Contest configuration

The contest configuration panel

Station

Callsign	Station callsign used.
Grid square	Station location in Maidenhead grid format (6 positions).
Exchange	Typically the contest exchange BUT may also be keywords such as "DX" or "NONE".
DXCC prefix	Station's standard DXCC prefix.
CQ/WAZ zone	Station's CQ/WAZ zone.
ITU zone	Station's ITU zone.
State/Province/Other	Station's state or province. Sometimes used for other purposes.
Name	Full name of log submitter.
Address	Full address of log submitter.
Email	Email address of log submitter.
Club	Name of club results are credited to.

Contest

Contest	Contest or dxpedition.
Category	Contest category.
Station	Contest station category.
Overlay	Contest overlay
Class	Station's contest power class.
Mode	Mode of operation.
Op. name	The name of the operator (if required).
Power	The station's power level (if required). Can be set to 1TT, KW, etc. when used for contest exchange.
Operators	Comma and/or space separated list of callsigns for the station's operators. Optionally add a leading @ to the hosting callsign. The field accepts up to 255 characters.

After filling out the Callsign field, an empty DXCC prefix, CQ zone, or ITU zone field will be auto-filled.
Important: The DXCC prefix auto-fill uses the CQ WW country definition which means that e.g. IT9 and TA1 are separate countries.
There are mechanics in DXLog making sure this is not a problem in contests using a strict ARRL DXCC country definition.

Important: The Exchange field does not always contain the actual exchange. In contests with e.g. serial number and grid as exchange,
the Exchange field may even be disabled. When in doubt, leave the Exchange field empty and click OK. This will show
a pop-up with instructions.

Important: There is no band category setting. Some contest definitions include categories which also include bands but most do not.
Lacking an explicit band category, DXLog will automatically determine it.
If your log contains QSO on more than band, exported Cabrillo file will say CATEGORY-BAND: ALL.
If your log contains QSO only on one band, say 20m, the exported Cabrillo file will say CATEGORY-BAND: 20M
All X-QSO are ignored in this process, so if you accidentally make a QSO on the "wrong" band, simply mark it invalid using [Ctrl][X].

After pressing [Enter] (or clicking on the OK button) all fields are checked against the rules defined in contest definition file.
If any field contain incorrect data, DXLog will issue a warning with instructions on how to correct the data, and move the cursor to
the entry box with the erroneous content. It may also show a link to the contest rules (if this is included in contest config file).

Contest irregularities

Since the contest configuration panel in DXLog is fixed and some contests have very non-standard
exchanges, the information sometimes has to be entered in a non-intuitive way.

The contests listed below use the configuration panel entry fields in a non-standard way.

Contest	Exchange	State/Province/Other	Power	Name
ARRL Sweepstakes	The last 2 digits of the year of first license for either the operator or the station.	ARRL/RAC Section.	“Q” for Single Op QRP (5 Watts output or less). “A” for Single Op Low Power (150W output or less). “B” for Single Op High Power (more than 150W output). “U” for Single Op Unlimited (Regardless of power class). “M” for Multi-Op (Regardless of power class). “S” for School Club.
SSA Jultest	Your first random 5-letter word. Reset your messages to default to ensure your F2 message is correct.

The following contests have known deviations from the standard operating procedure or contest mechanics:

