Alan,
I do not believe that I said that setting up a QDX was easy.? Nor am I suggesting that Linux would be easier than Windows 7.? I suggested going to Linux because of the potential driver issue and the lack of security support.? Ubuntu is also free.? An upgrade to Windows 10 would cost money.? I would not keep a Windows 7 computer operating because of security issues.? To get the QDX updates, you need to connect to the internet.? Connecting to the internet is a security risk in the best of situations.?
I do not have a Mac, so I can not comment on Apple installations.
QDX setup for Windows and Linux is in the two excellent manuals by Hans Summers.? For instructions on installing Linux, there are very good instructions on the Ubuntu website.? Also, there are WSJT-X instructions for Linux.? Here is just one found with a Google search for "install wsjt-x on ubuntu,"
There are not as many QDX/WSJT-X resources for Windows 7.
The easiest for a newcomer is to buy a new computer with the correct OS for the task.? That is also the most expensive.? To save costs will take time and effort to learn how to adapt the tools to the task.? The Ubuntu route for Tom reuses his laptop with a secure solution.? Solving the Windows 7 problems may open other issues because of the security risks.?
If you follow Hans Summers, he does his development on Linux.? That would suggest to me that Linux support will be available.? He does maintain Windows boxes to test.
Since I use Windows for gaming, I am usually on Windows 10 or 11.? I do have several Raspberry Pis that run Linux.? I would not swap out a running Windows 10 or later for Linux, at least not yet (Windows 10 is planned to stop support of security updates in 2024).? I have the Ubuntu boxes stacked away because they do not do gaming very well, and I am a pack rat.
Again, I only offered a suggestion.
73
Evan
AC9TU
