I get a number of EQSL’s that when I look at my log have been entered by the other party without /P and even a few with the wrong call entirely, I eventually get around to declining them all with an appropriate comment.
Some time ago I started to work around other issues I have with EQSL by having several EQSL login’s (all linked together), some for my home address (both current and my previous two), some for my previous callsign, some for /P, some for GW…/P, plus some just for a specific contest using one of several club calls, etc.
Whilst this helps with getting outbound cards with correct /P etc, it doesn’t really solve all the issues I have with using the EQSL system.
EQSL (unless I’ve missed some recent change) expects all your entries for each of your logs to be from the same locator, which just does not work well when you make large numbers of /P contacts from one location (Tuesday evening UKAC events) and smaller numbers from various others (SOTA activations) using the same callsign.
This means that as I have done a few SOTA activations this year I have not uploaded any G0LGS/P logs for several months.
Pete M0COP suggested a work around of removing the Locator information from the ‘card’ and put that information in the comments, whilst this is possible it makes uploading of /P log entries more time consuming (especially for all the contacts that have already transferred from the contest logging software to the main log).
My logging software knows which square I was operating in, it even puts that information into the ADIF file to upload to EQSL - EQSL just doesn’t use it.
In reply to G0LGS:
Thanks Stewart
You have confirmed to me a couple of things.
that activators are entering their home call in for their activation and missing out the /p. Or should I say not having a second registration for when they are activators.
that eQSL needs to have some mods made to it to cope with 1 above. So that whether I as a chaser have either a callsign or callsign/p the base call should be used.
Will wait and see if there are any other reactions to this before I set off on a quest to get eQSL to modify to take that into account.
A comment I meant to include in the previous reflection, was, that this causes a huge amount of traffic one way or another… eQSL sticks a great big red cross on the QSO, because the activator did not enter their call as /p. so one or other or both have to change some detail in their log.
Some stations do have the /p and it makes the logging with eqsl much easier and as it should be.
As a side line to the above I have about 8 call-signs registered from special events. All of which send me the notifications with no problems.
I will wait for more comments before I stir it up with eQSL.
I will wait for more comments before I stir it up with eQSL.
I had a discussion with the eQSL support people in 2005 about the poor support for /P and /M. They were sympathetic and said they had been thinking about the issue, but thought that it would be a “long haul to a proper fix”. Seems they were right…
They did offer to make me a /P account that did not specify a grid square, but warned me that it might then be difficult to sort out the logs when the proper fix was implemented. I declined the offer.
I routinely upload my “home” contacts to eQSL but I don’t bother with the /P, /M and /A contacts. I did a few activations manually but it was hopelessly tedious. All of my SOTA contacts get uploaded to LoTW.
Yesterday I created an eqsl-account for OE/DL4CW/p and uploaded some 1800 QSO for testing purposes, after I had received the “AG” confirmation by email this morning. Unfortunately my local logging software does not handle variable locators to be merged into the comment field, so you will see only the first two letters (and figures) as configured in my eqsl profile, in this case JN57. I hope eqsl users won’t find that too annoying.
All of my SOTA contacts get uploaded to LiTS - Logbook in the shack
One day I might get around to using a proper logging programme, in the meantime Excel will have to do… and that’s only used because I like to see a neat log!
I continue to get SOTA eqsls where the sender has uploaded with his main call without the
/P. This morning I have two from MI1EYP/P but sent incorrectly as M1EYP. I am prepared to accept a G or whatever without the /P but when it is a different country I have to reject them.
The proper way to use eqsl is to set up a separate sub account for /P and other variations of your call. It is very easy to do, though you probably have to lie about your locator to be able to use it on multiple activations. Some activators even set up a different sub account for every single activation complete with a summit photo - that is probably overkill but shows it can be done.
eqsl comes in for a lot of undeserved criticism, especially among the DXCC DX community due to ARRL refusing point blank to recognise it. It has though a worthwhile place in our hobby, provided we all do it properly.
(and the other day I got an eqsl from a DL station claiming we had worked on 2m SSB in 1982. The QSO was actually in 2012 on 40m cw! You should always check that eqls are valid before clicking the green button).
The proper way to use eqsl is to set up a separate sub account for /P
and other variations of your call. It is very easy to do, though you
probably have to lie about your locator to be able to use it on
multiple activations.