Contest	Limitations
7th Call Area QSO Party	Only the first 10 DXCC counts for multiplier. DXLog will show all unworked DXCC as multipliers. The score summary is however correct.
AGCW QRP-QRP-Party	Enter the slash ("/") as part of the exchange.
Arizona QSO Party	The bonus station points are not recognized. Only the first 20 DXCC counts for multiplier. DXLog will show all unworked DXCC as multipliers. The score summary is however correct.
ARRL Winter Field Day	Bonus points and band/mode multipliers are not supported. Non-standard Cabrillo keys CATEGORY and ARRL-SECTION are not supported and have to be manually added to Cabrillo file.
Colorado QSO Party	The bonus station points are not recognized.
CQ WW 160m	The contest rules state a mixed prefix/province scheme for VE multipliers. DXLog only counts provinces as multipliers.
FOC Marathon	Since the rules are not publicly available, scoring may be incorrect. Bonuses like first continent, 5-band, etc. are not supported.
IG-RY WW RTTY	There is no band change rule violation check for single operator categories.
Illinois QSO Party	Only the first 5 DXCC counts for multiplier. DXLog will show all unworked DXCC as multipliers. The score summary is however correct.
Naranja CW	Own callsign district are counted as a valid multiplier although it is not. Own DXCC is shown as worked but does not count as multiplier.
New Hampshire QSO Party	Only the first 10 DXCC counts for multiplier. DXLog will show all unworked DXCC as multipliers. The score summary is however correct.
OK DX RTTY	There is no band change rule violation check for single operator categories.
OKOM, PACC, SAC, UBA, WAE, WAG, YUDX	10-minute rule is not bypassed when Run station works a multiplier.
PAQP	Bonus points for Rover and Mobile stations is not supported.
SARL HF Contest	There is no band change rule violation check for single operator categories. Also, bonus points for working the same station on all three bands is not supported.
South Dakota QSO Party	The bonus station points are not recognized.
Vermont QSO Party	The bonus station points are not recognized.
Washington State QSO Party	Only the first 10 DXCC counts for multiplier. DXLog will show all unworked DXCC as multipliers. The score summary is however correct.
Ontario QSO Party	Slashed exchanges are not supported for logging, only transmission. Log twice when working a county line station.
West Virginia QSO Party	The bonus station points are not recognized.
Winter Field Day	Band and mode multipliers are not recognized.

Contest definition and support files

The behavior and visual appearance of DXLog for a particular contest is controlled
by a contest definition file, often accompanied by support files.

Important: Before reading further, if you are in need of updating the files for a particular contest,
consider using the File|Update contest function described in the Update contest chapter.

A contest definition file is always of the type .TXT.

There are four types of support files: prefill databases, warning files, regular expression
files and points files.

Prefill data bases (sometimes referred to as call history files) can be of three different
types: .TXT, .DTB, and .CSV.

• .TXT is the default, plain text DXLog format.
  
• .DTB is a binary, legacy format compatible with Win-Test.
  
• .CSV is a plain text format, compatible with N1MM Logger+.

Warning files, regular expression files, and points files are always of the type .TXT.

Contest files and support files are all part of the installation binary but are copied at start up
to a secondary folder to allow user modification without the need for elevated permissions.

Contest files are copied to %appdata%\DXLog\Contest and support files are copied to
%appdata%\DXLog\Database.

The standard setting in Microsoft Windows is that %appdata% folders are hidden since they
are not intended for manual modification.

The easiest way to open the %appdata%\DXLog folder is via Dxlog's menu File|Open configuration folder.

The folder is also reachable by typing "%appdata%\DXLog" in either the path text
box in Windows Explorer or using Windows' Run command, [Win][R].

At startup, DXLog compares the age of all contest related files in the installation folder with
the age of the files in the secondary folder. If a file in the installation folder is missing or has a more
recent modification date, the file in the secondary folder is overwritten. Otherwise, it is left untouched.

The purpose of this approach is to allow user modifications while still receiving updates included in new releases.

Contest related files are frequently updated between releases.

Sometimes, but not always, this is announced on the DXLog support reflector.

To update the files associated with a particular contest, open a log for the contest and click File|Update contest.

Under some circumstances (such as a fatal bug that prevents the opening of a log for the contest)
you may have to download contest related files manually.

To do this, right-click the file's link, select "Download the file as", and select a location of your choice
such as your desktop. (This file can be deleted once it has been copied to the destination below.)

Next, copy the file(s) to the relevant folder(s), thereby overwriting the earlier version of the file:

• Contest definition files should be copied to the %appdata%\DXLog\Contest folder.
• Prefill database files should be copied to the %appdata%\DXLog\Database folder.
• Warning files should be copied to the %appdata%\DXLog\Database folder.
• Regular expression files should be copied to the %appdata%\DXLog\Database folder.
• Points files should be copied to the %appdata%\DXLog\Database folder.

