Version 11.0

• SCHED version 11.0 release. Jan. 16, 2013. RCW

• Add firmware_type to the VEX file as comment in the $TRACKS section. It is set to the value of the parameter DBE. Aldo add the setup file parameter FIRMFILE for use by VLBA testers. It is written as another comment in the $TRACKS section of the VEX file. Normally users should ignore FIRMFILE. Feb. 13, 2013.

• The accounting for Gbytes recorded did not stop accumulating for non recording scans. Fixed. Feb 13, 2013. RCW.

• A sched_temp version released for local testing on Feb. 10, 2013. RCW.

• Extend the flags for slewing to one second before START - PRESTART and to one half second after TONSRC. There were rounding issues of some sort and, with the switch to PRESTART=0 for the VLBA and VLA wideband systems, many flags had zero length. Note that start times, good-data times, and flag times are all only given to the integer second, while the START and TONSRC times can be fractional seconds -- one may be converted from LST and the other is based on a slew calculation. Feb. 10, 2013. RCW.

• User scan comments are now shown in the summary file. Feb. 9, 2013. RCW.

• Created example rdbepfb.key that is a simple 6cm example using the RDBE with the PFB personality. The setup is one of the new standard setups. Feb. 9, 2013. RCW.

• Added parameter WRAP24 to assist in dynamic scheduling of 24 hour projects. WRAP24 duplicates the schedule, causing a 24 hour project to look like a 48 hour project. Then DOSCANS can be used to select the desired 24 hours. Feb. 9, 2013.

• Modified the disk use calculation for the VLBA and VLA wideband, MARK5C system to reflect the fact that they don't start recording until the data-good time in the VEX file rather than the specified media start time that has been used by previous systems. The calculation for the MARK5A and other systems still depends on the start time. Note that the media start time is the nominal scan start time minus PRESTART and is the uncommented start time in the VEX file. Feb. 9, 2013 RCW.

• Removed the special source list in a format for the old correlator data base from the .sum file. Also remove the list of correlation blocks required by setup changes, which was also an old VLBA correlator issue only. Feb. 4, 2013 RCW.

• Upped the version number to 11.0 given the number of changes and the time since the last full release (10.2). But it is still a development version. Feb. 3, 2013, RCW.

• While adding scan counts etc for the ``EXTRA'' scans, (see next item) many format changes were made in the .sum file. Anyone parsing this file automatically should check their code. As a human, rather than machine, readable file, the format is subject to changes. Feb. 3, 2013 RCW.

• Adding the ability of the user to specify optional ``EXTRA'' scans at the ends of projects to help fill gaps using the PREEMPT parameter. Feb. 3, 2013 RCW

• Change the note that is written by the Doppler routine when it is forced to set two channels to the same frequency because they are opposite sidebands from the same BBC. It looked too much like an error message rather than an informational note and worried a user. Feb. 1, 2013 RCW.

• The parameter PRESCAN no longer did as advertised in that it could end up being applied more than once because some scan time setting routines get called more than once. Fix the situation and modify the documentation to indicate the use of PRESCAN to shift a scan relative to the data ready time. Jan 30, 2013. RCW.

• Change the defaults for PRESTART and MINPAUSE so that they continue to be 5 and 10 sec respectively unless all of the stations are VLBA/RDBE or VEX/WIDER CONTROL/DAR. In those cases, make them zero as those systems always stop and only pay attention to the data good time in the Vex file. Jan 29, 2013 RCW.

• Prohibit VLA phasing and reference pointing in the same scan. Jan. 23, 2013. RCW.

• Release a version to sched_temp for testing by others. Jan. 23, 2013. RCW.

• Removing the routine that tried to adjust the freq.dat frequency ranges for the RDBE. With freq_RDBE.dat available, it is not useful, and is improperly changing some entries. Jan. 21, 2013. RCW.

• Changed behavior of setting the start time with dwell scheduling when the first scans of the project contain subsets of antennas. Now all antenna groups start at the start time of the first scan, where before they tended to start in sequence. The change was driven by the need for ``Dummy'' scans at the start of VLA schedules. A special case needed to be added in the code to not revert to scan 1 needed to be added for use by the scheme for adding DELZN sections. Jan. 23, 2012. RCW.

• Standard setups for the RDBE PFB personality added for 6cm and higher frequencies. Jan. 23, 2013. RCW. Later added 20 and 13 cm.

• Starting to implement support for the DBBC. Jan. 20, 2013.

• Release a version to sched_temp for testing by others. Jan. 19, 2013. RCW.

• Add a flag for latex2html to cause nodes to have names based on the section titles. These can then be referenced from outside the manual. Jan. 19, 2013

• Add reference pointing INTENTs for stations other than the VLA (they were added for the VLA previously). See the description of the PEAK command for more details. Jan. 18, 2013

• Creating example hsaddc.key which will be a primary example for VLBA and HSA observations with the RDBE with DDC personality. It demonstrates VLA phasing and reference pointing on all 3 instruments. In setting up the VLBA pointing at 3mm, it also uses resetting of bandwidths and doppler tracking. The comments in the file provide much advice on setting up such observations. Jan. 17, 2013.

