Morse Code Explorer Copyright (C) Moose O'Malley, ------------------- September 2007. +===========================================================+ | T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S | +===========================================================+ | * Introduction | * The Future | * Morse Code : a little history | * Morse Code Translation Table | * Reviews / Awards / CDs | * Freeware Information | * Warranty | * Amendment History | * Contacting the Program's Author +===========================================================+ Introduction : -------------- Morse Code Explorer for Windows 3.1, 3.11, 95, NT, 2000, XP, etc. This program is free software. Anyone - any person, any company, or any business - can use this program for free. No fees or payment is required. See "Freeware Information" below. This program enables you to explore the wonders of Morse Code. With this program, you can : - Decode a Morse Code string. Simply type in a series of DOTs (full stops) and DASHes (minus signs) and seperate each seperate morse code by a space, and the program will convert it to text for you. - Encode text into Morse Code. Simply type in text and the program will convert it to Morse Code for you. All characters not included in Morse's Code are ignored. - Display all Morse Code codes for each letter in the alphabet. i.e. a quick reference chart. Morse Code : a little history ----------------------------- When Samuel Morse decided to use an alphabetical system of signals for his newly invented telegraph, he consulted a Philadelphia newspaper's typecase. Morse desired to assign the shorter dot-and-dash symbols used for telegraph transmission to the more commonly used letters of the alphabet, while some of the longer dot-and-dash symbols would be used for less frequently used characters. In counting the type in each letter bin, he found 12,000 e's, 9,000 t's, 8,000 each of a, o, m, i, and s, 6,400 h's, and so on. With few exceptions, Morse followed this list in developing his teletype code, assigning the shortest symbol, a dot, to the letter "e", the most common letter. The symbol dash, was assigned to the letter t, the next most common symbol. Modern International Morse Code only differs slightly from Morse's original Morse Code. The duration of a dot equals one dot-unit, a dash equals three dot-units, the space between dots and dashes of a letter equals 1 dot-unit, and the space between letters equals three dot units. The transmission of an English message consisting of 100 letters requires the transmission of approximately 940 dot-units. If, instead of assigning symbols logically, they had been assigned at random, then the same 100 letter message would take 1160 dot-units - an increase of about 23%. This encoding technique represents the earliest application of Statistical Compression for data transmission, and permits almost 25% more messages on a telegraph line during a peak period, than if dot-and-dash symbols were assigned at random. Amazing hey !! And, if it wasn't for Morse, we wouldn't have had all those excellent Wild West movies where the telegraph operators are always held at gun point and told to transmit wrong information to the sheriff in the next town. (And who couldn't love these movies ??? ;) Morse Code Translation Table : ------------------------------ A = .- Alfa Dot Dash B = -... Bravo Dash Dot Dot Dot C = -.-. Charlie Dash Dot Dash Dot D = -.. Delta Dash Dot Dot E = . Echo Dot F = ..-. Foxtrot Dot Dot Dash Dot G = --. Golf Dash Dash Dot H = .... Hotel Dot Dot Dot Dot I = .. India Dot Dot J = .--- Juliet Dot Dash Dash Dash K = -.- Kilo Dash Dot Dash L = .-.. Lima Dot Dash Dot Dot M = -- Mike Dash Dash N = -. November Dash Dot O = --- Oscar Dash Dash Dash P = .--. Papa Dot Dash Dash Dot Q = --.- Quebec Dash Dash Dot Dash R = .-. Romeo Dot Dash Dot S = ... Sierra Dot Dot Dot T = - Tango Dash U = ..- Uniform Dot Dot Dash V = ...- Victor Dot Dot Dot Dash W = .-- Whisky Dot Dash Dash X = -..- X-ray Dash Dot Dot Dash Y = -.-- Yankee Dash Dot Dash Dash Z = --.. Zulu Dash Dash Dot Dot = .-.- CR Dot Dash Dot Dash = .-.- LF Dot Dash Dot Dash = .-.-. EoF Message Dot Dash Dot Dash Dot ! = .-..-. Dot Dash Dot Dot Dash Dot ' = .----. Dot Dash Dash Dash Dash Dot , = --..-- Dash Dash Dot Dot Dash Dash - = -....- Dash Dot Dot Dot Dot Dash . = .-.-.- Dot Dash Dot Dash Dot Dash / = -..-. Dash Dot Dot Dash Dot 0 = ----- Dash Dash Dash Dash Dash 1 = .---- Dot Dash Dash Dash Dash 2 = ..--- Dot Dot Dash Dash Dash 3 = ...-- Dot Dot Dot Dash Dash 4 = ....- Dot Dot Dot Dot Dash 5 = ..... Dot Dot Dot Dot Dot 6 = -.... Dash Dot Dot Dot Dot 7 = --... Dash Dash Dot Dot Dot 8 = ---.. Dash Dash Dash Dot Dot 9 = ----. Dash Dash Dash Dash Dot : = ---... Dash Dash Dash Dot Dot Dot = = -...- Dash Dot Dot Dot Dash ? = ..--.. Dot Dot Dash Dash Dot Dot | = -.--.- Dash Dot Dash Dash Dot Dash Á = .--.- Dot Dash Dash Dot Dash Ä = .-.- Dot Dash Dot Dash Æ = .-.- Dot Dash Dot Dash (Norweigan) Å = .