Macro commands and special characters

Basic macro commands

A macro command executes a function when included in a predefined message

$13	Send carriage return character. (Data modes only)
$!ABCD	Execute script with name ABCD.
$!DISABLE!ABCD	Disable script with name "ABCD".
$!ENABLE!ABCD	Enable script with name "ABCD".
$ACQ	Swap radio focus and send CQ. (Only usable in SO2R scenarios.)
$AILOCK	Enable interlock blocking.
$ALTERNATECQ	same as $ACQ. (Only usable in SO2R scenarios.)
$BANDIDssss	Send band of Radio 1 of station "ssss" in the network. E.g. $BANDIDSK3W_1 will send band of radio 1 of station with ID SK3W_1. Important: Does not work with station ID containing any of the special characters used in messages such as + and -.
$BANDOR	Send band of non focused radio.
$BLANK	Send a space character in digital mode or wait one word space in CW. Important: Can be used in SO2R scenarios, in which all space characters are ignored.
$CAT1 $CAT2 $CATF	Sends a CAT command to radio 1, 2, or the focused radio. Binary CAT commands (e.g., for ICOM and older Yaesu) are in hexadecimal and preceded by a percent sign. For ICOM the header (FEFE...) and terminating byte (FD) should not be included. To include space in a CAT command, use underscore _. Example 1: $CAT1=AG000;AG$000; will silence both the main and sub receiver on an Elecraft K3. Example 2: $CAT1=%14010000$CAT1=%290114010000 will do the same on an IC-7610.
$CHECKCALL	Check validity of entered callsign (against general and contest rules).
$CLEARRIT	Set RIT to zero on supported radios. Does not disable RIT.
$CORRECT	Send corrected callsign. Sends nothing if callsign has not been modified.
$CQZONE	Send own CQ/WAZ zone. Follows CW number sending rules.
$CQ	Send CQ (i.e. Run F1 message) on focused radio. (Creates infinite loop if used with key F1.)
$CR	Equivalent to pressing [Enter] with ESM disabled, i.e. logs QSO. Differs slightly from $LOGQSO, in that e.g. its timing can be shifted. (C.f. $LOGQSO and $FORCELOG)
$DASH	Sends "-" (dash) in digital modes or waits one word space in CW.
$DELAY=nnn	Wait "nnn" milliseconds. E.g. $DELAY=80
$DISABLERIT	Disables RIT on supported radios.
$EXCHANGE	Send the exchange entered in the configuration panel. Follows CW number sending rules.
$EXCHANGENOAB	Send the exchange exactly as entered in the configuration panel.
$EXTINF	Send the content of the first non-empty line in the Extra Information window starting from the top. Ignores online resources such as HamQTH.
$EXTINF1 $EXTINF2 $EXTINF3	Like $EXTINF but only sends the first/second/third word in the line. Word delimiters are space, comma, and semicolon.
$EXTINFT	Like $EXTINF but only considers the topmost line in the Extra Information window.
$EXTINFT1 $EXTINFT2 $EXTINFT3	Like $EXTINF1/2/3 but only considers the topmost line in the Extra Information window.
$F1-$F7	Send or play back the message associated to the function key.
$FOCUS1	Change Focus to Radio 1. (Only usable in SO2R scenarios.)
$FOCUS2	Change Focus to Radio 2. (Only usable in SO2R scenarios.)
$FOCUSCALL	Move focus to Callsign field.
$FOCUSRCVD	Move focus to the received exchange field.
$FOCUSREC1	Move focus to the second received exchange field.
$FOCUSREC2	Move focus to the third received exchange field.
$FOCUSREC3	Move focus to the fourth received exchange field.
$FORCELOG	Logs QSO bypassing all validity checking.
$FREQIDssss	Send frequency of Radio 1 of station "ssss" in the network. E.g. $FREQIDSK3W_1 will send frequency of radio 1 of station with ID SK3W_1. Important: Does not work with station ID containing any of the special characters used in messages such as + and -. Obeys settings for rounding when transmitting frequencies from macros.
$FREQbbb	Send the frequency of the networked primary radio found on this band. Band "bbb" is 160...10, 50, 144, and 432. Important: Only considers stations of type R, R+, and M. Obeys settings for rounding when transmitting frequencies from macros.
$FREQOR	Send frequency of the other radio in SO2R. Obeys settings for rounding when transmitting frequencies from macros.
$FREQPASSbbb	Send the defined pass frequency for band "bbb" for the station. Valid band names are 160...10, 50, 144, and 432. Sends nothing if undefined. Obeys settings for rounding when transmitting frequencies from macros.
$FREQR1	Send the frequency of Radio 1. Obeys settings for rounding when transmitting frequencies from macros. Was $FREQP.
$FREQR2	Send the frequency of Radio 2. Obeys settings for rounding when transmitting frequencies from macros. Was $FREQS.
$GRABPARTNER	CW: Grab the topmost callsign from the Partner stack, overwriting any entered callsign. Digital: Grab the most recently decoded call. If this is not available from the decoder or this call is the just logged call, grab the topmost call from the Partner stack. Does nothing if entry line contains a call.
$GRABPARTNER1-$GRABPARTNER9	Grab the numbered slot from the partner stack. Overwrites any entered callsign.
$GRABSPOT	Grab spot from the bandmap on the current frequency.
$GREET	Send GM, GA, or GE based on the local time of day.
$GRID	Send the full Maidenhead locator as entered in the contest configuration panel.
