US Oregon

[sharp pilot]

now that I have it proxied through my phone its updating regularly now

I am going to turn that off and see if that gave it the push it needed

[sharp pilot]

something is up with the RAK. its not linking now. so more trouble shooting tomorrow

[turbid sequoia]

people have issues with the ethernet module. I've heard they don't like smart ethernet hubs/switches. No fancy features switched on. Also someone said there is a power cord (included?) that needed to be connected between the main board and the ethernet module itself. Dunno. I should pick one up one of these days to test it. Been using cheap old Lora 2.1-1.6's for all my networking adventures.

[sharp pilot]

I swapped out the POE adapter and now its happy

[turbid sequoia]

Well, at least you solved it

[sharp pilot]

yeah, crazy stuff

[ashen spruce]

My mojo solar base node is so close to having a reliable link to the YCM2 node. I do route through it occasionally, which is rad. This is my predicted coverage of the area where it is deployed. 😀

[sharp pilot]

where do you plan on deploying this node?

[ashen spruce]

My node is already deployed on my home's roof. The above is what it is predicted to be able to "see" from that location, which is really close to where YCM2 reports its location. 🙂

[sharp pilot]

yes, that is hte area where my node is deployed.

what is your node name?

[ashen spruce]

👑 Mojo Solar Base 4f12

[sharp pilot]

wow, thats good. YCM2 is a new node I just put up yesterday. it has a 10db antenna with a very narrow beam width

I did notice that my RSSI and SNR did get better once this ne node went up

[ashen spruce]

yeah, given the linear path between our nodes I'm really surprised it is even possible. YCM2 must be high enough that I can just peek over the top of the hills between us.

[sharp pilot]

its at 1850 feet ish

I have a direct LOS toPDX through the smog 🙂

I just sent your node a DM

[ashen spruce]

when I get home I'll see if it got there 😀

[sharp pilot]

ok

it has hte checkmark with the person

[hearty ferry]

My node claims to be in contact with you as well as YCM2

can you initiate a traceroute from the web app?

[sharp pilot]

I dont have direct access to YCM2

only over the admin channel

I guess I can try that

[hearty ferry]

how can you tell?

it would be in the node list?

[sharp pilot]

yeah

what is your node?

[hearty ferry]

Hairy People D9DC

I can see your other node in McMinnville as well

[sharp pilot]

YCM1 is the one at my house

see if you can DM YCM1

I just sent your node a DM

[hearty ferry]

sent

first one failed second seems to have made it?

[sharp pilot]

did not get it

[hearty ferry]

is there a way to connect the iphone app to a IP connected node? or does it only work through BT?

[hearty ferry]

YamCo-Mesh01?

[sharp pilot]

Yeah. Got nothing

[hearty ferry]

weird

[sharp pilot]

Welcome to meshtastic

[hearty ferry]

oy

[sharp pilot]

my node here hasnt seen you for 20 hours

[sharp pilot]

Hmmm

[hearty ferry]

tried contacting you through the main channel

[sharp pilot]

only see msg from JDMO recently

you could be too many hops away?

[hearty ferry]

I'll try connecting through bluetooth since the app will show me how many hops

[sharp pilot]

ok

[hearty ferry]

maybe its showing up in the list through MQTT?

[sharp pilot]

possibly

YCM1 is on MQTT

[dusky niche]

Hairy Peeps, I tried a DM to d9dc...

[lyric zephyr]

I see your node on my list all the time, and that's via LoRa only.

[ashen spruce]

Nice! I have an above average but low-level installation. It also has bigger ears than mouth. I also had to bump my max hops to 5 to link the two locations I'm trying to communicate between, which should make my node appear more consistently as a side effect.

This is my path to YCM2. Definitely just peeking over the hills.

[lyric zephyr]

Mine is similar. I see many nodes, but very few have responded to my test DMs.

[turbid sequoia]

Use the public channel to connect, then move to DM. I have at least 6 nodes running and am not monitoring any of them right now.

[hearty ferry]

I haven't seen it

😭

[hearty ferry]

Showing direct to your #2. And one hop to #1. I'm getting data just can't seem to send to you.

[hearty ferry]

What's your node name?

[dusky niche]

JDMO in Aloha... Also have Crow T and Tom Servo, but their antennas are meh.

[idle trail]

is there hops on andriod yet?

[turbid sequoia]

https://tenor.com/view/bibipet-bibi-pet-cuteanimals-funnycartoons-gif-21007037

[hearty ferry]

Hrm. Keeps acknowledging by different node

I think I need to get a better antenna

[turbid sequoia]

These guys are decent: https://www.amazon.com/915MHz-LoRa-Antenna-Indoor-Cable/dp/B0CTXL61LY

My favorite mobile: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804421300249.html

Best value: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256803106771365.html

[dusky niche]

If you can put it outside somewhere, the Rokland store has relatively inexpensive 4dBi units. https://store.rokland.com/collections/802-11ah-wi-fi-halow/products/4-dbi-helium-hotspot-fiberglass-outdoor-antenna-bracket-mount-for-rak-bobcat-nebra-sensecap

[last patrol]

How are all of you connecting to your meshtastic node? Just Bluetooth? Or ip?

[bronze compass]

just BT for me

[daring steeple]

Wifi

[dusky niche]

BLE for me. It's really amazing how far those little PCB antennas can reach!

[last patrol]

What device are you using? Mine don't stay accessible for more than 2 hours or so.

[last patrol]

Oh and I should clarify.. are you in WiFi client mode? It's connected to your home WiFi?

[turbid sequoia]

Meshtastic doesn't support AP mode on the node

[last patrol]

Yes it does.

That's how mine is set up. You have to configure it via CLI, but it works. Just not very long. I should mention that when it stops working, I can't connect via Bluetooth either.

[turbid sequoia]

I'd like to see how you managed that.

[last patrol]

I can give you the exact command....

[turbid sequoia]

Bluetooth and WiFi use the same antenna so you can't use both

[last patrol]

Ahh. Maybe that's why it hangs after a couple hours. I'll try disabling Bluetooth. Still want that wifi cli?

[turbid sequoia]

Bluetooth is automaticly disabled in the firmware when you enable wifi

[turbid sequoia]

I'm curious. Sure

[last patrol]

Bluetooth was definitely still on when I had wifi client mode working.

In the options anyways.. not sure about functionality

[turbid sequoia]

The setting looks on but it's not

[last patrol]

ahh

[whole rapids]

They use the same radio and antenna, only one works at a time

[last patrol]

meshtastic --port /dev/ttyUSB0 --set network.wifi_ssid <SSID> --set network.wifi_psk <PASS> --set network.wifi_enabled 1

[turbid sequoia]

That's not AP mode, that is client mode connected to your home AP.

[last patrol]

That's what I'm talking about.

So I think maybe we were saying the same thing in different ways.

But I'll go disable bluetooth just to make sure.. maybe that'll fix it. I am running an alpha

[turbid sequoia]

Have you enabled MQTT? That'll make connecting with a client awkward at times.

[last patrol]

Hell no. I've heard that's just a mess.

[turbid sequoia]

Depends on your use case

[daring steeple]

Yes heltec V3 connected to home wifi in client mode. I use the android app.

[last patrol]

Well, that's my exact setup, so... perhaps disabling bluetooth will solve my issues

[turbid sequoia]

Firmware does it for you when you enable wifi

I had to allow unrestricted battery permissions for the app to stay connected to my WiFi node

On Android

[last patrol]

That would make sense if I could reconnect to it.

But I can't even ping it.

But I'll remember that trick once this is working

[turbid sequoia]

Ah some people have issues with their WiFi setups. I got lucky I guess.

Boring Google nest mesh setup.

[last patrol]

I'm running hundreds of IoT devices on a full Tp-Link Omada network. Zero issues with anything except this.

Including a ton of other ESP32 devices.

[turbid sequoia]

May help to do a full erase and reinstall if you haven't already

[last patrol]

Doing that right now actually. And i'll revert to the latest stable.

Alright. Node is up - fingers crossed it'll be up in a couple of hours.

[hearty ferry]

The web interface doesn't have as many features. Hop count, metrics, trace route asre some that come to mind

[last patrol]

You can still use the mobile app with an IP.

[last patrol]

This time it became inaccessible only 10 minutes after... I'm at a loss. Maybe I'll create another ssid that has super vanilla options

[idle trail]

does andriod have hops yet?

im on the latest firmware

nope its not

womp womp

[last patrol]

Well, 1 hour and all is well so far.

[hearty ferry]

I don't think you can with iOS.

[last patrol]

I'm not surprised.

