this field is only populated if the Maintain DXCC entity-band-mode fields option is enabled

CountryProgress CountryProgress award progress for the DXCC entity on any band or mode (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • ? - unknown
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
  • F - confirmed
  • V - verified
BandSought BandSought Indicates whether the spotted band's box is checked in the DXCC/TopList Bands & Modes panel on the Awards tab of DXKeeper's Configuration window  ( used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • Y - checked
  • N - unchecked
ModeSought ModeSought Indicates whether the spotted mode's box is checked in the DXCC/TopList Bands & Modes panel on the Awards tab of DXKeeper's Configuration window  ( used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • Y - checked
  • N - unchecked
BandWorked BandWorked Indicates whether or not this callsign has already been worked on the spotted band (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • Y - already worked on this band
  • N - never worked on this band

Note: this field is not populated in all cases

ModeWorked ModeWorked Indicates whether or not this callsign has already been worked in the spotted mode ( used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • Y - already worked in this mode
  • N - never worked in this mode

Note: this field is not populated in all cases

BandModeWorked BandModeWorked Indicates whether or not this callsign has already been worked on the spotted band in the spotted mode ( used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • Y - already worked on this band in this mode
  • N - never worked on this band in this mode

Note: this field is populated for Leaderboard stations, but may not be populated for non-Leaderboard stations unless the Maintain DXCC entity-band-mode fields option is enabled

CountryWorked CountryWorked Indicates whether or not this callsign has already been worked on the spotted band and in the spotted mode ( used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • Y - already worked on this band and mode
  • N - never worked on this band in this mode

Note: this field is not populated in all cases

Index Index a number unique to each Spot Database Entry used by SpotCollector for navigation
UN, NAE, NAM, NAW, SA, EU, AF, AS, OC UN, NAE, NAM, NAW, SA, EU, AF, AS, OC these fields record the geographic locations from which the Entry's DX station has been spotted

Field Name Geographic Location
NA-E the North American east coast, including North American stations in CQ zones 2, 5, and 8
NA-M the North American mid-west, including North American stations in CQ zones 4, 6, and 7
NA-W the North American west coast, including North American stations in CQ zones 1 and 3
SA South America
EU Europe
AF Africa
AS Asia
OC Oceania
? unknown
  • Y - spotted from a station in this geographic location
  • (blank) - not spotted from a station in this geographic location
Local Local Y if the DX station has been spotted locally
Cont Cont the spotted DX station's continent
DXCCCountry DXCCCountry the spotted DX station's DXCC entity name
DXCCID DXCCID the spotted DX station's DXCC country code
DXGrid DXGrid the spotted station's Maidenhead gridsquare
Azimuth Azimuth short-path bearing to the spotted station (in degrees) 
Distance Distance distance to the spotted station in miles or kilometers; if no DX station gridsquare is known, this value is set to -1 (displayed as a blank entry in the Spot Database Display)
CQ CQ the spotted stations' CQ zone
ITU ITU the spotted station's ITU zone
IOTA IOTA the spotted station's IOTA tag
Primary Primary the ADIF-defined code for the primary administrative subdivision in which the spotted station is located
Region Region the location of the spotted stations (with any region code or primary code removed)
RegionCode RegionCode the code for the Region defined by the award sponsor (e.g. CQ, WAE, Holyland)
OriginGrid OriginGrid the spotting station's Maidenhead gridsquare (extracted form spot notes or provided by a spot source)
ODX ODX the distance from the center of the Maidenhead gridsquare of the closest station to spot the DX station and the Operator's latitude and longitude in miles or kilometers; if no DX station or spotting station gridsquare is known, this value is set to -1 (displayed as a blank entry in the Spot Database Display)
OMDX OMDX the maximum distance from the center of the Maidenhead gridsquare of the closest station to spot the DX station and the Operator's latitude and longitude in miles or kilometers  as specified in the Band Filter window for the Spot Database Entry's band
WPX WPX the spotted station's WPX award prefix
Hidden Hidden Indicates whether or not this entry should be hidden
  • Y - don't display this entry
  • N - display this entry
LotW LotW Indicates whether or not this station is known to QSL via the ARRL's Logbook of the World (LotW)
  • Y - the station is known to QSL via LotW
  • N - the station is not known to QSL via LotW
eQSL eQSL Indicates whether or not this station is an Authenticity Guaranteed member of eQSL.cc
  • A - the station is an Authenticity Guaranteed member of eQSL.cc
  • N - the station is not an Authenticity Guaranteed member of eQSL.cc

