Pi-Star is not MMDVM
Being a member of various Pi-Star support mediums, I see all kinds of questions. Some good, some really bad and rudimentary.
But some questions are off the charts stupid.
The really bad and very frequent questions brought up, are things like, “Can Pi-Star do X/Y/Z?”
What are the X/Y/Z?
They are typically questions about functions or features (or issues) directly related to, or handled by MMDVM(Host).
MMDVM(host) and its ancillary and companion programs (written by the wonderful
G4KLX) do almost all of the heavy lifting; the things that actually make
hams’ digital radios work with the hotspots and various digital radio services
and networks (ala BrandMeister, FCS, D-Star, etc.).
So when dumb hams ask “Can Pi-Star do X/Y/Z”, it shows how much hams these days are nothing more than “appliance operators”; they have no clue, or no desire to have a clue, as to what’s under the hood and how/why they work.
If they were like the hams of yore, they would not ask such ignorant questions, and they’d dig into whatever it is they are using/operating and satisfy their own curiosity (instead of having others hold their hand).
Pi-Star is Only a Front-End
Say it with me, again: Pi-Star is only a Front-End.
Keep repeating that to yourself. There…you learned something about Pi-Star today.
Pi-Star is exactly that, a front-end to the tools and programs that actually make your hotspot and radio work together. Nothing more. In fact, you don’t even need Pi-Star to operate a hotspot and digital radio, and many still operate that way.
Pi-Star provides a nice web interface, and some other nice facilities, to easily configure and manage the things (MMDVM, etc.) that actually make your hotspot work. That’s all. It has some ancillary tools to help you manage your hotspot as well as quickly deploy it, but guess what it ships with to make it work? MMDVM!
Do Your Homework and Stop Being an Appliance Operator
Start learning about your fucking hobby and the things you operate in ham radio. Also, start learning how to ask questions the smart way, too.