Short Skip July 2014

July 201 4, Issue 7, Volume 62

From Your Editor Benjamin Straw, KC9UNS

All amateur radio operators are nerds. This is a commonly-held misconception. Actually, only 95% of licensed amateur radio operator are nerds. We can’t figure out how the other 5% got their licenses. Dan Romanchik, KB6NU said this and I think its true! We are nerds its just some get their license from a cracker jack box. News from the FCC is starting to get heavy as of late with hams getting it trouble violating the privileges they are given. as a ham we are put on a higher pedestal than those who hold no licence.

Last may LCARC was planning on operating the 201 4 INQP well we had some bad communications with parties, anyway the preliminary scores have been posted to the INQP web site. http://www.hdxcc.org/inqp/scores.php As most of you know I am an avid listener to podcasts but from time to time I listen to terrestrial radio I popped it over to 99.9 and was shocked that they had SWITCHED FORMAT AGAIN! Its polish radio! It makes you wonder if its going to last… aha who knows.

I do all my stuff for the club using my laptop. I had gotten it from a lawsuit, I had nothing to do with! but long story short, emachines had gotten sued due to a 1 .44in floppy corruption issue and was forced to offer a cash option of $65 or a replacement device. Well I took the replacemant! Anyway, everytime I take it somewhere the damn CD tray opens… WHO uses CDs anymore? I certainly dont and haven't used them in months and so want to pry the bottom off. Let me know if you agree.

One of the Skywarn Yahoo! groups I’m subscribed to mentioned TVNWeather.com and them having a new season for perchase, I’mthinking about purchasing season 2 of Tornado Chasers after going on a Youtube watching spree about Storm Chasing from the The Discrovery Channal https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1 ND_6ay_Xrw I’m the type of guy who will watch a someone review a crappy HP computer for two hours for the hell of it! So speaking of watching spree if you have something cool and interesting please send it my way.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Meeting

July 1 1 , 201 4 Lake County EMA Building

2900 W 93rd Ave. Crown Point, In. General Meeting: 7:30 PM Board: 6:30 PM

Club Event

Sat September 6, 201 4 N9D - Indiana Parks On The Air and Club Cookout

Indiana Dunes State Park - Tremont Shelter 1 0:00 AM - 4:00 PM Side Dish and Appetite Required

Hamfest

Sat July 1 2, 201 4

Indianapolis Communications & Technology Expo Marion County Fairgrounds

Sun July 1 3, 201 4

FRRL Hamfest and Electronics Market Aurora Central Catholic High School

Sun July 20, 201 4

Karsfest Will County Fairgrounds

Nets

LCARC Information Net

Thursday @ 8:00 PM LCARC Repeaters

RACES Net

Wendsday @ 8:00 PM EMA VHF Repeater

NWI Skywarn Net

Tuesday @ 8:00 PM N9IAA VHF Repeater

On Saturday September 6th, LCARC will be having its annual N9D Indiana parks on the Air and Club Cookout at the Indiana State Dunes - Tremont Shelter. Setup will begin at 1 0:00 AM with the contest starting at 1 1 . Fires will be lit just after. Everyone is invited to come out and have a great time.

The club will be providing the meat, so all you are required to bring is side dish, something to drink and your appetite. If you would like to operate as N9D at the park you will also be required to bring a copy of your amateur radio licence and * must be a club member. We plan on operating N9D till about 4:00 PM so come early. As a note the park has an entrance fee/day pass of $5 for Indiana residents and * $1 0 for non residents and this is per vehicle. (* Corrected from the last issue) Lastly I was looking through photos and came across a photo of some from the 201 1 feild day, one in particular is of Mark K9MQ pole dancing! have a look from the link below http://flickriver.com/photos/wv9o/popular-interesting/ Hope everyone has a great month, and hope to see you at one of the next meetings.

73, Ben KC9UNS

In this Issue of Short Skip

2. Meeting Minutes, For Sale 3 - 4. Ham News 5. Repeater Update, WN9Z SK 6. New Hams 7. Portable Paddle, Out Cat 8. Membership Form

ARTICLES N EEDED!!!

