CHIRP-next build 20251108 (Windows installer + source)
======================================================

WHAT THIS IS
------------
CHIRP is the free, open-source (GNU GPL version 3) programming tool for
several hundred radio models. It is built and published as dated "CHIRP-next"
builds, several a month; each build is named by its date. This entry keeps one
complete recent build, next-20251108 (8 November 2025), as a fixed fallback:

- the Windows installer, chirp-next-20251108-installer.exe, and
- the matching source tarball, chirp-20251108.tar.gz (which also satisfies
  the GPL's source requirement).

CHIRP-next is the Python 3 generation of CHIRP that replaced the old Python 2
"daily"/"legacy" builds; the last of those is a separate entry in this archive
(chirp-legacy-20221217). A newer CHIRP-next build almost certainly exists: for
normal use, get the current build from the CHIRP project (see the link-only
entry "CHIRP-next, current build"). Use this copy when the project site is
unreachable, or to return to a known build if a newer one misbehaves with a
radio.

Radios in this archive that this build supports (checked in the source):
- BaoFeng BF-F8HP: driver uv5r.py, model "BF-F8HP" (three power levels,
  VHF 130-180 and UHF 400-521 MHz ranges in the driver). CHIRP has supported
  the BF-F8HP since July 2014 (commit "[F8HP] Add Support for Baofeng F8HP").
- BaoFeng UV-B5: driver uvb5.py, model "UV-B5", 99 memories, 5-character
  names, 9600 baud. CHIRP flags this driver as experimental because it also
  exposes the radio's Test Mode settings.
- Yaesu VX-8DR: driver vx8.py, model "VX-8DR" (also VX-8R), 38400 baud.

Not supported: the AnyTone AT-D878UVII / D878UV DMR handhelds. CHIRP's
AnyTone drivers cover analog models only (5888UV, 5888UVIII, 778UV,
TERMN-8R, OBLTR-8R). Use the AnyTone CPS for the D878.

APPLIES TO
----------
- Windows 10 and later, 64-bit Intel/AMD (CHIRP's stated requirement for
  CHIRP-next; Windows on ARM is untested by the project).
- The source tarball runs on Linux (Python 3.8 or later, per the project) and
  is the reference for every platform.

Must NOT be used on: Windows 7 or 8, or 32-bit Windows (use the legacy build
entry). macOS users should download CHIRP-next for macOS from the project (a
.app build exists for every CHIRP-next date; it is not mirrored here).

BEFORE STARTING
---------------
- The programming cable for the radio and its USB driver:
  - BF-F8HP and UV-B5: Kenwood-style two-pin (K1) USB cable. FTDI-chip cables
    work with the driver Windows installs; Prolific-chip cables often need a
    legacy driver (see the Prolific driver entry in this archive).
  - VX-8DR: a USB data cable for the radio's MIC/SP jack (the RT Systems
    USB-59 or a compatible cable). The radio's own accessory list names the
    CT-M11 MIC/SP connection cable and the CT-134 radio-to-radio clone cable;
    neither is a USB cable.
- Know the COM port (Device Manager > Ports).

CONTENTS OF THIS ZIP
--------------------
The zip published on fubsypoly.com contains the vendor file(s) byte-for-byte,
unmodified.

chirp-next-20251108-installer.exe
    20,082,704 bytes
    SHA-256 165b359e733e163a1e047ea624bd90f528efc23ca7b0bc8fad0c461602504c7b
    SHA-1   a95a26f27fb2629de891d2a14c953094352407a4 (matches the build's
            own SHA1SUM file)
    Windows installer for CHIRP-next 20251108.
chirp-20251108.tar.gz
    2,471,705 bytes
    SHA-256 4342da4e547c745eab3fb69871c9019d80a0ebd4edfebfa171cd06fbe28a5602
    SHA-1   1f42aa3bf65066213c5446143dde70d8c413b891 (matches SHA1SUM)
    Complete source for the same build (Python package, GPLv3 COPYING file).
README.txt
    This file.
SHA256SUMS
    SHA-256 checksums of the files above.

