Ok, I've got a general understand of AX.25, but I'm having a tough time figuring out why I'm getting this.  I have a PK-88 at my desk, with an ADI HT-204 (Same as a radio shack HTX-204 and an ADI AT-600), and out in the parking lot is my car, with an FT-7800 and PK-12.  (In the winter months, it's my Jeep with an FT-7800 and KPC-2, which doesn't seem to exhibit this issue.)  I digipeat thru the car to get to our Flexnet nodes.  I've replaced callsigns with "tacticool" handles for opsec.    If you look down maybe 2/3 thru the capture, after the => prompt, you can see where Flexnet is polling my station, and my station isn't responding.  Here's the weird thing, it was happening yesterday morning, yet sometime in the afternoon, it stopped polling and I stayed connected.  I figure since the only part that changed was the TNC in the car, I should try another TNC, but it's still bugging me why this is happening.  I wonder if the PK-12 is stripping something from the frame, and my PK-88 is not seeing a need to reply.

Hopefully there are a couple people who understand what I'm talking about. 

cmd:c FLEXNET v DOPPLE-6
19-Apr-17  08:48:11  DOPPLE-4*>DOPPLE-6>FLEXNET [C,P]
19-Apr-17  08:48:12  DOPPLE-4>DOPPLE-6*>FLEXNET [C,P]
19-Apr-17  08:48:12  FLEXNET*>DOPPLE-6>DOPPLE-4 (UA,F)
19-Apr-17  08:48:13  FLEXNET*>DOPPLE-6>DOPPLE-4 [I;0,0]:
Welcome to DOPPLE's Mobile Packet Station. MailBox: DOPPLE-7
19-Apr-17  08:48:18  FLEXNET>DOPPLE-6*>DOPPLE-4 (UA,F)
19-Apr-17  08:48:18  *** CONNECTED to FLEXNET via DOPPLE-6
19-Apr-17  08:48:20  FLEXNET>DOPPLE-6*>DOPPLE-4 [I;0,0]:
PC/FlexNet V3.3g Welcome to the FLEXNET Flexnet-Digi located at Brantling Hill, Sodus,
Wayne County, NY serving the Northwestern Central New York area.

*** Main Menu ***
D - Destination Nodes Available
A - Destination Node Information (LARGE file
19-Apr-17  08:48:20  DOPPLE-4*>DOPPLE-6>FLEXNET (RR;1)
19-Apr-17  08:48:23  FLEXNET>DOPPLE-6*>DOPPLE-4 [RR,P;0]
19-Apr-17  08:48:24  DOPPLE-4*>DOPPLE-6>FLEXNET (RR,F;1)
19-Apr-17  08:48:25  DOPPLE-4>DOPPLE-6*>FLEXNET (RR,F;1)
19-Apr-17  08:48:30  FLEXNET>DOPPLE-6*>DOPPLE-4 [I;0,1]:
!)
H - Help (Command Summary)
I - System & Sysop Information
C - Convers Mode (Chat Room! Commands in Help file)
U - Users Currently Online
Q - Quit (Disconnect)

DX Cluster:
  Connect to DXCLSTR-12 (C DXCLSTR-12).  The first time you log in, just
  answer
19-Apr-17  08:48:30  DOPPLE-4*>DOPPLE-6>FLEXNET (RR;2)
19-Apr-17  08:48:31  DOPPLE-6*>ID [UI]:
DOPPLE-6 digipeater
19-Apr-17  08:48:32  DOPPLE-4>DOPPLE-6*>FLEXNET (RR;2)
19-Apr-17  08:48:33  FLEXNET>DOPPLE-6*>DOPPLE-4 [RR,P;0]
19-Apr-17  08:48:34  DOPPLE-4*>DOPPLE-6>FLEXNET (RR,F;2)
19-Apr-17  08:48:34  DOPPLE-4>DOPPLE-6*>FLEXNET (RR,F;2)
19-Apr-17  08:48:37  FLEXNET>DOPPLE-6*>DOPPLE-4 [I;0,2]:
a couple questions, then you'll start seeing the DX spots!


