ZBM2 Software

Repeater, RepeaterBook and BlueCAT Support

Repeater Database

Currently all UK repeaters are included and a growing database for - Argentina, Austria, Australia, Belgium, Cyprus, Cayman Islands, Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Guernsey, Hungary, Iceland, India, Ireland, Isle of Man, Italy, Jersey, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, San Marino, Slovak Republic, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland...
This is expanding! If a repeaters data is incorrect or you have the data for a country you would like added, please contact us.

For our friends in North America we now have our popular RepeaterBook app for Android, iPhone and Blackberry Z10 /Playbook.

Languages

Support for Support for English, German, Slovak, Spanish, Catalan, Swedish, Polish, Italian, Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Finnish, Argentinian and French languages (Android version). Please contact us if you have any translation updates.

RepeaterBook Database

Powered by the popular community database of RepeaterBook.com - Please feel free to submit updates using the options within the app, or the RepeaterBook.com website. Thank you.

Callsign Colours

The call sign colours indicate

Green -  On-air, White - Unknown, Yellow - Testing.

Languages

Support for English, Spanish and French Canadian languages (Android version). Please contact us if you have any translation updates.

    

Finding Repeater and RepeaterBook - Just search for ZBM2 on Play,  Apple App Store or Blackberry world.

Supported Devices - iPhone versions

iOS 5.1 and above

Supported Devices - Android versions

Android 2.1 and later. Earlier versions are not officially supported as they have different requirements for location management and do not support APP2SD - loading apps from SD to save phone memory.

Supported Devices - Blackberry versions

Repeater and RepeaterBook are also available for the Blackberry PlayBook and the new Z10 from the Blackberry app store - zbm2.com/playbook - We would like feedback on these versions too.

Rooted Android devices

Repeater and RepeaterBook has been used successfully on a wide range of "rooted" devices. Including Chinese tablets and the Kindle fire. We are keen that Repeater works on as many devices as practicable, so please contact us if you have an Android device that fails to run Repeater.

iPhone Versions

Finding the app

Just search for ZBM2 on the Apple App Store.

No Repeaters Found

Please ensure you are using RepeaterBook (Red icon) for North America and Repeater Locator (Green icon) for the rest of the world.

Location Unknown

Location services may have been disabled for the app. Go to the iPhone Home Screen. Then, Settings, privacy, location services. There you can enable location services for the app. Your current Locator/Grid should be displayed at the top of the screen.

Entering a Grid Square / Locator Square

The Grid square / Locator needs to be 6 characters long and upper case. Sorry as this is not clear, but it will be addressed very soon.
   

Android Versions

Finding the app

Just search for ZBM2 on Google Play

Please ensure you are using RepeaterBook (Red icon) for North America and Repeater Locator (Green icon) for the rest of the world.

Close / Exit

Pressing the back button from the Repeater main screen does not completely close the application, it is just paused. Most Android applications work this way, as they will only be closed by the system if resources are low. This enables recently used apps to be quickly resumed without having to completely restart, get location fixes etc.

Home Button

Pressing the home button from any screen pauses the app and returns you to the Android Home screen. Next time you press the Repeater icon, it will quickly resume where you left off.

Changing Settings

Press the menu key or menu "softkey" then Settings. This displays all the apps setttings - units, max distances, sorting, selection, display etc.

GPS

Repeater does not switch the GPS on or off itself. This is to give you control of the GPS and prevents the GPS being switched off if another app requires it! However, if Repeater is paused and the GPS is on it will wakeup the GPS for a fix every 2 minutes or so.This enables Repeater to quickly resume without having to wait for a location fix. This was also needed as older devices were taking ages to re acquire GPS lock. This will be revised in a future version!

Power Usage

GPS, WIFI and Bluetooth use considerable power. Repeater will only use whatever is already switched on. So, to save power ensure that only the required services are switched on.The Android Power Bar widget or settings provide control of WIFI, GPS, Bluetooth etc.

Message "Please enable 3G, WIFI or GPS"

If the phone has been rebooted or Repeater restarted it can sometimes take a little time for the phone to get it's first location fix. This message is displayed if Repeater has no valid location.

