General Operation

LOGic 5 is sophisticated. However, it is easy to use. You will master basic logging within minutes. Available options are displayed on the screen whenever possible, and are accessed with the mouse or by using streamlined keyboard shortcuts. You will never waste time trying to remember which key to press to perform the desired function. More detailed information may be obtained by clicking on Help. LOGic 5's online help is intelligent--it will give information relevant to the current screen or field. Help text may be searched by specifying word(s) to search for. Short one-line help messages are available for most objects by touching them with the mouse pointer.

LOGic 5's zoomable windows allow you to easily change font size to accommodate your monitor, preferences, and eyesight. Just place the mouse pointer on the window border near the zoom control, and drag the window to the desired size. The TrueType font size that most nearly matches your chosen size will be selected.

The Tools menu accesses accessories to convert English and metric units of measure when talking to a DX station, back up your log, etc. The DX and direction calculator calculates bearings and distances based on latitude/longitude, grid square, or callsign--perfect for VHFers or net operations. You can even tell two other stations how to point their antennas toward each other!

One of LOGic 5's greatest assets is the careful design of its flexible logging screen. The same screen is used for entering, retrieving, changing, and erasing data, as well as for viewing your entire log.

LOGic 5's windowed interface allows you to have several windows on-screen at the same time. Cut-and-paste of text, moving and re-sizing of windows, customization of the multiple record display, and log screen and report layout may be accomplished with the mouse. However, since logging is a keyboard-intensive activity, special attention was paid to providing easy and complete keyboard control of all of LOGic 5's most-used features.

Complete editing of data is provided to minimize errors and make it easy to fix typos. Input of band, mode, state, etc., as well as user-defined fields may be checked against a list of valid values. A convenient dropdown menu provides easy selection. This picture illustrates the DXCC field, but a similar list appears for other fields, including user-defined fields!

Furthermore, valid fields may be searched by description! Suppose you forgot the prefix for Comoros. Just click the search button, and type in the letters you want to find. DXCC is illustrated here, but this feature works for any value. Imagine being able to search for an Island of the Air number!

LOGic 5's prefix table contains over 4000 callsign prefixes and associated information. Entering call or state will display the direction (short and long path for both the to and return paths), distance (km and mi), time zone, CQ and ITU zones, DXCC country, location (such as a state or region of a country), third-party traffic status, ARRL outgoing QSL bureau status, plus other location-dependent info, such as Canadian provinces or Russian oblasts. Often, information is available down to areas within a country. You may add to or edit the prefix table yourself. LOGic 5 will automatically log any of the above listed items to save keystrokes and prevent typing errors. This automatic logging may be done conditionally--for instance, you may automatically log zone only if the station being worked is in a country other than your own.

You will be automatically notified if you have ever worked a station before. Information from previous QSOs will be logged automatically. LOGic 5 will copy any eight items of your choice, including contest exchanges. All requested information to be copied need not be in a particular previous QSO. LOGic 5 will scan up to 99 previous QSOs with a given station to gather the requested information. A configurable previous QSO window shows the key information from all previous QSOs.

There are yet other features to streamline data entry. Entering the frequency will automatically enter the proper band in the band field. The last digit of the RST fields will be automatically filled in with a 9 if operating CW or RTTY. RST may be defaulted to 59/9. If you are logging in real time, the current UTC date/time is entered (your computer's clock remains set to local time). If LOGic 5 is connected to a computer-interfaceable radio, frequency, band, and mode are filled in automatically. If you do not have a computerized rig or are entering QSOs in non-real-time mode (as when entering some QSOs from your paper logbook), date, mode, and band are automatically copied from the last QSO entered.

For logging third party traffic, net check-ins, or extended ragchew comments, you may enter unlimited notes for each QSO. Notes are accessed via an edit window or may be placed in an edit box on the main log form.

LOGic's biographical information feature keeps notes about a station in a central location.