WSJT-X on Linux Mint

Hi,
I am trying to breakfree of Windows 10,

I hope some here can put a spot light on my issue:
I am running:
Linux Mint 20.1 Cinnamon Version 4.8.6
WSJT-X Version 2.3.1
My Radio is Yaesu FT-847

My Sound Card is a USB C-Media
MY CAT Cable is FTDI USB Serial

My issue is that when I Test CAT I get this message
Hamlib error: IO error
serial_open: Unable to open /dev/ttyUSB0 - Permission denied
serial.c(237):serial_open return(-6)
rig.c(758):rig_open return(-6) while opening connection to rig

Logged in as root, using Minicom I have adjusted the settings to match the FT-847
Baud 9600, 8 bits, None, 2 Bits

I have checked that /dev/ttyUSB0 is present, it is READ ONLY
I have run dmesg:
5.295284] usb 3-1: FTDI USB Serial Device converter now attached to ttyUSB0

Everything works fine on Windows, so I know all the gear works.

Hoping someone can point to what I am doing wrong.
Cheers
Ron

 

@VK4JE
Add your linux user to "dialout" group.

 

re win vs linux.
I cant get my sdr to work on either after following a few different instructions.
so Win doesnt fix every thing in my expirience

, and I think I will have to keep tinking (kind of grumpy I wanted at least the base funtion of monitoring to be a little less hassle.

good luck O P

 

K6CLS Thank you CAT now works.
Cheers
VK4JE

 

WSJT-X on LinuxMint

I wonder if someone knows if it is possible to edit the WSJT-X_2.3.1_amd64.deb program some where to change the Transmit Audio Source from Front / Mike to Rear / Data.

Reason being I am using an FT-847 which has a rear Data In / Out Jack. I am using a DigiMode - 3 - Yaesu External Sound card that uses this rear jack.

The DigiMode External Sound card uses a C-Media CM108 USB Audio Chipset, as the receive side works fine I guess the correct drivers are present.

Currently I have no RF output from the rear jack, however I can obtain RF power from the Front Mic, therefore it appears to me that I need to select Rear Data in the WSJT Setup.

Hoping someone can help me out

Cheers
Ron

 

If I can help you I will, but need more info:
Cheers
Ron

 

With regard to running WSJT-X on Linux Mint 19.3.

WSJT-X version 2.2.2 installs and works just fine.

 

Sorry, you are incorrect.

 

Linux verses Windows is a Ford/Chevy debate. It all depends on what you like and what you want to use your PC for. I switched to Linux Mint years ago and really like it. There are so many different flavors of Linux to choose from as opposed to only one flavor of Windows. Some are more "techy" than others. Of the four boxes I have, three run Linux and one runs Windows 10. Linux is stable, fairly simple and works very well - never had a crash. It is not without it's faults, however.

From my experience:
Pros - For older machines such as old XP, Win7 boxes and 32 bit CPU's, Linux is a lifesaver. Computers that normally would be trashed because the operating system is obsolete and memory is restricted, have new life. Slap a USB WIFI stick on it and away you go. Granted, support for 32 bit machines is fading but there are still Linux OS's that support it and issue updates. Not everyone can afford the newest hardware. Linus updates are fast, not an hour long, and they don't "change things" in mysterious ways. Virus protection is not needed. On 64 bit machines it runs pretty fast and looks very good. Many popular software applications support a Linux build, not all but many do. For digital modes, FLdigi, WSJT-X, JS8Call all have Linux versions as well as SKCC Logger. HRD - no, not native. Linux also installs a very good Office package that is comparable to Microsoft Office - for FREE !

Cons: (just me)
Serial and USB ports are inop until one adds their user name to the dialout group. Why? That should be part of the OS install - needlessly annoying.
Dependencies - the "DLL'S of Linux. It doesn't happen often where dependencies are needed for an application but when it does, it can be a ball of confusion.
Some applications need to be compiled from the source code - UGH.
Did I mention dependencies?

Over all, I prefer Linux. I like how it operates and how it looks. I especially like the freedom from corporate oversight and dictates.

Different strokes for different folks.

 

Ford vs Chevy? I don't think so. More like Ford vs https://www.motortrend.com/features/16-car-brands-youve-never-heard-of/

Mint is good Linux distribution for folks wanting to try it. They make installing 3rd party drivers for NVIDIA easy. Looks a lot like windows too. Well, it did there for a while, I haven't loaded it up in a while. Just about any of the branches off Debian are the best/easiest to use with ham radio because most Linux programs for ham radio are developed under one those branches (Mint is a branch off Ubuntu, which is a branch off Debian.) The farther down the branch tree you go, the better the repositories seem to be for ham radio.

