Shorten or lengthen spot lifetime¶
Use the Spot Lifetime: slider in Spot Settings to control how long DX spots remain visible on the panadapter before they expire.
Before you start¶
- Spots must be displayed on the panadapter. If spots are not visible, confirm the Spots: toggle shows "Enabled" in Spot Settings.
- Open Spot Settings by right-clicking the spots overlay on the panadapter.
Steps¶
- Right-click the spots overlay on the panadapter to open the Spot Settings dialog.
- Locate the Spot Lifetime: row.
- Drag the slider left to shorten the lifetime or right to lengthen it. The label to the right of the slider updates immediately, showing the current value in seconds, minutes, or hours (for example,
30 secs,15 mins,2 hrs). - Release the slider. The new value is saved automatically.
What each control does¶
| Control | Behavior | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Spot Lifetime: slider | Sets how long a spot remains on the panadapter before it fades. The scale is non-linear: the lower portion steps in 5-second increments (10 sec – 55 sec), the middle portion steps in 5-minute increments (5 min – 55 min), and the upper portion steps in 1-hour increments (1 hr – 24 hrs / 1 day). | 30 min |
| Spot Lines: toggle button | Draws vertical lines from the spectrum baseline up to each spot label. Click to toggle between Enabled and Disabled. Disable during contests to reduce visual clutter. Saved to IsSpotsLinesEnabled. Added in v0.9.7 (#2349). |
Enabled |
Tips¶
- The slider uses a non-linear scale. Small movements near the left end adjust lifetime by seconds; movements near the right end adjust by hours. Position the slider carefully when targeting a specific value.
- The displayed label rounds to the nearest step: values under 60 seconds show as
sec, values under 1 hour show asminormins, and values of 1 hour or more show ashr,hrs, or1 day. - If vertical lines make the panadapter feel cluttered during a contest, click Spot Lines: to set it to Disabled. The change takes effect immediately and is saved automatically.
Troubleshooting¶
- Old spots still appear after reducing lifetime — Existing spots that arrived before the change will expire based on the previous setting. New spots will use the updated lifetime. Click Clear All Spots to remove existing spots immediately.