Logging Overview
Your logbook is where all your contacts live. Hamtrax gives you a full-featured digital logbook that saves work locally, automatically syncs cloud-accepted changes, and supports the fields you need for everyday operating, contesting, and portable activations.
How contacts are stored
Hamtrax uses a local-first logging model. Every contact command is saved immediately to your device's local database (IndexedDB). When you have an internet connection, commands that pass the cloud filing guard sync automatically to cloud storage (Firestore), keeping accepted logbook data backed up and available across devices.
- No internet required to log. You can log contacts in the field with no cell signal. Each command is saved on that device and sent for cloud acceptance when you reconnect.
- Automatic sync. Accepted changes propagate to the cloud in the background -- you do not need to press a sync button.
- Folder notes save locally too. Notes on folders already available on your device autosave while offline. Their save confirmation means they are stored on that device; cloud sync follows in the background. See Folder media.
- Changes made somewhere else arrive automatically. While Hamtrax is open and connected, accepted contact and folder changes from another device, browser, or tab flow into your logbook. Returning to the Logbook or moving between its pages reuses the same loaded data; ordinary navigation does not download the whole logbook again.
- Saved contacts stay available while syncing. You can browse contacts and folders already on this device while Hamtrax checks for updates or is offline. A saved copy can be complete without containing the latest changes from another device. Loading and syncing are silent -- Hamtrax does not narrate its own progress, so the page does not resize while it works. A status appears beneath Logbook only when sync cannot finish: Offline · showing saved contacts, or Sync unavailable · showing saved contacts when you are connected but Hamtrax cannot reach the cloud. Either one also warns that some contacts may be unavailable when the saved copy is incomplete. Choose Try Again when sync is unavailable. Your pending work stays on the device.
- A saved change stays protected while sync catches up. Hamtrax retains each pending edit or deletion until the accepted result reaches this device's logbook. An older incoming update cannot undo that saved change while it is waiting.
- A new device loads your logbook before it can import. Skipping duplicates means comparing an import against this device's copy of your logbook, so an import on a device that has never finished loading that copy stops with a plain message and a Retry rather than re-importing contacts the cloud already holds. Logging contacts by hand is unaffected. See Importing Contacts.
- Safety pauses do not drop work. If heavy logging or importing reaches a resettable cloud safety budget, the exact command stays queued on that device and resumes after the server-provided reset. A non-resetting emergency account hold also retains the command, but waits for support review instead of retrying forever.
- Permanent rejections stay recoverable on that device — and announce themselves. A warning notification tells you the moment the cloud guard rejects saved work, and the command remains under Needs Filing with a plain outcome, reason, and next step, even across sign-out, but it is not cloud-backed or available on another device. Cards use the callsign and available date, band, user-facing mode, and activity references; internal ids and raw server messages are never shown as the explanation. A rejected new contact classified as folder hygiene offers Choose folder and requires an explicit destination; a contact-limit rejection offers View plans. Rejected edits, other deletes, and other new-contact errors are review-only and are never converted into creates, so they cannot duplicate a contact. A delete for an already-absent contact is complete and never enters Needs Filing; another failed delete says Contact not deleted and asks you to reload before trying again.
- A local retry is not the finish line. After you refile an eligible contact, its original Needs Filing item shows Saving corrected contact until the cloud accepts the replacement. A failed attempt leaves the original available for review; cloud acceptance is what removes it from the list.
- Last-write-wins. If the same contact is edited on multiple devices, the most recent write takes precedence.
What fields are tracked
Each contact (QSO) in Hamtrax can store a wide range of fields:
| Category | Fields |
|---|---|
| Core | Callsign, frequency, band, mode, submode, date, time on. Digital-voice contacts store the ADIF pair the standard defines — mode DIGITALVOICE plus the submode you picked (DMR, D-STAR, or C4FM) — while the app shows you the submode name |
| Signal reports | RST sent, RST received — 59, 599, or the dB report (-15) that FT8 and the other WSJT-X modes use |
| Location | Grid square, QTH, name, state, county, country, continent, latitude/longitude |
| My station | My grid square, my city/state/country, my radio, my antenna, station callsign, operator callsign, TX power |
| Activity references | The activity program and its reference — a POTA park (K-0817), a DXCC entity number (269), or a repeater (W0ERH 442.100) — plus the activation ID, stored in the standard MY_SIG / MY_SIG_INFO and SIG / SIG_INFO pairs |
| Contest | Contest ID, serial sent, serial received |
| Propagation | Propagation mode, satellite name, satellite mode |
| DX | DXCC entity number, CQ zone, ITU zone |
| QSL tracking | QSL sent/received, eQSL sent/received, LoTW sent/received, QRZ logbook ID |
| Organization | Folder, notes |
| Round-trip fidelity | Unknown ADIF fields from cloud-accepted records are preserved in a bounded rawAdifFields map so re-exporting retains supported data from other programs |
tip
You do not need to fill in every field. Callsign and frequency are always required. A program-bound monthly form also requires its real target — a resolved Park for POTA, a resolved Repeater for Repeaters, or a valid Country / DXCC entity for DX — and rejects future contact times. In the full form that target sits in the Their location or park group and the date in Date & Time (UTC), so open those rows if Save stays disabled. Hamtrax auto-populates date, time, and your location when you open the QSO form. Separately, your account must have a callsign set before you can log any contact; if it's missing, Hamtrax asks for it when you tap Save and keeps your contact in the form (see Manual Logging).
