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Reviews For: ARRL - Logbook of the World - LoTW

Category: Ham Logging Software

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Review Summary For : ARRL - Logbook of the World - LoTW
Reviews: 511MSRP: 00.00
Description:
LoTW ... is a repository of log records submitted by users from around the world. When both participants in a QSO submit matching QSO records to LoTW, the result is a QSL that can be used for ARRL award credit.
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.arrl.org/lotw/
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
153.75113.3
N6XJP Rating: 2016-01-31
Help Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
One hundred dollars to the first ham that shows up at my door and gets me up and operating on LoTW. Period. That is up, operating with enough training and questions answered so that I can compete in contests and NPOTA. Help me enter the last 5 QSOs, and make a submission file. The whole enchilada.
I have tried 4 times...to no avail. No, I will not try it on line again. I live 60 miles from Yosemite. Lunch will be served.

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Earlier 1-star review posted by N6XJP on 2015-12-10

Maybe we should rethink this and move it into this century. I am now into my fourth iteration to get this thing to work...my fifth or sixth password, who knows how many certs that are meaningless. Should it really be this difficult to keep people from cheating? Let them cheat! Only they will know the true value of their worthless QSLs. So for now...not able to join in any ARRL contests even though I pay my dues. Really wanted to do the 2016 year long activity...but alas...it requires LoTW. Not entirely sure I'll renew with ARRL again.
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Earlier 0-star review posted by N6XJP on 2011-04-06

Surely this is a joke, right? Jump through hoops for this? We had better user interface with Fortran IV in 1976. Totally worthless. I took great glee in deleting it from my hard drive and desktop.
KF2E Rating: 2016-01-30
Great service that saves a bunch! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
LoTW is a great service. If you want to QSL via paper it costs you $5 per contact by the time you buy cards, envelopes and pay postage both ways. Add to that you probably will only get 3/4 of your QSL's returned. With LoTW it is free! If only we could get all hams using it.

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Earlier 5-star review posted by KF2E on 2014-05-28

Yes, it takes a little effort to get everything setup but it isn't a big deal. Other than the wait it went just as they described.

I love being able to confirm contacts quickly and cheaply. Many times I have a confirmation the day after my contact. I often wait years...yes, years for bureau confirmations.

I really don't understand why more people don't use this. It works, is free(other than awards) and other than the delay setting it up works as advertised.

KB7FHK Rating: 2016-01-28
I over it now Time Owned: more than 12 months.
At first I found difficult but came back and glad I did because most problems were my fault and not the program. It is free and that is a plus. Most likely a lot of hams avoid lotw because it can be an aggravation to set up initially.
If I had to find any fault it would be access from ark website. I bookmark the logon page on my computers. Still have difficulty interfacing with qrz.com logbook.
K4LRX Rating: 2015-12-18
Difficult set up Time Owned: more than 12 months.
My time with LOTW is short yet has reoccurred three times. A little history, first time I wanted to look at the program, loaded it in my computer and really got no where. After a week or so, I felt I did not have the time to devote to this project. Dumped the program and did not give it any more thought. The computer I was using at the time was a Macbook laptop about three years old. About a year later my curiosity arose and I thought well, maybe I would try it again. I got as far as the point about requesting a top secret application and receiving the encoded post card.

After waiting a considerable time and no card, I again dumped the program. Again, still using the Macbook as my computer.

About a year ago I decided to upgrade my computer and purchased a Mac Retina. Fast, runs like it should and no problems. Ok, decided to try again with LOTW and loaded the program, sent off again for the magic card and this time received it in about ten days.

Entered in all the required information, this time thought I had won, no. Opening page came up, a selection for "Your QSO" plus another box to enter in the qso information. Before I attempted to navigate I down loaded the manual from ARRL. This is about the size of small town phone book, but I printed a copy for easy reference.

I tried to enter contacts, each time the page would go through a search and come back with "No Records Found" Ok, maybe the station I am entering is not a user? Got some of my expedition cards that claimed they uploaded to LOTW, entered in the information and same result. Checked the box in the lower left of the screen that checks if there is a an upload, there was I had the proof in my hand a paper card. Again, after trying about a dozen times I just put the project on hold. Personally, I have every country in the world confirmed except P5, only thing I am endorsing is my DXCC challenge, Phone and CW DXCC.

What I do not need is being frustrated and consume large amounts of time trying to figure this program out on my own. For years, used direct methods, bureau, and now EQSL plus OQRS, or a qsl manager. All work fine for me. In fact have over 100 cards to send to the league for checking and they will leave soon.