$GRID4	Send the first four characters of the Maidenhead locator as entered in the contest configuration panel.
$GUESSEXCH	Force guessing of the exchange.
$INSERT	Send the INSERT message, the message associated with the [Insert] key.
$ITUZONE	Send own ITU zone. Follows CW number sending rules.
$LOGGEDCALL	Current callsign on focused entry line. If empty and not digital mode, the previously logged call. If empty and digital mode, the most recently highlighted non-dupe call in the decoder window.
$LOGQSO	Logs QSO when executed. (C.f. $FORCELOG and $CR)
$MK2R=abc	Send command "abc" to a connected microHAM device.
$MSG1, $MSG2, ..., $MSG12	Additional CW messages. Configured using [Alt][C].
$MYCALL	Send station's callsign as entered in the contest configuration panel.
$MYDXCC	Send station's own DXCC prefix.
$NEXT	Send the callsign of the next QSO line when a $CR is included in the message.
$NEXTCALL	Send the callsign of the next QSO line when a $CR is included in the message.
$NEXTSERIAL	As $SERIAL but sends the serial number of the next QSO. Follows CW number sending rules.
$OPNAME	Send the operator name as entered in the configuration panel.
$OTRSP=abc	Send command "abc" to connected OTRSP device.
$PBINS	Play back DVK memory associated with INSERT key. On external devices this is #8.
$PBPLUS	Play back DVK memory associated with PLUS key. On external devices this is #9.
$PILOCK	Disable interlock blocking.
$PLUS	Send message associated with the [+] key.
$POWER	Send the power string as entered in the configuration panel. Follows CW abbreviation rules and also sends "1000" as "KW".
$PREV_RCVD	Send previous received exchange. If succeded by a number within parentheses and the contest definition file contains FIELD_RCVD_NUMERIC=YES, left-zero-pad to this length. Follows CW number sending rules.
$PREV_RECINFO	Send previous received second exchange. If succeded by a number within parentheses and the contest definition file contains FIELD_RECINFO_NUMERIC=YES, left-zero-pad to this length. Follows CW number sending rules.
$PREV_SFX	Send the callsign suffix of the previous QSO. Sends own suffix if the log is empty.
$PREVSERIAL	As $SERIAL but sends the serial number of the previous QSO. Sends 1 if the first QSO in the log. Follows CW number sending rules.
$QQSLRESET	Reset Quick QSL timer.
$QSOB4	Send the QSOB4 message and stop transmission if the entered callsign is a dupe.
$QSOB4WIPE	Send the QSOB4 message, clear entry field, and stop transmission if the entered callsign is a dupe.
$R1R1	Set the headphone audio routing to radio 1 in both ears. (Only usable in SO2R scenarios.)
$R1R2	Set the headphone audio routing to radio 1 in left ear and radio 2 in right ear. (Only usable in SO2R scenarios.)
$R2R1	Set the headphone audio routing to radio 2 in left ear and radio 1 in right ear. (Only usable in SO2R scenarios.)
$R2R2	Set the headphone audio routing to radio 2 in both ears. (Only usable in SO2R scenarios.)
$RUN	Set the current radio to RUN. Also see $SP.
$RCVD	Send the content of received exchange field (without RST).
$RECINFO	Send the content of the second received exchange field
$RECINFO2	Send the content of the third received exchange field
$RECINFO3	Send the content of the fourth received exchange field
$REPEAT	Re-enable CQ repeat for the focused radio.
$RESERVENR	Request a serial number from the number server on the network. Does nothing if a serial number is already reserved or the callsign field is empty.
$RESET	Refresh audio control settings to cancel any manual change made. (Only usable in SO2R scenarios.)
$RPTOFF	Pause CQ repeat.
$RST	Send report from RST Sent field. Sends 5NN in CW also with no abbreviation, otherwise follows number sending rules for CW.
$SERIAL	Send the serial number of the current QSO, or the previous serial number if the log entry field is empty. Takes one argument which is the sent number of digits. e.g., $SERIAL(2), will zero-pad to two digits. Follows CW number sending rules.
$SERIALNOAB	As $SERIAL but never abbreviates.
$SP	Set the current radio to S&P. Also see $RUN.
$SPACE	Step focus one field. (Same as pressing space bar).
$SPOTME	Creates a DX cluster spots for own station's callsign. Does nothing for contests not allowing self spotting or if respotting timer has not expired.
$STATE	Send State/Province/Other as entered in the contest configuration panel.
$SWAPFOCUS	Swap radio focus. (Only usable in SO2R scenarios.)
$TIME	Sends the current time in UTC with four digits. WARNING: When used as exchange, repeating $TIME may not send the same number.
$TR1	Transmit on Radio 1. (Only usable in SO2R scenarios.)
$TR2	Transmit on Radio 2. (Only usable in SO2R scenarios.)
$TRS	Transmit on radio opposite to focus. (Only usable in SO2R scenarios.)
$WIPE	Clear the entry fields. Important: Clears entry field at the end of the message and not if interrupted.
+	increase CW speed by 4 wpm.
-	decrease CW speed by 4 wpm.
\	Sends the AR prosign.
*	Sends the SK prosign.
^	Half dit space character in CW. Important: This is in addition to the standard 3-dit character space when used between two characters.
~	At the end of a macro or string means no word space will be inserted.