[hearty ferry]

Not sure it's an OS issue. Guessing they just have higher priorities. Need to get a pi up and running just use the CLI. The web interface is pretty skookum but lacking in the debug aspect

Thanks for the links @turbid sequoia and @dusky niche . Tempted to try making my own slim Jim or j pole and spend the money on one of those cheap vswr meters from Ali

[last patrol]

Are you using the LoRa hat with the pi? Or using a separate module via USB or something? I have a ton of Pi's laying around I'd love to use for this.

[hearty ferry]

I have a Lora RFM95 pi hat from an older Lora project that would be a good router/gateway. Right now I am starting with a couple Heltec devices since they were easier to get going out of the box.

[last patrol]

That's what I did as well. I'm just looking for something a little more robust than an ESP32 dev board.

Linux is my jam and has been since 1997, so if I can get meshtastic in a pi, I'm sold

[crystal osprey]

I am not so sure I understood well “meshtastic in a pi” means. However Raspberry Pi Pico looks like being supported. https://meshtastic.org/docs/hardware/devices/raspberry-pi/

[timber raven]

I’ve never heard anyone use Skookum in a sentence 😂

[shadow rock]

I am running a PICO W as a node, it's connected to house wifi and is publishing uplink LORA traffic to a house MQTT broker. Am not sure the web interface is a thing for the PICOs. It has done pretty well as an MQTT off-rmap, although it did seem to hang four days into that service. Updated firmware, will see how far we get this time.

[hearty ferry]

@turbid sequoia do you have a VNA? I saw some antenna reports with your name on them

[turbid sequoia]

I sure do. NanoVNA.

[last patrol]

So, after last nights idiocy... Turning off bluetooth in the settings DID in fact do something that you said out to be done automatically when wifi is turned on.

I flashed the latest stable onto both of my units, set them up, then turned wifi on and didn't touch bluetooth. After just over 10 minutes, it was inaccessible again. I noticed that the bluetooth name would show up as discoverable from time to time.. So I disabled bluetooth in the settings and it's been solid all night.

[hearty ferry]

I've been looking at those. Really want something that can also do 2.4 ISM band as well

[turbid sequoia]

I wonder if you've found a bug.

@last patrol besides bluetooth/wifi, did you change any other settings? This is odd behavior. CLIENT role?

I'm not a developer, but I've read every word of the docs

https://meshtastic.org/docs/configuration/radio/network/

[turbid sequoia]

I got pretty much the cheapest one a long time ago. I'm not an expert but I believe with a firmware update it can display a wider range.

[last patrol]

The defaults except for station name and WiFi.

[turbid sequoia]

I dropped a note in [the lounge](#contributor-lounge message)

[sharp pilot]

Looking at nodes on my ipad, Mojo Solar Base is only 1 hop away from me. 29 miles away

BTW, I am not an IOS user but the meshtastic app on IOS is a million times better than the android app.

[hearty ferry]

wish you could connect through IP though

[sharp pilot]

question for anyone that uses the IOS app, why cant I see enviroument metrics logs from a node?

[hearty ferry]

Should be able to if you've received them (theres a sun+cloud icon by the node)

I have received and viewed them for your YCM2 node

(pretty sure that was from your node)

[sharp pilot]

yeah, I cant see on my ipad 😦

maybe I have not been connected to it long enough

I just set this ipad up

[hearty ferry]

ah yeah I dont think the apps will pull any packet history from the node

[sharp pilot]

its just a bunch of dotted lines

[hearty ferry]

if you clear the app data you miss any old info even if it seems the node still has it and shows on its screen

[sharp pilot]

I see the problem

its a display issue

derp

got it now

I am not an IOS issue

I had to full screen the display to see it

gets pretty hot in that little enclosure

wonder his the LIPO will do on a hot summer day inside the enclosure

[hearty ferry]

I periodically try poking your node

[sharp pilot]

its alive

I might have to figure out some kind of low voltage fan for the summer to keep air flowing

[hearty ferry]

whats it using for a case? How is it mounted?

[sharp pilot]

I do have one of those breather valves on it

[hearty ferry]

These usually are just a piece of goretex? Or is it the style with a torturous path to exclude water

[sharp pilot]

I think it just has a gortex membrane

looks like a gortex membrane

[hearty ferry]

probably not going to be able to push too much air through that... Maybe just put some styrofoam or even reflectix on the inside of the box to try and keep the heat isolated?

[sharp pilot]

thats what I was thinking

I also have the aluminum duct tape

I also have some small 5v fans that I can power directly from the solar panel and will only run when the sun is out

there must be other people running into these issues...

[turbid sequoia]

I think lipos are ok until 140-160 ish

[hearty ferry]

just to circulate the air?

[sharp pilot]

yes, just to move air

but then I have to waterprrof the intake and out

etc...

[hearty ferry]

oh i was thinking you meant just to move air in the enclosure (which might help some but probably not much)

[sharp pilot]

they have these small marine vents, which I would have to scale down to fir the enclosure

but thats all a lot of work to prevent something that may or may not be a problem

[hearty ferry]

Could you replace the breather with something hhat had a fine mesh to keep bugs out?

put two of them on the bottom. One has the fan blowing out and the other would be your intake

[sharp pilot]

yeah, as long as it keeps moisture out

thats my main concern, this is up in hte mountains

so it will also see snow in the winter

sometimes there can be 2+ feet of snow up there

[hearty ferry]

Can you just get a heatsink off amazon to epoxy onto the back over an opening into the case?

[sharp pilot]

which reminds me I will have to go raise my solar panel before winter comes 😉

[sharp pilot]

That might work

yeah

also found this

100x100

I could also try some camo net, kill 2 birds...

found some camo netting, that would reduce direct sun exposure

I think that with a heat sink might do the trick

[hearty ferry]

At the craft store they sell EVA foam under the brand sillywinks. You could make a heat shield for it using that and then glue it on

Does it need to be camo'd? I feel like if its mounted to a pole and obvious it will appear to be some sort of official device. Maybe put an oregon DOGAMI department logo on it

[sharp pilot]

yeah, I thought about that too

I found a cool USGS logo

the node is in hte forest on public land, so there is the chance of someone runnig across it or just dumb people or high school kids...

[hearty ferry]

lol another option would just be to put some black plastic cutouts to make it look like a deer camera 😅

actually now that I think about it they'd make for good enclosures. I was considering sticking one up on silverstar mountian

[hearty ferry]

has anyone received my Antenna test messages on the main channel?

wondering if I fried something

[bronze compass]

what's your node name again?

[hearty ferry]

hairy people D9DC

[bronze compass]

i haven't seen anything on LF from you

you can try a dm to tb01 if you can see my node

[hearty ferry]

Just realized the antenna I had plugged in for a bit was an RP-SMA 🤦

fuck

[sharp pilot]

Woops

[hearty ferry]

what are the chances I killed the radio

[dusky niche]

I did the same thing with a Wisblock. Several hours with essentially no antenna and it's still running JDMO! You might be ok.

[hearty ferry]

Seems to be. Also seems this adafruit antenna is garbage

[timber raven]

I did the same when I first got mine 😬

[sharp pilot]

shit happens

as long as you dont TX you should be fine

[hearty ferry]

😬

[dusky niche]

Did anyone see the AI generated poetry I sent out this evening?

It wasn't exactly Keats or Shelley, but I thought it was ok...

[timber raven]

I just saw it😂 I liked your dirty joke better

[crystal osprey]

I did see your poetry. I liked that. Inspiring.

[dusky niche]

I'm just relieved that you guys saw the post. I was worried my node had gone dumb somehow...😳

[dusky niche]

I'm going to be taking JDMO down for a couple of hours today. Not sure if anyone is using it as a repeater or not. I finally got the special caps to connect Ipex/Ufl cables to a VNA and I want to see what the SWR is on the Alfa antenna I'm using.

Due to a screw up with AliExpress, I actually have more of the caps than I can use, so if anyone has a VNA and needs to connect Ipex I can give you one...

[sharp pilot]

why is it that some nodes show "hops away" count and some dont?

This is in hte IOS app

[turbid sequoia]

Probably the firmware version.

[sharp pilot]

Hmmm

my nondes have the latest firmware

[turbid sequoia]

Firmware of the other nodes

Honestly not sure how this is set, it's a pretty new flag.

[sharp pilot]

ok

also my enclosure in the hills is up to 92 degrees already. (YCM2)

deff gonna need a cooling solution

I did buy some camo net to throw over it to provide some shade. lets ee how that works

[crystal osprey]

I feel like it was implemented from firmware version 2.3.2.

HopStart 3 bits were added to
Packet Header Flags.

https://github.com/meshtastic/rfcs/blob/main/rfcs/2024-02-21-HopStart.md

[idle trail]

lol i almost did that

[shadow quest]

So I got home from Portland yesterday brought all my stuff in and plugged in my mobile unit today and seems to be stuck in a boot loop. I can get into the bootloader and flash new firmware, but that doesn't fix it. Any ideas? I have a Wisblock Rak kit.

