Latitude 38 – November 2006

Pactor Tips & Tricks: Accessing your Winlink or Sailmail messages from shore using your memory stick

The following tip is not well know at all as I tested it myself and never heard about it from someone else … so you may learn something J

The original method is to access your Winlink or Sailmail inbox by login in directly or via myemail.com and download messages one by one. Now, using Telnet (module in Airmail), you save a lot of time by using your airmail software directly when using your laptop directly hooked up on a phone line. But that means finding a place that let you connect your own computer into their network! The following method is easy, using only your USB key and it works as fast!

On your boat, you copy from your laptop on your memory stick the following: one folder with the airmail installation zip file (see latest version), the second folder containing a copy of your entire Airmail folder just before you go to the internet café. At the internet café, you plug in your memory stick into the computer USB port you are using. First you open the airmail install zip file and install airmail on the computer you are working on (deselect the option to have a shortcut on the desktop and a place in the menu as those are not necessary). Then you open your second folder (with all your own airmail files) and open your airmail.exe file. Now, airmail opens (yours, on your memory stick) and in Modules, you open the Telnet window and there you go. Your outgoing msg will go and incoming msg will directly come in your inbox as when you are using the terminal window connecting to your Pactor modem.. In less than a minute, you will be done (phone lines go faster than SSB radio)!

Back on your boat, you delete your older airmail folder in your Program Files and replace it with your Airmail folder that is in your memory stick (with all the newest emails in!). You then start your airmail program on your laptop as usual and there you go J This procedure allows you avoid carrying your laptop to the internet café J You only have to install the airmail installation files if nobody has installed it before you so if you use the same computer later, you can skip that first step.

The following has been written so many times … and still so many users seem to not know about it! First turn the power output of your radio to 50W and not 100 or 150W as the default setting is! You will have a faster connection because less reflected power. You will use less electricity. Anybody around you in the anchorage won’t get the whole spectrum whipped out when you connect J Listen for an unoccupied frequency before calling! Only one user can be connected at a time so calling on top of someone already connected only slows down everyone L In doubt, as sometimes you can hear some weak noises but are not sure if those are pactor or not, call 5 times and then stop calling by clicking twice on the Stop button. If the station was available you will connect within 5 calls, if the station was busy with someone else, you disturbed them only a short time!

Other item of interest to email users: Consider a 12v mini desktop with laptop components. Laptops are rarely repairable in the islands as nobody has the required spare parts and it thus cost a fortune to ship it back to the manufacturer. Using a home PC forces you to use an inverter, causing HF interferences L I discovered a very knowledgeable and serious cruiser who assembles 12v computers with laptop generic parts so it is very easy to replace parts yourself! All the advantages of low power computing and ease of repairs! Check his website www.islandtimepc.com 

Enjoy interesting cruising and troublefree email communications!

Luc Callebaut (and Jackie Lee) on s/v Sloepmouche presently in New Caledonia

Luc has been one of the beta  users of the pactor technology since the early 90’s and has helped countless cruisers with email communications since then. He is a SCS dealer in the South Pacific. Contact him with any question and queries at lucseawalker@gmail.com or check www.LSAC.bravehost.com