[time-nuts] PC Time Servers

[Richard Mogford]

I have not been on this list since 2016 and have some new time questions.

I am using a program called “Faros.”  It is for ham radio.  It controls a radio receiver and automatically checks 18 transmitting beacons around the world.  It displays the signal strength of each beacon.  This gives the radio operator some idea of whether they could contact someone in that area.

Faros depends on an accurate time source that has consistent delays.  I guess “delay” here means the time it takes for the time signal to get to the PC and Faros.

There is an editable list of time servers in the software.  There is also a test function that checks time source availability and delay.  The only one that has very low delays (e.g., 1 ms) is called “localhost.”  All the other servers have larger delays, such as 38 ms or more.

Can someone tell me what “localhost” is?

I have a simple GPS receiver (from Adafruit) connected to the PC that sends data to Lady Heather.  Is there a way I can use the data from the GPS in Faros?

Richard