Comax
allows emulation of the keyboard using Morse code input via clicking the mouse
keys or by use of an attached Morse code key or paddle. The Comax software
works with standard applications on computers running the Microsoft Windows
operating system.
Comax is a method of using Morse code to replace
the keyboard on computers using Windows operating systems. Comax offers input
codes for all the standard keys, not just the alphabet and numbers, and works
with all Windows applications. Comax covers the full range of Morse code speed,
from the beginner using mouse input, to the handicapped using special switches,
to the experienced Morse operator running at high speed. Some of the Comax
features are:
Comax provides a complete replacement for the
keyboard. There are many applications where a Morse replacement offers
advantages. Some common applications are:
Run
the Install File and follow the instructions. If the Microsoft dot net
extensions are not already installed on your computer, you will be asked to
connect to the Internet and allow the download from the Microsoft web site.
Comax requires version 2.0 or higher.
The
install program will create a Comax Icon on your desktop. Click the icon to
start Comax.
Comax
provides a standard uninstall script; just make sure the Comax program is
closed when you uninstall.
If
you have a demo version of Comax, only the default features will be enabled.
Visit www.comax.com to obtain a software
license key to enable all features. To enter the license key: 1) start Comax,
2) right click the Comax notification icon in the taskbar, 3) choose the setup
option, 4) access the license tab page, 5) enter the key, and 6) press accept.
When you re-open setup, all features will be enabled. More detailed
instructions are provided in the following sections.
When
Comax is started, a small welcome message window will display “Welcome to Comax
Morse code input! See taskbar notification icon for help and options.” Click
the OK button and a new popup will say “focus on a window” and the toolbar icon
will appear as a black dot.
When
the focus is moved to another window, such as a text document, the Comax Keyer box will appear inactive and
say “click here to send”. Moving the cursor to the Comax Keyer box and clicking there will send Morse code as
replacement for the keyboard. Input can be sent to any application, including
Windows itself, with the exception of some games which use direct input.
The
Comax Keyer box may be moved,
resized, or closed by clicking on the title bar and activating the window. When
you are finished, re-focus on your application by clicking on its window.
The
Comax options are set by right-clicking the Comax notification icon (a black
dot) on the windows tool bar, at the lower right corner of the computer, and
selecting the desired option as follows:
The
Setup option opens the setup screens
discussed in the next sections.
The
Keyboard option opens the on-screen Comax
Keyboard. Keys are pressed by clicking with any mouse button. This keyboard is
similar to the Microsoft on-screen keyboard, except that each key is also labeled
with the corresponding Morse code. For example, the ‘r’ key has the code label
“.-.” which represents dot-dash-dot, the Morse code for that letter. When the Comax Keyboard Code Play option in
Advanced Setup (see the next section) is checked, Morse code will also be
played as keys are clicked. Note that when CapsLock
is pressed, upper and lowercase letters are toggled on the keyboard itself,
while the Shift, Control, Alt, and Win keys must be pressed sequentially
before the key affected.
The
Skins option sets the Comax user
interface look and feel. This version of Comax includes two skins: the classic
skin and a black dot skin. The default classic
skin is a basic Microsoft window that displays the running dot/dash stream and
the last character sent. The black dot
skin is translucent and can be placed over the document / active window with
minimal interference with your work. The black dot can be moved by grabbing
near its border. New skins will be available with future releases.
The
Help option opens the help file (this
document) and the Exit option closes
Comax. It is important to cleanly close Comax in order to avoid any mouse
setting problems.
Comax
can be configured to operate either with a single or dual paddle. In single button mode, also know as “straight
key”, dots and dashes are determined by the length of time the button is held
down.
In
two button mode, the left mouse key
sends dots and the right mouse key sends dashes (the exact mouse keys are
configurable). The length of each dot and dash is determined by the speed
setting, not by the length of time the key is held down. Holding down a key
will cause the dot or dash to repeat until the key is released.
In
two button mode, there are three standard keying modes: Iambic A, Iambic B, and Ultramatic. The different keying modes
define what happens when both buttons / paddles are held down simultaneously.
In ultramatic mode, the last button pressed is repeated at the repeat rate. In
Iambic mode, an alternating sequence of dots and dashes is sent, starting with
whichever button was pressed first. In Iambic A, repeating stops as soon as
both buttons are released. In Iambic B, one mode dot / dash is sent after both
buttons are released. For advanced users, mode preference is user specific and
often depends on their ‘fist’, or sending style, and on what brand of key they
original trained. Many online amateur radio websites explain these differences
in more detail.
