Startup Key Question ?

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BOBRR

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Hello,

Have a SDS200.

Have just started looking into the Startup Key operation(s).
Question, please:

Let's say I have a FL called Mass, and have Startup Key 1 assigned to it.
And a FL called Conn, for which Startup Key 2 is assigned.

Fine, no problems. Can turn either one on at startup by pressing Startup Key 1 OR Startup Key 2.

Is there some way, e.g., to have a Single Startup Key turn on both Mass. and Conn. in one operation ? Or, even starting a few more FL's simultaneously ?

I guess i could do it by placing Mass and Conn in a single FL, but any other way ?

Thanks,
Bob
 

hiegtx

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Hello,

Have a SDS200.

Have just started looking into the Startup Key operation(s).
Question, please:

Let's say I have a FL called Mass, and have Startup Key 1 assigned to it.
And a FL called Conn, for which Startup Key 2 is assigned.

Fine, no problems. Can turn either one on at startup by pressing Startup Key 1 OR Startup Key 2.

Is there some way, e.g., to have a Single Startup Key turn on both Mass. and Conn. in one operation ? Or, even starting a few more FL's simultaneously ?

I guess i could do it by placing Mass and Conn in a single FL, but any other way ?

Thanks,
Bob
While you cannot have more than one Favorites list share the same Quick Key, you can assign the same startup key to more than one list and/or systems.

However
If you have Favorites lists other than those two, and you assign a different startup key than used on Mass/Conn, then pressing the startup key you assigned for the Mass/Conn combo will turn off any other list/system that does not use the same startup key. Similarly, if you had the Mass/Conn lists set to startup key 1, and a third list for New Hampshire, assigned, to say, startup key 3, and you started the scanner pressing 3 instead of 1 (presuming you gave both the Mass/Conn lists that same start key), then only the New Hampshire list would be scanned. If you then restarted the scanner, pressing the 1, then Mass/Conn would scan, but New Hampshire would not be.

The downside to using startup keys is that, once you start, with a specific key pressed, like 1, all the other lists using other startup keys would be disabled. If you then used the 3 key to restart, then lists using key 1 (or any startup key other than 3) would not be scanned. You cannot "undo" this on the scanner, unless you manually edit the lists in the scanner and remove any startup keys that have been used.
See this in the Easier to Read manual:

Any list that does not have a startup key assigned will be scanned regardless of the key pressed at startup. But anything that has a key assigned will not be enabled unless you press their specific key, which then disables anything using a key other than what you pressed.

Since the SDS and x36HP scanners can have multiple Favorites lists, each with their own Favorites list QK, you can more easily pick what you want to listen to without using the startup keys. I don't use Startup keys on any of my SDS or x36HP scanners. However, I previously used the keys on a file for my 396XTs in a file for a regional trip I take often. I had key 1 set for while I was still in the metro area, then restarted with key 2 for the route I took, and then key 3 to use while I was at my destination. For systems that I wanted to be scanned regardless of where I was, like Texas DPS, that system did not have have a key assigned. For systems that were monitorable in more than one segment, but not in all three, I duplicated that system using the startup keys for that portion of my trip. But that was a workaround for the 396XT, since you can only load and use a single programming file. For this same trip now, on the SDS and x36HP scanners, I have separate Favorites lists for each portion, so I can use whichever list covers the area, Of course, in the version of this trip set up to use location control with a GPS, which then selects what to monitor based on the range and locations set.
 

BOBRR

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Hi,

Very clear explanation, as always.
Have a much better understanding of it now.

Thanks for writing it out for me; really helpful.

Best regards, stay well,
Bob
 

phask

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You can have multiple Fav list use the same quick key.

That said, I do not use startup keys at all (never have).

