Manual / Operating the radio / 3.2

The radio faces

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Every player

The PRC-163 and PRC-148 open as a picture of the real radio with keys you click. Every key also has a keyboard key, and the bottom of the screen always names the keys that work right now.

3.2.1

PRC-163: the four screens

HOME: both channels, their frequencies, the signal and the last person heard
TUNE: typing in a frequency
LINK: how good the call you're hearing is
OPTIONS: volume, channel, audio, ear, screen light and power

A blank screen means the radio is off: press ENT to switch it on.

3.2.2

PRC-163 keys

Key on the radio	What it does	Keyboard
ENT	Start typing a frequency (TUNE)	E
+ and −	Move this channel one step, 5 kHz	] and [
◀ and ▶	Switch to the other channel	–
2 LT	Screen colours: day or night	L
3 MODE	Open LINK	Y
4 SQL	Squelch up one position ({a('3.4')})	–
7 OPT	Open OPTIONS	J

Typing a frequency: press ENT, then six digits on the keypad or your number keys, three for the MHz and three for the kHz. 041250 is 41.250 MHz. ENT sets it. CLR or Backspace deletes the last digit. On an empty line, 7 leaves without changing anything; after the first digit it types a 7. The PRC-163 tunes 30 to 512 MHz, and a number outside that lands on the nearest end.

OPTIONS has six rows: VOLUME, CHANNEL, AUDIO (headset or speaker), EAR, SCREEN LIGHT and POWER. + and − move up and down, ◀ and ▶ change the row's value.

3.2.3

PRC-148: the screens

HOME: the channel name, the frequency, the signal bars and the last person heard. While you talk it shows TX and the seconds
TUNE: the frequency, one digit at a time
MODE: TX POWER, SQUELCH, CIPHER, VOLUME and EAR, then a second page with AUDIO, SCREEN LIGHT and POWER
MENU: the signal page, like the 163's LINK

TX POWER and CIPHER show a dash: they aren't simulated yet.

3.2.4

PRC-148 keys

Key on the radio	What it does	Keyboard
ENT	Start tuning. On TUNE: the next digit; on the last digit it sets the frequency	E
▲ and ▼	Change the highlighted digit, or move in a list	] and [
ESC	Back, or cancel tuning	Backspace
MODE	Open the MODE list	J
ALT, then MODE	MENU: the signal page	Y
ALT, then ENT	LAMP: day or night screen	L
ALT, then ESC	LOCK the radio's keys. Your keyboard keys still work. ALT, ESC again unlocks	–

You can also type the digits on your number keys while tuning. GR and SCAN aren't fitted yet: the radio says so if you press them.

3.2.5

LINK and MENU

SIGNAL and QUALITY say how strong the call you're hearing is. PATH says why a link is short (a hill, a building). KM EST is roughly how far your radio reaches on that frequency. MESH HOPS says DIRECT or how many relays carried it (3.6). A dash means nothing is being received, not a zero signal.

3.2.6

Night

Both faces turn dark by themselves at night on the game clock, and fade between day and night. 2 LT on the 163, or LAMP on the 148, switches it by hand.

3.2.7

Settings for this page

Setting	What it does	Default
Screen.Enabled	False: every radio opens the window instead of a face	true
Screen.NightStart	Game hour the faces go dark	18.5
Screen.NightEnd	Game hour they go light again	6

3.1Opening the radio 3.3 Channels and frequencies