Article: 51100 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc Message-ID: From: news Subject: WTD: Recommendation for home weather station Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 09:28:31 GMT I am contemplating treating myself to a home weather station this Christmas, measuring all the usual weather variables. Must have indoor instrumentation, linked (preferably) by cable, and must have serial output for PC processing. Recommendations anyone? -- Ian Article: 51101 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc From: "kilowatt" References: Subject: Re: Recommendation for home weather station Message-ID: Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 11:23:52 GMT "news" wrote in message news:sROEG3F0VugDFwyX@care4free.net... > I am contemplating treating myself to a home weather station this > Christmas, measuring all the usual weather variables. Must have indoor > instrumentation, linked (preferably) by cable, and must have serial > output for PC processing. > > Recommendations anyone? > > -- > Ian Have you tried a pine cone Ian ? I have had mine fitted with a serial port & now its up to date it works realy well Article: 51102 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc From: "Paul" Subject: Re: WTD: Recommendation for home weather station Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 13:54:56 +0100 Message-ID: References: <1046o1d31i8oaq2ekkve7564uc77vceptt@4ax.com> Walt Davidson wrote: > Actually, I just checked and they're reduced to £7.99 now! > http://tinyurl.com/bkplo > > 73 de G3NYY I'm missing something: > and must have serial output for PC processing Paul Article: 51103 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc From: " Jill." References: Subject: Re: Recommendation for home weather station Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 13:30:09 -0000 Message-ID: <43831b92$0$63059$ed2e19e4@ptn-nntp-reader04.plus.net> news wrote: > I am contemplating treating myself to a home weather station this > Christmas, measuring all the usual weather variables. Must have indoor > instrumentation, linked (preferably) by cable, and must have serial > output for PC processing. > > Recommendations anyone? What is your budget? I recommend http://www.weatherstations.co.uk/ for their helpfulness and knowledge -- regards Jill Bowis Pure bred utility chickens and ducks Housing; Equipment, Books, Videos, Gifts Herbaceous; Herb and Alpine nursery Working Holidays in Scotland http://www.kintaline.co.uk Article: 51104 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc Message-ID: From: news Subject: Re: WTD: Recommendation for home weather station References: Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 13:38:35 GMT In message <1046o1d31i8oaq2ekkve7564uc77vceptt@4ax.com>, Walt Davidson writes >On Tue, 22 Nov 2005 09:28:31 GMT, news wrote: > >>Recommendations anyone? > >Actually, I just checked and they're reduced to £7.99 now! > >http://tinyurl.com/bkplo > >73 de G3NYY > Hmmm. £7.99 per unit, with no obvious sign of any method of connecting to a PC. Not really what I am looking for. -- Ian Article: 51105 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc Message-ID: From: news Subject: Re: Recommendation for home weather station References: Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 13:38:35 GMT In message <43831b92$0$63059$ed2e19e4@ptn-nntp-reader04.plus.net>, Jill. writes > >What is your budget? I don't really know what these things cost yet. >I recommend http://www.weatherstations.co.uk/ for their helpfulness and >knowledge > That's more like it. Thanks Jill. -- Ian Article: 51106 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc From: "Dave.C" References: Subject: Re: Recommendation for home weather station Message-ID: Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 14:01:13 GMT This site covers weather stations from very basic through to sophisticated plus books on weather, atomic clocks and all sorts:- http://www.meteorologica.co.uk/ Hope you find it as useful as me although I am still undecided as to whether (sic) to expand my wireless Oregon, homemade rain gauge and aneroid wall barometer! Dave "news" wrote in message news:sROEG3F0VugDFwyX@care4free.net... > I am contemplating treating myself to a home weather station this > Christmas, measuring all the usual weather variables. Must have indoor > instrumentation, linked (preferably) by cable, and must have serial > output for PC processing. > > Recommendations anyone? > > -- > Ian Article: 51107 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc From: " Jill." References: <43831b92$0$63059$ed2e19e4@ptn-nntp-reader04.plus.net> Subject: Re: Recommendation for home