Getting Started with Russian District Award (RDA) Tracking
Note: some of the functionality described here requires DXView 4.8.4 or later, DXKeeper 16.3.6 or later, SpotCollector 8.9.3 or later, and WinWarbler 9.3.9 or later
The Russian District Award (RDA) family is based in confirmed QSOs made with Districts in European Russia, Asiatic Russia, Kaliningrad, and Franz Josef Land; each District is specified by the code recorded a QSO's Secondary Administrative Subdivision item.
RDA Database
The RDA Database managed by DXView contains entries for more than 50,000 callsigns that have previously operated or are currently operating from a Russian District. The database also contains entries for USSR callsigns that operated from a Russian District before 1994-01-01.
For a callsign that previously operated in a Russian District, its RDA database entry contains one or more "activity records", each specifying a District, a start date, and an end date. This database will usually be updated every 2 weeks. Note that not every Russian callsign is present in this database.
DXView and the Launcher will inform you when an updated version of the RDA database is available.
Setup
On the Databases tab of DXView's Configuration window, click the RDA database's Install button
On the Spot Database Display tab of SpotCollector's Configuration window, use the Layout panel to add the Secondary field, as described in the To add a field to the Spot Database Display section of this article.
On the General tab of SpotCollector's Configuration window, check the Lookup missing location info box
When directed to lookup a Russian callsign that is present in the RDA database with location information for the current date, the Location textbox on DXView's Main window will display the code for the callsign's Oblast, e.g. <Pri: AR>, and the code for the callsign's District, e.g. <SEC: AR-06>.
SpotCollector should now populate the Secondary field of each Spot Database Entry whose callsign is in European Russia, Asiatic Russia, Kaliningrad, or Franz Josef Land
Logging QSOs with Stations in Russia or the USSR
When you log a QSO with a Russian station via the WinWarbler's QSO Info panel, DXKeeper will query the RDA database for that station's location on the current date.
When you log a QSO with a Russian station via the Main window's Log QSOs tab with Optimize for realtime QSO entry enabled, DXKeeper will query the RDA database for that station's location on the current date.
When you log a QSO with a Russian or USSR station via the Main window's "Log QSOs" tab with Optimize for realtime QSO entry disabled, DXKeeper will query the RDA database for that station's location on the QSO's begin date.
- Before 1994, stations from non-Russian areas of the USSR -- e.g. Lithuania or Kazakhstan -- could make QSOs from Russia using their home callsigns. These QSOs are valid for RDA awards, hence the reason for querying the RDA database when logging a QSO that was made prior to 1994.
Tracking Progress Towards RDA Awards
To generate an RDA Progress Report, click the Progress button in the RDA Russian District reports panel on the Check Progress tab of DXKeeper's Configuration window.
To generate an RDA Submission Report, click the Submission button in the RDA Russian District reports panel on the Check Progress tab of DXKeeper's Configuration window
Other Topics
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