[sharp pilot]

Did you do a full erase?

[shadow quest]

Do I have to use a computer? It won't stay on long enough to connect via BT and the serial port through Android doesn't pair except for the bootloader.

[sharp pilot]

Laptop and USB cable

Use the web flasher

I had the same isssue

When you got to flash click on the trash can icon beside the flashlight icon

[shadow quest]

Affirmative. I'll grab the laptop and try. Thanks.

Did it from my web browser on my phone. And it worked.

Thank you @sharp pilot

[sharp pilot]

I just DM'd "N8R4" in Vancouver from Mcminnville

Actually he is in Camas

57 miles away

[sly flare]

KD7FAU, you here? Picked you up on the W7AZ ham net just now 😄

[lyric zephyr]

Updated antenna and coax (LMR400). SNR values much improved. I sent a number of DMs to nodes that showed up. Sorry for the late night spam,

[sharp pilot]

@hearty ferry I pinged your nodes. Did you get DM?

[solar garnet]

Interesting 🤔

[sharp pilot]

Huh

[hearty ferry]

Haven't seen it. I sent you a DM yesterday did that go through?

[sharp pilot]

Nope

Try YCM5

I am on that node right now

[hearty ferry]

I don't have that node in my list

I think I am going to try making this antenna https://youtu.be/KDa7SzFEguo?si=rm8n95z2jtCEbDPN

[sharp pilot]

It's worth a try. Do you have a way to test SWR?

[hearty ferry]

no

[sharp pilot]

Get a vna network analyzer

AURSINC NanoVNA Vector Network Analyzer, 10KHz-1.5GHz HF VHF UHF Antenna Analyzer Ham Radio with 2.8'' Touchscreen HW V3.5, Measuring S Parameters, Voltage Standing Wave Ratio, Phase Delay Smith Chart https://a.co/d/6eU0sch

Something like that

And watch YouTube videos on how to use it. Will be very useful in building and tuning an antenna

[hearty ferry]

Yeah I am familiar with the nano VNA and VNAs in general... although its been a long time since I've used one.

not sure if I want to drop $50 on one yet

would also be tempted to spend a bit more for a V2 so it can also be used for 2.4ghz stuff

[lyric zephyr]

I wonder where this node is located? Not on my node list...yet.

[solar garnet]

I think I picked it up Saturday

[hearty ferry]

Was able to trace route it just now

[idle trail]

ive seen it

[sharp pilot]

I see it too

[shadow rock]

Reported location suspiciously close to, of all things, the KATU studio building just off Sandy.

[sharp pilot]

Meh, who knows... Probably not legit

[turbid sequoia]

I'm just down the road, maybe I'll swing by and see if anything stands out

Office is 9th/Sandy

[turbid sequoia]

Just looked like an apartment building without anything obvious hanging off.

[hearty ferry]

The studio is basically across the street though? Maybe just GPS error? or they rounded down the coordinates?

[chilly summit]

Did someone manually enter the wrong coordinates in their app?

[hearty ferry]

Idk is it CrowTRobot? 😂

That node gets around

[dusky niche]

This is getting really weird! Now Crow shows up off the coast of Africa! The node is in the house so it can't get a GPS lock, but what the hell?

[hearty ferry]

Kinda looks like 0°,0°?

Aka Null island

[dusky niche]

Shows -16.7 by 2.8? I'm going to shut him down.

[hearty ferry]

Maybe it's using GLONASS? 😂

[turbid sequoia]

Running older firmware?
https://github.com/meshtastic/firmware/pull/3325

[dusky niche]

Yep. I guess I need to keep up with the changes better. Thanks!

[lyric zephyr]

2.3.4 beta dropped. Don’t do what I did. Flashed 3 Heltec v3s, but forgot to switch devices before flashing my T-beam. Thought I killed it. Luckily got it fixed up.

[dusky niche]

Ooops, sounds like something I would do...

[sonic yarrow]

I’ve had to do this as well but did it via laptop and serial connection in the CLI. So glad to hear yours worked with your phone.

[sonic yarrow]

Is anyone running an external BLE antenna which they recommend?

[lyric zephyr]

So, I kept seeing the numerous PDX nodes here in Salem, but couldn't message any of them. I suspected a neighbor node is on an older firmware and is forwarding MQTT packets. For a test, I set Ignore on that neighbor node. My node list looks more accurate now, only LoRa nodes. My question: How do I remove Ignore on that node if I wanted to, because it isn't on the node list?

[dusky niche]

I would be interested as well. I have a couple of the cheapo WiFi router antennas (same freq?) laying around that I thought I might need on my node way above the roof, but the stock PCB type BLE antenna is a champ and I didn't need to try them.

[sharp pilot]

I have this one. seems to cover my whole house
https://a.co/d/5hwjbn4

[sonic yarrow]

I have some coming to test. I’ll try to keep you in the loop on my findings.

[lyric zephyr]

Got answer from #help. Ignored nodes appear in the LoRa config where they can be managed.

[sharp pilot]

BLE uses the 2.4 Ghz freq same as wifi

[sharp pilot]

YCM5 is down for now. I will be on YCM1

[sharp pilot]

YCM2 is still linking the valley to PDX

[sonic plover]

I think I am going to go up towards Silver Star today and bring a node with me. Keep an eye out for test messages!

[lyric zephyr]

I can reach YCM2 now via @solar garnet.

[solar garnet]

I may just set one of my repeaters up here until I get a higher opportunity

[shell river]

Using the IOS app (currently v2.3.5), I’ve never see a reply to a trace route. Is there a trick to using it? I’ve only tried it with nodes showing hops.

[dusky niche]

Traceroute only works about 5% of the time for me, even if the node just went to the top of my DB,,,🤔

Like I've said before, I wish the Android app would indicate it is still trying. It just leaves ya hangiin'

[whole rapids]

Trace routes (and admin messages and position requests, anything that has to return something larger than an ACK) are expensive on the mesh, 5% seems really low, but could be the case often handset to handset.

[turbid sequoia]

My well positioned nodes are at 40-50% chutil always.

[lyric zephyr]

Took a drive over to West Salem this afternoon. Put my Heltec v3 on my dash. 3 nodes popped up on my list that I’ve never seen b4, and not on any maps.

[vocal linden]

New to Meshtastic and this channel. I am setting up nodes in west linn at 700 ft. My indoor unit has identified over 170 nodes. My purpose has been earthquake preparedness. Not much in my city so far so excited to join this group.

[solar garnet]

Excellent. Welcome

[timber raven]

Did you use to live in Clackamas by any chance?

[vocal linden]

Not me

So far can’t transmit out so will be working to set up the roof top node soon.

[idle trail]

earthquake preparedness is one of the reasons i got my node too

[timber raven]

Any recent update on earthquakes?

[shell river]

We practically live on the fault line.

[idle trail]

yup!

[solar garnet]

What a great claim to fame 😂

[vocal linden]

So what is this node in Seattle, Meshtastic 6614, that I can see 163 miles away?

[turbid sequoia]

Typically, this is someone who just drove down from Seattle. Node got position from their phone in Seattle, then disconnected from the client. It hasn't received an updated position but has joined the Portland mesh and is sharing the last position it knows about.

Or it's MQTT doing it's thing.

[vocal linden]

Thanks for that

[crystal osprey]

“ Interactions between slab ruptures and slip at subduction interfaces have been reported from Japan but have not been previously described at the Mendocino Triple Junction. “ “The new study suggests that faulting in the Mendocino Triple Junction could trigger a Cascadia megathrust earthquake”

https://eos.org/articles/earthquakes-can-trigger-megathrust-slip-in-cascadia

[timber raven]

Thank you, @crystal osprey. I did some googling, but didn’t come across this article. When the next one happens, the PNW is screwed. I’d like to say I hope it doesn’t happen in my lifetime, but I also want to be here to help my friends and family if it does. 😕

[sharp pilot]

I am on YCM5 with direct LOS to PDX if someone wants to see if they can hit me.

[sharp pilot]

YCM5 is going down

[last patrol]

I've made a lot of his 5.8 antennas and a couple 2.4 ones, but I'm not sure I can trust a man that tucks his shirt into shorts.

[chilly summit]

Has anyone suddenly seen a drastic reduction in recent active connections? I used to have something like 20-30 on average and in the last couple of days I can't get out of the single digits. Nothing has changed with hardware, software or in the environment. I am in Hillsboro and I know at least one person in the Aloha area is suddenly seeing similar results now.

[sonic plover]

I was just thinking about how I haven’t seen GreenBluff or Council Crest in a bit. I wonder if they were routing a bunch of nodes your way. I’m still seeing 100+, but I’m a ways out East and I think a lot of my traffic bounces North across the Columbia.