If you have anything pertaining to amateur radio that you would like to contribute to, and share with others in Short Skip, we would be happy to include your offering in any future edition. Anything you would like. Hints and kinks, antennas, technical talk, Bob WD9EZB operating tips, public service, classic Dan KD9ARD radio, club activities, etc., would be heartily welcomed!!! All articles must be Joe KC9WCU in by the 23rd of every month. Copyright John K9KIQ rules and permission apply to all submissions. Please send your Shirley K9SAL submission to: Wayne KA9YNB KC9UNS / Short Skip Editor kc9uns@gmail.com If we missed your birthday or get it wrong, please let us I hope you enjoy this month’s Short Skip as much as I did putting it together! know

Meeting Minutes

201 4 Officers President: ................. KB9HO

Benjamin Straw, KC9UNS

Meeting called to order at 7:35 PM

Russ McComb Vice President: ...... WD9EZB Bob Wiberg

Attendance:

1 3 Attendees

Reading of Minutes:

The minutes of the previous board meeting read by Ben KC9UNS was approved as corrected.

Secretary: ............. KC9UNS

Treasure Report:

Treasurer Report read by Jim KF9EX and was approved as read.

Expenditures of the month where flowers for the funeral of Rick Terpstra, WN9Z and INPOTA

Benjamin Straw

Committee reports

QLS: The club received a QSL from KB3MNO that was made on June 26th 201 0 (Field day). From the card it looks like it has been lost in the mail for 4 years according to how much the stamp was (34 cent). (Image below) Repeater: Board will be looking at relocating the St. John 7420 repeater due to Lake Central being under construction the decision will be made at the July meeting.

Net: Ben KC9UNS Reported we had over 1 00 people checked in since we started logging who checked in.

For the month of May we had 66 check ins and thanked Carter KC9YGU for filling in.

Old Business:

Ben KC9UNS made an error in last months (June) issue of Short Skip, it is $1 0 for non residents for Indiana State Dunes. Ben also reminded the members about Sept 6 INPOTA from 1 0-4.

New Business NONE

Program: None

Treasurer: ................ KF9EX Jim Harney Trustee: ..................... WV9O Marv Boetcher

Directors Bill Young ................. N9QLS Ken Brown ................ KE9TC Bob Nelms ............ WD9FNY

Mark Skowronski .......... K9MQ John Gianotti ................. W9WY Carter Garcia ............. KC9YGU

Editorial Staff Editor-in-Chief ...... KC9UNS

Meeting adjourned at 7:55 PM local.

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STUFF FOR SALE

MFJ Hamsticks. I have one for each of the following frequencies: 20 Mtr - http://www.mfjenterprises.com/Product.php?productid=MFJ-1 620T 40 Mtr -- http://www.mfjenterprises.com/Product.php?productid=MFJ-1 640T 1 5 Mtr - http://www.mfjenterprises.com/Product.php?productid=MFJ-1 61 5T List price of each is $1 4.95 plus shipping. He will sell all three for $30.00 ($1 0 each and no shipping).

Contact John W9WY - w9wy@sbcglobal.net ======== Behringer Xenyx 1 204USB - 1 2 input 2/2-Bus Mixer, USB cable, Rackmount, Power cable. $1 00 OBO Ranger RCI-2950 1 0/1 1 Meter, 30 watts, original microphone (Radio is not the DX version) $1 00 OBO Antron99 CB/1 0M antenna $30 2 mobile fiberglass 1 0M antennas with dipole bracket for portable or shack use (New never used) $30 Contact Ben KC9UNS, KC9UNS@gmail.com ======== Ameritron AL-81 1 H amplifier. Very good condition. Strong tubes, strong output on all bands. Amp currently wired for 220VAC. Asking $625 or best offer, pick-up only.