The
licensed speed may be set as novice,
general, advanced, or by selecting a custom speed, from 5 to 70 words per
minute, using the drop down box. Generally, a user starts slow and advances the
speed as their skill improves.
Comax
supports assignment of any mouse button to any Morse code key. In one button
mode, Button Selection assigns any
mouse button to the key. In two button mode, Button Selection assigns the dot to one mouse button and the dash
to another. Button selection must be mutually exclusive or Comax will reset to
its defaults.
Button selection also supports assignment
of a mouse button as a MorseLock™. By default, MorseLock™ is not assigned (the
“None” mouse button is selected). When
the MorseLock™ is assigned to a mouse button, then that button will serve as a
toggle switch, similar to NumLock on the keyboard. Clicking that button once
will lock on Morse code sending. Clicking a second time will unlock it. With
sending locked, you no longer need to position the cursor over the Comax Keyer
window to send. Just remember to unlock whenever you want to use your mouse normally.
The
AutoSpaceBar option will insert a space
between words whenever sending is paused. This option avoids the need to send
the Morse code for space, but may insert unwanted spaces for inexperienced
users. Spaces will not be generated in sequences that include keyboard input.
The
mute button turns off the sidetone
sound. The sidetone volume is set using the standard computer sound controls.
The
first box on the advanced setup screen, “Queuing”, allows setup of the Comax
proprietary Queuing modes, called ClickQ™
and PauseQ™. See the next section for
more detailed description of these modes. Note that this feature does not
affect the behavior in one button mode.
The
advanced setup also includes a number of timing entries that are automatically
set as the speed selection (in the basic setup tab) is adjusted. These setting
include the dot length, dash length, delay between dots / dashes (intra-character), the delay between characters (inter-character),
the delay between words (inter-word),
and the repeat delay. All timing units
are in milliseconds. For advanced users who like to experiment, these inputs
can be changed at will. Not all inputs will produce useful behavior; press the default button or adjust the licensed speed setting to return to a
known good state.
New
users might find it helpful to set the repeat
delay to a higher value. When adjusting the repeating rate manually, using
advanced setup, it is important to keep the repeating time greater than the
delay between dots/dashes but less than the delay between characters, or set to
a large number to effectively disable repeating.
The
tone for the dot frequency and dash frequency may be set in HZ. Higher
numbers produce high pitches. 440HZ is the A above middle C on a piano. In two
button mode, the length of the dash may be reduced to the same length as the
dot and the user can distinguish between dot and dash by using a slightly lower
tone for the dash. This allows faster sending, but takes some practice to
learn.
The
one button tolerance is used to
distinguish between dot and dash length. This parameter should be adjusted with
care. Comax will recognize a dash if the tone length is greater than dash * (1
– tolerance percentage), otherwise it will recognize a dot.
The
autospace option emulates a standard
feature of some Iambic keyers in which the spacing between characters is
automatically adjusted in the case where the user presses the key after the
intra-character delay (the delay between dots and dashes) but before the
inter-character delay (between characters). In this case, with autospace on,
the spacing is increased to exactly equal the inter-character delay. The
purpose of this feature is to create very evenly spaced code for listeners. If
you are listening rather than watching whether or not you have send the correct
text, this feature can be valuable, although it slightly slows down the send
rate. Note this flag is distinct from the AutoSpaceBar feature in the basic
menu which automatically inserts spaces (presses the spacebar) after words.
Autospace does not add word level spacing. Autospace doesn’t affect one button
behavior.
The
Comax Keyboard Play option controls
the Morse code output of the on-screen keyboard. When checked and an on-screen Comax
Keyboard key is clicked, the corresponding Morse code is played via the Comax
window. If the sidetone is muted or sound is not available, the code may still be
viewed in the classic Comax window. Output is delayed by the amount of time it
takes to sound the code. When unchecked, there is no sound or delay when using
the on-screen Comax Keyboard.
The
Default Keyboard Play option provides
similar Morse code output functionality for any keyboard or alternative entry
device that generates keystrokes in Windows, including the Microsoft On-Screen
Keyboard and third-party on-screen keyboards. Comax primarily provides this
feature for learning Morse code as the goal is to replace the keyboard.
However, in this mode Comax can also be used in reverse – to send very
consistent high speed code from a computer keyboard. The audio output of the
computer can be recorded or connected directly to a radio transmitter.
After
starting Comax, use the mouse cursor to select the window, and position, where
text is to be entered just as if you were going to enter via the keyboard. Then
move the mouse to the Comax Keyer Window (or black dot if in dot mode) and
enter text via the mouse clicks. When the cursor is moved away from the Comax
Keyer Window or black dot, it will again act as a normal mouse. The black dot
is transparent and can be placed over the active window and near your working
area.