[tender thorn]

Can anyone see my node KJ7P in North Portland (East Columbia neighborhood)

[timber raven]

Nope.

[tender thorn]

I can see Gresham butte on mine??

[timber raven]

I’m seeing a lot less nodes too.

[timber raven]

Strange, just looked again, but I’m on 🦤 Gresham Butte Mobile right now. Do you see that node right next to 🦅?

[timber raven]

Come to think of it, I actually cleared my app data yesterday, so that could account for less nodes, and not seeing yours @tender thorn

[tender thorn]

And sorry its KJP7 QTH

[hearty ferry]

Closest thing I can see to you @tender thorn is 📳 and 🦺

[sharp pilot]

Emojis are bad

[hearty ferry]

Prune hill blocks my LOS to pdx. BMO is right there though so I can usually see a few nodes around pdx through them

[hearty ferry]

I think they are DNET's nodes

[sharp pilot]

I still see a bunch of nodes here from Mcminnville

[hearty ferry]

NET-301-0324 and NET-201-324

[sharp pilot]

I see 209 nodes

[hearty ferry]

I am not seeing council crest solar anymore. So that's probably killed off a good bit of what I could see.

I can see your Yamco-1

[sharp pilot]

I last saw council crest on 4.16

I am on yamco1 right now

[hearty ferry]

I wish the iOS app could connect via IP as well as BLE

[sharp pilot]

I have filter set to Lora only

[hearty ferry]

107 Lora only.

[sharp pilot]

Do you see YCM2?

[hearty ferry]

No

I have in the past

[sharp pilot]

That's odd that you can see YCM1 and not YCM2. YCM2 is my link to PDX

YCM1 is on MQTT

That might be it

[hearty ferry]

I have mqtt filtered allegedly

Says you are 4 hops

My DC node might see ycm 2

[sharp pilot]

You have to be hoping through YCM2. Unless you are going through another route. YCM1 is in a hole

Mojo solar base is consistently on the top of my list

[hearty ferry]

Can also see solar base.

None of my trace routs to YCM have come back

Sent a message on Ch0. Curious if you can see it @sharp pilot

If someone is talking on one part of the mesh does it filter out to all the nodes?

[sharp pilot]

Let me check on that msg

[timber raven]

No luck

[sharp pilot]

I got nothing

[timber raven]

😬

[sharp pilot]

Just sent a msg on long fast

[hearty ferry]

I saw your response

I think I've got shit Tx and receive a lot of stuff due to altitude and other peoples antennas

[sharp pilot]

Gotta step your TX game 😎

[hearty ferry]

yeah need a nicer antenna

[sharp pilot]

Got your msg Mojo Solar

[hearty ferry]

Received your DM @timber raven

[ashen spruce]

I checked the line of sight between Mojo Solar Base and YCM2 and I just barely see it above the ridge of Bald Peak. It makes me happy to know we've got a solid connection across that distance!

[hearty ferry]

what are you rocking as an antenna?

[ashen spruce]

I'm mainly using the ALFA AOA-915-5ACM for the nice form factor and good match. That said, Ive got a Rokland 5.8 dBi N-Male Omni on mojo solar base, only because it was taller that my roof peak.

[lyric zephyr]

So, I've set my node filters to LoRa. I see plenty of nodes that I KNOW aren't within my reach. I have a neighbor who is on old firmware with MQTT enabled, and he's spamming me with nodes he's pulling in via MQTT.

[sharp pilot]

From the YCM2 location I have clear visual line of sight to the PDX area, I should bring up a telescope to see if I can actually see PDX.

[sharp pilot]

yeah, not sure if there is a way to avoid that

[lyric zephyr]

I've sent polite reminders in the LongFast channel to update firmware when a new release comes out. My end goal is to message specific nodes, not random ones, so it's more of a nuisance. Somewhat misleading as far as actual LoRa range.

[sharp pilot]

yeah, I update YCM1-2 when new updates come out. OTA via bluetooth

[lyric zephyr]

YCM2 shows up on my nodelist. I can't message it though. I get the 'ack'd by another node'

[vocal linden]

What do folks use for 3D modeling software, I have been using blender wonder if there is something else better, easier…

[hearty ferry]

fusion 360

[turbid sequoia]

I 2nd fusion 360. Not exactly easy to get started but once you get the basics down it's incredibly powerful.

I watched a handful of YouTube videos to get started

[idle trail]

going to central oregon tommorow

[timber raven]

Where to?

[idle trail]

bend/sunriver

three rivers to be exact

[solar garnet]

Love Three Rivers

[idle trail]

bend people im close

[idle trail]

the snr is so good

super good coverage around here

[lyric zephyr]

Like, with other nodes? You're the only node I see on the map.

[idle trail]

oh they must have dissapeared :(

still there

[sharp pilot]

I don't think my RAK is charging my battery, the percentage keeps going down. I have the solar plugged into USB, so it should be charging during the day, but over the last couple weeks even when it was really sunny, the bettery keeps going down and and staying down

does it need a certain voltage before it can start charging the battery?

I dont seem to be getting much over 4volts from the solar.

[turbid sequoia]

Looks like 4.5-5.5 V is needed:
https://docs.rakwireless.com/Product-Categories/WisBlock/RAK19007/Datasheet/#hardware

[sharp pilot]

yeah, thats not going to work for me. Maybe I will ry to shorten up the USB cable from the solar panel. its about 9 feet right now. probably losoing some voltage

[vocal linden]

How is the weather impacting your node detection today?

[sharp pilot]

weather has been fine since I put camo neting over the enclisure

So am going with option B to power my node
10Ah Lipo battery and a solar chrage controller with USB out
I have a spare 30w (12v) panel that I can use.

throw it an ammo can and call it a day. that will last through the winter and snow

[timber raven]

Nice, looking forward to seeing how this performs!

[sharp pilot]

inside of the ammo can. its one of the smaller plastic ones. I lined it to protect from the heat and cold

[dusky niche]

Do you see the red LED come on when the panel is in sunlight?

[sharp pilot]

did not notice it, didnt really look for it

but the device metrics from the app only show that its below 4.2 volts

4.05 average

not sure how accurate those are

its currently at 4.04 volts on USB from the panel

granted its pretty cloudy and rainy out

even if I got back to april 23 when it was really sunny out. it still only got to a max voltage of 4.04 volts

I think my USB cable is too long from the panel to the radio. and those panels barely put out 5 volts
This new setup will be much better with consistent output and dedicated panel to charge the battery.

I will have a single 10 foot USB cable from the ammo can to the radio enclosure

this is from the 24th. nice sunny day

Current voltage running off solar, its enough to power it but not charge the battery

[dusky niche]

Can you run thicker AWG from the panel to the node?

[sharp pilot]

yeah, I could but its USB. this new setup will eliminate the issue

[sharp pilot]

Does not seem to be any negative effect. I can still see plenty of nodes

I have my filter set to Lora and I can see Sputnik1, 46 miles away

Mojo Solar is consistently at the top of my node list

added filter for anything within 50 mile range and I have 114 nodes

these numbers also might be skewed because YCM1(the node I am connected to) has MQTT enabled. but its just for map and uplink on a private channel

not exactly sure how MQTT works yet

[vocal linden]

Not sure my 5.8 dbi outdoor antenna is helping me

What are folks using for rooftop antenna

[sharp pilot]

what ranges are youlooking at?

I am using one of these on my remote node
https://store.rokland.com/collections/802-11ah-wi-fi-halow/products/10-dbi-backcountry-n-male-omni-outdoor-helium-915-mhz-antenna-48-for-rak-miner-2-nebra-indoor-bobcat-hotspots

I have one of these on hte node at my house
https://a.co/d/gKoXyOB

[vocal linden]

Well I am in west linn at about 700 ft and I get no Acknowledgment of outgoing texts, seems like I should. I have identified 220 nodes.

And those 220 nodes were identified with my indoor 3 dbi antenna

[vocal linden]

Thoughts?

[timber raven]

Can you send a link to your antenna?

[idle trail]

holy 220

ive only see 129 at most

[vocal linden]

https://a.co/d/1RrNmur

[timber raven]

Hmm, seems legit. Have you tried reflashing the board? Could be a setting.

[vocal linden]

I will try that. Do you use the long fast setting

[timber raven]

Yup, longfast is what people are primarily using. I'd bet it's 99%.

[vocal linden]

Thanks for the help

[timber raven]

Report back!