Contact: Marty, WJ9Q, martyd64@sbcglobal.net or cell 21 9-789-0374. ======== Arrow GP52 antenna for sale. It is unopened in the package. http://arrowantennas.com/gp/gp52.html Cost is $45 Contact Robert W9RBC at W9RBC@arrl.org

Benjamin Straw

(kc9uns@gmail.com)

Club Resources

W9LJ/R ......................... 1 47.000 + PL 1 31 .8 W9LJ/R (St. John) ..... 1 47.240 + PL 1 31 .8 W9LJ/R ......................... 442.075 + PL 1 31 .8 Repeater Nets Thursday Night @ 8:00 PM: LCARC Weekly Infomation Net

Meetings

Second Friday of Each Month BOARD MEETING LCEMA OFFICE, 2900 93rd Ave Crown Point (41 .449555,-87.36893) (Across from Gov. Ctr.) 6:30 PM Second Friday of Each Month CLUB MEETING 2900 93rd Ave Crown Point (41 .449555,-87.36893) (Across from Gov. Ctr.) 7:30 PM

LCARC is an IRS-certified 501 (c)3 charitable organization and donations are deductible pursuant to the IRS rules. If you have working radio equipment and ancillary equipment that you can and wish to donate to the club, please contact one of the board members and we will be happy to talk to you about the process. Many companies will either grant or match employee’s gifts to nonprofit organizations like LCARC.Please determine if your com pany is among these and contact a board member so we may help fund and grow LCARC. We cannot accept certain donations, and have to place some restrictions around them (no hazardous materials, nothing we could not sell, etc.). If you are interested, look me, or any other board member up at one of the meetings, or contact us via email (our addresses at the end of this newsletter)

Vol. 62 No. 7

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2

A M AT E U R R AD I O N E W S

SKYWARN Pioneer Alan R. Moller, N5ZCB, SK

National Weather Service forecaster, storm chaser, and SKYWARN pioneer Alan “Al” Moller, N5ZCB, of Benbrook, Texas, died June 1 9. He was 64. Moller and Chuck Doswell were the primary contributors to the development of the national SKYWARN program.

Moller was a Senior Forecaster (retired) at the National Weather Service Fort Worth, Texas, Office, where, the NWS said, he “tirelessly worked to better understand thunderstorms and tornadoes, while at the same time teaching others to responsibly observe and report storm information from the field. He was a voice and a bridge between operational and research meteorology, and thus, was respected by both of these meteorological disciplines.”

He also was a writer and cinematographer, known for StormWatch (1 995), Tornadoes: A Spotter's Guide (1 977), and Chasing the Wind (1 991 ). In addition, Moller enjoyed nature and landscape photography.

Moller held bachelor’s and master’s degrees in meteorology from The University of Oklahoma. Doswell, a friend and colleague Moller met at the University of Oklahoma, described Moller as passionate about public service as well as about forecasting and severe storms.

“He was profoundly committed to that, doing spotter training talks all over North Texas and elsewhere — the best spotter training anyone could have asked for, dispensed with his unique style and panache.” Doswell said Moller “cared about people — all people — and did whatever it took to help them, if they needed something.”

According to his Dallas Morning News obituary, Doswell and Moller started a storm-chaser program in 1 972, theorizing that weather observations from the field could help forecasters. This established the groundwork for SKYWARN, a volunteer program with nearly 290,000 trained severe-weather spotters, many of them Amateur Radio licensees, who work with NWS forecasters by providing real-time observations.

“Moller taught volunteers how to call in observations and the Weather Service employees to work with the observers,” the newspaper article said. “Throughout his career, Moller trained thousands of storm spotters — on duty and in his spare time — and organized them into a reporting network.”

Storm Prediction Center forecaster Roger Edwards said, “Al’s unrestrained love for severe storms, his similarly unbridled candor, his outstanding analytic skill, and his deep devotion to science in forecasting, each impressed me a great deal from the start.”