What you can do
- Browse a large logbook -- folder lists show 25 folders per page, and a folder's contact list shows 50 contacts per page. Previous and next controls keep each list manageable while totals, maps, DX summaries, and downloads cover the complete folder. See Browsing contacts.
- Log contacts manually -- outside Bulk Edit, Add Contact stays with Import Contacts in one centered entry band throughout the Logbook, even before a folder exists. Its full form's Folder card starts on Auto-organize and names the predicted destination as soon as Hamtrax knows it. A selected folder shows its title and full ancestor path on separate wrapping lines; tap the card to open the folder chooser. Choose a folder first to constrain the defining fields, or enter contact details first to narrow the compatible folders; unavailable destinations show a reason. Auto-organize keeps the shared manual/import filing rules and creates a missing safe destination at Save. Folder quick-add cards remain available, and See full contact form carries their draft and resolved target/location. Custom/activation handoffs start with that folder selected; monthly handoffs start on Auto-organize, retaining their program and entered date so the date still chooses the month. See Manual Logging.
- Import contacts -- bring in a whole logbook from an
ADIForCSVfile. File Review auto-sorts contacts into activation, program-specific monthly, or custom folders and skips duplicates. The sidebar's Import row and Activate's Import a past activation shortcut open the same importer. Open QRZ sync under Import from connection opens the separate QRZ workspace, which checks both directions and has its own issue review. See Importing Contacts. - Export contacts -- download any folder as an
ADIForCSVfile, or use QRZ sync for eligible existing and future contacts. Edits that need a decision remain in review, and local deletions leave QRZ intact. See Exporting Contacts. - Organize with folders -- program-qualified Hunt contacts are automatically sorted into POTA, DX, or Repeaters monthly folders, and your POTA contacts from a park into activation folders. Unclaimed contacts require a custom folder you select or create. A contact edit can move one contact to a compatible folder. Custom folders also offer Rename, dedicated row/Bulk Edit Move, and Merge; naming a new destination while moving a selection splits a custom folder. Automatic folders keep their program, month, and activation identity rules. You can also pin favorites. See Folders and moving contacts.
- Edit or delete individual contacts -- tap a contact row or its chevron to expand Share, Edit, and Delete, plus Move in a custom folder. Edit opens the full form with its saved Folder selected; choose another compatible destination and tap Update Contact to move that same contact. The change appears after it is saved to this device's queue, then syncs normally. Activation selections lock the matching park, accepted session date, and your operating location; monthly selections keep Date editable within their UTC month. Entered and saved facts are never silently changed to fit a folder. See Manual Logging. POTA activation contacts still show their edit warning. Deleting a contact leaves its QRZ copy intact, and Share generates its contact card. Safely recognized activity contacts show their catalog location name and region beneath the contact identity.
- Fix an activation's park -- logged a whole session under the wrong reference? Open the activation folder in the Logbook, tap its folder-name card, and choose Change Park from Folder options, or click Wrong park? under the park line in a live activation header. Pick the right park, confirm, and the folder and every contact in it are corrected together — if you already submitted it to POTA, arrange a correction through POTA's log-support process because Hamtrax does not support replacement uploads. See Manual Logging.
- Review rejected work -- a rejected save notifies you and points here: open Needs Filing in the Logbook to see a plain outcome, reason, and next step. Only a folder-hygiene rejection on a new contact offers Choose folder; contact-limit failures offer View plans, while rejected edits, other deletes, and other creates remain review-only. See Logbook Hygiene Rules.
- View contacts on a map -- toggle between list view, map view, and DX view for any folder. Selecting a mapped contact keeps that contact, its resolved You origin, their arc, and the complete popup together in the tightest safe frame; closing the popup restores the folder's opening overview. All three views resolve activity presentation per contact, so same-looking references from different programs never share names, pin styling, or geography. Unknown or contradictory references remain visible without borrowed POTA enrichment or an invented origin. The DX view lists the countries and US states in the folder with their flags, counting a contact by its callsign's prefix when it carries no country of its own. See QSO Arcs and Folders.
- Bulk-edit a selection -- each folder summarizes the radio and antenna used by the most contacts. Choose Bulk Edit, select individual contacts or Select all, then use Set equipment to update only those contacts. In a custom folder the same toolbar also offers Move to folder, which sends the selection to another custom folder — or to a new one you name there, which is how a folder is split. See Folders and moving contacts.
- Manage photos -- choose Add photos in a folder's Logbook details panel or its detail modal on your own Showcase. Both show attached thumbnails without empty placeholders and keep Add note and Add link available when those sections are empty. The owned Showcase modal groups these actions above the gallery, changing them to Edit note and Edit links once content exists. The Showcase tab of a live activation retains its photo row and multi-select + button. Add up to 4 JPEG, PNG, WebP, HEIC, or HEIF photos per folder, up to 10 MB each. The photo add action hides at the cap while note and link actions remain available; selecting more than the folder has room for adds what fits and says the limit was reached. Uploads confirm what was added, and validation, upload, or deletion failures explain what went wrong. See Folder media.
- Download per folder -- the one way to get a file out: select a folder and download its contacts as ADIF or CSV without leaving the logbook.