If this message persists some other things to check are -

Settings, Location and Security, "My Location", "Use wireless networks" will need to be enabled.

Ensure no other security software is accidently blocking location services.
Check to see if other apps can get a location.

Message "Unknown Locator"

If you are setting the location manually the Locator/Grid has to be 6 characters long, and a valid Locator/Grid format. IO91VW for example.

Location

The location consent will be required on some devices, so Android can give permission for apps to use your location. Check it works with GPS to ensure this is set correctly.

The network connection (3G or WIFI) is used for Android to determine your position via WIFI or cell tower id's. These have to be looked up on google servers, hence the need for an internet connection if these methods are used to determine location. The amount of data transferred is very small.

Under settings, My Location, "use wireless networks" - Location

determined by WLAN and or mobile networks - will need to be ticked

If WIFI/3G access is being used to provide location information - Check that web pages and email still work correctly.

If GPS is being used provide location information - Check it has lock. A good program to check GPS operation is GPSTest

Installing a Beta version of Repeater or RepeaterBook

If you have been sent a link to a beta version of Repeater, you will need to ensure your Android device allows applications to be installed from outside Google Play. To do this

Go to
Settings, Applications
and then tick "unknown sources"

Then from the browser on your Android device go to the link you have been sent

The Repeater app will start to install automatically.

Crashes on startup

Please contact us. There are thousands of Android devices and levels of firmware. So, the only way some crashes will be fixed is if you contact us! Thanks!

Blackberry Z10 and Playbook Versions

Finding the app

Just search for ZBM2 on the Blackberry World.

Location is determined using either GPS or WIFI, as the PlayBook has no mobile data connection.

Location using GPS

The PlayBook GPS is "unassisted" i.e it does not use a net connection for fast fixes. Therefore if using the GPS, it will need a clear view of the sky and a little time to lock on.

Location using WIFI

If GPS is not used, ensure WIFI is enabled and connected.

Message "Please enable WIFI or GPS"

It can sometimes take a while for the PlayBook to get its location, particularly if it has been updated or started from
"cold", or if Repeater is being loaded for the first time. So, check that other apps can get location information successfully - the Bing app, preloaded on the PlayBook is a good one to use.

BlueCAT - Android Bluetooth FT857 Interface

Please note BlueCAT is designed for Android and PC's. Due to restrictions by Apple BlueCAT will NOT work with Apple iPhones.

Bluetooth pairing request PIN message

When the BlueCAT interface is connected for the first time you will be asked to enter the PIN, it is  1234  Once you have entered this PIN the paired connection should be remembered by the device.

Bluetooth pairing timeout

Bluetooth will only remain active for pairing for a couple of minutes. If your device is having issues pairing, please reset BlueCAT and try the connection again. Once a paired connection is established future connections to BlueCAT will be quicker and you will not generally have to enter the passkey again.

Using BlueCAT with an LDG Tuner

The LDG Z-817 tuner uses 38400 baud. The standard BlueCAT can be used.

The LDG YT-100 tuner uses 4800. The 4800 baud version of BlueCAT will be required. Just specify when ordering.

Will other FM radios be supported?

BlueCAT provides a CAT interface to program the FT8x7 series of radios. Many other FM radios only have a "Clone" interface which requires connection of the radio in a certain mode, and a fair amount of button pressing to program the memories. This does not allow the radio to be programmed on the fly without touching the radio - as you can with a CAT interface.

Other radios with a CAT interface will be supported in the future. Please contact us for the latest information.

The excellent free CHIRP program can use RepeaterBook data to program a wide range of radios using a "Clone" interface. 

Can BlueCAT be used with Ham Radio Deluxe?

BlueCAT has been tested with various versions of HRD - including 5.0. The key is to ensure your PC has the correct driver file for it's Bluetooth adapter, and that a virtual com port has been setup. HRD should then "see" the virtual com port and work as if it was wired up directly. A number customers are successfully using HRD with BlueCAT.

More notes on using BlueCAT with HRD will be published shortly. Please contact us for the latest information.