Memorials may be made to the Humane Society of North Texas, 1 840 E Lancaster Ave, Fort Worth, TX 761 03. — Thanks to Sam Barricklow, K5KJ

King Juan Carlos of Spain, EA0JC, to that it would grant examination credit for written granted an ARRL request for a temporary elements 3 (General) and 4 (Amateur Extra) to blanket waiver to permit radio amateurs to Step Down King of Spain Juan Carlos de Borbón, EA0JC, announced June 2 that he will abdicate his throne after 39 years in favor of his son, Crown Prince Felipe. The king turned 76 in January, and his reign has been troubled by a series of recent scandals that have harmed his popularity and put pressure upon him to abdicate.

Prince Felipe, a former Olympic yachtsman, is the father of two daughters. He’s married to Letizia Ortiz, a former TV news anchor. In addition to Spanish, he is fluent in English, French, and Catalan and studied in Canada for a year. He holds a degree in law and has earned a master’s in international relations from Georgetown University.

holders of “expired licenses that required passage of those elements.” The FCC will require former licensees falling outside the 2year grace period to pass Element 2 (Technician) in order to be relicensed. The Commission declined to give exam credit to holders of expired Certificates of Successful Completion of Examination (CSCEs) or to extend lifetime validity to CSCEs.

The FCC also embraced the use of remote testing methods, allowing volunteer examiners and volunteer examiner coordinators “the option of administering examinations at locations remote from the VEs.” The National Conference of Volunteer Examiner Coordinators (NCVEC) in 2002 endorsed experimental use of videoconferencing technology to conduct King Juan Carlos ascended the throne upon the Amateur Radio testing in remote areas of Alaska. The Commission dropped its earlier death of dictator Francisco Franco in 1 975, winning the respect of his subjects by guiding proposal to permit two VEs to administer exams; the requirement remains at three VEs. The the country into an era of democratic rule.

Commission did not spell out the “mechanics” of testing, however, which it said would Changes to Amateur Service Part 97 remote “vary from location to location and session to Rules Go Into Effect on July 21 session.” VEs administering examinations must grade such examinations “at the The FCC’s recently announced revisions to the remotely earliest practical opportunity,” rather than Part 97 Amateur Radio rules governing exam as the current rule for credit to former licensees, test administration, “immediately,” conventional exam sessions requires. and emission types will go into effect on Monday, July 21 . The new rules were published The FCC also adopted an ARRL proposal to in The Federal Register on June 20. authorize certain Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) emissions in the Amateur Service. The In a wide-ranging Report and Order (R&O) Wireless Telecommunications Bureau in 201 3 released June 9, the Commission announced

Vol. 62 No. 7

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transmit emissions with designators FXD, FXE, and F7E, pending resolution of the rulemaking petition. That waiver becomes permanent on July 21 .

The Commission also made “certain minor, nonsubstantive amendments” and corrections to the Amateur Service rules.

ARRL Making Website Security Upgrade This upgrade only affects HTTPS (secure) pages on the ARRL website, including the estore checkout pages, any pages that accept donations, or pages that allow amateurs to join the ARRL or renew their memberships. As a result of this upgrade, users running Windows XP Service Pack 2 or earlier Windows operating systems will not be able to access these pages.

To ensure uninterrupted service, Windows XP Service Pack 2 users are encouraged to upgrade to Service Pack 3, or Windows 7 or 8.

If you are unaware of what Windows operating system you have, go to http://support.microsoft.com/kb/322389.

If you have any further questions or problems updating, please contact your local computer technician or service center.

3

FCC Releases Warning Notices to Several Radio Amateurs

“Fines normally range from $7500 to $1 0,000,” remote areas of Alaska. The Anchorage VEC has long pushed for the change, citing the she concluded. expense to provide Amateur Radio test sessions to Alaska residents living in remote areas.