Example of "NOW" message on RTTY:
$13 $CORRECT TU $CR $GRABPARTNER NOW $LOGGEDCALL $RST $SERIAL $SERIAL $MYCALL

Example of confirming received exchange in Insert message on RTTY:
$LOGGEDCALL $F2 ($RCVD~) $MYCALL

Location of macro values in the contest configuration panel.

Conditionals

On top of the powerful set of macro commands you can use conditionals to control the execution
of a message based on a number of conditions. The syntax for this is very basic. (Pun intended.)

Warning: Conditionals are evaluated when reached during the transmission of a message but
at the start of transmission if used in an SO2R scenario. Conditionals may therefore create seemingly
erroneous results when used in SO2R scenarios.

Example of F2 message to send RST and Zone differently in CW and digital:
[DIGITAL]$RST$DASH$RST $WAZZONE$DASH$WAZZONE[ELSE]$RST $WAZZONE

Example of Run Plus message for same mixed mode contest:
$CORRECT [DIGITAL]$LOGGEDCALL TU $CR $MYCALL QRZ?[ELSE]TU $CR $MYCALL

Example of F2 message that works for all stations in ARRL DX contest:
$RST [EXCHANGE="DX"]$POWER[ELSE]$EXCHANGE

Example of F2 message that works for all stations in Helvetia contest:
$RST [EXCHANGE="DX"]$SERIAL[ELSE]$EXCHANGE

Example of S&P F1 message for the multiplier station in a Multi-Single entry:
[QSO_IS_MULT]$MYCALL

Important notes:

• There is no nesting. Everything after [] will always be executed.

