KST4Contest Update – Features and Improvements since February 2026 for the release candicate 04

[Marc Fröhlich]

Thankfully DN9APW, Philipp, managed to do some nice process optimizations regarding the CI/CD pipeline which gives a better opportunity on developing the software and publishing it faster and also for all the bigger platforms (Win/Linux/Mac). Available at gitHub. I met him at the GHz meeting in February and appreciate his fine work!

This enables us to build the software for Linux, Mac and Windows and DN9APW managed to test the Linux builds and the Mac builds. Vy tnx

Here is an overview of the most important new features and changes:

New Priority / Chatmember Score System

KST4Contest now evaluates chat members automatically and helps identify the most promising stations to work. The score can take into account activity, QTF/antenna direction, AirScout potential, recent messages, band information, positive sked signals and worked status.

Priority List and Candidate Ranking

A new ranking system highlights stations with high potential. This helps operators focus on the most relevant stations during busy contest periods.

Airplane Scatter / AP Timeline

Airplane Scatter opportunities can now be visualized in a timeline view. Potential AP windows are shown with different colors depending on their estimated quality.

Band and Frequency Detection

KST4Contest can detect bands and frequencies mentioned in chat messages and assign them to chat members. This makes it easier to see where a station is active or potentially available.

Band Alert

If a logged station appears to be active on additional bands, KST4Contest can alert the operator. This helps avoid missing possible QSOs on other bands.

Sked Reminder Alert

A new reminder feature helps operators keep track of planned skeds and avoid missing agreed contact times during contest operation.

Sked-Fail Handling

Failed skeds can now be marked and handled inside the workflow, making the priority system and operator decisions more useful.

Win-Test Log Synchronization

KST4Contest can receive log data from Win-Test and use it for worked status, band activity and workflow decisions.

Win-Test SKED Push via UDP

Skeds can now be pushed from KST4Contest to Win-Test using a LOCKSKED / ADDSKED / UNLOCKSKED sequence. The feature is configurable and disabled by default.

PSTRotator Integration

The PSTRotator interface has been improved, allowing better use of antenna direction and rotator information inside the contest workflow.

New Map View

KST4Contest now includes a map view with station markers, own station position, locator/grid information, path visualization and antenna/beam display.

Maidenhead / Grid Overlay

Locator and grid information can be shown on the map. Grid-square coloring has also been added.

Path, Terrain and Horizon Profile

The map documentation and related features now include support for path profiles with terrain, Fresnel and horizon information.

Tropo and Reachability Filters

New filtering and sorting options help identify stations based on tropo reachability, AirScout availability, large locator fields and priority.

Reachability Band Selector

A band selector was added for reachability and tropo-related calculations.

4-Character Locator Filter

Locator analysis can now be reduced to 4-character grid fields, improving overview and performance.

Better Message Performance

The chat message handling has been optimized. Very large chat histories are now handled more efficiently, reducing the risk of crashes or slowdowns.

Improved UI for Smaller Screens

The user interface now adapts better to smaller displays and available screen resolution.

Dark Mode and UI Fixes

Several UI details were improved, including QRG field display, button wrapping on Linux and compact table/chat presentation.

Improved Build and Deployment Pipeline

The project now includes improved build workflows for nightly artifacts, tagged release builds, documentation PDF generation, wiki publishing, GitHub Pages deployment and Linux/Flatpak packaging.

Linux / Flatpak Packaging

Flatpak and Linux packaging were improved, including persistent storage and repository publishing.

macOS Build Preparation

A macOS build pipeline has also been prepared as part of the cross-platform packaging work.

Java 21 / JavaFX 21 Compatibility Work

Several updates were made to support newer Java and JavaFX versions, including fixes related to JavaFX WebView, Media and packaging.

Stability and Bug Fixes

Many bugs were fixed, including message list crashes, database startup lag, Win-Test QRG/SKED issues, 23 cm worked-tag handling, PSTRotator disconnect handling, AirScout map/watchlist updates, PM filters, suffix handling and map rendering under newer Java versions.

Documentation Updates

The changelog, wiki, user manual and PDF documentation were updated and are now part of the automated build process.

Overall, KST4Contest has evolved from a pure ON4KST contest chat helper into a more complete contest workflow assistant — combining chat analysis, station ranking, sked handling, mapping, AirScout support, Win-Test integration and better deployment options.

More updates will follow as development continues.

[Marc Fröhlich]

Hola Pedro!

I have to check this later. I think that the link should lead to the releases page of gitHub. The downloads are hard to find, I know that. 

For that reason I introduced a website for the chatclient: https://kst4contest.hamradioonline.de/

The download-button there is much easier to find without knowing the workflow of gitHub. 

You can use this now and for the future versions: https://kst4contest.hamradioonline.de/download/

These links will be updated automatically in every new release cycle (thats what I did the last 2 nights, hihi).

Thanks for the reminder that I have to integrate that into the update xml. 

Mni 73 and maybe hear you in a contest if some ES appears! You are really far away from JO51 :-)

--Marc // DO5AMF