SOTAMĀT SOTA / POTA Spotting 17+
Self-Spot off-grid via HF
Brian Mathews
Designed for iPad
-
- Free
Screenshots
Description
SOTAMĀT (pronounced "sota-mate") is for licensed amateur radio operators (ham radio) who want to self-spot from remote areas where there is no cellular service, no internet, and who don't have access to a satellite communicator. If you enjoy Summits-On-The-Air (SOTA) or Parks-On-The-Air (POTA) this app is for you!
What you can do "offline":
• Post a Self-Spot (SOTA or POTA) via HF radio (no internet, cellular, or satellite required!)
• Post a Self-Alert (SOTA) via HF radio (useful for CW operators to 'tickle' RBNhole)
• Select and send predefined SMS messages to predefined recipients via HF radio
• See a reference of cloud services and SOTAMĀT 2-way commands
• See a reference of frequencies by mode
The app works by encoding your commands into a special message which is modulated using your iPhone or iPad for transmission over HF (using a built-in FT8 encoder, or use PSK31 or RTTY). Worldwide monitoring stations (skimmers) pick up your HF transmission and relay it to PSK Reporter, which forwards the message to the SOTAMĀT server for processing. SOTAMĀT then connects to the official SOTA or POTA or SMS services to carry out your instructions.
The amazing thing is that you don't need a computer (use your iPhone/iPad!) and you don't need special cables (use your phone's speaker directly into your HF radio's microphone input). The app not only computes the FT8 message, but also generates the FT8 audio.
The app also has a reference table of additional commands you can use when you are "online" (via SMS, eMail, or satellite):
• Post a Spot (SOTA/POTA)
• Post an Alert (SOTA)
• Get current spots (SOTA/POTA)
• Get information (callinfo, peak info, park info)
• ...and more!
See the https://SOTAmat.com web site for details.
What’s New
Version 1.2.1
New in Version 1.2.1 Build 75:
1. Adds support for the SOTACAT hardware module for Elecraft KX2 and KX3 radios. See https://sotamat.com/sotacat for details.
2. Remember what tab was open from prior launch and return there.
3. Allow user to define the max number of FT8 re-transmissions (1 to 4), with a new default of 3
4. Added implementation of Apple's new required PrivacyInfo XML file.
5. New code to check if the online configuration matches your downloaded configuration (when internet access is available). This will help deal with the (common) case where people update their configuration on the web site and forget to keep the mobile device offline-configuration in sync.
6. New code to allow the server to send critical system messages to users when the app launches (if internet is available). This would have helped when the POTA organziation recently made massive database changes that broke prior configurations.
7. Many bug fixes, in particular for the new SOTACAT support.
Ratings and Reviews
Astounding Perfection
This app is everything that ham radio software should be. If you’re not using SOTAMĀT for SOTA & POTA, you’re wrong. AB6D has leveraged FT8 skimmers, Garmin satcom, an elegant web server, and a concise and clean client. Between this and APRS, why activate any other way? Bravo. Please keep this going.
App Privacy
The developer, Brian Mathews, indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy.
Data Linked to You
The following data may be collected and linked to your identity:
- Identifiers
Privacy practices may vary, for example, based on the features you use or your age. Learn More
Information
- Seller
- Brian Mathews
- Size
- 104.8 MB
- Category
- Lifestyle
- Compatibility
-
- iPhone
- Requires iOS 14.5 or later.
- iPad
- Requires iPadOS 14.5 or later.
- iPod touch
- Requires iOS 14.5 or later.
- Mac
- Requires macOS 11.3 or later and a Mac with Apple M1 chip or later.
- Apple Vision
- Requires visionOS 1.0 or later.
- Languages
-
English
- Age Rating
- 17+ Unrestricted Web Access
- Copyright
- © 2022-2024 Brian P. Mathews
- Price
- Free