HFU HF Underground

Technical Topics => SDR - Software Defined Radio => Topic started by: Thermionic on March 12, 2020, 2207 UTC

Title: Kiwi SDRs
Post by: Thermionic on March 12, 2020, 2207 UTC
Why is it these SDRs have time limits. Some cease to be active after so long.

Quote
Sorry, this KiwiSDR has an inactivity timeout after 30 minutes.
Reload the page to continue.

While there are others who cut out altogether and then this comes on the screen.

Quote
Sorry, this KiwiSDR can only be used for 30 minutes every 24 hours by each IP address.
Please check kiwisdr.com/public for more KiwiSDR receivers available world-wide.

If you have an exemption password from the KiwiSDR owner/admin
please enter it here:
Password:

I was listening to Shanwick radio on the emeraldSDR QRG 5598, On the waterfall I also saw Shanwick wkg flights on 5649. I duplicated the tab on browser, so I would be able to listen to 5598 and 5649 simultaneously.  When I clicked on the tab I saw this.

Quote
Multiple connections from the same ip address not allowed.
Client ip =

At least you don't get that sort of thing on the likes of Twente,  NA5B and K3FEF et al.

 

Title: Re: Kiwi SDRs
Post by: Josh on March 12, 2020, 2331 UTC
This and a few other thoughts have made me want to get a kiwi. Mostly due the fact you can tune anywhere in the hf spectrum and not be limited to only vrx tuning within a few MHz.
Dunno if I'd share it however.
Title: Re: Kiwi SDRs
Post by: ve6jy on March 13, 2020, 0708 UTC
The fact that you have to ask why there are time limits is also the reason there are time limits.
Title: Re: Kiwi SDRs
Post by: Thermionic on March 13, 2020, 1048 UTC
The fact that you have to ask why there are time limits is also the reason there are time limits.

Thank heaven for SDRs like Twente, NA5B and K3FEF et al, at least I can switch the computer off at night, go to bed and when I switch it on in the morning, I find I haven't timed out due to inactivity.
Title: Re: Kiwi SDRs
Post by: ChrisSmolinski on March 13, 2020, 1118 UTC
The Twente SDR is able to handle a large number of users at one time, I forget what the limit is, it could be 100 or more. KiwiSDRs are generally limited to 4 users due to the hardware. So if you camp out on one for hours at a time, you're preventing others from using it.

The fact that you have to ask why there are time limits is also the reason there are time limits.

Thank heaven for SDRs like Twente, NA5B and K3FEF et al, at least I can switch the computer off at night, go to bed and when I switch it on in the morning, I find I haven't timed out due to inactivity.

Please don't tell me you stay connected to an SDR overnight, while not actively using it.
Title: Re: Kiwi SDRs
Post by: KaySeeks on March 13, 2020, 2227 UTC
Why is it these SDRs have time limits.

Some are even shorter than 30 minutes. The one near Athens, Greece has a 15-minute timeout and also a limit on usage over 24 hours. ASK ME HOW I KNOW THIS.  :D

Some cease to be active after so long.

and some will freeze up with no warning. You can then click over to the users tab and see if there were 4 users when it froze. They don't tend to become unfrozen so you end up refreshing the page. And if there are a lot of people looking for a "seat" on the receiver, you might then lose your place when you refresh it because someone else will slip in and take your spot.

C'est la vie.
Title: Re: Kiwi SDRs
Post by: Ray Lalleu on March 14, 2020, 0957 UTC
The Twente SDR is able to handle a large number of users at one time, I forget what the limit is, it could be 100 or more.

The Twente SDR displays how many users are currently connected, and I remember it's always in the 400 range.

What bothers me with so many Kiwi SDRs is the RFI noise level they suffer on SW. Why purchase a not so cheap piece of hardware, spend time installing it on a PC, spend part of limited upload flow, and not chasing the RFI around, not installing a good receiving antenna ?
Title: Re: Kiwi SDRs
Post by: Thermionic on March 14, 2020, 1010 UTC
The Twente SDR is able to handle a large number of users at one time, I forget what the limit is, it could be 100 or more. KiwiSDRs are generally limited to 4 users due to the hardware. So if you camp out on one for hours at a time, you're preventing others from using it.

The fact that you have to ask why there are time limits is also the reason there are time limits.

Thank heaven for SDRs like Twente, NA5B and K3FEF et al, at least I can switch the computer off at night, go to bed and when I switch it on in the morning, I find I haven't timed out due to inactivity.

Please don't tell me you stay connected to an SDR overnight, while not actively using it.

The reason why I stay connected is because I have my browser set to restore previous session.
Title: Re: Kiwi SDRs
Post by: syfr on April 29, 2020, 1627 UTC
Why do they have time limits?

Because some people go to bed and leave their PC connected to an active SDR.


(Kiwis are configurable this way as the admin chooses)

J
Title: Re: Kiwi SDRs
Post by: shadypyro on April 29, 2020, 1823 UTC
Also there's one of the sdr from Japan (can't remember which) it has a one minute time limit
Title: Re: Kiwi SDRs
Post by: Token on April 30, 2020, 1834 UTC
These SDRs have time limits because only a limited number of people (depending on the configuration 4 or 8 total connections, mine is configured for 4 total connections, and one of those is reserved for me, leaving only 3 for other users) can be connected to them at one time and because some people squat on the receiver for extended periods, sometimes obviously not listening to anything at all.

When I first put my Kiwi online I did not have a time limit on it or a reserved slot for me.  I often could not connect to my own receiver.  I had people set on the receiver listening to AM stations and baseball games for hours that they could have streamed online just as easily.  I had listeners set for hours on HF-GCS frequencies, sometimes the same listener on multiple different HF-GCS freqs at one time, one listener used to regularly tie up all the slots in the receiver with HF-GCS frequencies so no one else could use it, and stay connected 12 or more hours per day.  I had people, sometimes obviously the jammers themselves, set and listen to themselves on various ham bands, one person would tune to 3840 kHz and retransmit his audio for half an hour at a time.  In the middle of the night I would find people that had been connected for hours on a frequency the propagation had dropped out around sundown.  I connected one time and found the same person had three seasons going on my Kiwi, all on the same frequency and the same mode, and they had been connected for 6 hours.

So I put a time limit on my Kiwi.  I did not put a 24 hour limit on it, just a reconnect requirement.  This reduced the kinds of things I mention above to near zero.  This allowed more people to connect to my receiver in a given day.  And yeah, it is annoying at times to have to reconnect, but if some people were not inconsiderate that would not be a problem.  If one person ties the receiver up all day no one else can use it, and that is not fair to other people.  And I give the timer override password to people who I know are long term listeners or who ask for it.

Mine is in much better shape today, not only do the time limits keep people form camping on it but relatively few people can see my Kiwi as it is not listed on several public Kiwi lists.  That was not my doing, it was just a fact after it was put behind a proxie.

WebSDRs like Twente can get away with no time limits because some of them (not all) can have hundreds of people connected at one time.  Twente itself can support over 700 connections at one time, the highest number I have seen is ~730'ish.

T!
Title: Re: Kiwi SDRs
Post by: Strange Beacons on May 04, 2020, 2253 UTC
Why is it these SDRs have time limits. Some cease to be active after so long.

While I no longer have any time limits set on my Kiwi, I once had to put them in place due to the large number of people who were camping out on local AM stations listening to football games. Now, I'm not saying that is a bad thing. But I want to run my radio primarily as a service to shortwave listeners and they don't tend to sit on a frequency for three or four hours at a time. Given the fact that most Kiwis only allow a maximum of four users at a time, I wanted to make sure that slots were available for them.