The FCC Enforcement Bureau has made public FCC Okays Changes to Amateur several warning notices issued over the past Radio Exam Credit, Test few months to radio amateurs. A couple of the Administration, Emission Type Rules The FCC declined to address “the mechanics” of remote testing, which, it said, “will vary from letters from Special Counsel Laura Smith location to location and session to session.” The involved alleged infractions on 20 meters. On In a wide-ranging Report and Order (R&O) April 1 5, the FCC wrote Larry S. King, KI8NGS, released June 9 that takes various proceedings Commission said specific rules spelling out how to administer exam sessions remotely “could of Owosso, Michigan, regarding failure to into consideration, the FCC has revised the the flexibility of VEs and VECs.” The FCC properly follow station identification rules on Amateur Service Part 97 rules to grant credit for limit the obligation on the part of VECs and March 21 . Smith told King that he was written examination elements 3 (General) and 4 stressed VEs “to administer examinations responsibly” monitored by staffers at the FCC High (Amateur Extra) to holders of “expired licenses Frequency Direction Finding Center (HFDFC) that required passage of those elements.” The applies “in full” to remote testing. “operating your Amateur Radio on 1 4.31 3 MHz FCC will require former licensees — those The FCC amended the rules to provide that VEs for 20 minutes without identifying in a timely falling outside the 2-year grace period — to administering examinations remotely be manner.” Smith said the HFDFC used direction- pass Element 2 (Technician) in order to be to grade such examinations “at the finding equipment to confirm that the relicensed, however. The Commission declined required earliest practical opportunity,” rather than transmissions were coming from his location. to give examination credit to the holder of an She said the Center recorded the transmissions. expired Certificate of Successful Completion of “immediately,” as the rule for conventional exam Examination (CSCE) or to extend its validity to sessions requires. the holder’s lifetime.

Finally, the FCC has adopted an ARRL proposal to authorize certain Time Division Multiple “This incident constitutes a failure to properly “Our decision to grant credit for written Access (TDMA) emissions in the Amateur transmit your assigned call sign, in violation of examination Elements 3 and 4 for expired Service. The Wireless Telecommunications the Comission’s rules,” Smith wrote. “Your licenses that required passage [of those Bureau in 201 3 granted an ARRL request for a operation as described is contrary to the basis elements] will provide some relief for former and purpose of the Amateur Radio Service, as General, Advanced, and Amateur Extra class temporary blanket waiver to permit radio amateurs to transmit emissions with designators set out in Section 97.1 and is a violation of licensees,” the FCC said, “and is consistent FXE, and F7E, pending resolution of the Section 97.1 1 (a) of the Commission’s rules.” with how we treat expired pre-1 987 Technician FXD, rulemaking petition. class licensees who want to reenter the On March 31 , Smith sent a warning notice to Amateur Service.” Pre-1 987 Techs can get “Commenters strongly support amendment of Daniel G.Churovich, N9RSY, of Ripley, Element 3 credit, since the Technician and Tennessee, alleging that Churovich engaged in General class written examinations in that era the rules to permit these additional emission types,” the FCC noted. “The commenters assert an extended communication on 1 4.31 3 MHz were identical. The Commission said current with a station that may not have been operating rules and procedures that apply to expired pre- that the proposed rule change ‘is consistent with the basis and purpose of the Amateur Service,’” in the Amateur Service.

1 987 Technician licenses “are sufficient to and will allow repurposing surplus mobile relay verify that an individual is a former licensee equipment from other radio services in the “On Friday, March 28, 201 4, you were heard by under our new rules.”

Amateur Service, the Commission added. staff at the Commission's High Frequency Direction Finding (HFDF) Center The Commission said that requiring applicants The FCC said it also will make “certain minor, communicating repeatedly on 1 4.31 3 MHz with holding expired licenses to pass Element 2 in non-substantive amendments to the Amateur an individual who you identify only as ‘cowboy,’” order to relicense “will address commenters’ rules.” It is amending Part 97 “to reflect Smith wrote. “This individual failed to provide concerns about lost proficiency and knowledge, Service that the Commission amended its rules to his call sign during your conversation, a fact that because a former licensee will have to eliminate the requirement that certain Amateur you were aware of as you repeatedly demanded demonstrate that he or she has retained that he provide his name, call sign, and location. knowledge of technical and regulatory matters.” Radio Service licensees pass a Morse code Despite being aware of the rule violation on the The FCC said the Element 2 requirement also examination,” the FCC said in the R&O. It also it was correcting “certain typographical or part of this other individual, you continued would deter any attempts by someone with the said other errors” in Part 97. communicating with him for an extended period same name as a former licensee to obtain a of time.” ham ticket without examination.

