KB1OIQ - Andy's Ham Radio Linux News

Hi everybody,

One notes that AHRL v26e does NOT support Debian 13 or any of its derivatives, which includes Raspberry Pi OS version 6. I'm actively working on that issue for v26f. A few needed libraries are no longer included in the Debian 13 repository. If I cannot find a suitable substitute, I might have to remove a couple of programs.

In the Wayland vs. X11 space, on Raspberry Pi OS version 5/6, Wayland is the default. I've seen a program or two that aren't entirely functional in Wayland, but they work fine with X11. My recommendation is to stick with X11 if you're seeing such problems.... read more

Hi Everybody,

AHRL v26e has been released. Please give the mirrors time to sync up with the new version.

Mostly, software versions have been updated. There were a couple of additions:

• QLog
• RTL SDR Blog V4 driver
• wsjtx_improved 3.0

Details can be found in the CHANGES document.

Be sure to follow the instructions in the GETTING_STARTED document. This document should answer any questions you may have.... read more

Hi Everybody,

Andy's Ham Radio Linux (AHRL) v26d has been released. Several software packages were updated (enumerated in the CHANGES file). Support was added for LMDE6. For more info and a link to download it: https://sourceforge.net/projects/kb1oiq-andysham/

Thanks, and 73,

Andy
KB1OIQ ..

Hi Everybody,

I recently started the work to update AHRL to version 26d.

If there are software packages that you'd like to see in that release, and if they are of general use to the community, please let me know. Note that everything needs to be Free Software, Open Source Software, or equivalently licensed.

I'm not planning any major changes in this release - just updates to the existing software and perhaps the addition of a couple of packages. My goal is to release this before I go to Dayton 2025.... read more

Hi Everybody,

Version 26C is the most recent release to date of Andy's Ham Radio Linux, and it is available now. Please go to Files/v26c and download a copy of the GETTING_STARTED document. These instructions will guide you. If you have installed a previous version of AHRL, that's OK! Just install this new stuff over the old stuff.

Supported flavors of Linux:

• Debian Live 12.7.0
• Ubuntu 24.04.*
• Xubuntu 24.04.*
• Kubuntu 24.04.*
• Linux Mint 22
• Raspberry Pi OS 5.5... read more

Hi Everybody,

I just returned from a month long vacation in AZ. I drove from my home in MA to see my cousin in AZ (6 days out, 6 days back, 2 weeks in AZ, 5700 miles total, 37.7 MPG).

I am planning an updated version of AHRL sometime soon - perhaps 2-4 weeks. I will updated all software versions as appropriate. I will test everything on updated versions of the various Linux flavors documented in the GETTING_STARTED guide. I'm still catching up on email and enhancement requests, so expect to hear more from me in the coming days.... read more

Hi Everybody,

There has been a LOT of interest in these most recent versions of AHRL. Thank you for your support!

v26b-beta is out. I've added a bunch of programs for the ARRL Teachers Institute, including their own menu. Those programs also appear in other menus as appropriate. Many of those programs are SDR related. They work for me but please try them and let me know.

I've tested this on several flavors of Ubuntu Linux 24.04.1 as well as Debian 12.7.0 (XFCE) and Linux Mint 22 (Cinnamon).... read more

Hi Everybody,

I discovered that v26 has some problems when I try to install it on Linux Mint 22 (Cinnamon). I'm fixing it now.

More news later,

Andy
KB1OIQ ..

Hi Everybody,

I have released version 26 of Andy's Ham Radio Linux. It can be found here:
https://sourceforge.net/projects/kb1oiq-andysham/files/v26

Version 26 is now the default version when the Download button is clicked.

Please be sure to read the GETTING_STARTED document, which can be found at the link above. This version is VERY different from previous versions. It is no longer a customized version of Xubuntu Linux. Instead, it is a large script which installs ham radio software on your favorite flavor of Ubuntu Linux. You need to have Linux installed first, and then follow the detailed instructions in the GETTING_STARTED document. Note that this version works on Raspberry Pi models 4 and 5 (with 8GB of memory). Tested configurations are listed in the GETTING_STARTED document. Other configurations MIGHT work - give it a try and let me know!... read more

Hi Everybody,

I cleaned up a few bugs in the alpha1 version and have released the beta1 version. It can be found here:
https://sourceforge.net/projects/kb1oiq-andysham/files/v26/

I've removed the alpha1 version. Many thanks to those who tested it.

Please report any bugs to me as well as any success stories on Linux flavors which I have not tested.

Have fun and 73!

Andy
KB1OIQ

Hi Everybody,

I'm sending this again because it seems to have been garbled when it was sent out previously.

