Kantronics MT1200, User Manual, Page: 55 / 157

Monitor Communications From Nearby Stations
A good way to start using your packet radio station is to monitor communications from
nearby stations.
Amateur packet-radio activity is usually at VHF, on 2 meters, with 145.010 MHz being
the most common packet-radio frequency. APRS reporting stations use 144.390 MHz.
Most packet on VHF channels is at 1200 baud.
To monitor communications from nearby stations (after you have tuned in to an
appropriate frequency):
Step 1. Set the command MONITOR to ON (if it is not already ON).
Step 2. Disconnect from any other station.
Step 3. As packets are received, you will see them displayed on your screen. A
typical received packet might look like this:
NØKN>KBØNYK:
Hi Mike. How are you today?
The first line is the header line, and shows the callsigns of the stations talking
and the following line(s) are the actual message that was sent. In the example,
NØKN is the transmitting station, and KBØNYK is the receiving station. You may
see the RCV LED light at times, indicating a signal is being received, but nothing
displays on your screen. This is normal and may be the result of the settings of
the monitoring commands, which are discussed in detail in the MT1200
Command Reference.
As you monitor, you will begin to learn about other packet stations in your area and then
you will probably want to try to connect to one of them.
Communicate Directly with a Nearby Station
Now you are ready to carry on a two-way conversation with another station. Here we
will see exactly what you need to do to connect to and converse with another station.
Let’s say that you decide to connect to KBØNYK. The steps needed are as follows:
Step 1. First, be sure you have the MT1200 in command mode. To do this, type
<Ctrl+C> and then press return. You should see a command prompt (cmd:).
Step 2. Now you use the CONNECT command. To connect to KBØNYK, you would
simply type CONNECT KBØNYK and press return, just as you did in the
sample connect to your mailbox.
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