weather station Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 15:04:25 -0000 Message-ID: <438331ae$0$9497$ed2619ec@ptn-nntp-reader02.plus.net> "news" wrote in message news:z91D9tKb8xgDFwiV@care4free.net... > In message <43831b92$0$63059$ed2e19e4@ptn-nntp-reader04.plus.net>, Jill. > writes > > > >What is your budget? > > I don't really know what these things cost yet. urm -- quite a lot of pennies - but then they are quite some bits of kit We have been saving for a while now and are in the midst of dotting the eyes and crossing the t's on the details. > > > >I recommend http://www.weatherstations.co.uk/ for their helpfulness and > >knowledge > > > > That's more like it. Thanks Jill. They have been really great. I hope to be giving them our hard earned very shortly -- regards Jill Bowis Pure bred utility chickens and ducks Housing; Equipment, Books, Videos, Gifts Herbaceous; Herb and Alpine nursery Working Holidays in Scotland http://www.kintaline.co.uk > > -- > Ian Article: 51108 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc From: "Alan Gardiner" References: <43831b92$0$63059$ed2e19e4@ptn-nntp-reader04.plus.net> <438331ae$0$9497$ed2619ec@ptn-nntp-reader02.plus.net> Subject: Re: Recommendation for home weather station Message-ID: Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 15:44:25 GMT ">> >I recommend http://www.weatherstations.co.uk/ for their helpfulness and >> >knowledge >> > >> >> That's more like it. Thanks Jill. > > They have been really great. I hope to be giving them our hard earned very > shortly > > -- > > regards > Jill Bowis I bought a station about four years ago from that source and I found them to be very helpful when I had to have a defective humidity sensor replaced under warranty. It is not a problem that should occur now as I think there was a defective batch of sensors around at that time. I would go for a wireless model personally as they are more flexible in operation and the reception range has been improved in the latest model. I would also go for a USB logger connection unless your PC is old and does not have a USB interface. Alan Article: 51109 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc From: "Michael Di Bernardo" References: Subject: Re: Recommendation for home weather station Message-ID: Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 16:53:47 GMT If you're looking to spend around £150, you can get the WS2300, which has a serial port pc connection. It measures all the normal weather variables, and has indoor sensors for temp and humidity. It comes with software so current conditions can be sent to your site. Theres an example of it at my site www.dudleyweather.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk This is the model http://www.skyview.co.uk/skybrowse?q=p;p=406&session=DA850F726F9B02AFE1ED80C29238FD75 Hope that helps Mike Article: 51110 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc From: ais@aber.ac.uk (Adrian D. Shaw) Subject: Re: Recommendation for home weather station Date: 22 Nov 2005 18:31:29 -0000 Message-ID: References: <438331ae$0$9497$ed2619ec@ptn-nntp-reader02.plus.net> Felly sgrifennodd Alan Gardiner : >I would also go for a USB logger connection unless your PC is old and does not >have a USB interface. Why USB? Mine has a serial interface, and since I don't use the serial port for anything else, it's not a problem. I also imagine that it's easier for amateurs to reverse-engineer serial protocols than it is for USB protocols. Not a direct advantage if you're not a developer, but it may help if you want to use free/open source software to access your station (as I do) OK I never tried reverse-engineering a USB protocol so I don't know. Adrian -- Adrian Shaw ais@ Adran Cyfrifiadureg, Prifysgol Cymru, aber. Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, Cymru ac. http://users.aber.ac.uk/ais uk Article: 51111 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc From: ais@aber.ac.uk (Adrian D. Shaw) Subject: Re: Recommendation for home weather station Date: 22 Nov 2005 18:34:25 -0000 Message-ID: References: Felly sgrifennodd Michael Di Bernardo : >This is the model >http://www.skyview.co.uk/skybrowse?q=p;p=406&session=DA850F726F9B02AFE1ED80C29238FD75 Beware: if it's faulty, Skyview will not refund the postage to return it. My WS-3600 was faulty; it cost be nearly GBP10 to send it back and they refused to refund postage, stating it was in their terms and conditions. I have since found out that they should have done, under whatever law it is that covers mail ordering. Unfortunately I've lost the receipt of postage by now. Adrian -- Adrian Shaw ais@ Adran Cyfrifiadureg, Prifysgol Cymru, aber. Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, Cymru ac. http://users.aber.ac.uk/ais uk Article: 51112 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc From: Hils Subject: Re: Recommendation for home weather station Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 20:45:29 +0000 Message-ID: References: >>I recommend http://www.weatherstations.co.uk/ for their helpfulness and >>knowledge >> >That's more like it. Thanks Jill. > I recommend whatever (hardware and software) this guy uses: http://www.martynhicks.co.uk/weather/data.php -- Hil Article: 51113 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc From: John Dann Subject: Re: Recommendation for home weather station Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 20:50:44 +0000 Message-ID: References: <43831b92$0$63059$ed2e19e4@ptn-nntp-reader04.plus.net> <438331ae$0$9497$ed2619ec@ptn-nntp-reader02.plus.net> On Tue, 22 Nov 2005 15:44:25 GMT, "Alan Gardiner" wrote: >I would also go for a USB logger connection unless your PC is old and does not >have a USB interface. > It's difficult to be definitive about serial vs USB. Obviously some modern PCs don't have a traditional serial port and so can't acccept a serial logger, at least not without using an external serial-to-USB converter. However, USB has at least 3 minor drawbacks: 1. While the great majority of users of USB loggers have no problems, overall USB just doesn't seem as robust as RS232 and a small % of users have difficulties maintaining a reliable connection. Maybe it's because it's a shared protocol, where other devices or their drivers can interfere. Maybe it's a function of the variety of USB chipsets and their implementation. But it is occasionally an issue with USB which virtually never happens with RS232. 2. RS232 cables can be easily extended to 15m (and beyond). For reliable operation, USB is limited to ca 5m without special repeaters. 3. Traditional RS232 is a well-established protocol and there are readily available fixes to cure eg ground loop problems, tunnel the RS232 data across ethernet LANs and so on. While such solutions are starting to appear for USB, they can still often be specialist and more costly in practice. In a typical data logging application where data rates are determined by the internal design of the logger not the interface type, USB will often no faster than RS232 and so typically USB speed isn't an advantage. John Dann www.weatherstations.coi.uk Article: 51114 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc From: "Alan Gardiner" References: <43831b92$0$63059$ed2e19e4@ptn-nntp-reader04.plus.net> <438331ae$0$9497$ed2619ec@ptn-nntp-reader02.plus.net> Subject: Re: Recommendation for home weather station Message-ID: Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 21:11:51 GMT "John Dann" wrote in message news:qc07o192vu4c2k6t2tit962edtabq9pdv8@4ax.com... > On Tue, 22 Nov 2005 15:44:25 GMT, "Alan Gardiner" > wrote: > >>I would also go for a USB logger connection unless your PC is old and does >>not >>have a USB interface. >> > > It's difficult to be definitive about serial vs USB. Obviously some > modern PCs don't have a traditional serial port and so can't acccept a > serial logger, at least not without using an external serial-to-USB > converter. > > However, USB has at least 3 minor drawbacks: > > 1. While the great majority of users of USB loggers have no problems, > overall USB just doesn't seem as robust as RS232 and a small % of > users have difficulties maintaining a reliable connection. Maybe it's > because it's a shared protocol, where other devices or their drivers > can interfere. Maybe it's a function of the variety of USB chipsets > and their implementation. But it is occasionally an issue with USB > which virtually never happens with RS232. > > 2. RS232 cables can be easily extended to 15m (and beyond). For > reliable operation, USB is limited to ca 5m without special repeaters. > > 3. Traditional RS232 is a well-established protocol and there are > readily available fixes to cure eg ground loop problems, tunnel the > RS232 data across ethernet LANs and so on. While such solutions are > starting to appear for USB, they can still often be specialist and > more costly in practice. > > In a typical data logging application where data rates are determined > by the internal design of the logger not the interface type, USB will > often no faster than RS232 and so typically USB speed isn't an > advantage. > > John Dann > www.weatherstations.coi.uk The reason I suggested USB is than the traditional serial port is becoming obsolete, my recently acquired laptop is all USB and manufacturers can save money by not including them on desktop machines. Speed is