The long awaited release of version26alpha1 has occurred! The files can be found here:
https://sourceforge.net/projects/kb1oiq-andysham/files/v26/alpha1/

Note that this release is ENTIRELY different from all of the previous releases. In earlier releases, I took Xubuntu Linux and hand crafted / customized the software selection, menus, etc. I created an ISO file out of the result and that's what was downloaded by the user community. It worked well for a lot of years but it wasn't perfect. Despite its imperfections, it was well received by the user community. Thank you!... read more

Hi Everybody,

The long awaited release of version26alpha1 has occurred! The files can be found here:
https://sourceforge.net/projects/kb1oiq-andysham/files/v26/alpha1/

Note that this release is ENTIRELY different from all of the previous releases. In earlier releases, I took Xubuntu Linux and hand crafted / customized the software selection, menus, etc. I created an ISO file out of the result and that's what was downloaded by the user community. It worked well for a lot of years but it wasn't perfect. Despite its imperfections, it was well received by the user community. Thank you!... read more

Hi Everybody,

I plan to attend Hamvention 2024 in Xenia, OH in May 2024. I will be giving a talk entitled, "Andy's Ham Radio Linux". It will be in room 2 at 9:15 AM on the first day of the convention (Friday).

Look for me and say "hi". I'll probably be wearing a Linux penguin tee shirt (weather permitting).

73,

Andy
KB1OIQ

Hi Everybody,

I'm in the process of creating AHRL version 25b which will still be based on Ubuntu LTS 22.04.*

I want to give Ubuntu 24.04 a chance to settle down before moving to it. That's OK since 22.04 is a LTS version.

Stay tuned ... more news later.

73,

Andy
KB1OIQ

Hi Everybody,

I have released version 0.2alpha of Andy's Ham Radio Linux (AHRL) for the Raspberry Pi. It contains a few bug fixes and added support for the Raspberry Pi 4. I tried an installation on a Raspberry Pi 2B and it seems to work with a few errors.

I look forward to hearing feedback from the user community.

Have fun and 73 de Andy KB1OIQ ..

Hi Everybody,

I have been working on a Raspberry Pi 5 and I've got most of Andy's Ham Radio Linux working on that hardware.
Go here to download it: https://sourceforge.net/projects/kb1oiq-andysham/files/raspberry_pi/0.1alpha/

Please note that this is a 0.1 alpha release - nobody has tested it but me, so please follow the directions carefully:
https://sourceforge.net/projects/kb1oiq-andysham/files/raspberry_pi/0.1alpha/GETTING_STARTED... read more

Hi Everybody,

AHRL v25a has been released! Please download it and try it out!

Note that when creating a bootable USB thumb drive, the following tools are known to work:

• usb-creator-gtk
• balena-etcher

Note that MultiBootUSB seems NOT to work and I don't know why. It has always worked in the past. It created a device that was not bootable when I tried it. Maybe I was bleary eyed at 3AM when I tried it.... read more

Hi Everybody,

I tried to release AHRL v25a last night, but the file is TOO BIG for Sourceforge. It is just over 6GB, which is a big increase vs. v25. I'm looking into what I can remove to make the file smaller. There's also the possibility of using a slower but more compact compression algorithm. In my zeal to provide a lot of software for the user community, I accidentally created this problem.... read more

Hi Everybody,

I plan to attend Hamvention 2023 in Xenia, OH in May 2023. I will be giving a talk entitled, "Andy's Ham Radio Linux". I hope to see you there!!

73,

Andy
KB1OIQ

Hi Everybody,

I am now starting to work on version 25a. I don't anticipate any major changes, but there will be a lot of software updates. If you have any pointers to software that you'd like to see in this collection, please let me know.

Thanks, and 73,

Andy

Hi Everybody,

There are two videos which might be of interest to fans of AHRL:

• A very fair review of version 25 was done by "The Old Tech Guy" and is available on YouTube:
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEd5uMoksa8&ab_channel=KevinLoughin

• I recently gave a presentation to the RATPAC group, and they made a YouTube video of that presentation.
  https://youtu.be/BOlHi73zY74

I hope you find these videos useful.... read more

Hi Everybody,

Version 25 of "Andy's Ham Radio Linux" has been released. It is based on Xubuntu 22.04.0 and the Xfce4 desktop environment.

Please read the GETTING_STARTED document for instructions.

If there are any issues, please post them in the "Discussion" area.

Have fun and 73,

Andy
KB1OIQ

Hi Everybody,

I have started working on version 25 of Andy's Ham Radio Linux. It will be based on Ubuntu 22.04 and will be for 64-bit computers.

Stay tuned for further developments.

Have fun and 73,

Andy
KB1OIQ

Hi Everybody,

I've just released version 24e of "Andy's Ham Radio Linux". It contains updates to all of the existing software, plus a few new additions. It is based on Ubuntu 18.04.6 and is probably the last version that I will release based on 18.04.

Be sure to consult the HOWTO_GridTracker document for instructions about obtaining and installing this excellent software. Look through the menu to see all of the software that is available to you - there's a lot in there! I searched the internet for as much Free Software / Open Source software related to ham radio as I could find. If you find something else, please let me know.... read more