 

Tags Tags the spotted DX station's Tags, assigned by the Special Callsign List
NoteSource NotesSource callsign of the station that posted the spot notes
Cumulative CumulativeNotes all spots (spotting callsign, spotting callsign location, and spot notes) received for this station in order of ascending time, separated by carriage return and line feed; if Ignore empty spot notes is enabled, this item will not contain spots whose notes were empty.
BFA BFA Indicates whether or not this entry's Band Filter is Active
  • Y - the band filter is active; either the Start Time or End Time is unspecified, or the current time is after the Start Time and before the End time
  • N - the band filter is inactive: the current time is before the Start Time or after the End Time
CQZen CQZen indicates whether the Mixed box is checked in the WAZ Bands & Modes panel on the Awards tab of DXKeeper's Configuration window  (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • Y - checked
  • N - unchecked
CQZProg CQZProg award progress for the CQ zone on any band or mode (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
  • F - confirmed
  • V - verified
CQZWB4 CQZWB4 indicates whether or not this callsign has already been worked when valid for WAZ awards (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • Y - already worked
  • N - never worked

Note: this field is not populated in all cases

CQZBandEn CQZBandEn indicates whether the spotted band's box is checked in the WAZ Bands & Modes panel on the Awards tab of DXKeeper's Configuration window  (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • Y - checked
  • N - unchecked
CQZBandProg CQZBandProg award progress for the CQ zone on the spotted band (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
  • F - confirmed
  • V - verified
CQZBandWB4 CQZBandWB4 indicates whether or not this callsign has already been worked on the spotted band when valid for WAZ awards (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • Y - already worked on this band
  • N - never worked on this band

Note: this field is not populated in all cases

CQZModeEn CQZModeEn indicates whether the spotted mode's box is checked in the WAZ Bands & Modes panel on the Awards tab of DXKeeper's Configuration window  (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • Y - checked
  • N - unchecked
CQZModeProg CQZModeProg award progress for the CQ zone in the spotted mode (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
  • F - confirmed
  • V - verified
CQZModeWB4 CQZModeWB4 indicates whether or not this callsign has already been worked in the spotted mode when valid for WAZ awards (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • Y - already worked in this mode
  • N - never worked in this mode

Note: this field is not populated in all cases

CQZBandModeEn CQZBandModeEn indicates whether the spotted band-mode's box is checked in the WAZ Bands & Modes panel on the Awards tab of DXKeeper's Configuration window  (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • Y - checked
  • N - unchecked

 

CQZBandModeProg CQZBandModeProg award progress for the CQ zone in the spotted band-mode combination (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
  • F - confirmed
  • V - verified
CQZBandModeProgWB4 CQZBandModeProgWB4 indicates whether or not this callsign has already been worked on the spotted band in the spotted mode when valid for WAZ awards (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked, unconfirmed, or unneeded)
  • Y - already worked in this band-mode combination
  • N - never worked in this band-mode combination

Note: this field is not populated in all cases

Needed Needed indicates for which awards this entry is categorized as unworked counter, unworked band or mode, or unconfirmed
  • D - this entry is needed for an ARRL DXCC or Toplist award
  • G - this entry is needed for an ARRL VUCC award
  • I - this entry is needed for an RSGB IOTA award
  • L - this entry is needed for a Leaderboard competition
  • M - this entry's CQ DX Marathon Country is unworked
  • N - this entry's CQ DX Marathon Zone is unworked
  • P - this entry is needed for a CQ WPX award
  • S - this entry is needed for an ARRL WAS award
  • Z - this entry is needed for a CQ WAZ award
NeedCategory NeedCategory