The new rules become effective 30 days after their publication in The Federal Register, which Smith told Churovich that the incident In 1 997 the FCC, in the face of opposition, constituted “unauthorized transmissions” in dropped a proposal that would have generally is expected to happen this week. violation of Commission rules that permit radio allowed examination element credit for expired amateur to engage in two-way communications amateur operator licenses. In the past, the FCC Yeasu to discontinue production of with “other stations in the Amateur Service.” the FT-897D has maintained that its procedures “provide ample notification and opportunity for license “There is no evidence that the individual with renewal” and that retesting did not impose an It’s been reported that Yaesu plans to whom you were communicating with on March unreasonable burden. The issue arose again in discontinue production of the venerable FT-897 28 was an Amateur Radio operator, as he failed 201 1 , with a request from the Anchorage radio. This is a “nifty” radio that is like a Swiss to provide his call sign as required by Army knife of radios. While I have not owned Volunteer Examiner Coordinator.

Commission rules,” Smith pointed out. one of these rigs, they are quite popular and The FCC pulled back from its own proposal to easy to use.

Smith also wrote Amateur Radio licensees in reduce from three to two the minimum number It can even be run on its own battery power.

Tennessee, Michigan, and Wisconsin on March of volunteer examiners required to proctor an According to Yaesu, There was not much 31 , alleging that they all had failed to comply demand for the FT897, unlike the FT-857D Amateur Radio examination session. The with formal written requests not to use local ARRL, the W5YI-VEC and “a clear majority of radios that has been a very popular model for repeater systems. Smith advised four licensees commenters” opposed the change, the FCC portable, mobile, and base operations. that the FCC expected them to “abide by the I suspect they will replace the 857 in a few years said. The FCC said it found commenters’ request of the trustee and/or control operator arguments persuasive that that the use of three with another compact mobile rig. that you stay off [the repeater] — and any other VEs “results in higher accuracy and lower fraud Sadly, I also learned that the equally venerable similar requests to cease operations on any and quite popular ICOM IC-7000 is also being that would be the case with two VEs.” In a other repeaters by any other repeater licensees, related matter, though, the Commission discontinued. No word on any replacement control operators or trustees.” radios for these two fun radios. embraced the use of remote testing methods.

Smith advised all recipients that any recurrence of the alleged violation after receipt of the warning letter could subject them to “severe penalties, including license revocation, monetary forfeiture (fines), or a modification proceeding to restrict the frequencies upon which you may operate.”

Vol. 62 No. 7

“Allowing VEs and VECs the option of administering examinations at locations remote from the VEs is warranted,” the FCC said. The National Conference of Volunteer Examiner Coordinators (NCVEC) in 2002 endorsed experimental use of videoconferencing technology to conduct Amateur Radio testing in

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4

Repeater Update

Mark Skowronski, K9MQ

We had severe weather pass thru the area on Saturday, June 21 st. After the storm, I found that they 1 47.000 and 442.075 repeater controller was behaving erractically and that there were no voice announcements or voice id's. Both systems remained on the air and were useable. We were unable to gain access to the controller thru dtmf to try to reboot it. We also tried cycling the power thru the remote dtmf link (separate from the repeater system) and it also was unresponsive.

I visited the repeater site the following Monday and was quickly able to fix the controller issues by cycling the power. Comcast was also in the building trying to restore phone/internet service. Upon further investigation, I have found that the power supply for the remote dtmf link and the dtmf controller board itself had failed. The manufacturer of the dtmf controller board has recommended replacement over repair as the repair costs will be higher than a new board. A replacement board is on order and we hope to get the remote dtmf link reinstalled as soon as possible.

