HELP! Group, Systems & Quick Keys for Dummies

[mike6pmnews]

PROGRAMMING FOR DUMMIES
Problem: Need help on understanding Groups, Systems and Quick Keys.
I have had scanners for decades. I cant seem to wrap my head around the concepts of Groups... Systems and Quick Keys. I'm stuck back in the days of "banks" of channels. I keep reading manuals and online info, but can's seem to understand what I need to do. I have downloaded all of the frequencies I want from Radio Reference onto my Arc996Pro software. I have all the frequencies on my BCD996T. Other then ability to lockout frequencies.. I can't figure out how to organize the frequencies so I can do the following.

1. Everyday listening
All law enforcement, fd's ems from state and five counties with ability to scan those agencies one county at a time. But I don't want to hear utilities, school busses, road departments or skywarn hams on a regular basis.

2. Weather Emergencies
If we have a weather emergency.. (i.e. tornado or snow storm) I need to quickly add, school busses, utilities, skywarn, road departments to Everyday agencies. Again I want the ability to scann all of the above in just individual counties.

Is there a website that shows a sample or screencap or sample or someone elses setup of groups and systems?

 

[captclint]

Welcome to RR. System keys are JUST like bank number turn off/on. You should always assign a SQKY to every system, but you CAN assign the same key to more than one. Let's say you have a system called State Police, and once called local emergency. Chances are you would want both on or off at once, so assign same quick key. Now group keys has no equivalent in bank scanners, BUT you should think about Systems as Major Folders on your PC and Groups as sub folders under the main folder. The ARC software really shows you this type of organization.

Turning on/off group keys is a little more involved, but if you assign GQKY to each group, you will see them in the display. Otherwise, you will not see them being scanned.
Ok, so how to organize. I would make a main folder(system) for each county. Under them, you really only need 1 group folder into which you put everything you want, or, you could create groups under each county for PD, FD, EMS.
Then create one system called weather emergencies, and put all of them in one group(you must always have at least one group for each system). and assign a system quick key(bank key) to the Weather system so you can turn on/off quickly.
Scanner does not care how you organize. It is really only how it best serves you. Since you downloaded from RR, you will not have the same organization as you want, so use the software to copy/paste/move groups into new systems you create, and then you can delete the old RR systems. Be sure to use the "Quick save all Systems" before you make any changes. Then, when you get one system the way you want, use the "save" icon while that system is Open and hilited.

 

[davedaver1]

Hey mike6pmnews -

CaptClint has a good explanation. I wanted to add my 2 cents, since I struggled to figure out the DMA scanner too. I've been scanning since the first crystal scanners all the way through my BC785D and I was boggled like you are with the DMA scanners. In concept it sounds great, but for some reason it's hard to grasp for some of us. I've had my 396XT for a year and was not doing much with it at all. I finally decided over the holidays I was going to learn the darned thing - or else.

Here's what finally clicked for me - I started thinking of the "systems" as banks. I can have as many as I want, in essence, not just the 10 in my old scanner. I started by replicating my systems into the banks I was familiar with. Make sure every system has a quick key, and every group has a quick key. The groups inside the banks are, to me, "sub banks". So, for instance, my System Quick Key 1 (SQK1) is "Fire". In there is a group that is assigned GQK1, that is my local FD. Another group, with SQK2 assigned, is my local CDF (CA Forestry - more fire) "bank". A third group is medical, GQK3. I have a number of others that I don't use regularly, but want them there, say 4 and 5. Using the software (Freescan, in my case), I by default enable SQK1 and disable the rest of the system quick keys (but they are not locked out, just not enabled). Ditto for the groups, I enable GQK1 and GQK2, and do not enable 3, 4 and 5. When the med helicopter flies, I just press Function then 3 and the med group is now scanned. When I'm done, I press Function then 3 and now the medical group is disabled until the next time. You use the systems and groups to turn on and off the things you want, when you want them.

For me, it was a marriage of understanding first the scanner, and next, the software. Once I got the above concepts, now I can easily use the software to set a default arrangement of systems and groups being enabled or disabled.

I don't know if that helps at all, but it's what "clicked" for me, and once I managed to get that straight in my mind, I've really started loving this radio. Once I got that concept solid, I also started rearranging my systems and groups to suit my listening. For instance, my old bank 4 was the highway patrol. I typically would simply lock in and out channels according to where I was driving. It's WAY easier to set up groups that work for me now - and I can divide CHP up into systems, according to the geographic area I want to turn on or off. Each "system" has a series (one or more) of groups that are enabled by default, and within the groups, the channels I want on by default are unlocked and other channels are locked. (the only thing you really want to "lock" is channels - use enable and disable for groups and systems.)

I wished I could unwrap my mind from bank and channel, but it helped me figure a way in, and I think once you break the barrier it will be the same for you.

The magic is the multiple system or quick key assignment and the fact that you can program every which way but loose and be free of the old bank/channel structure. More magic is Startup Keys, so you can bring the scanner up in different configurations when you turn it on. But that's for another day (I'm still working on it!!)

If you want to see someone else's layout, join the Yahoo group for your model. There are usually files there in different formats than can be loaded into the software you have and you can have a look at how folks do their scanners. I did it - it was very useful.

Final thought - learn the display. Understand the system indicators and the group indicators - they are key to seeing whats on and off. It will start to make sense. Read the "Easier to Read...." manual at marksscanners.com - read, read, read. Play, play, play. Stick with it. It will come to you!!

Good luck!