INSTALLATION
------------
Windows:
 1. Run chirp-next-20251108-installer.exe and follow the installer.
 2. Start CHIRP.

Linux (from source): the project's own Linux instructions install the
published wheel with pip/pipx and need wxPython; installing from this source
tarball follows the same Python packaging and was not tested here.

Reading a radio (all three radios):
 1. Radio off; connect the cable to the radio and the PC.
 2. CHIRP: Radio > Download From Radio. Choose the Port, the Vendor and the
    Model (Baofeng / BF-F8HP; Baofeng / UV-B5; Yaesu / VX-8DR).
 3. Follow CHIRP's on-screen prompt for that model.
    - VX-8DR (the driver's own prompt): turn the radio off, connect the cable
      to the DATA jack, press and hold [FW] while turning the radio on
      ("CLONE" appears), then after clicking OK press [BAND] on the radio to
      send the image. For upload, enter clone mode the same way and press
      [MODE] ("-WAIT-" appears) before starting the upload.
    - BF-F8HP and UV-B5: turn the radio on with the cable firmly seated; the
      UV-B5 prompt asks for the radio to be on a channel with no activity.
 4. Save the downloaded image (.img) immediately as the original backup.
 5. Edit, then Radio > Upload To Radio. Do not disconnect or power off
    during an upload.

VERIFYING
---------
CHIRP's About box shows the build name (next-20251108); the exact menu path
to it was not confirmed. After an upload, download from the radio again and
compare with the saved file.

IF SOMETHING GOES WRONG
-----------------------
- "Radio did not respond" or similar: wrong port, cable not fully seated, or
  (VX-8DR) radio not in clone mode.
- Prolific-chip cable with a warning mark in Device Manager: see the Prolific
  driver entry.
- Do not upload an image made from a different radio or firmware family.
  Download from the destination radio and use File > Import to copy channels
  across.
- If this build fails with a radio, try the current build from the project,
  and report the problem at https://chirpmyradio.com/issues.

DOWNGRADING
-----------
Any CHIRP build can be installed in place of another. Saved .img files are
normally readable by later builds; opening a newer build's image in this
older build was not tested. The legacy build (separate entry) is the fallback
for older Windows and macOS.

PROVENANCE
----------
- Files: chirp-next-20251108-installer.exe, chirp-20251108.tar.gz
- Original URLs:
  https://archive.chirpmyradio.com/chirp_next/next-20251108/chirp-next-20251108-installer.exe
  https://archive.chirpmyradio.com/chirp_next/next-20251108/chirp-20251108.tar.gz
- Retrieved from the Wayback copies:
  https://web.archive.org/web/20251117054512/https://archive.chirpmyradio.com/chirp_next/next-20251108/chirp-next-20251108-installer.exe
  https://web.archive.org/web/20251116214447/https://archive.chirpmyradio.com/chirp_next/next-20251108/chirp-20251108.tar.gz
  (archive.chirpmyradio.com answers automated clients with a Cloudflare
  challenge; the SHA-1 of both files matches the build's own SHA1SUM file,
  also retrieved from the Wayback Machine.)
- Date retrieved: 2026-09-18
- Licence: GNU General Public License version 3 (COPYING in the tarball).
- Status: verified (Wayback copy of the project's own release URL, checksum
  matched).

MORE INFORMATION
----------------
- https://radios.fubsypoly.com/programming/ (Programming software landscape)
- https://radios.fubsypoly.com/baofeng-f8hp/vol-3/
- https://radios.fubsypoly.com/baofeng-uv-b5/vol-3/
- https://radios.fubsypoly.com/yaesu-vx-8dr/vol-3/
- CHIRP downloads: https://chirpmyradio.com/projects/chirp/wiki/Download