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73 Mark, K9MQ

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Richard Terpstra, WN9Z

64, of Lowell, passed away Wednesday, June 1 1 , 201 4. He is survived by his wife, Debra, children Dr. Brian (Logan) of Cincinnati, OH and Lisa at home, life long friends Michael and Beverly Gall, Joseph and Shirley Santianti, and close "friends" James Henry and Annette Carlson. Rick was a teacher for 30 years with Merrillville High School and Purdue Calumet, before taking his dream job as Communications Coordinator for Lake County Emergency Mgmt. Office. He was a passionate amateur radio operator, a published author and loved vacationing with his family in Door County, WI where he visited often with his parents, Richard and Ethel, who preceded him in death. Rick joined LCARC in 1 990 and was the Sec. 1 999, Ham of the Year: 1 995, RACES Officer, 1 995 - 09, ARO, 201 0 - 1 1 , EC 2003 - 09, and Club Pres.

2000 - 01 . RIP Rick we shall miss you.

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Kennehoochee Amateur Radio Hamfest Finds

Amateur Radio Hamshack in a box!

This thing has a lot of radio and computer equipment that can be closed up and moved to another location in a jiffy.

This would be a great setup for a field day or emergency communications on site.

Vol. 62 No. 7

Video Spotlight: Building your First Amateur Radio Station

During this seven minute long video, Tyler Pattison, N7TFP explains what equipment you would need to create your first amateur radio station.

For more information about Tyler, see the N7TFP blog www.n7tfp.com

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New hams are different Dan Romanchik, KB6NU

This is going to be a bit of a ramble, but I need to get some thoughts down about new hams, and maybe get some feedback on these ideas from both new hams and guys that have been around for a while.

Recently, I visited the All Hands Active (AHA) makerspace here in Ann Arbor. Several of the "makers" that use this space have recently gotten their ham licenses—-most of them in one of my one-day Tech classes. I was down there trying to get them interested in attending Field Day, and in particular, in operating the GOTA station.

There were four of us sitting around, talking about amateur radio, the projects they were working on, Field Day, and other stuff. In the past, they had also expressed an interest in doing something with WA2HOM, our station at the Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum. While it was a great discussion, it was apparent to me that it was going to be difficult to get them out for Field.

It dawned on me that these new radio amateurs were just not interested in the “old” amateur radio. Sitting in front of shortwave radios and exchanging fake signal reports with other guys sitting in front of shortwave radios is just not their idea of a good time. I think that if you take a step back and try to look at it through their eyes, you’ll see where they’re coming from.

What are they interested in? Well, one guy is having a blast playing around with RTL SDR dongles. He’s also trying to figure out a way to rig up wireless link to light a light at bus stops around his house when a bus is approaching.

Another is working on a Hinternet-type project. I helped him out a little bit last summer setting up a wireless node at his house.

This is perhaps one reason why there are so many more licensed radio amateurs these days, but yet there seems to be less activity on the HF bands these days. HF is just not where it’s at for these new guys.

One consequence of this is that the old amateur radio clubs don’t have much to offer the new guys. In fact, one of them told me that the one time that he attended the local club meeting, he got such a hostile response that he decided not to return.

I’m finding this all quite interesting. I do intend to pursue some kind of joint activities between the All Hands Active maker group and WA2HOM and see where that goes. They may not be interested in working DX on 20m, but they do seem to be interested in the IRLP node that we’re in the process of installing there.

I’m not sure where this is all headed, but what I do know is that these folks have a lot of energy and creativity. If we can couple that with our knowledge and experience, then I think that we’ll be a good fit for one another. It’s going to take open minds all around, though.

I'm really interested in hearing from all of you about this. Have your clubs made contact with the "makers" in your area?

Do any of them have ham radio licenses? Are there any interesting ham radio/maker projects going on in your area? =================================================== When he's not thinking about the future of amateur radio, Dan, KB6NU enjoys working CW on the HF bands, teaching amateur radio classes, and building kits. For more information about his operating activities and his "No-Nonsense" series of amateur radio license study guides, go to KB6NU.Com or e-mail cwgeek@kb6nu.com.

