SSTV Question

[ChrisLobdell]

Is Scottie 1 the same as Scottie S1? I have the Black Cat SSTV app for my iPhone and I don't see Scottie 1 listed, just Scottie S1.
Also, is there a default mode that most pirates use? Every time I try to decode all I get is a mess of colored lines, lol.

[ChrisSmolinski]

Yes, Scottie S1 is also called Scottie 1.  I'd say that most pirates use Scottie 1, Scottie DX is also popular, it takes a lot longer to send an image, but the quality is better, especially under poor conditions. Some have used the 24 and 36 second Robot modes. The picture quality is not as good, but they take less time to send. 24 and 36 seconds, ironically :-)

With the Black Cat Systems SSTV app, once you have received the image, you can change the mode (you can even do it while the image is being received) in case the app picked the wrong mode (say due to poor signal). You just need to be careful that it doesn't start receiving another image or you'll lose the data for the one you already received.  If you change the mode, you likely will need to re-adjust the horizontal position of the image, slide it left and right to do that. You may need to slide it one or two images worth to get the RGB colors to line up (say if you get a color bar on one side). There's some trial and error, but once you get the hang of it, it's pretty easy.