[vocal linden]

Can you see my node KAB1

[vocal linden]

This is good info

https://www.loraantenna.com/antenna-gain-explanation/

[vocal linden]

Maybe my 5.8 dbi is too narrow? Hooked up my 3dbi and immediately recognized 13 nodes online where my 5.8dbi sees none online

Thinking about lowering my dbi to 4 with somthing like this

https://a.co/d/0rcNG8C

[sonic yarrow]

There is an awesome set of nodes on Aubrey Butte NE side of it and I had a decent router that was taken down for the weekend last Thursday. So may you next visit will be better. My router in S Bend saw 68 nodes in the last few weeks.

[idle trail]

I was in the car so I was losing connection a lot

[lyric zephyr]

Do you have two nodes to test messaging while close together?

[vocal linden]

Yes, that works fine

[lyric zephyr]

With MQTT config so inconsistent between nodes, I've had very little success messaging random nodes from my nodelist. What gives me a true indication of range is messaging between nodes I own or I know the owner personally.

[vocal linden]

Good to know

Regardless, I will report back on what I experience with the 4dbi vs 5.8dbi antenna

[shell river]

I was also looking at that antenna, but I just received a pair of their indoor antennas and they don’t seem to perform any better than the PCB antenna that came with the rack kit. I’d still call it a candidate, but the one at rak seems to be well regarded.

[shell river]

Actually, it wasn't rak, it was the Alpha 5dbi antenna at Rokland I was thinking of getting. https://store.rokland.com/products/alfa-aoa-915-5acm-5-dbi-omni-outdoor-915mhz-802-11ah-mini-antenna-for-lora-halow-application

[shadow quest]

@idle trail Working on Central Oregon. Got my order from Rak of 4 new nodes. 2 are for my dad one on his house and one for a mobile. I'll finally try to get up Gray Butte and test now that the road is open and I have time.

[idle trail]

there was really good signal in bend. wish i could say the same for la pine and three rivers

[ashen spruce]

Sweet! I think I just secured permission to deploy a node with the following coverage (the south side of Bull mountain through to most of Hillsboro and maybe even out to the satellite banks repeater)! I've been lagging behind on my actual deployment work lately (partially due to backordered parts, etc) but I think I can make this happen quickly once I work out the details...

@shut willow , Is the Mt. Scott location still in the cards? This might be able to directly reach that site.

[sharp pilot]

What is the elevation? Will it have direct LOS to YCM2?

[ashen spruce]

Nope, not that high up. It will be on the slope above Laurel, unable to see the YCM2 node directly. It should hopefully be able to shoot the valley down to Tualatin though.

[shut willow]

Mt Scott and one other node (one of the CARS ones) are down right now; been super buried and we had hardware issues so they are currently at my place until I have time to fix or replace hardware, then repackage and hand off for redeploy

kept having the nodes reset to defaults or freeze and drop off the mesh

stiiiiiill holding out hope for the 1W bandpass modules but with jlcpcb still having no estimate for hardware months later, Nate had to cancel his order and he's exploring Global Sourcing his design and also had some tweaks to implement. So probably gonna be a bit before I can upgrade to those.

Mt Scott will happen, we had a decent design for more permanent mounting and I just need to get back to my antenna performance testing to get a good option thrown up there; access is limited as it's a ...infrastructure location. Downside is it'l be between a 2M and 70CM repeater antenna. With a lot of watts behind both.

[ashen spruce]

Awesome, thanks for the update! Totally understand getting buried. I've got hardware sitting on my desk but just need to get it out to my deployment locations. A bit nervous about it though since I've also had nodes resetting...

[shut willow]

(I moved last month and all my stuff is disorganized and buried in literal piles of containers)

oh really?

is that a thing lately?

is our mesh too busy maybe...?

[turbid sequoia]

latest firmware has some maybe fixes for this.

[shut willow]

oh interesting

[turbid sequoia]

Full nodedb caused a flash write for every nodeinfo which may have been an issue

[shut willow]

oh shit...

so flash may have died out?

that would explain a few things...

[sharp pilot]

I try and keep my nodes firmware updated as often as possible. but when you have a remote node in hte mountains thats a half hour drive, it makes it a bit difficult

[shut willow]

what's a good way to test integrity of flash?

[turbid sequoia]

great question, wish I could answer it

[shut willow]

guess we could write a firmware that sets all zeros, then reads back, and sets all ones, and reads back. One time. Report any wrong bits detected.

similiar to the NRF52 factory reset function

[turbid sequoia]

does @ancient tinsel know this?

[ashen spruce]

There were some bugs around the neighborinfo module too, also fixed in the later 2.3.x series. Not sure if you had that enabled for your nodes or not...

[shut willow]

I did

[turbid sequoia]

The only defaulting I've experienced are from dead batteries and walking away from a node with bluetooth connected, fyi.

Hmm, might have had neighborinfo on for those too...

[shut willow]

also tested the first network management client release to actually have network link reporting on the map

[turbid sequoia]

I think our mesh is too insane for neighborinfo to be helpful. It eats a ton of bandwidth too. HUGE packets if you have a lot of neighbors.

[shut willow]

fair enough

to begin with I think we need a time-limited enablement on that setting

enable for x hours or 1 day, turn off automatically

[ashen spruce]

Especially since we now have hop_start coming in

[shut willow]

and default to off on fresh boot

[ancient tinsel]

I set neighborinfo to 1 hour

when mesh gets bigger I may do 6 hours for stationary noded

[shut willow]

right, but like... if you're using it for profiling a node, you don't need that to be 24/7

[ancient tinsel]

good for mesh map shenanigans

[shut willow]

sure, less frequent packet transmits do help, but we're breaking 100 nodes now

could be 200 by next year, which will necessitate separate channels and who knows what sort of other BS

[ancient tinsel]

my logger node has seen over 700

[shut willow]

700 would include MQTT packets

[ancient tinsel]

nope

[shut willow]

I have MQTT packet repeat turned off on all nodes I deploy

[ancient tinsel]

I'ma firin' muh lazerrr

[shut willow]

right, but like... 200 nodes will kill our mesh

I'm trying to work with Portland city officials to get funding for possibly deploying meshtastic for official duties

emergency response, etc...

[ancient tinsel]

ah, my mesh has grown. 926 nodes seen by logger now

(lifetime count)

[shut willow]

so yeah... having extraneous stuff turned on will cause issues if they stay on permanently

same goes for that one dude who still has rangetest turned on on his way old firmware in SE

SEQ

[ancient tinsel]

lol I got one here too

[shut willow]

yeah

so those should have a maximum lifetime before deactivation

[ancient tinsel]

been running for over a month now

[shut willow]

lemme write up a thing on the project page for that

or maybe bring to the general channel or something

[ancient tinsel]

newer firmware disable rangetest after a while, methinks

[sharp pilot]

was thinking of turning on neighborinfo for my router YCM2 with updates every few hours. Thoughts?

[ashen spruce]

I'd recommend not doing so due to the huge amount of overhead for the mesh, especially with such a well connected node.

[sharp pilot]

thats what I figured

[ashen spruce]

besides, I can short-cut the effort for you: you are a neighbor of pretty much everyone in PDX and west hillsboro. 😛

[ancient tinsel]

set it to 24 hours just for the map stats

[sharp pilot]

haha

would be cool to see it on the map

24 hours sounds reasonable . anyone object? I dont want to kill the mesh dream

[ancient tinsel]

I think there's like a 10 node limit in neighbor db? anyone know the number?

[sharp pilot]

got my new enclosure built for YCM2. this will ensure that I have plenty of power through the winter

30 watt panel

the battery is a 10Ah Lipo

The charge controller has USB out, so that will power the radio directly

[ancient tinsel]

test it thoroughly before deployment. don't wanna find out afterwards that pwm noise during daylight kills Lora range 😆

[sharp pilot]

Hmmm

[shut willow]

TBH having GPS reporting gives you 90% of the info you need anyway

so NeighborInfo is really only useful for active troubleshooting of specific node links

like it's great for me when range-testing antennas for long-distance links, but once I have those stabilized, I'm going to turn it back off

and technically you can still do the same diagnostics without that info

[ancient tinsel]

but only for nodes you own or mqtt nodes

[shut willow]

I'm starting to think that it'd be better to have internet/MQTT reporting of neighbor packets for infrastructure-mounted nodes anyway

IE: the ones I'm deploying on radio towers

thus eliminating most of the need for that packet type

[ancient tinsel]

but the point of neighborinfo is to get information from non-mqtt nodes 👀

[shut willow]

why is mqtt relevant?

to map a node list you can just listen to NodeInfo and location telemetry packets

[ancient tinsel]

because mqtt nodes don't need neighborinfo on

[ancient tinsel]

only for nodes you own (or mqtt nodes)

[shut willow]

the part you get with NeighborInfo is RSSI/SNR values for immediate links to a given node

MQTT doesn't help you for nodes you don't own

most folks should be using MQTT privately

[ancient tinsel]

with mqtt you can spy on any specific node 😆

[shut willow]

therefore you won't glean anything useful (extra) from other's nodes

[ancient tinsel]

but public mqtt is all the rage these days

[shut willow]

and contributed enough noise to the mesh that the "ignore mqtt" function was implemented

[ancient tinsel]

it helps the mesh grow

[shut willow]

thus why I have that setting turned on for all nodes I have any say in

I do not want nor need traffic from Germany on an already near-capacity network

(or anywhere else in the world)

[ancient tinsel]

custom root topic.