I have several where I use the same QK on the trunked traffic list and on the conventional list for an area.
 

hiegtx

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From the SDS200 manual:
ASSIGNING QUICK KEYS
Quick Keys let you quickly turn on/off favorites lists, systems within a favorites list, and
departments and sites within systems. There are three levels of quick key as described below.
FAVORITES LIST QUICK KEYS
Favorites Lists Quick Keys (FLQK) quickly enable or disable entire Favorites Lists for scanning.
There are 100 FLQKs (00-99). These are like the bank keys used on older scanners. You do not
have to assign a FLQK to a favorites list, but doing so makes it easier to modify what you are
currently scanning. Each FLQK can only be used one time (i.e. two favorites lists cannot have the
same FLQK).
 

phask

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From the SDS200 manual:
ASSIGNING QUICK KEYS
Quick Keys let you quickly turn on/off favorites lists, systems within a favorites list, and
departments and sites within systems. There are three levels of quick key as described below.
FAVORITES LIST QUICK KEYS
Favorites Lists Quick Keys (FLQK) quickly enable or disable entire Favorites Lists for scanning.
There are 100 FLQKs (00-99). These are like the bank keys used on older scanners. You do not
have to assign a FLQK to a favorites list, but doing so makes it easier to modify what you are
currently scanning. Each FLQK can only be used one time (i.e. two favorites lists cannot have the
same FLQK).

It may say that, but look at this profile. There are 2 that are Qk 1 - it works and works on everything I have that uses Favorite lists.

87730
 

hiegtx

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It may say that, but look at this profile. There are 2 that are Qk 1 - it works and works on everything I have that uses Favorite lists.

View attachment 87730
I see what you're talking about, just tried it on one of my scanners.

I see that you can assign more than one FL to the same QK in Sentinel, but presumed that you'd get an error on the scanner itself when loading. However, you do not.

But, if you go in through the menu on the scanner, and try to use a QK that is already assigned, you do get an error.

You can load more than one FL with the same QK. But, if you go into the 'Manage Favorites' menu and edit the second Favorites List with the duplicate key, when you take a peek at the FL QK option, it shows the QK as "." (just a decimal point, no QK noted). But you can then exit out of that screen without changing anything, and the duplicate key remains in place.

For the first FL with that QK, you see the QK assigned highlighted.
87748
(Screen shot from my 536HP, connected through ProScan. But you'd see the same type display on the 436HP, and the SDS series scanners.)
 

tvengr

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You can assign the same quick key to more that one favorites list in Sentinel. However, the quick keys must be in different profiles so that the quick key is used only once when it is sent to a scanner. If the same quick key is assigned to more than one favorites list and is sent to the scanner, the scanner will accept the quick key of the first favorites and set all subsequent favorites lists using that same quick key to a quick key of None.
 
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ofd8001

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I guess I'll be the left field guy. Up until this year, I never used Start-up keys. I did some experimenting and have grown more fond of them. Mostly it is because of the initial boot time. No sense in spending the time to load a Minnesota system when you are in Florida, even if it's Quick Key is off, or otherwise off by way of Location Control.
 

hiegtx

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I guess I'll be the left field guy. Up until this year, I never used Start-up keys. I did some experimenting and have grown more fond of them. Mostly it is because of the initial boot time. No sense in spending the time to load a Minnesota system when you are in Florida, even if it's Quick Key is off, or otherwise off by way of Location Control.
In your example, assigning startup keys to lists focused on widely separated areas of the country (Minnesota, Florida, and your Louisville area) would work to your advantage.

But for the OP, using startups for areas that can be monitored from his location would result in only being able to scan some of the area, but not all of it.
 

ofd8001

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I'm actually doing it for "close to home" stuff too. Start up key 1 does my home and adjacent counties. Start up key 2 does everything in Start up key 1 plus some additional counties.

This is for my vehicle scanner. I'm not interested in monitoring stuff 40 miles away when I'm out and about town. However if I'm going that way to visit family or hear that they may have an incident of interest, then I do want them.

Fortunately I'm retired and have lots of time to put very fine points on my pencils.
 
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