indicates this entry's need category

  • -2 - special callsign
  • -1 - unworked DX counter
  •   0 - unworked DX band or mode
  •   1 - unconfirmed DX
  •   2 - unneeded DX
  •   3 - verified DX (award credit granted)
MarMixedEn MarMixedEn indicates whether the Mixed box is checked in the Marathon Bands & Modes panel on the Awards tab of DXKeeper's Configuration window  (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked)
  • Y - checked
  • N - unchecked
MarBandEn MarBandEn indicates whether the spotted band's box is checked in the Marathon Bands & Modes panel on the Awards tab of DXKeeper's Configuration window  (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked)
  • Y - checked
  • N - unchecked
MarModeEn MarModeEn indicates whether the spotted modes box is checked in the Marathon Bands & Modes panel on the Awards tab of DXKeeper's Configuration window  (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked)
  • Y - checked
  • N - unchecked
MarCntryProg MarCntryProg award progress for the Marathon Country on any band or mode (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked)
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
MarCntryBandProg MarCntryBandProg award progress for the Marathon Country on the spotted band (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked)
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
MarCntryModeProg MarCntryModeProg award progress for the Marathon Country in the spotted mode (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked)
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
MarZoneProg MarZoneProg award progress for the Marathon Zone on any band or mode (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked)
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
MarZoneBandProg MarZoneBandProg award progress for the Marathon Zone on the spotted band (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked)
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
MarZoneModeProg MarZoneModeProg award progress for the Marathon Zone in the spotted mode (used by SpotCollector to determine whether or not an entry is unworked)
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
Announced Announced indicates whether this Spot Database Entry has triggered an audio announcement
  • Y - an audio announcement has been triggered
  • N - no audio announcement has been triggered
Emailed Emailed indicates whether this Spot Database Entry has triggered an email alert
  • Y - an email alert has been triggered
  • N - no email alert has been triggered

 

IotaProg IotaProg award progress for the IOTA Group on any band or mode 
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
  • F - confirmed
  • V - verified
IotaWB4 IotaWB4 indicates whether or not this callsign has already been worked when valid for IOTA awards 
  • Y - already worked
  • N - never worked

Note: this field is not populated in all cases

DXGridSource DXGridSource indicates the source of the Entry's DX Gridsquare
  • L - the gridsquare associated with the Latitude and Longitude specified in the Operator location panel
  • O - the gridsquare specified by an Override
  • S - a gridsquare extracted from a spot note or information appended to the spot by a Spot Source
  • U - the gridsquare determined by a USAP Database lookup
  • D - the gridsquare determined by a DXCC Database lookup
GridBandProg GridBandProg award progress for the Maidenhead Gridsquare on the spotted band 
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
  • F - confirmed
  • V - verified
GridBandWB4 GridBandWB4 indicates whether or not this callsign has already been worked on the spotted band when valid for VUCC awards
  • Y - already worked on this band
  • N - never worked on this band

Note: this field is not populated in all cases

GridBandEn GridBandEn indicates whether the spotted band's box is checked in the VUCC Bands & Modes panel on the Awards tab of DXKeeper's Configuration window 
  • Y - checked
  • N - unchecked
StateProg StateProg award progress for the US State on any band or mode
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
  • F - confirmed
  • V - verified
StateWB4 StateWB4 indicates whether or not this callsign has already been worked when valid for WAS awards 
  • Y - already worked
  • N - never worked

Note: this field is not populated in all cases

StateEn StateEn indicates whether the Mixed box is checked in the WAS Bands & Modes panel on the Awards tab of DXKeeper's Configuration window
  • Y - checked
  • N - unchecked
StateBandProg StateBandProg award progress for the US State on the spotted band
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
  • F - confirmed
  • V - verified
StateBandWB4 StateBandWB4 indicates whether or not this callsign has already been worked on the spotted band when valid for WAS awards
  • Y - already worked on this band
  • N - never worked on this band