[shut willow]

yeah, I just set up my own MQTT for my data analysis

it's not that hard

may eventually switch to node-red in order to do direct packet decoding on computer rather than on-node

[ancient tinsel]

but it's great to be able to include nodes you don't own in your analysis too

[shut willow]

I have that now

the problem here is that there's a typical progression in user knowledge when joining the mesh

oh, meshtastic? cool. I'll buy some hardware. Oh hey, this works great! what else can it do? spams traceroutes turns on a bunch of stuff neat! wait,why is the mesh slower?

[ancient tinsel]

if everyone was reporting neighborinfo, there would be no need to spam traceroutes from stationary nodes...

[shut willow]

if everyone reports neighborinfo packets the mesh will fail in a year

at it's current rate of growth

so either report that information through another channel not-over-the-air, or make the setting ephemeral

[ancient tinsel]

guess where I am

[shut willow]

do you actively need RSSI data from all of your nodes all the time?

no.

yes, it's cool to see the lines on the map. sure.

but it's going to make the mesh harder to use if left on constantly

[ancient tinsel]

ideally there should be lines everywhere!

https://tenor.com/view/burn-elmo-pyro-burn-it-down-ashes-gif-5632946

[shut willow]

so you'll have a really cool map with an otherwise useless mesh

and that is how everything fails in a shitshow

[ancient tinsel]

yes. airtime is for cool lines!

[shut willow]

because folks will stop using their nodes, maintaining/updating them, some may leave them on with all settings turned on, etc...

I'm trying to find ways to avoid that.

[ancient tinsel]

Meshtastic 3.0 may solve this problem

just have neighborinfo packets routed to nearest mqtt node

[sharp pilot]

I have MQTT turned on on my node at the house (has internet) Just for map updates and uplink on a private channel

[timber raven]

Which 1W modules do you speak of?

[idle trail]

if you live in portland/beaverton i am testing out a "meshtastic bot" https://discord.gg/paAEB87p

[shut willow]

it's a radio module one of the members is designing; bottom-up RF design with bandpass filtering for 915MHz specifically; gives better performance and has a small PA for 1W output

[sharp pilot]

That sounds great

[timber raven]

Would love to stay in the loop on this!

[shut willow]

yeah, been waiting for these since last year. Don't hold your breath, the components needed to build one are in some sort of unknown parts supply limbo worldwide

[sharp pilot]

Was having power issues with the USB output from the controller, so I got a buck converter. 12v to 5volt USB connector.

Should also eliminate any noise issues. Although from what I read this controller is pretty RF quiet

[solar garnet]

https://powerwerx.com/usbbuddy2-powerpole-usb-device-charger

Looks similar. Powerwerx is definitely going to be rf quiet

[sharp pilot]

yeah, its just a buck converter. The one I got only does a max of 3 amps, which is plenty to run the radio

It will be here today, I will let you know the test results

[timber raven]

Ya'll see this? https://www.reddit.com/r/meshtastic/comments/1cgn0e8/major_ui_update_incomming_sneek_peak/?share_id=PjlH05U1Pbr0wQcWugGlt&utm_content=2&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_source=share&utm_term=1

[idle trail]

omg

hopefully they also update the other device's ues

uis

[turbid sequoia]

#enclosures-discussion message

[vocal linden]

I think this is cool and will be fun to build but I think I will always prefer the phone app.

[timber raven]

Likewise, it seems too clunky, but still cool! Maybe good as a backup standalone unit, in case your phone poops.

[sharp pilot]

From my backyard in Mcminnville

[timber raven]

How far is that?

[sharp pilot]

29 miles

[little geyser]

So did anyone see catfacts from ACAB on longfast last night/this early AM... I felt like Seq ### for range testing was a bit boring so i changed it to send random cat facts instead, but I don't think my signal got very far

[turbid sequoia]

Your node name makes me feel a bit uncomfortable and could be hurtful to some people. Could we find another way to express your views?

[timber raven]

I assumed he was talking about cats, after the cat facts started flowing.

[timber raven]

I was seeing cat facts out here in Gresham.

[little geyser]

?

Not a fan of cats?

[little geyser]

YAY!

If only there was the bandwidth to send actual cat pictures

[timber raven]

|---/|
| o_o |
_^_/

lol

fail

[little geyser]

good try lol

[ancient tinsel]

|\---/|
| o_o |
 \_^_/

[turbid sequoia]

Cats are great! ACAB has other meanings which you may not have realized, and I apologize for assuming anything.

I've heard Meshtastic was used in the 2020 riots, where ACAB was spray painted all over the city.

[little geyser]

oh hey it works!

[little geyser]

Where'd you hear that? I don't think meshtastic was in much of a functional state in 2020, but now that you mention it, Meshtastic would be kinda perfect for coordinating such activities.

I've heard of people using briar during protests when cell towers go down, but that just uses BLE so the range is seriously limited

Everyone's all about the earthquakes, but no body thinks about riots

https://tenor.com/view/feel-me-think-about-it-meme-gif-7715402

[turbid sequoia]

I don't recall where I heard it honestly. Maybe I made it up becuase it would have been a great tool for that cause.

[idle trail]

testing my bot on longfast can someone do $weather

on primary

[turbid sequoia]

sending but I don't think I'm getting a signal out from my office right now

[idle trail]

nothing :?

:/

[bronze compass]

I just sent one a couple of mins ago

[idle trail]

yeah my node didnt receive it, im in a bad spot

[sharp pilot]

2 hops to PDX from McMinnville

This is just on the ground in my backyard(YCM6)

It's not even going through the node on my roof(YCM1)

[vocal linden]

So I figured out my antenna problem the cable between device and antenna was too long!!

[sharp pilot]

I learned that too. Mounted antenna directly to the enclosure.

[sharp pilot]

I used a type N bulkhead mount with 6" pigtail

Also mileage will vary depending on antenna type. Mine are big ones for long distance

[sharp pilot]

@idle trail I got you msg

[idle trail]

when?

[sharp pilot]

Just now

[idle trail]

ahh

[sharp pilot]

I tried to reply

[idle trail]

on longfast?

[sharp pilot]

My reply acked by another node

[idle trail]

im booting up my discord bot

[sharp pilot]

It was a DM

[idle trail]

ya we are going through mojo

[vocal linden]

What strategically placed repeaters/routers exist in the metro area, I would like to favorite them and check my connectivity. I am placing a router on my roof at about 710 feet in west linn with the hope of connecting to Oregon City. At my location I have good connectivity to many nodes in Portland and surrounding areas.

[sharp pilot]

You can try YCM2(Router) - not located in PDX, but can see most of it. (located in the coast range at about 1800 Feet)

[vocal linden]

Great,thanks

[sharp pilot]

Mojo Solar base is another good one

Mojo Solar Base 4f12

MoB1

[sharp pilot]

What is your node name?

[vocal linden]

KAB1, operational but not mounted on the house yet

[sharp pilot]

ok

[vocal linden]

The node name is my homage to the original “The Fog” movie

[sharp pilot]

Ahhh

Looks like YCM2 has clear LOS to your node in West Linn

36 Miles

[vocal linden]

Very cool

[sharp pilot]

Line Of Sight tool
https://www.scadacore.com/tools/rf-path/rf-line-of-sight/

[turbid sequoia]

Turtle is pretty good. Covers inner east side (west of Tabor), a bit of downtown and some odd extremes. I hope to improve it's coverage soon by moving it out of an attic onto a roof. Short on time these days. I (pdxlocs) have line of sight to it from deep SW too.

[solar garnet]

Couple new nodes that I can see from the job site

[solar garnet]

Who’s is this?

[sharp pilot]

Is that the one in Lafayette?

[solar garnet]

No clue

[sharp pilot]

I dont see it on hte map

[solar garnet]

Sent you a DM over rf to YM1

Said ack by another node

[sharp pilot]

I can see repeater_03 also. its 6 miles from me

[sharp pilot]

Did not get your DM

[solar garnet]

I need my repeater up

Ok. Going home.

[vocal linden]

Someone tracking their dogs?

[idle trail]

@shell river i was reading you through the hill

i think its the rain

[ancient tinsel]

over the hills and far away~

he swears he will return one day 🎵

[idle trail]

🎸

[vocal linden]

Do you think this will work?

