In an earlier article, I introduced Ham2K PoLo, the portable logging program developed by Sebastian, KI2D, and his team. Since then I’ve spent considerably more time using it. After conferring with friends (thanks to Kevin, W8NI), I have lots more features to share with you this time. These features make PoLo much more than simply another way to log a POTA activation.
If you participate in Parks On The Air® (POTA), World Wide Flora & Fauna (WWFF), or one of the various state park contests, PoLo definitely deserves a closer look. By the way, the operating activities I just mentioned are only the tip of the iceberg. PoLo does so much more! One of the things that initially caught my attention was PoLo’s support for POTA.
Here are a few features I didn’t know that I needed.Some of them that I’ve discovered probably won’t matter to everyone. Others, however, can be surprisingly useful.
Record Weather & Solar Conditions
I’ve gotten into the habit of recording the weather when I arrive at a park. PoLo makes this easy. Enter WEATHER in the call sign field and PoLo will display the current weather conditions and record them in the log.
Similarly, entering SOLAR displays the current solar conditions and adds that information to the log.
These aren’t features that are going to make or break an activation, but I like having that information in my log. Months later, it can be interesting to look back and see what the conditions were like during an activation.
SEED Command
If you’re experimenting with PoLo, you probably don’t want to mess around with one of your existing logs. No problem. Simply enter SEED followed by the number of contacts you want in the “Their Call” field.
For example, entering SEED 20 will create 20 randomly generated contacts in your log. This is particularly useful if you’re learning the program, demonstrating it to someone else, or simply want to experiment with the various features without risking one of your real logs.
Change Mode or Frequency
If you’ve used N1MM, you’ll recognize this next one. To change the mode or frequency in PoLo, just type it into the “Their Call” field. I find this easier than using the dedicated field.
That’s what I like about PoLo: It gives you a couple of ways to change the more frequently used settings.
Spotting
Though PoLo will definitely work offline, you’ll want to connect to the internet for this next one. PoLo allows you to spot yourself from the keyboard by typing SPOT followed by whatever you’d like to show up in the comment field with your spot (e.g., “poor condx here” or “QRT”). It will send the spot to all the programs you have configured.
I use it to spot to both POTA and WWFF.
Call Stacking
Call stacking is something I’ve not used a lot, but from talking to friends and reading online, it sounds like a great feature for both the SSB and CW operator. It lets you enter multiple call signs from a pileup and work them one by one. You enter them all, placing a double slash between each call. Each time you press Enter, the last call sign entered is logged and removed from the call-stacking list.
CW operators tend to work stations one at a time, so they may not get quite as much benefit from this feature. But if you’re an SSB operator who occasionally finds yourself with a dozen stations calling at once, you’ll appreciate it.
Multi-Operator & Multi-Park Operations
PoLo also has some clever features for more complicated activations. For example, you can use a comma to identify multiple operators or parks, allowing PoLo to create the appropriate entries in the log.
You’ll love this feature the next time you manually enter an X-fer (an X-fer is an activation that takes in multiple POTA locations). It’s also handy for those multiple-operator “Pass-the-Mic” activations.
If you’re doing a multi-park rove, there’s a BREAK command that helps separate the individual activations. I’ve never used this, so I did some reading about the BREAK command, and frankly, I’m impressed. I plan to use PoLo for the 2026 Ohio State Parks On The Air (OSPOTA) Contest on September 12. I’ll be operating as a rover this year, and I’m looking forward to trying out the BREAK command.
VE9CF did a good explanation of how to use this command. You can watch the video on YouTube.
It appears to be especially useful when moving from one park to another while keeping all your contacts in a single log file, all while still maintaining the proper information for each activation.
Start/Stop
In PoLo, you can type START into the “Their Call” field and PoLo will start a timer for your activation. When done, type STOP to end the timer. I’m going to try this on my next multi-park rove.
And I can’t overlook the most humorous command in PoLo: the EXCUSE command. Just type EXCUSE into the call sign field to have a random excuse entered into your log.
When Kevin, W8NI, told me about it, I literally thought he was pulling my leg!
The Map
When I finish an activation, I take a screenshot using PoLo’s map function. The exact procedure for taking a screenshot will vary depending on the device you’re using. It’s a handy way to preserve a visual record of where the activation took place. When done, I save my files and the map to my Dropbox account.
Ham2K’s File Stash
Using File Stash, you can upload your files to the Ham2K servers. You can then download them to any device. There is a free version that allows you to upload one file at a time, or a paid version that costs as little as $24.99 per year (at the time of this article’s publish date).
PoLo Works Offline
Some of the parks I visit have little or no cellular service. That can be a problem for applications that depend on a constant internet connection. PoLo doesn’t care; it just works.
Of course, spotting doesn’t work without an internet connection, but if I have no cell service, I can ask a contact to spot me or set up my activation ahead of time on the POTA website.
Versatility
PoLo can run multiple park programs while also running a contest. While setting up PoLo for an upcoming contest, I tried inputting POTA and WWFF park locations on top of the OSPOTA logger. You know what? It handled it flawlessly!
Not only did it keep track of everything, but it created files appropriate for each of the park programs, as well as a master log for importing into my main logging program and a Cabrillo file for the folks at OSPOTA!
More Than Just a POTA Logger
It’s easy to think of PoLo as simply another POTA logging application. It certainly does that job well, but that’s selling it short.
Several states hold their own parks-on-the-air-style contests. Some of these contests actually predate POTA, which can make things a little confusing when first looking at the rules for these contests. Ohio, Florida, Georgia, and Texas are among the states with established state park contests. PoLo incorporates all of them. There are other state park contests as well.
For operators here in Ohio, the big one is OSPOTA which I mentioned above. It’s held each year on the Saturday following Labor Day. PoLo makes participating in OSPOTA remarkably easy. There are no complicated setup instructions required to make OSPOTA work. The data-entry form accepts OSPOTA’s park abbreviations, and when the contest is over, PoLo can generate the Cabrillo file required for submitting your log to the contest.
PoLo handles POTA, WWFF, state park contests, and other portable operating situations. It can operate without an internet connection, handle multiple parks and operators, record weather and solar information, generate the files required by different programs, and provide tools such as call stacking and activation timers.
And it continues to be developed.
At the time of this writing, PoLo is available for both Android and iOS devices. According to the Ham2K forum, a Windows- and Linux-compatible version called HaLo is also in development.
You can find more information about PoLo here, including the manual and links to the Ham2K forum. There’s also a “Buy Me a Coffee” link for those who would like to support the developers.
PoLo is free, but if you find it useful, consider making a donation. Supporting developers who create and maintain tools like this is a good way to help ensure that development continues.
In conclusion, I think PoLo is worth a look. I encourage you to download PoLo, take it out to the field, and decide for yourself if PoLo fits the way you operate.
73,
John, WG8X
The post Ham Radio Portable Operating Insights—Ham2K Portable Logger (PoLo) Part 2 appeared first on OnAllBands.
OnAllBands