BCTool questions / answers - merged

Location : Ramsey, Huntingdon Spotter Watch Member : no

Is there any walkthroughs to teach you how to use this software properly?

Subject: Re: BCTool questions / answers - merged 2009-03-05, 02:16

What do you want to do? Load frequencies into the scanner?

Location : Ramsey, Huntingdon Spotter Watch Member : no

Yeah exactly that jingnut

Subject: Re: BCTool questions / answers - merged 2009-03-05, 02:54

I take it you understand how the memories on the 3500 are arranged.

You have to setup up Systems. In those Systems you setup Groups. And in those Groups you put your frequencies.

So, for example, you may have a System called Airfields. In that System you have a Group called Brize Norton. And in that Group you have all of Brize Nortons frequencies. You can then have another Group in the Airfield System called Lyneham, Fairford etc etc. Does that make sense?

So, in BCTool, you need to go to the Programming section, right click in the white panel on the left hand side and select New System. You then enter the name for it i.e Airfields and choose all other options as required. Then click OK.

Now right click on the System you have created on the left hand side and select New Group. Down the bottom on the right put in a name i.e Brize Norton and click OK.

You now have a system with a group in it.

To add frequenices, you left click on the group name i.e Brize Norton and a panel appears on the right. It's laid out like a spreadsheet.

Under the channel heading you put the frequency name i.e. Tower.
Under Freq you put the frequency i.e 123.450
You can work out the other options along that row.
Once you have filled in the first row, you can then click the large + icon above it to add a new row, and then enter your frequnecy information.

That is it in very basic terms for adding freqs to the BCTool database.

Let me know how you get on with doing that.

Have you managed to connect your scanner to your computer and get BCTool to connect to it at all?

Location : Ramsey, Huntingdon Spotter Watch Member : no

thanks jingernut yeah it connects ok thats all good

Subject: Re: BCTool questions / answers - merged 2009-03-05, 03:37

Did you manage to get some frequencies added then OK?

Location : Ramsey, Huntingdon Spotter Watch Member : no

i am doing it now just sorting out systems and groups and then going to add freq's

Location : Peterborough Spotter Watch Member : Yep

It is worth taking some time over sorting out what systems, groups etc, you have.

Because there is scope to have so many frequencies, etc, it can get into a mess.

I'm one of many people who has set up the systems more than once because it went pear shaped the first time :)

Location : Workington Cumbria

Helpful link.....

http://marksscanners.com/3500/3500.html

Location : Fife Spotter Watch Member : No

I already have my 3500 set up manually and hope to connect to bctool shortly. Can the latter take the information and structure from the 3500 as its initial load?

MTIA

Martin

Location : St.Ives, Cambridgeshire

Hi Martin,

Yes it can. You can download as well as upload

Andrew

Location : Messingham Spotter Watch Member : No

Hi, I've just set up the Bearcat on to BCTool. Hits are recording and coming up with a pathway c\scanroot\waddo\group1\1273500MHz

I then right click this and it says Play recording
I click this
Real Player comes up and it says Now Playing
Trouble is I can't hear a thing
Do I also need 3.5mm connection lead between Bearcat and microphone socket on pc? Thanks in advance...

Subject: Re: BCTool questions / answers - merged 2009-03-21, 12:43

Yes. You need to connect the output of the scanner to the audio in / mic connection on the PC.

Location : Messingham Spotter Watch Member : No

Thanks for the info, much appreciated

Moderator Location : UK Spotter Watch Member : No

Merged questions and answers regarding BCTool

Location : Newport/Chepstow

My scanner connects ok,but I have just started getting the message on my scanner screen "remote key pad locked".
I cannot find any reference anywhere on how to unlock the bctool radio images screen....
While it is locked,no inputs via the scanner or bctool will not work.
As I am setting up with this new scanner,I even uninstalled bctool and down loaded it again,but still to no avail.
Starting to curse now!!! :scratch:
Any ideas guys??

EDIT....sorry mods,I thought this was in the bctool merged section...feel free to move. Opps

Location : St.Ives, Cambridgeshire

Here's what happens with mine: when you switch on your scanner and then click on BcTool the scanners screen should say 'Remote Mode Keypad Locked', I guess while it communicates back and forth with BcTool while BcTool loads. After a few seconds it 'unlocks' and scanning resumes as normal.

You're suggesting this isn't happening for you and it's remaining at 'Remote Mode Keypad Locked' infinitely??

Andrew

Subject: Re: BCTool questions / answers - merged 2009-03-27, 15:29

if youre on vista...... try right clicking the shortcut on your desktop and running the programme as an administrator

Location : Newport/Chepstow

Yes Andrew thats whats happening. I have noticed also that the scanner and bctool are not comunicating at the same level,i.e,the scanner is scanning at its usual speed,but the image on bctool is slower and a bit "jumpy"??

I have nothing to loose by starting the whole proccess again..I am still "playing" with them both at the moment,so I may just scrub the 2 of them and start again??

Thanks for the help guys.
352sog,I am on xp bye the way.

Location : Newport/Chepstow

Well so far so good.
I decided to delete the whole thing from the pc and re-install but that did'nt fix it.
I deleted it again,this time removing every link to bctool I could find on the hard drive and then downloaded it again.
It seems to be going ok now. It does lock for a while,but only a few seconds after an upload or as the two pair up so I guess that must be normal??
Thanks for the pointers guys Cheers

Location : Newport/Chepstow

Another question guys.........
Is there any worthwhile difference between the free download version and the purchased version of bctool??
If its a world apart and worth the money I may be tempted.
If its just a load of extras that I probably wouldnt use,then I cant see the point .
Many thanks again.

Subject: Re: BCTool questions / answers - merged 2009-04-04, 09:43

razor23uk wrote:: Another question guys.........
Is there any worthwhile difference between the free download version and the purchased version of bctool??
If its a world apart and worth the money I may be tempted.
If its just a load of extras that I probably wouldnt use,then I cant see the point .
Many thanks again.

I didn't think there was a 'paid for' version of bctool?

Location : Newport/Chepstow

Ooops

It is actualy ALL free........

Subject: Re: BCTool questions / answers - merged 2009-04-07, 14:50

razor23uk wrote:: Ooops
It is actualy ALL free........

There is some other software for the 3500xlt (and others) that has both a free and 'paid for' version, perhaps thats where the confusion was from.