If
MorseLock™ has been assigned to a button, for example the Middle mouse button,
then pressing this button will toggle the mouse between Morse code sending and
functioning as a normal mouse (with the exception of the lock button itself).
When using a lock button, you do not need to keep the cursor over the Comax
window; however that button is no longer available for other Windows
applications.
Comax
setting may be adjusted at any time by clicking on the Comax notification icon
in the Windows taskbar and selecting setup.
When a setting has been changed, just click the “Apply” or “OK” button and
those settings will immediately take effect.
An
On-Screen Keyboard can be enabled at any time by clicking on the Comax
notification icon and selecting keyboard.
Use the mouse to click on individual keys, or simply use the keyboard as a
Morse code table and read the dots and dashes off each key.
Comax
can also play Morse code from keyboard input. Turn on either the On-Screen
Keyboard Play option or the Physical Keyboard Play option (in Advanced Setup).
Be careful when playing from the physical keyboard as everything you type is
played at speed.
Exit
Comax by closing the Comax Keyer Window or by selecting “Exit” from the
notification menu.
Comax
timing is somewhat more sophisticated than a standard hardware keyer. Comax
supports a proprietary ‘click-ahead’ feature, called ClickQ™ that lets the user click at a faster rate than the send
rate. With queuing turned off, Comax emulates a standard keyer. The user must
hold down any key presses until the appropriate dot / dash sound starts. With ClickQ™ checked, the user can release as
soon as you press, just like clicking a mouse. These extra clicks, which would
normally be ignored by a standard key, are queued in order and sent at the
appropriate time. If the speed setting is slow, a user can actually get several
dots / dashes ahead. Note that when clicks are queued, repeating is temporarily
disabled to avoid confusion.
In
addition to queuing clicks, the PauseQ™
mode enables queuing of characters (by storing the pause between them). When no
key is pressed for a time period greater than the set delay between dots and
dashes, a new character is started, independent of any dots and dashes still
playing. This flexibility allows true de-coupling of sending and playback,
supporting tighter character sending at high speeds while being more forgiving
of timing variability at low speeds.
Note
that with PauseQ™ the timing of the
delay between dots/dashes starts when the user releases the button rather than
when the character stops playing, reducing the chance of fusing two letters
accidentally (for example “AN” becoming “P”).
In
Summary, ClickQ™ and PauseQ™ provides a more natural feel
when using a computer mouse to send code at slow and medium speeds and for
users who prefer to click multiple times rather holding to repeat. At high
speeds, ClickQ™ and PauseQ™ free the user to release a key
immediately and press the next key earlier without adverse effects.
Copied
from www.wikipedia.com
Morse code is a character encoding for transmitting telegraphic
information, using standardized sequences of short and long elements to
represent the letters, numerals, punctuation
and special characters of a given message. The short
and long elements can be formed by sounds, marks, or pulses, in on off
keying and are commonly known as "dots" and "dashes" or
"dits" and "dahs".
International
Morse code is composed of five elements:
1.
short mark, dot or 'dit'
(·) — one unit long
2.
longer mark, dash or 'dah'
(–) — three units long
3.
intra-character gap
(between the dots and dashes within a character) — one unit long
4.
short gap (between letters)
— three units long
5.
medium gap (between words)
— seven units long[9]
Morse code can
be transmitted in a number of ways: originally as electrical pulses along a telegraph
wire, but also as an audio tone, a radio signal with short and long tones, or
as a mechanical or visual signal (e.g. a flashing light) using devices like an Aldis lamp
or a heliograph.
Morse code is
transmitted using just two states (on and off) so it was an early form of a digital code.
Strictly speaking it is not binary, as there are five fundamental
elements (see quinary).
However, this does not mean Morse code cannot be represented as a binary code.
In an abstract sense, this is the function that telegraph operators perform
when transmitting messages. Working from the above definitions and further
defining a 'unit' as a bit,
we can visualize any Morse code sequence as a combination of the following five
elements:
1.
short mark, dot or 'dit'
(·) — 1
2.
longer mark, dash or 'dah'
(–) — 111
3.
intra-character gap
(between the dots and dashes within a character) — 0
4.
short gap (between letters)
— 000
5.
medium gap (between words)
— 0000000
Note that this
method works only under the assumption that dits and dahs are always separated
by gaps, and that gaps are always separated by dits and dahs.