No-Nonsense Study Guides

Technician, General, Extra-Class License Study Guide Free PDF Version or purchase on Amazon Kindle or Barnes & Noble Nook Download at KB6NU.com/tech-manual

STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE CURRENT HAPPENINGS OF LAKE COUNTY AMATEUR RADIO CLUB ON FACEBOOK. TO FIND US TYPE LCARC IN THE FACEBOOK SEARCH BOX OR FACEBOOK.COM/LCARC

THE

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6

New portable paddle Larry Makosk, W2LJ

I decided that I wanted to try something new paddle-wise for my lunchtime QRP portable operations. The main criteria was that it had to be on the inexpensive side. That seems to be my main criteria these days where a lot of things are concerned. Besides working well, it would also be nice if the paddle was light in weight.

Palm paddles would probably be the ultimate, but are way too expensive and would not fit within my meager budget right now. I needed to keep it under $50 if at all possible. That really narrows down the possibilities, let me tell you. I have a Whiterook MK-33 single lever paddle. It works well and it also fits the bill, but it tends to get a bit sloppy around the 22-23 WPM mark.

I had a Bulldog paddle back when I had my K1 and I liked it. However, I included it as part of the K1 package when I sold that radio to raise money for my KX3. So, relying on my memory, I decided to give another Bulldog a try. I went to the Website: http://www.amateurradioproducts.com/, only to find out that they no longer manufacture the model I had. Mine was the one on a small triangular wooden base that had three tiny suction cups.

They have several different models now, and I decided to go with the BD6, the Mini-Iambic. It arrived on Saturday through the mail, and tonight was the first chance I had to try it out.

I have to admit that I was skeptical when I opened up the package that it came in. It is indeed 'mini" - in fact, it gets lost in the middle of the 1 .5 inch fender washer that serves as a base!

But as usual, it turns out that looks are quite deceiving. This little paddle is smooth and is great to use just as it is, no adjustments were required, although the accompanying instruction sheet tells you how to go about that, if needed. I worked both W1 AW/5 and W1 AW/0 tonight at about the 21 WPM range. The paddles acquitted themselves nicely there. Then I turned up the speed a notch to work EV1 R and LZ1 WR and C6ATT. Even at the speed where the Whiterook goes kaflooey on me, the Bulldog stays sharp, smooth and flawless and had great feel to it. The fact that it was only $35 was icing on the cake. I will definitely bring these along for Field Day. They may be too small for some of our guest operators, but they work great for me!

72 de Larry W2LJ QRP - When you care to send the very least! http://w2lj.blogspot.com

Ham Throws Out Famiy Cat K5KVN. HamHijinks.com

BEEDEVILLE, Md. — Morse, the family cat at the Muester household, is now fending for himself outdoors.

The cat was given its name after Samuel Morse, the inventor of Morse code, an antique mode of communication sometimes used by amateur “ham” radio operators.

“Morse [the cat] has been fascinated with my radio gear since he was a kitten. He would lay on my lap and sometimes his tail would hit the Morse code key. I thought it was pretty funny at the time,” said Ernest Muester, a ham radio operator since the 1 990s. “That’s why I call him Morse!”

A recent event changed his attitude about the cat, though.

“I was in the shack Sunday night getting ready for the Wire Twister Net on 7.227 MHz, but headed into the kitchen to fix a sandwich. Morse stayed in the shack,” said Muester. “I got distracted by my wife talking about a dancing show on the television, so I didn’t get back to the shack until probably 1 5 minutes later.”

When he walked into the shack, he saw Morse [the cat] napping on his straight key.

“I immediately knew what was going on and I might have screamed a little,” said Muester. He still has trouble talking about the incident.

“I dropped my sandwich and frantically ran to the desk, knowing that I had left the radio on the frequency for the net which had started 1 5 minutes earlier. That damn cat had been sending a carrier over the net the entire time!”

Morse [the cat] is no longer living a cat’s dream of food always at the ready and winter naps next to warm vacuum tubes. “I picked him up right then and there and put him in the backyard. For good!”

His family isn’t happy. “My dad’s a jerk,” said Muester’s 1 0-year-old son.

Muester, still feeling the embarrassment of the moment, says he does not yet have the courage to check in to the net again.

Vol. 62 No. 7

Short Skip

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