=>
19-Apr-17  08:48:37  DOPPLE-4*>DOPPLE-6>FLEXNET (RR;3)
19-Apr-17  08:48:38  DOPPLE-4>DOPPLE-6*>FLEXNET (RR;3)
19-Apr-17  08:48:44  FLEXNET*>DOPPLE-6>DOPPLE-4 [RR,P;0]
19-Apr-17  08:48:49  FLEXNET*>DOPPLE-6>DOPPLE-4 [RR,P;0]
19-Apr-17  08:48:54  FLEXNET*>DOPPLE-6>DOPPLE-4 [RR,P;0]
19-Apr-17  08:48:59  FLEXNET*>DOPPLE-6>DOPPLE-4 [RR,P;0]
19-Apr-17  08:49:04  FLEXNET*>DOPPLE-6>DOPPLE-4 [RR,P;0]
19-Apr-17  08:49:09  FLEXNET*>DOPPLE-6>DOPPLE-4 [RR,P;0]
19-Apr-17  08:49:14  FLEXNET*>DOPPLE-6>DOPPLE-4 [RR,P;0]
19-Apr-17  08:49:19  FLEXNET*>DOPPLE-6>DOPPLE-4 [RR,P;0]
19-Apr-17  08:49:24  FLEXNET*>DOPPLE-6>DOPPLE-4 [RR,P;0]
19-Apr-17  08:49:29  FLEXNET*>DOPPLE-6>DOPPLE-4 [RR,P;0]
19-Apr-17  08:49:34  FLEXNET*>DOPPLE-6>DOPPLE-4 [D,P]

19-Apr-17  08:52:01  DOPPLE-4*>DOPPLE-6>FLEXNET [I,P;3,0]:

19-Apr-17  08:52:03  DOPPLE-4>DOPPLE-6*>FLEXNET [I,P;3,0]:

19-Apr-17  08:52:03  FLEXNET*>DOPPLE-6>DOPPLE-4 (DM,F)
19-Apr-17  08:52:03  FLEXNET>DOPPLE-6*>DOPPLE-4 (DM,F)
19-Apr-17  08:52:03  *** DISCONNECTED: FLEXNET via DOPPLE-6
cmd:19-Apr-17  08:52:03  DOPPLE-4*>DOPPLE-6>FLEXNET [D,P]
19-Apr-17  08:52:05  DOPPLE-4>DOPPLE-6*>FLEXNET [D,P]
19-Apr-17  08:52:05  FLEXNET*>DOPPLE-6>DOPPLE-4 (DM,F)
19-Apr-17  08:52:06  FLEXNET>DOPPLE-6*>DOPPLE-4 (DM,F)
19-Apr-17  08:52:06  FLEXNET>DOPPLE-6*>DOPPLE-4 (RR,F;1)
19-Apr-17  08:52:06  DOPPLE-4*>DOPPLE-6>FLEXNET [DM,P]
19-Apr-17  08:52:09  FLEXNET>DOPPLE-6*>DOPPLE-4 (UA,F)

What ever this is I think I need one....

That's what AX.25 packet data looks like when you are monitoring all of it.  Even though most is at 1200 baud, and some is at 9600 baud, it's still reliable and a good solid backbone for digital comms.  The hardware hasn't advanced in a long time, so all the bugs are worked out of it, well, aside from my little issue.    Most TNC's are 80's or 90's vintage, and you just need a terminal program to talk with them over a serial connection.

I've been out of the packet game for quite a while, but try the "CONPERM" command to connect the two "permanently".

This will eliminate the periodic "checking in" packet between the two.

I figured it out, but didn't find the root cause.  What I did was when I started seeing the polling packets, I disconnected from the flexnet node.  The TNC in the car kept sending me those polling packets.  So I knew it was originating from the PK12, not from flexnet.  Figured as much, though.  So, I did a reset on the TNC, setup the parameters for my call, mailbox, beacon, etc, and increased a couple of timing variables to work better with digipeating.  Viola!  It's working again.  I guess either something got borked when the voltage fluctuated when I started the car with it still turned on yesterday, or I set something wrong.

That conperm might be an option, but I didn't need to use it.  I wonder what I had set wrong.

Packet is far from dead.  Next thing is to get another UHF radio (I have a Vertex VX2000U to use) setup at one of our flexnet nodes so we can link it with our other node.  And, also allow me to get into it thru UHF at 9600.

PacComm is gone, but we have spare TNC's and 9600 modems. 

A friend and I used to be conperm'd on 220mhz back in the day. Made comms between shacks awesome. Text messaging circa 1991.

I still have a PK-232MBX here in the rack but I haven't used it in a few years. Out here, things are so spread apart that packet is mainly

relegated to APRS. No BBS's or DX clusters.

We're part of the EastNet Packet network.  Lots of vhf coverage here.  Robust network, too.  We have 3 radio links to other towns from our main site, as well as one more to a mailbox (just a kpc-3+) for retrieving RACES net messages.

https://www.eastnetpacket.org/

Well blow me down! I just searched for some packet in AZ info and there are a few nodes out there. Mainly for WinLink

and APRS but a few none the less. Maybe it's time to dust off the PK-232...again.