--.- Dot Dash Dash Dot Dash (Norweigan) É = ..-.. Dot Dot Dash Dot Dot Ñ = --.-- Dash Dash Dot Dash Dash Ö = ---. Dash Dash Dash Dot Ø = ---. Dash Dash Dash Dot (Norweigan) Ü = ..-- Dot Dot Dash Dash The Future : ------------- In the future, I might add a Tutorial / Quiz function into the program, which would display random Morse Codes and you would have to guess the character it represents. Another good thing would be to play the DOTs and DASHes through your sound card so that it sounds similar to a real Telegraph. ** Done in v2.0f I would also like to add functionality to read microphone input and interpret this as DOTs and DASHes. Or, this could be easily done with a mouse as well - tap the mouse botton for a DOT and hold it down a bit longer for a DASH - just like in a real Telegraph where Morse Code was pioneered. ** Done in v2.0f It all depends on what feedback and support I get. Reviews / Awards / CDs : ------------------------- None so far. Freeware Information : ----------------------- This is free software. Anyone - any person, any company, or any business - can use this program for free. No fees or payment is required. However, if you find the program useful, then please consider making a PayPal donation to support my efforts. (To make a donation, please run the program and select the "About" option under the Help menu, and then click the PayPal link on the "About" screen). Warranty : ---------- This software and the accompanying files are provided "as is" and without warranties as to performance or merchantability or any other warranties whether expressed or implied. The user assumes the entire risk of using this software. If you do find any faults with this program, email me and let me know. Amendment History : -------------------- Vers Date Description 1.0 07-Feb-97 First Public Release. 1.1 16-Jun-97 Save settings automatically on Windows 95 shutdown (Registered Users only). Start Minimised if set in Shortcut / settings (Registered Users only). Improve application startup - size and position form before user sees it. Add in Menu items for viewing my Shareware Catalog, the Readme file, and the Registration Form. 1.2 11-Jan-98 Fix a long standing but very elusive problem to do with "DateEncode" errors which occured on some machines under some conditions. Once I could replicate the error, it was reasonably straight forward to get a workaround for what was another bug in Delphi. (3,224 lines of code.) 1.3 08-Nov-98 Add in support for the Norweigan characters Æ (A combined with an E), Ø (O with an slash), and Å (A with a little circle over it). Added specially for : Øivind Grønli Helgesen. (3,700 lines of code.) 1.4 11-Jan-2001 Store the INI settings file in the program's directory, rather that in the Windows' directory - there's enough crap there already ! ;) Fix an old bug in Borland Delphi / Windows NT to fix NTDLL.DLL errors on closedown which occured on some Windows NT configurations. Improve the detection method used for determining whether data copied from the clipboard is text or morse code. (If input data is made up of more than 99.5% dots, dashes, and spaces, then it is presumed to be More Code). The Percentage of input data that is valid Morse Code is now displayed next to the Input box / field. (6,725 lines of code / comments.) 1.5 17-Apr-2001 Add in support for "Big Fonts" and "Other Sized Fonts" - with these Windows resizes the windows automatically - but only sometimes and it doesn't always do it right, so now I make sure my main window is the right size before doing any scaling, etc. i.e. I make it fit the component(s) that extend the furthest right and furthest down the form. See the Start Menu -> Settings -> Control Pannel -> Display -> Settings Tab -> "Advanced" button -> "General" tab for your PC's settings in this area. Bring program up-to-date with my latest code libraries. (7,700 lines of code / comments.) 1.5b 20-Nov-2002 Bring the program up to date with my latest code libraries. Registered Users - please contact me via email. (31,498 lines of code / comments.) 2.0f 3-Sep-2007 This program is now FREEWARE - see "Freeware Information" above. Add in the ability to assign the DOT and DASH sounds and play any morse code back to the user. Also, allow the user to left and right mpouse click in a specific area to play DOT and DASH sounds (respectively) while also entering DOTs and DASHes into the input box. I had a lot more plans for this program, but alas a complete lack of support, and a plethora of cracks and hacks for my software, have effectively scuppered these plans. If this program was not downloaded from my Home Page, then it is possibly an old version. The latest version of this program is available from my WEB page - see below. Mike "Moose" O'Malley ____________________________________________________ Moose's Software Valley - Established July, 1996. WEB: http://move.to/moose ____________________________________________________