You can however achieve one level of nesting using ELSE2.

• Important: Conditionals are currently evaluated before transmission starts

which means they evaluate for the radio/entry line that transmitted last.

There is work ongoing to address this issue.

Below you can find an example set of messages for a mixed mode contest with Phone, CW, and RTTY:

Available syntax for conditional execution of macro commands

Syntactic element	Type	Description
[	Delimiter	Starts a conditional expression
]	Delimiter	Ends a conditional expression, the following macro commands, up to the next left bracket, will be executed if true
[]	Delimiter	Equal to [TRUE]. Can e.g. be used to end a conditional macro string.
= <> +	Operator	String operators
= <> * + / - % ^ < > >= <=	Operator	Integer operators
"string value"	String	String literal
AND, NOT, XOR, OR	Operator	Boolean operators
BAND	String	Current transmit band.
CLASS	String	The content of the contest configuration panel's Class dropdown menu in upper case.
CORRECTED	Boolean	True if the logged callsign has been altered since last transmitted.
CQZONE	String	The content of the contest configuration panel's CQ/WAZ zone field.
CW	Boolean	True if the mode is CW.
DIGITAL	Boolean	True if the mode is a digital mode.
DXCCPFX	String	The content of the contest configuration panel's DXCC prefix field.
ELSE	Boolean	True if the previous conditional was false, allowing things like [MODE="CW"]CQ CW[ELSE]CQ RTTY
ELSE2	Boolean	True if the conditional before the last was false.
EXCHANGE	String	The content of the contest configuration panel's Exchange field.
IF	Conditional	Value depends on how first parameter evaluates. E.g. IF(MODE="CW","CWWORD","WORD")
ITUZONE	String	The content of the contest configuration panel's ITU zone field.
MODE	String	Current transmit mode.
OVERLAY	String	The content of the contest configuration panel's Overlay dropdown menu in upper case.
PHONE	Boolean	True if the mode is SSB, FM, or AM.
QSO_CALLSIGN, NONFOCUS_CALLSIGN	String	The callsign of the QSO.
QSO_CONTINENT, NONFOCUS_CONTINENT	String	The continent abbreviation for the QSO.
QSO_CQZONE, NONFOCUS_CQZONE	Integer	The CQ zone for the QSO.
QSO_DUPE, NONFOCUS_DUPE	Boolean	True if the QSO is a duplicate.
QSO_DXCC, NONFOCUS_DXCC	String	Main callsign prefix for the DXCC country for the QSO.
QSO_INVALID, NONFOCUS_INVALID	Boolean	True if the QSO is invalid.
QSO_IS_MULT, NONFOCUS_IS_MULT	Boolean	True if the QSO in the entry line is a multiplier.
QSO_ITUZONE, NONFOCUS_ITUZONE	Integer	The ITU zone for the QSO.
QSO_NR, NONFOCUS_NR	Integer	The QSO number.
QSO_PERIOD, NONFOCUS_PERIOD	Integer	The contest period for QSO.
QSO_QTC_NEEDED, NONFOCUS_QTC_NEEDED	Integer	The number of QTC still needed for the current callsign.
QSO_RCVD, NONFOCUS_RCVD	String	The first contest exchange received field (not including the RST).
QSO_STATION, NONFOCUS_STATION	String	The station type, R for run, M for multiplier, etc.
QSO_XQSO, NONFOCUS_XQSO	Boolean	True if the QSO has been marked X-QSO.
POWER	String	The content of the contest configuration panel's Power field.
RUN	Boolean	True if the focused radio is in Run mode.
SSB	Boolean	True if the mode is SSB.
STATE	String	The content of the contest configuration panel's State/Province/Other field.
STATION_TYPE	String	The station type identifier: R, R1, R2, M, or S.
STATION	String	The content of the contest configuration panel's Station dropdown menu in upper case.
VIOLATION	Boolean	True if a band or mode change rule is violated. Can e.g. be used to prevent transmission in a multi-operator setting.

Supported contests

An up-to-date list of the supported contests of the most recent release of DXLog
and their support files can be found on this page.