Roughly two years ago I signed up with EQSL a real breeze in five minutes was confirming contacts an storing qsl cards in my archive. No secret messages, or cumbersome and confusing instructions. LOTW does not allow you to store qsl cards, it really missed the boat in that area. Chances are, by the time you read this I will have dumped the program for the third time. In reality, I just do not need it, my tried and true methods have worked for years and i am sure they will continue.

It appears on this web site there is a "love, Hate" relationship with LOTW. Some love it while others say it is an abomination. While the program still in on my computer, well maybe when i really have nothing to do I might try this again, maybe, doubtful.
K5PS Rating: 2015-12-10
Works well, with one minor complaint Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I've installed it on several machines, used multiple callsigns, and have not had any major issues. It's been a great way to make QSO confirmations quickly and economically. The one complaint I have is that I want some sort of delete QSO function - have made typos and other errors over several years of use that I want to clear away but can't.
K0RS Rating: 2015-12-10
Works fine! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Why didn't I sign up for this sooner? I procrastinated because of the stories I'd heard about the difficulty of getting this up and running. Nonsense. Just follow ARRL's instructions and it will work for you the first time like it did for me.
MM0TFU Rating: 2015-12-10
Great Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I've been a LoTW user for several years and after some initial setup problems were ironed out (I re-read the instructions and followed them carefully) I have been a regular user, uploading my logs every few weeks.

Recently I had a major malfunction on my old laptop which was running XP, but I managed to save all the important stuff and transfer it to a new machine running Windows 10. One of the final things I needed to do was get LoTW back up and running. After several attempts to transfer my Certificates failed, I gave up. I was using an older version of TQSL and couldn't get the backup files saved and transferred. This was my fault for not updating to the latest version. I installed the latest version of TQSL and applied for new Certificates, which is a simple process that only requires filling in a few details and uploading it to the ARRL. Within 24 hours I had email confirmation with my new Certificates attached. A few mouse clicks later and everything was working as before.

I am no computer genius, but by carefully following the detailed instructions in the FAQ's I was able to do this easily and quickly.
I really don't understand all the negativity towards LoTW. I suspect that some of the people who complain about it don't fully understand what LoTW actually is. It's not a logging program, it is a means of confirming contacts which are logged elsewhere, and for these confirmations to have accuracy, validity and integrity, hence the security measures required when first registering. There are no pictures, no fancy QSL cards and it won't tell you about QSO's that you logged incorrectly. The data you upload must closely match the data uploaded by the other guy, otherwise you won't get a confirmation. But at least if you do get a confirmation it counts for something, and you can be sure of it's validity.

Yes, there are a few hoops to jump through, and you do need to supply the ARRL with some forms of identity but this is actually easier for US licence holders than it is for those outside the USA. After that, all that is required is to follow the instructions closely. If it is not working, you are doing something wrong and you will need to go back and examine every step until you figure out where you goofed up. More than likely, it will be something simple.

Thanks ARRL for providing a free service, and for keeping it tight. I hope you can sort out the details with the RSGB and we can soon use LoTW for IOTA confirmations.

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Earlier 3-star review posted by MM0TFU on 2009-09-21

Having written a rather damning review of my bad experiences with LoTW below, I feel I should set the record straight.
Not long after writng the review I received an email from a very nice man at the ARRL, pointing out that an automated error (rejection) message had been sent because I had apparently attemted to upload two certificate requests, unbeknown to me, of course.
He gave me the information that I needed to complete the registration process, and Hey Presto! I am now up and running.
So there we have it, proof that the ARRL actually have humans working for them and that they can help you solve your problems with LoTW.
Having said all that, it really should not be this difficult.
Please, could some of the humans working at the ARRL have a look at this system and simplify it.

N8EHW Rating: 2015-10-03
Excellent way to verify those QSO's Time Owned: more than 12 months.
The benefits of this system far outweigh any minor problems that arise from time to time. It's a money saver for sure, and a stress reliever to boot. Worrying about QSL's arriving from some distant locations keep me awake at night. I don't really have a negative thing to say about the program.
DJ0RD Rating: 2015-10-03
GREAT!! Wouldn't want to be without. Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I'm 76, yes 76!!, got it working fine, and that from Germany, I renewed my certificate in about 2 minutes, new version of TQSL installed without a blip. If you can't get it to work, in my opinion, you can't read and/or cannot follow instructions,

Vy 73 DJ0RD/WU5T
K0KNX Rating: 2015-10-02
Atari 800 user Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
A while back, I tried to get this thing to work again...no joy. This program is the main reason I decided not to renew my membership with the ARRL. This organization appears to enjoy being in the dark ages and refuses to get up to speed with modern society. As much as we all don't like it, it's ain't 1977 anymore. Did they write LOTW on a Commodore or a TRS-80?