Hello Dave,
It is certainly easy enough to set up separate sub-accounts on eqsl. I have already done so for G3NYY/P, GW3NYY, GO3NYY, GR3NYY and GQ3NYY. However, it is not at all easy to set up “Authenticity Guaranteed” status for anything other than your main station, home call. They require you to send a scanned copy of your licence, bearing the same callsign as that shown on your eQSL card. I cannot do that, because I have no licence bearing the callsign GW3NYY, GM3NYY/P, etc. Neither do I have a licence showing the callsign for any operation in other countries under the CEPT rules. (Fortunately they did accept copies of my NoV for the GO, GR and GQ variants).
I have given up trying to set up “Authenticity Guaranteed” status for my various /P calls, but the result is that I am constantly hassled by emails from people demanding that I should set up “AG” status because apparently they cannot use non-AG eQSLs for awards.
Apart from that, there is also the time-consuming chore of having to add the QTH Locator and SOTA Reference into the comments field of every individual eQSL!
In fact the whole thing is an annoyance because I use paper logging for all my SOTA activities and so all eQSL details have to be typed in manually each time I receive an incoming eQSL. I already spend enough time typing my logs into the SOTAwatch database.
However, it is not at all easy to set up “Authenticity Guaranteed”
status for anything other than your main station, home call.
Not true Walt. I have around twenty-five eQSL accounts for different variations of my callsign; all are “Authenticity Guaranteed”. You need to “attach” all of the accounts to your main one, then, assuming your main callsign is AG, it is as simple as clicking on the “Request AG” button for each of the others. For further variations of your callsign, it is even simpler as you can go to the foot of the My Accounts page and use the “Register a New Attached Account” proforma.
Incidentally, users of the ARRL’s Logbook-of-the-World can use this approval to gain AG status without sending any further documentation to eQSL.
Yes, I did load up all my logbook onto eQSL last night, but did it in one. I had assumed that the “operator” field in my ADIF would cause the logs to be dealt with acordingly, but it seems everything has been shoe-horned into M1EYP. I do have all the necessary subaccounts set up, but it looks like I need to do more reading up on how I deal with them and my ADIF files from my main station log! I suspect the actions necessary to ‘undo’ the errors could be somewhat time-consuming!
In reply to G3VQO:
And I have just done that with my GU3YMC/P operation from 1997, clicked on the request button and approved an hour later. My others were already AG so I must have clicked the right button when I set them up - apart from DL/G3YMC/P which was just 2m FM from various hotels and I see none of the stations I worked are registered with eQSL anyway.
All my QSOs from 1968 are uploaded to eQSL, including my few SOTA activations, are long uploaded to eQSL (and LOTW and ClubLog) which makes keeping track of confirmations easy. Currently 8,243 eQSLs for G3YMC received in my logger, XMLog.
Thanks for the advice. However, I have scoured the eQSL website and I cannot see how to “attach” other accounts. They really do seem to try to make everything as complicated as possible!
I have received a succession of errors … “the email addresses for the accounts are different”; “the starting and ending dates of the accounts are different”; “you cannot change the DXCC country from England” (even though my prefix is GW!); “you must enter a nickname for this account”.
I give up!
I do not use LOTW or Clublog and I have no intention of doing so.
Yes - all the accounts you want to link together must use the same email address - then you should see the option to attach them below your list of accounts (My Accounts - eQSL.cc)
I have about 25 accounts, whilst most of them are for one version or another of G0LGS and some are for G1SHM which I also still hold there are various others that I have used for just short periods of time such as Contests they all have the Authenticity Guaranteed status.
The things that STILL niggle me about the whole things is the idea that you have a fixed locator and the Non-UK date format!
It turns out I haven’t actually got everything correctly sorted out yet after all. There were typos, and some MW1EYP/P that should have been MO1EYP/P, and, well, lots of that sort of thing.
The upshot is that I will need to re-upload my ADIFs to eQSL. Hopefully, the system is clever enough not to send users another (dupe) eQSL, but if this is the case, I apologise in advance!
It turns out I haven’t actually got everything correctly sorted out
yet after all. There were typos, and some MW1EYP/P that should have
been MO1EYP/P, and, well, lots of that sort of thing.
The upshot is that I will need to re-upload my ADIFs to eQSL.
Hopefully, the system is clever enough not to send users another
(dupe) eQSL, but if this is the case, I apologise in advance!
Tee hee!
I have received two eQSLs from you for 27 Oct 2010 at 11:06 UTC. One is from M1EYP and the other is from MI1EYP/P. The portable one does not say which summit you were activating at the time. (My paper log indicates it was GI/MM-006).