certainly irrelevant as the data downloads are quite quick using a serial port which is the method I use. Clearly your experience has shown that USB does have drawbacks in reliability terms and that is definitely an important fact. I would assume that the USB connection is slightly easier to set up as the detection is automatic but to be fair the serial connection is easy to setup as well. Alan From LeadWinger Fri Nov 25 00:21:50 EST 2005 Article: 51115 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc From: Dick Newsgroups: rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc Subject: Re: WTD: Recommendation for home weather station Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 22:23:29 -0700 Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com Message-ID: References: X-Newsreader: Forte Agent 1.93/32.576 English (American) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Complaints-To: abuse@supernews.com Lines: 35 Path: news1.isis.unc.edu!canoe.uoregon.edu!newshub.sdsu.edu!tiscali!newsfeed1.ip.tiscali.net!border2.nntp.ams.giganews.com!nntp.giganews.com!feeder.xsnews.nl!138.199.65.86.MISMATCH!sn-ams!sn-ams-06!sn-ams-03!sn-ams-p01!sn-post-01!supernews.com!corp.supernews.com!not-for-mail Xref: news1.isis.unc.edu rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc:51115 On Tue, 22 Nov 2005 09:28:31 GMT, news wrote: >I am contemplating treating myself to a home weather station this >Christmas, measuring all the usual weather variables. Must have indoor >instrumentation, linked (preferably) by cable, and must have serial >output for PC processing. > >Recommendations anyone? I think you will find that Oregon Scientific and Davis are the two most common weather stations for typical home use. Both are very good. Costco is selling the WMR-968, the one I use, for only $175. I paid over $300 for mine, but I did get the Virtual Weather Station software with it. I have mine connected to my PC for detailed weather information. All my remote stations are wireless. Besides the usual, I monitor garage temperature, freezer temperature, and ham shack temperature. My software connects to the Internet, and my weather console is available anywhere in the world, as well as APRS data with weather. I also belong to the weather underground. You can see my data there at http://www.wunderground.com/weatherstation/WXDailyHistory.asp?ID=KAZDEWEY1 If you want to see it on Findu.com go here. http://www.findu.com/cgi-bin/wxpage.cgi?W6CCD If you want to see a subset of my weather console on my computer, go here. http://myweb.cableone.net/rhughes/weather/wx.htm Be sure and look at the details on this page. In short, you can do just about anything you want with the data. Just depends upon how far you want to go. The Oregon Scientific station has worked flawlessly for over two years, even in the hot, Arizona sun. Dick Article: 51116 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc From: John Dann Subject: Re: Recommendation for home weather station Date: Wed, 23 Nov 2005 07:56:11 +0000 Message-ID: References: <43831b92$0$63059$ed2e19e4@ptn-nntp-reader04.plus.net> <438331ae$0$9497$ed2619ec@ptn-nntp-reader02.plus.net> On Tue, 22 Nov 2005 21:11:51 GMT, "Alan Gardiner" wrote: >The reason I suggested USB is than the traditional serial port is becoming >obsolete, my recently acquired laptop is all USB and manufacturers can save >money by not including them on desktop machines. > Certainly and that's obviously a good reason for going the USB route and, if not for a current PC, then it will offer some futureproofing for a new PC whenever it might be bought (though external serial-to-USB adapters will be around for a long time I suspect). But if you do have a choice of serial or USB ports then serial is still IMO marginally the better choice for reliability and flexibility. John Dann www.weatherstations.co.uk Article: 51117 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc From: "xpyttl" References: <43831b92$0$63059$ed2e19e4@ptn-nntp-reader04.plus.net> <438331ae$0$9497$ed2619ec@ptn-nntp-reader02.plus.net> Subject: Re: Recommendation for home weather station Message-ID: Date: Wed, 23 Nov 2005 09:50:58 -0500 "John Dann" wrote in message news:vn78o1lvmc1qidcsv7i1envoetv7g4d7dg@4ax.com... > (though external > serial-to-USB adapters will be around for a long time I suspect). Keep in mind that not all applications work with USB to Serial converters. I see no reason why I would expect a weather station to fall into this category, but many hobbyist/amateur radio applications use the serial port in strange ways, and USB to serial converters require that you use the serial port as it was intended. But serial ports are fast becoming