I started playing around with Linux on or around Red Hat version 5 back in the late 1990's. It evolved into Fedora in the early 2000's. Since I've kept up with its evolution, I've stayed with it. The main difference between Fedora and the Debian distributions is the program used to install software. Fedora started off with the Redhat Package Manager (RPM), which was kind of clunky because it was easy to get into dependency hell. They fixed that with the Yellow Dog Updated (YUM) and recently improved that with the Dandified Yellow Dog Updater (DNF). Any Linux software package I come across that I want to load, loads with DNF and automatically finds the dependencies and loads those too. I haven't kept up with the Debian (and its branches) package manager evolution (DPKG, APT/APTITUDE) but I'm sure the latest deals with dependencies automatically if you type in the correct options. I'll be with Fedora as long as I'm around or as long as they're around. I taught Linux at a local college for about 8 years, up until right before this virus, so I'm pretty comfortable with it. I used Fedora to teach because many production systems use Fedora these days. I'm 100% Fedora now.

I know it has been a while and there was never anything further from the OP, but if you're (he's) still around, I'd try:

$ sudo apt-get -f install pkg wsjtx

According to the apt-get man page ( https://linux.die.net/man/8/apt-get ), this will try to fix broken dependencies, along with trying to *install* all dependencies automatically.

I don't see any options available to automatically install dependencies when trying to install a package using dpkg. ( https://linux.die.net/man/1/dpkg )

Or try installing "aptitude", which is a (somewhat...) graphical package manager, and try installing WSJT-X from that.

When Windows 8 came out, I swore windows off for eternity. I still had five Windows 7 install disks. But they're functionally no good any more because it's blocked by the latest intel processors (Windows and Intel colluded...) and they turned the update servers off at the beginning of this year. Windows, by definition, is malware today. If you don't mind providing all your information to Microsoft, then by all means, keep using Windows. I'd advise against it though.

Linux comes with pretty strong defenses against malware these days. All Linux systems come with file level permission security--something Windows has been trying to implement for a while now--but Fedora not only has a firewall, but most importantly, comes with SELinux. SELinux compartmentalizes your file system. There are malware threats against Linux, but not as many as the threats against Windows systems.

Adding your user name to the same group as your serial/USB port is an inconvenience by some, but it's an added security step *not* automated by the install process on purpose. I'm not sure, but it might be prohibited from happening automatically.

Dependencies -- there are automated ways of dealing with what I call "dependency hell" these days. (see above)

When it comes to compiling from source code, it helps to be on the same distribution as the developer. There are so many things to consider when trying to write source code that'll work on several distributions, many developers don't even try.

The internet is a war zone these days. Linux still comes automatically with a good defensive posture.

 

If you are using a debian based distribution, give up on dpkg, use either apt-get, or aptitude and let it resolve the dependancies for you. Haven't needed to use dpkg in years.

73, Chuck
N0NC

 

That is part of the security to prevent local users from sending all the data to USB and walking out with $$$. Something windows should have done back in the floppy disk drive era.

 

That is not the case if the software developer has kept up with technology available to them. Appimage is a game changer for Linux.

 

Linux has always had a more robust security model than Windows, including access to devices. It's a multi-user server-class OS. So you need to carefully manage which users get permission to a device and which don't, lest they step on one another, monopolize it, etc. As for dependencies, that's really only a problem if you compile your own software from source. In Debian and several other distros, Synaptic is a point-and-click GUI installation tool and will handle all dependencies for installatons from repos. For compiling on Debian, you can get a lot of mileage out of this command:
apt-get build-dep

Whereas Windows is basically a paywall or a feature-rich form of ransomware. I recall one of my first IT jobs as a Windows server admin and working with IIS 20+ years ago. You had to buy licenses for the number of concurrent web sessions. IIRC, the "free" version allowed only 5 concurrent web sessions. In other words, you needed to pay money to unlock your hardware's existing potential.

73, KD0KZE / Paul

 

that depends on the linux distro... in many, they are added automatically. I've got a little script I wrote that makes it all seamless.
I won't get into the Win vs Linux debate: I've been there too many times, now. BUT I will say that if you are of the more intelligent sort, you will appreciate Linux. If not.... than maybe a person should stick with Windows.