Note: this field is not populated in all cases

StateBandEn StateBandEn indicates whether the spotted band's box is checked in the WAS Bands & Modes panel on the Awards tab of DXKeeper's Configuration window 
  • Y - checked
  • N - unchecked
StateModeProg StateModeProg award progress for the US State in the spotted mode
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
  • F - confirmed
  • V - verified
StateModeWB4 StateModeWB4 indicates whether or not this callsign has already been worked in the spotted mode when valid for WAS awards
  • Y - already worked in this mode
  • N - never worked in this mode

Note: this field is not populated in all cases

StateModeEn StateModeEn indicates whether the spotted mode's box is checked in the WAS Bands & Modes panel on the Awards tab of DXKeeper's Configuration window 
  • Y - checked
  • N - unchecked
WPX WPX the spotted station's WPX Prefix
WPXProg WPXProg award progress for the WPX Prefix on any band or mode
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
  • F - confirmed
  • V - verified
WPXWB4 WPXWB4 indicates whether or not this callsign has already been worked when valid for WPX awards 
  • Y - already worked
  • N - never worked

Note: this field is not populated in all cases

WPXEn WPXEn indicates whether the Mixed box is checked in the WPX Bands & Modes panel on the Awards tab of DXKeeper's Configuration window
  • Y - checked
  • N - unchecked
WPXBandProg WPXBandProg award progress for the WPX Prefix on the spotted band
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
  • F - confirmed
  • V - verified
WPXBandWB4 WPXBandWB4 indicates whether or not this callsign has already been worked on the spotted band when valid for WPX awards
  • Y - already worked on this band
  • N - never worked on this band

Note: this field is not populated in all cases

WPXBandEn WPXBandEn indicates whether the spotted band's box is checked in the WPX Bands & Modes panel on the Awards tab of DXKeeper's Configuration window 
  • Y - checked
  • N - unchecked
WPXModeProg WPXModeProg award progress for the WPX Prefix in the spotted mode
  • U - unworked
  • W - worked
  • F - confirmed
  • V - verified
WPXModeWB4 WPXModeWB4 indicates whether or not this callsign has already been worked in the spotted mode when valid for WPX awards
  • Y - already worked in this mode
  • N - never worked in this mode

Note: this field is not populated in all cases

WPXModeEn WPXModeEn indicates whether the spotted mode's box is checked in the WPX Bands & Modes panel on the Awards tab of DXKeeper's Configuration window 
  • Y - checked
  • N - unchecked
SPSNR SPSNR predicted short path signal-to-noise ratio, in decibels
LPSNR LPSNR predicted long path signal-to-noise ratio, in decibels
ReqSNR ReqSNR required signal-to-noise radio, in decibels
SPProb SPProb predicted percentage of days of the month on which the required signal-to-noise ratio will be achieved via the short path
LPProb LPProb predicted percentage of days of the month on which the required signal-to-noise ratio will be achieved via the long path
SNRPred SNRPred 24 hour forecast of short path and long path signal-to-noise ratio and probability (not for reference by users)
SDRDate SDRDate date at which the short path and long path signal-to-noise ratio and probability forecasts were generated
ActualSNR ActualSNR most recent SNR reported by WSJT-X
  • -9999 means "no ActualSNR recorded"
ActualSNRMin ActualSNRMin lowest SNR reported by WSJT-X
  • -9999 means "no ActualSNRMin recorded"
ActualSNRMax ActualSNRMax highest SNR reported by WSJT-X
  • -9999 means "no ActualSNRMax recorded"
POTA POTA Parks on the Air code obtained from spot notes
SOTA SOTA Summits on the Air code obtained from spot notes
WWFF WWFF Worldwide Flora & Fauna area code obtained from spot notes
SpotCount   the number of entries that appear in a Spot Database Entry's Individual Spots window, which is governed by the Record individual spot information  and Ignore empty spot notes options

Notes

  1. The FirstTime, LastTime, FirstOpLocationTime, and LastOpLocationTime fields are computed using the timestamps received with each spot unless they are in the future with respect to your PC's local clock; in this case, your PC's local clock is used.

  2. The RcvdTime field is computed from your PC's local clock

  3. The geographic location of the station posting a spot is inferred from its callsign. This is not always accurate, as when AA6YQ operates from the east coast of North America without appending a /1 to his call.