[ancient tinsel]

sidestep a bit to each side and see if that peak in the middle goes away

most likely if blue moves northeast a bit it'll be better

and don't forget to add antenna elevation if possible

[vocal linden]

Thanks for that. It will be interesting to see how it performs

Still working on my roof installation

[vocal linden]

Need to get a node in the west hills 1000 ft elevation

Would be nice if you could specify your first hop, like send a message to x via y.

[timber raven]

What are the other two units?

[solar garnet]

Older image

[timber raven]

Even though a node technically needs to be LOS, some of the signal will go over the top and make it to the node on the other side. Can’t remember the name for that phenomenon.

[solar garnet]

VHF/UHF/HF/GMRS and Meshtastic

The GMRS radio is headless and controlled through the tablet with a Bluetooth speaker/microphone

Tablet is cellular which allows APRS iGate, MQTT on Meshtastic as well as a live camera feed that’s sent to my house

[timber raven]

Rad setup, thanks for sharing! What’s the live camera feed for? Is it a dashcam or is it for vehicle security?

[solar garnet]

Both

[idle trail]

@timber raven heard the air testing?

was your node on a drone or what

[dusky niche]

Ironically, all I got was a message saying they were back on the ground🙃 .

Just got an email from Radioddity advertising a weather station that uses LoRa. They list a range of 1.9mi. For once I think an advertising department under-sold the potential range of their product!

[timber raven]

Nice! Ya, a very big and expensive one! ✈️

[timber raven]

On the ground?

[vocal linden]

This is a serious setup!

[solar garnet]

Thanks. I thoroughly enjoy radio 😁

[dusky niche]

Oops, mis-read the message. I guess it was a reply to you from FOBL saying hello from the ground. I read it as back on the ground. Coffee is just kicking in...

[timber raven]

Haven’t seen a joke from you on primary in a while!

[dusky niche]

I'm still doing them, but I guess they are not getting out there to the masses.🥺 😆

[sharp pilot]

set hops to ONE MILLION!!!! muhahaha

[vocal linden]

Ok anyone else seeing these from other states today

Visitors to Portland?

[vocal linden]

This should have a name, when someone brings their node on a trip and the local mesh picks up the units home lat long…..”node bombing”? Because you blew up my map!

[shell river]

That’s a terrible idea. Let the city use their own dedicated spectrum. This is the only radio us civies can use with encryption. Getting the govt involved will just wreck it. I’m not sure how they will wreck it, but that’s their specialty, they’ll find a way.

[idle trail]

Down vote I agree with zenbob

[hearty ferry]

Would be handy to have permission to deploy nodes on some elevated locations. but agree with zenbob that would be better if they didn't use what little public spectrum we have access to.

[solar garnet]

War driving tonight for new nodes while door dashing 😉

[vocal linden]

Just sent message and had received 17 miles away with indoor node, looking forward to see results with roof top router.

[shut willow]

Sorry, still gonna keep doing it. Neener neener neener

To be honest since Meshtastic is becoming more and more chaotic like CB, they will likely have to move to private spectrum at some point but there's capacity for thousands of users in the meantime. Everyone is just using the default frequency and channel right now

"can you hear me?" Dirty limericks, etc...

Legit like CB

No one gives a crap in government about your comms on Meshtastic. The existing chatter is annoying enough we are already looking at operating elsewhere on the spectrum to reduce the extraneous messaging

I am advocating for the ability to still forward traffic on the emergency-use nodes being deployed in restricted sites, so that they help with non-emergency mesh connectivity. At least until the default channel/frequency usage gets large enough that network congestion becomes a serious problem. Which is probably a year away at the earliest, but it depends on how aggressively the mesh grows this year.

To be clear, I'm being crass about the government concerns because - having worked with folks who engage with local government, the government folks are looking at hams for guidance on how to implement.

This is all still super tenuous as well. They want something that isn't going to devolve into a clusterfuck because of a couple asshats operating maliciously. Especially in a real emergency or disaster scenario.

I think there's real potential for the project to have a real use case in that capacity to augment other comms methods already deployed. It doesn't have to contribute to the default LongFast channel/frequency, but I'm trying to allow for that short term for both growing the local mesh with nodes on towers and advantageous locations, and also to be able to find the limits of the mesh for load testing purposes.

[shut willow]

...the current spectrum covers lots of channels and has the potential for thousands of users. 200 nodes on channel 20/LongFast before you even reach saturation

You want to build out the mesh for connectivity in a cooperative manner or do you want to be obstructionist? I'm happy to remove all capability for my deployed nodes to forward LongFast if folks want to stay grumpy about the fact that there might actually be important traffic on the mesh

[shut willow]

Could also be someone turned on MQTT transmit on the public MQTT again. Normally you'd see other countries too if that happens.

I won't dig too deep into politics but if you don't want Meshtastic to be regulated by government don't use it for communication that involves crimes. That's the fastest way to end a good thing.

Until then it's not on anyone's radar; folks in government think it's a quirky hobby people have

[hearty ferry]

I don't think anyone is grumpy about nodes being owned by the city. I also think the concerns are valid about relying on public nodes.

[vocal linden]

Is this Mt Scott a private property installation or something other

[shut willow]

Private property (citizens) and some are also on restricted RF sites (radio towers etc...)

I don't know who actually owns those if it's the city or a utility company but effectively consider it... What's the word...

Not exactly public property...? But either way restricted access.

Advantage to this is the sites tend to be up high with good coverage.

[vocal linden]

Why and I seeing all these?

[shut willow]

I'll get back to working on those nodes in a week or so, been insanely overloaded for the last month

[shut willow]

Uhhhhh that's a LOT

Someone must have MQTT transmit turned on

I get the reason why this happens. Folks don't know better and they get into MQTT and start by connecting to the public server before they set up their own. I did that.

[vocal linden]

Anything I should do?

[shut willow]

But folks (myself included) always set uplink/downlink on when they do that and then the entire MQTT server's packets get published to the local mesh

Turn on "ignore MQTT" if you don't have it on

Other than that I guess you can figure out who is publishing these and message them...?

[vocal linden]

Ok setting to ignore, thanks

[shut willow]

I did that at least once

I default to ignore MQTT on all my infrastructure nodes

Actually I think I have all of mine ignore

If after resetting nodeDB (or letting it time out) you still have nodes show up... We will have to look closer

One thing that Meshtastic doesn't have a provision for, (probably intentionally so,) is a way to drop packets from misbehaving nodes

It's against the goals of the project to block traffic, which makes sense, but it also means you have to do active network management. IE: reach out to operators and communicate issues

[hearty ferry]

Think someone has MQTT and subscribed to too much of the mqtt server?

[shut willow]

When you subscribe and turn on transmit it transmits everything

So if they are on the default subject on the public MQTT (LongFast) they will transmit all packets sent to the public MQTT

That's easily hundreds of nodes, could be thousands for all I know

[hearty ferry]

Are any of your nodes seeing a5dc's sequence numbers today?

[shut willow]

This stuff happens, part of folks learning curve.

Dude... I really want to go to their reported GPS location (I think it's an apartment complex) and just knock on doors one of these days

Eventually I might get the actual operator and get them to update their firmware to shut that up

Only reason we see those still is they are on something prior to a version that came out like a year ago or more

[hearty ferry]

I did that and seems like it worked.

But not sure if it's just because of the rain

[shut willow]

Hah, fair enough

Wait, you met the person?

I sent them SO many messages

[hearty ferry]

No I posted fliers all over the complex.

[shut willow]

ROFLMAO

That's hilarious

I might actually miss those seq's now

[hearty ferry]

So you don't see them?

[vocal linden]

So even if we ignore it we don’t want all this info being transmitted right?

[shut willow]

Haven't been watching for them.

[hearty ferry]

I'm over in Washougal so I don't always get them. But they stopped around 11:30pm yesterday

[shut willow]

I'll set up my home node to listen for them and see if any come through in the next week

Heck I can probably listen for that specific node to transmit

That would confirm it

If it's operating but not in range test mode then clearly the fliers worked

[shut willow]

Ignoring means you also don't forward those packets

So if everyone ignores MQTT originated packets by default it's never a problem

Ok that's so over the top

The FCC logo is.... Poor taste IMHO since you aren't an official... Hopefully that doesn't cause any backlash

But otherwise, hilarious

Anyway, I'm sure they will be delighted to see the network improvement since the last time they played with it

[vocal linden]

Good to know

[hearty ferry]

Can't imagine anyone would take an something with the fcc logo and a ceiling cat meme seriously

[shut willow]

Yeah all that setting does is drop packets that originated on MQTT

All non MQTT packets still work, local MQTT still works, etc...