extinct, especially on laptops. For the best combination of flexibility and ability to continue to use your stuff, look for serial ports on PCs you buy, but don't go buying peripherals that require serial ports. Or if you do, accept the fact that they are likely to be a temporary thing. Nowadays, viewing peripherals as disposable is probably a reasonable thing to do anyway. Generally these devices also require drivers, and by the time you decide to upgrade your PC or operating system or whatever, the manufacturer will likely have a new model and have lost interest in the one you just bought. So even if you have the interface, you probably won't be able to use the thing anyway. And keeping the old OS isn't a choice, either. Just try to buy a machine that runs Win98OE, let alone Win95. Can't be done. Once Vista hits, machines probably won't support SE or W2K either. So whether its a weather station or a printer or a scanner, remember that it is probably only for your current computer. You next computer, whenever that happens, might not be able to support that shiny new whatever. Hmmm ... maybe it's time to upgrade to the biggest, baddest XP machine before Vista comes along and you can't buy a machine to run XP. Oh, and Linux isn't much of a help, either. Not only is device support STILL weak, but it has the same hardware issues, although not nearly as severe. And it has issues the other way. I can't put Linux on my new laptop yet, even though the model is a year old. Still waiting for the distro that supports the DVD drive. .. Article: 51118 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc From: "ROBERT BROOKS" References: Subject: Re: Recommendation for home weather station Message-ID: Date: Wed, 23 Nov 2005 14:58:31 GMT No hesitation in recommending Prodata. Bad experience with Skyview several years ago, they have not changed by the sound of it! Rob "Adrian D. Shaw" wrote in message news:dlvobh$43nq$1@central.aber.ac.uk... > Felly sgrifennodd > Michael Di Bernardo : >>This is the model >>http://www.skyview.co.uk/skybrowse?q=p;p=406&session=DA850F726F9B02AFE1ED80C29238FD75 > > Beware: if it's faulty, Skyview will not refund the postage to return it. > My WS-3600 was faulty; it cost be nearly GBP10 to send it back and they > refused to refund postage, stating it was in their terms and conditions. I > have since found out that they should have done, under whatever law it > is that covers mail ordering. Unfortunately I've lost the receipt of > postage > by now. > > Adrian > -- > Adrian Shaw ais@ > Adran Cyfrifiadureg, Prifysgol Cymru, aber. > Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, Cymru ac. > http://users.aber.ac.uk/ais uk Article: 51119 of rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc From: John Dann Subject: Re: Recommendation for home weather station Date: Thu, 24 Nov 2005 09:10:31 +0000 Message-ID: References: <43831b92$0$63059$ed2e19e4@ptn-nntp-reader04.plus.net> <438331ae$0$9497$ed2619ec@ptn-nntp-reader02.plus.net> On Wed, 23 Nov 2005 09:50:58 -0500, "xpyttl" wrote: >> (though external >> serial-to-USB adapters will be around for a long time I suspect). > >Keep in mind that not all applications work with USB to Serial converters. >I see no reason why I would expect a weather station to fall into this >category, but many hobbyist/amateur radio applications use the serial port >in strange ways, and USB to serial converters require that you use the >serial port as it was intended. Yes - I was really commenting in the context of commercially available weather stations, most of which do seem to use serial ports in a standard way and hence can generally accept serial-to-USB external converters without a problem. >But serial ports are fast becoming extinct, especially on laptops. For the >best combination of flexibility and ability to continue to use your stuff, >look for serial ports on PCs you buy, but don't go buying peripherals that >require serial ports. Or if you do, accept the fact that they are likely to >be a temporary thing. Fair comment. The problem at present is that - again in the context of AWS systems - USB does not offer quite the same robustness and flexibility as good old RS232. So new users with eg a USB-only laptop end up being unable to implement the best solution. There is another option, for new USB-only desktops at least, which is to buy an inexpensive expansion card providing one or two standard RS232 ports. Again I suspect that these will be around for some years to come, though you might have to seek out a more specialist PC dealer. (This applies to laptops also but it's physically a more messy solution.) [Other good points snipped.] John Dann www.weatherstations.co.uk