• Add ptdxxx.set pointing setup files for use with the RDBE/DDC. While at it, get rid of the ptvxxx.set pointing setup files that I do not believe are needed. Jan. 17, 2013. RCW

• Add a couple of GBT and many EB entries to freq_RDBE.dat. Jan. 17, 2013

• Add headers to the source files and fix some solution names, especially in sources.vlba. Jan. 15, 2013.

• Set up for use of VLA band names for the VLA. Jan. 15, 2013.

• Control VLA reference pointing through the use of VLAPEAK and INTENTs. Jan. 2013 ongoing RCW.

• Control VLA phasing through the use of VLAMODE and INTENTs Jan. 2013 RCW

• Add parameter VLAPTIME and the resulting INTENT in the VEX file. This is the VLA phasing subscan length. Check that the scan length is at least 4 times that length and that the subscan length is over 10s. Jan. 4, 2013.

• Fix bug where the stop year was used in the VEX file tt $SCHED section for the start time of a scan. If the scan crossed the year boundary, this created havoc later. Jan 2, 2013 RCW.

• Add warning if it looks like scans that are meant to be correlated with each other are being scheduled separately. That was ok with log driven correlators, but not VEX driven correlators. Dec. 27, 2012. RCW

• Warn when harmonics of the front end synthesizers can beat with each other and cause internal RFI. Also make the choice of frequency for the unused synthesizers much more sophisticated to try to avoid such harmonics. Dec. 27, 2012 RCW

• Added FE etc output to the if_def lines of the VEX file for stations other than the VLBA. Require FE be specified for the VLA. Dec. 13, 2012. RCW.

• For the RDBE/DDC, change some comments and the manual about the allowed bandwidths and frequencies. Encourage the use of multiples of 250 kHz. Update egddc.key. Dec. 13, 2012. RCW.

• Add "DISK" as a valid option to CORTAPE. Dec. 7, 2012. RCW.

• Fix link to wrong file for egrdbe2.key in list of examples in this manual. Dec 7, 2012 RCW.

• Fix issue with selecting a legacy BBC frequency when the RDBE baseband frequency is 1008.00. Previously 1000.00 was chosen, but the output format to the crd file did not have enough digits. Changed to subtract a multiple of 5 MHz to prevent going above 999.99. Dec 6, 2012. RCW.

• Support for the dual RDBE option at the VLBA antennas added. Nov. 8, 2012 RCW.

• Made a BETA release on Nov. 5, 2012 RCW

• Add antenna catalog parameter TLEVSET which attempts to allow time for the set-and-remember operation the first time a setup is seen on the VLBA (RDBE) or VLA. Populate the catalog with those values. Nov. 05, 2012. RCW.

• Remove the VLA from the examples egglobal.key and hsa21cm.key, both of which use the legacy system which is not supported on the VLA. Switch manual_1.key to the RDBE/DDC + WIDAR systems. Replace VLA1 with GBT_VLBA in manual_2.key. Nov. 1, 2012. RCW.

• Added vladdc.key as an example of observing with the VLBA, GBT, and VLA using the DDC personality of the RDBE. Oct. 31, 2012. RCW

• For optmode SCANS (used for pointing) using the scheme for skipping some scans in less interesting elevation ranges, set so that the first scan for each source is taken. Oct. 31, 2012.

• Make example jvla.key be for a VLBA RDBE/PFB vs 4 channel WIDAR setup. Oct. 28, 2012. RCW.

• Add checking for violations of the setup file constraints imposed by the WIDAR correlator phased array system. Oct 27, 2012. RCW

• Add a warning if the scan gaps using the RDBE are inadequate for level setting. Oct 24, 2012. RCW.

• Fix and array overflow when listing the setups used for each source when there are lots of such setups. This was found trying to do 3mm wideband observations. Oct. 23, 2012. RCW.

• Calculate the best settings for the unset front end synthesizers to avoid birdies from beats of harmonics of the different synthesizers. Such birdies turned up strongly in the RFI tests with the new C band receiver. The optimum settings depend on the frequencies of the synthesizers in use so no one simple choice works. Oct. 22, 2012. RCW.

• Beta version to be released Sept. 20, 2012 to get the changes below into the system. RCW.

• For the crd files written for RDBE/Mark5C observations, offset the LO frequencies by 10 kHz for better pulse cal detection. Also change from format='none' to a reasonable recording type format so that the formatter will be configured, which is required for pulse cal detection. Sept 20, 2012. RCW.

• Beta version to be released around Sept. 12, 2012.

• Fix bug in the VEX code where the if_def comments needed by the new VLBA on-line code were not written if the first station using the IF was not VLBA station. Now separate if_def lines are written for VLBA and non-VLBA stations. Sept. 10, 2012 RCW.