FAQ

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Q1. Why do I have to re-enter my registration details each time I start the program?

a) If you are running Windows Vista or Windows 7 then you need to be an Administrator to enter the registration details. Click the Windows Start button and find the entry for the program; right-click the entry and choose 'Run as administrator'. After the registration details have been accepted you can then run normally.


Q2. I can not read my radio

a) The Com port number has not been set. Use the command Com port Detector on the Settings or Tools menu to set the port number.

b) USB cables: the USB driver has not been installed or is faulty. If you have a Prolific USB chip and get an error code 10 shown in Windows Device Manager's device properties page for the device then Prolific say that you could have a fake USB chip or you are using Windows 8 or above - see here for their Windows driver page:

http://www.prolific.com.tw/US/ShowProduct.aspx?p_id=225&pcid=41

Prolific do not support their early PL2303 USB chips on operating systems after Windows 7. You will get a message 'cannot start code 10' in Device Manager when using these chips on Windows 8 and above. If you have an older chip in your programming cable and get this message see this link for how to get an older driver installed.

c) The programming plug has not been fully inserted into the radio socket.

d) Possibly also Q3 is relevant but you can't even read the radio.

e) You have plugged the cable into the wrong radio socket (VX-3).

f) You have a Maxton cable with this PCB

Make these 2 changes: the 0 ohm resistor can be a shorting strap


Q3. I can read my radio but not write to it (usually VX-3 and mobiles with an RJ programming lead)

a) Serial cables with this PCB: Change R3 from 33K to 22K (15K and 18K have also been successfully used)


b) USB cables with this PCB: Change R11 from 47K to 22K (15K has also been successfully used)

c) Can also be due to faulty Prolific USB drivers. See Q2 above - answer b).

d) If using a 9 pin serial programming cable plugged into a USB/serial adapter: possibly low RTS/DTR voltages from the USB/serial adapter. Try a native serial port on a PC or a USB/serial adapter with an FTDI USB chip in it.


Q4. FTBasicMMO is causing my radio to reset when I write to it

a) You have chosen the wrong radio type. Look carefully at the descriptions of the radios in the pop-out list and choose the one that matches your radio. A good clue is whether or not your radio has the 5MHz band in memories M601-M605


Q5. When I run the program the main memory grid screen does not display properly

a) Probably you have a custom font size DPI. Use the Windows screen personalisation feature to set the DPI to 96 DPI or 120 DPI.


Q6. Why does my radio TX when I come out of CLONE mode or turn off my PC?

a) Some USB programming cables pull the PTT/CLONE line low when the PC is powered off or the Com port is not open. If the radio is not in CLONE mode and that pin is low then the radio will TX because the same pin is used for PTT. When not in CLONE mode as long as the line is high the radio will not TX. If your programming cable is one of these then to avoid this situation power off your radio and disconnect the programming cable after reading or writing to the radio.

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