The speed of
Morse code is typically specified in "words per minute" (WPM). In
text-book, full-speed Morse, a dah is conventionally 3 times as long as a dit.
The spacing between dits and dahs within a character is the length of one dit;
between letters in a word it is the length of a dah (3 dits); and between words
it is 7 dits. The
Under this
standard, the time for one "dit" can be computed by the formula: T
= 1200 / W
Where: W
is the desired speed in words-per-minute, and T is one dit-time in
milliseconds
|
STANDARD CHARACTERS |
|||
|
Character |
code |
character |
code |
|
A |
l- |
N |
-l |
|
B |
-lll |
O |
--- |
|
C |
-l-l |
P |
l--l |
|
D |
-ll |
Q |
--l- |
|
E |
l |
R |
l-l |
|
F |
ll-l |
S |
lll |
|
G |
--l |
T |
- |
|
H |
llll |
U |
ll- |
|
I |
ll |
V |
lll- |
|
J |
l--- |
W |
l-- |
|
K |
-l- |
X |
-ll- |
|
L |
l-ll |
Y |
-l-- |
|
M |
-- |
Z |
--ll |
|
1 |
l---- |
6 |
-llll |
|
2 |
ll--- |
7 |
--lll |
|
3 |
lll-- |
8 |
---ll |
|
4 |
llll- |
9 |
----l |
|
5 |
lllll |
0 |
----- |
|
space |
ll-- |
backspace |
---- |
|
period |
l-l-l- |
comma |
--ll-- |
|
? |
ll--ll |
! |
l-ll-- |
|
STICKY KEYS |
|||
|
Modifies Only the Next Entry |
|||
|
Left Shift |
ll-l- |
Right Shift |
l---l- |
|
Left ALT |
l-l-- |
Right ALT |
ll--l- |
|
Left CTRL |
-l-l- |
Right CTRL |
--l-l- |
|
Left Windows |
ll-l-- |
Right Window |
-l-l-- |
|
Application Key |
-lll-- |
|
|
|
KEYBOARD EXTENSIONS |
||
|
function |
code |
abbreviation |
|
Enter |
l-l- |
ent |
|
Esc |
ll-ll |
ere |
|
Delete |
-ll-l |
dte |
|
Insert |
l-ll- |
au |
|
: |
-l-l-l |
cn |
|
; |
lll-l |
sn |
|
< |
l-lll- |
la |
|
> |
--ll-l |
zn |
|
“ |
--l-- |
qt |
|
/ |
--ll- |
zt |
|
\ |
-lllll |
bs |
|
Tab |
-l--l |
tan |
|
Home |
llll-l |
hn |
|
End |
-l-ll |
nd |
|
Page Up |
---ll- |
|
|
Page Down |
---l-l |
|
|
Left Arrow |
----l- |
|
|
Right Arrow |
-----l |
|
|
Up Arrow |
----ll |
|
|
Down Arrow |
------ |
|
|
@ |
l---l |
atn |
|
# |
-l--- |
no |
|
^ |
-l-ll- |
Ca |
|
= |
l--l- |
eq |
|
% |
l--l-l |
pn |
|
+ |
l--ll |
pe |
|
- |
---l |
mn |
|
* |
l-lll |
as |
|
( |
lll--l |
sg |
|
) |
-ll--l |
dg |
|
[ |
ll-lll |
us |
|
] |
-l-lll |
ks |
|
{ |
ll---l |
ug |
|
} |
-l---l |
kg |
|
$ |
-lll-l |
dr |
|
~ |
--lll- |
tda |
|
_ |
ll--l |
un |
|
| |
lll-ll |
vi |
|
> |
--ll-l |
gr |
|
< |
l-lll- |
la |
|
& |
-ll-- |
xt |
|
Scroll Lock |
lll-l- |
sk |
|
Prt Sc |
-llll- |
du |
|
` |
..-..- |
uu |
|
F1 |
ll---- |
e1 |
|
F2 |
lll--- |
e2 |
|
F3 |
llll-- |
e3 |
|
F4 |
lllll- |
e4 |
|
F5 |
llllll |
e5 |
|
F6 |
l-llll |
e6 |
|
F7 |
l--lll |
e7 |
|
F8 |
l---ll |
e8 |
|
F9 |
l----l |
e9 |
|
F10 |
l----- |
e0 |
|
F11 |
-l----- |
t1 |
|
F12 |
-ll---- |
t2 |
|
Caps Lock Toggle |
ll-l-l |
ic |
|
Num Lock Toggle |
-ll-ll |
nl |
|
Sys Req |
-l--l- |
kk |
|
Pause |
l--ll- |
pa |