[shut willow]

True, but who knows, maybe someone who works at the FCC sees it

That's my only (very small) concern

Regardless, if it had the intended effect, cool. I'd have been a bit more tactful and inclusive, as I'd rather I have another happy member of the community rather than someone who might now be embarrassed or annoyed

Buuuuut. One problem resolved.

And this is my very opinionated opinions. Just to be clear.

Anyway, I do miss working on the mesh. Can dive back in soon I hope.

[vocal linden]

This is quite a notice! 😁

[hearty ferry]

Gotta be loud to stand out 😅

[whole rapids]

Somebody needs to post a counter notice telling the original poster to update his android app

[shut willow]

LOL

[timber raven]

If that flier worked, I think we all owe @hearty ferry a beer or two. 🎉🎉🎉

[turbid sequoia]

I haven't seen A5DC on the mesh today.

[solar garnet]

Anyone know this person?

Or this one?

[turbid sequoia]

This is @shut willow

[solar garnet]

I wonder where his node was today about 4:45 pm

I was at the red pin war driving and got his signal super strong

[sharp pilot]

any reason why my nodes are not showing they have the latest firmware on the map?

[ancient tinsel]

I believe those values are reported by your phone

[solar garnet]

Local ham repeater owner has asked me to facilitate a Meshtastic based net on his repeater. I’m thinking Sunday evening at 8 pm. The repeater is Allstar and EchoLink capable. I’d love to get more knowledgeable people to participate so let me know if you’re interested

[dusky niche]

I'm interested!

[shut willow]

...wut? Node is in SE Portland...

[solar garnet]

Nice

[shut willow]

can probably help too

getting back into all of that

[solar garnet]

That’s awesome. You can see on my screen shot that your signal to Shaw was really good

[solar garnet]

The repeater is the 145.290 WA7ABU

[shut willow]

that's crazy. I thought I was in an RF hole

I'm in the Brooklyn neighborhood

[solar garnet]

So maybe my repeater going up next week will help you out

Roughly a 40 mile connection with great signal

[shut willow]

go figure

yeah, should have time maybe this weekend or very early next week to work on the mt scott node

[timber raven]

Where’s it going in Mt. Scott?

[shut willow]

On top. One of the RF tower sites.

Gives real nice exposure into southern Vancouver.

[timber raven]

Awesome. Is this in coordination with a local ham group? Wonder if it will also connect to me in Gresham Butte, I think I might be able to see Mt. Scott towers from our place.

[shut willow]

Part of CARS as far as the folks giving me/the node access

or one of those... I can't remember exactly which group it is TBH

[hearty ferry]

What is CARS?

Pretty much all of my connections go through their terwilliger plaza node. Must be a nice antenna

[turbid sequoia]

Interested, though not sure I can make it. Depends on how fast I can get the kids to bed.

[solar garnet]

Your knowledge would be appreciated

[crystal osprey]

I believe CARS is Cascade Amateur Radio Society https://cascadeamateurradio.net/about-cars/

[shut willow]

That one is also mine. And it's not. It's a gizont but up on pill hill almost at the height of OHSU

[hearty ferry]

pretty sure I can see OHSU from here so that's probably it

[shut willow]

Yep and it's a tall building too. Node is on the roof.

I want to say 16 stories or something? Not quite hospital helipad height but still pretty nice location

[hearty ferry]

Guessing that's what we can see. Am attempting to of taking a pic through the binoculars

Think the north side of tabor kind of blocks the hospital

[shut willow]

yep looks right

Terwilliger Plaza is east of the hospital

[vocal linden]

Would be nice to maintain a map figure on here that shows the “permanent” router and repeaters with node height as a reference. We individually may not see all there is from our local nodes.

[lyric zephyr]

I plugged Meshtastic on a GMRS net. Got 3 people asking. I answered what I could, and let them know to tune into 145.290 at 8 pm on Sunday.

[timber raven]

Possible to receive on a handheld ham in Gresham?

[idle trail]

we should have some kind of meeting on future/planned nodes and optimizing the mesh

[vocal linden]

This makes sense to me and perhaps having the map I suggested above would be a tool for planning and discussion

[idle trail]

yeah

[lyric zephyr]

Maybe. There are stations that check in from Vancouver. They also have a streaming link on Broadcastify. Start time will be sometime between 8-8:30, whenever the CW net is over.

[sturdy loom]

Oh awesome! I made my way to my portland people!

I have 3 Heltev v3s that I just got. One I have in my car. One I have put into router mode and am working on a solar and outdoor enclosure and the 3rd, I'll setup and give to a friend in North Portland/Overlook area or take to work in Tigard and setup.

[solar garnet]

I’ll be at OMSI on the sub radios for an hour or so Sunday. I’ll be snooping for new nodes from Salem to the sub

[idle trail]

@solar garnet your node was the last node i saw in the valley before i went to central oregon

[solar garnet]

Nice

[blazing mauve]

Here we go guys

[idle trail]

It's crazy rn

[solar garnet]

Salem area

[sharp pilot]

incredible night

[blazing mauve]

Wow!

[sturdy loom]

Wow you all got some great shots there

[idle trail]

i didnt see much purple, it was more redish

[lyric zephyr]

@sharp pilot Are you at YCM2 right now?

[solar garnet]

There is a chance that a CW net will be running on the 529 repeater tonight until 8:30. If so we’ll have a short net and consider moving the day

[sharp pilot]

NO

[solar garnet]

http://www.wa7abu.com/

[turbid sequoia]

copy that, hearing you on the repeater now.

[sharp pilot]

If you want to schedule a time tom test I can go up there sometime next week. Its about a half hour drive for me to get up there. Then I have to switch it from router to router_client to get any messages

[lyric zephyr]

Which of your nodes gets msgs? YCM1?

[sharp pilot]

yes YCM1. thats on top of hte house and I monitor when I am at home

[lyric zephyr]

Roger roger. Experimenting with a yagi.

[sharp pilot]

sounds good

you could aim it at YCM2 and try to DM YCM1

YCM2 will also give you access to PDX

[sharp pilot]

do you have pics of your setup?

[lyric zephyr]

Pointing south. This was just something fun. Point it and see what I get. I got YCM2 almost immediately when pointed WNW.

[sharp pilot]

nice

I am line of sight to YCM2 8.5 miles away

[lyric zephyr]

@solar garnet is on now: https://www.broadcastify.com/listen/feed/42350 or 145.290 MHz.

[sharp pilot]

you should get an exact direction using maps and see how good of a signal you can get

[lyric zephyr]

Just checking if anyone is hearing the Meshtastic discussion via Broadcastify or 145.290 MHz?

[sharp pilot]

listening now

Thats Me!!!

[idle trail]

listenting on broadcastify but if i get in range ill get my sdr out

[lyric zephyr]

Yep, Nick gave Cactusboy and pdxlocs a shoutout earlier.

[sharp pilot]

sweet

[idle trail]

@lyric zephyr is that you talking rn?

[sharp pilot]

Nic the time out king

[lyric zephyr]

Yep, KK7OLI is me.

[sharp pilot]

that radio has to be on fire by now

I only have my GMRS license or I would be on the NET

FYI, I also have a GMRS repeater in McMinnville (WRAR562)

[lyric zephyr]

Start up a net 🙂 I'll join in.

[solar garnet]

Me too

[idle trail]

oh getting a small line

[sharp pilot]

really good information on this NET

Good job

[idle trail]

very good job whoever is talking

[sharp pilot]

Thats Nic ( I think)

[idle trail]

503?

[sharp pilot]

yes

[idle trail]

NT3S

oh im getting very close to hin

him

i beleive long fast is about 0.9 kbps

next net when?

hi @turbid sequoia

[idle trail]

@shell river read you

[ancient tinsel]

...like a book?

[idle trail]

💀

[ancient tinsel]

[solar garnet]

I appreciate those of you who were able to participate with the net earlier

[timber raven]

Link to antenna?

[dusky niche]

Sorry I didn't show, we still had family over for Mother's Day...

[solar garnet]

No stress 😎

I’m thinking we do a hybrid 2 meter/discord net. Working on the details

[lyric zephyr]

https://t.ly/yQoDJ

[timber raven]

Thanks!

[sharp pilot]

Massive X8.79 flare from the western limb of the sun. might be an earth directed CME

[dusky niche]

A new record for my JDMO node...

[sharp pilot]

need to pickup those steps 🙂

[dusky niche]

I agree...

[sharp pilot]

so that count is the number of nodes in your current mesh?

[dusky niche]

Yeah, still not absolutely sure what the parameters are, but I guess the 'connected' have been seen in the last 15? minutes and the 'online' are what it has seen in the last 14hrs or so? The last nodes seen on my list are from 13hrs ago. Just have never had that many seen before...

[dusky niche]

Dang, is that higher than the ones a few days ago? Maybe I'll see the aurora after all...