K4LCH -Amateur Radio Station February 2010

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By H. Ward Silver, N0AX ARRL Contributing Editor n0ax@arrl.org

March 04, 2010 Even though you might be an inveterate tinkerer and builder, it's occasionally a good idea to put down those hot irons, sweep off the workbench and turn off the test equipment. This quiz is for you! 1) An Arduino is a type of ________________. a. transistor array b. microprocessor prototyping system c. coax connector d. Italian vacuum tube 2) Which is most likely to have a "bat handle?" a. soldering iron b. rack-mount enclosure c. toggle switch d. torque wrench 3) Which connector family is most closely associated...Read More >>

W1AW

Beginning Monday, March 15, W1AW, the Hiram Percy Maxim Memorial Station, will alternate the digital modes used for its digital bulletin transmissions. While Baudot, PSK31 and MFSK16 still make up the digital mode complement, W1AW Station Manager Joe Carcia, NJ1Q, says that the schedule will be altered to give more exposure to PSK31 and MFSK16. "Because of time constraints and the varying lengths of digital bulletins, there were many instances where only Baudot was used," he said. "With the new schedule, amateurs preferring either PSK31 or MFSK16 will find these modes...Read More >>

Public Service

Steve Priem, N0YIV, shows off his handheld transceiver before a ski trip this past March. [Rick Casey, Photo] When of Boulder, Colorado, decided to go backcountry skiing near Yankee Doodle Lake in the Guinn Mountain area of Colorado's Roosevelt National Forest on Friday, February 19, the 60 year old ham made sure he was well prepared: Not only did he take along a rescue whistle, he made sure his handheld transceiver was fully charged and in his pack. It's a good thing he did: When Priem was injured while skiing, he used his radio to summon help. According to...Read More >>

FCC

Late last year, the FCC issued a Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) -- WT Docket 09-209 -- seeking to amend the Commission's Amateur Radio Service rules to clarify certain rules and codify existing procedures governing the vanity call sign system, as well as revise certain rules applicable to club stations.Interested parties may make comments on the NPRM in the following ways: via the Federal eRulemaking Portal at, http://www.regulations.gov/search/Regs/home.html#home, or via the FCC's Web site at, http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/ecfs/. Comments must be submitted by March 26, 2010; reply comments are due no later than April 12, 2010. NNNN /EX...Read More >>

NCVEC

ARRL

In January, the Question Pool Committee (QPC) of the National Conference of Volunteer Examiner Coordinators (NCVEC) released the 2010 Technician (Element 2) Question Pool. Upon further review of the pool, members of the QPC found and corrected more than 50 minor typographical errors and clarified the questions and answers, making them easier to understand.These adopted changes are now incorporated in a revised question pool. The errata list, as well as the revised Technician question pool, is available on the NCVEC Web site at, http://www.ncvec.org/.The previously released pool dated January 4, 2010 is invalid for use. The newly revised Technician question...Read More >>

More QSO's

Fox Hunting

By ARRL ARDF Coordinator Joe Moell, K0OV Click here to find out more about the 2010 ARDF USA Championships to be held this May in Ohio and the Wold Championships, scheduled for September in Croatia. "Geeks in the woods!" That's how Jay Hennigan, WB6RDV, of Goleta, California, describes Amateur Radio Direction Finding (ARDF). Several times a year, Jay gets together with friends for a session of this international Amateur Radio sport -- also called foxtailing and radio-orienteering. California hams (and would-be hams!) arrive from cities as far away as San Diego, San Luis Obispo and Lancaster to these local events. As they set out, five 2 meter "foxes" are somewhere in the woods, transmitting for one minute each in sequence. Armed with a special ARDF set or just a handheld transceiver with a measuring-tape Yagi and attenuator, they see how fast they can run or walk from the start to each transmitter in optimum order and then back to the start, or perhaps to a separate finish point. To help them navigate, they carry compasses and special orienteering maps, but they aren't allowed to have GPS displays or...Read More >>

Rookie

Calling All Rookies -- and Non-Rookies, Too! Get On the Air for the ARRL Rookie Roundup The ARRL Rookie Roundup is designed to help newly licensed amateurs build their operating skills on HF. It is a contest specifically for those new to Amateur Radio, similar to the ARRL Novice Roundup that ran from 1952 until 1995. The Rookie Roundup brings the fun and Elmering of the old Novice Roundup into the 21st century. Three Rookie Roundups will be held each calendar year: SSB in April, RTTY in August and CW in December. The Rookie Roundup will be scored 100 percent in real time through the www.getscores.org scoring system. There are three ways to participate: by using your favorite logging software with the real time scoring support, by downloading a simple logging program from the www.getscores.org Web site or by logging your contacts directly into a www.getscores.org Web page. No separate logs are required -- it all happens online in real time and final scores will be available online within hours of the end of the contest! More information is available on...Read More >>

W1AW

W1AW Announces New Schedule for Digital Bulletin Transmissions Beginning Monday, March 15, W1AW, the Hiram Percy Maxim Memorial Station, will alternate the digital modes used for its digital bulletin transmissions. While Baudot, PSK31 and MFSK16 still make up the digital mode complement, W1AW Station Manager Joe Carcia, NJ1Q, says that the schedule will be altered to give more exposure to PSK31 and MFSK16. "Because of time constraints and the varying lengths of digital bulletins, there were many instances where only Baudot was used," he said. "With the new schedule, amateurs preferring either PSK31 or MFSK16 will find these modes no longer secondary." The regular callup will be made using the mode that is transmitted first. The digital bulletin times remain at 6 PM and 9 PM (Eastern Time) daily. The Tuesday and Friday Keplerian data bulletins will continue to be sent using just Baudot and PSK31. The new digital schedule is as follows: Monday: Baudot, PSK31, MFSK16 Tuesday: PSK31, MFSK16, Baudot Wednesday: MFSK16, Baudot, PSK31 Thursday: Baudot, PSK31, MFSK16 Friday: PSK31, Baudot, MFSK16 "Given time constraints and bulletin lengths, all three modes may not always...Read More >>

300

June 1, 2009 marked the culmination of a project that had begun over 2 years earlier. In a truly impressive display of cooperation between federal, state, commercial and ham radio organizations the means to provide timely communication from trained weather spotters in the field back to the NWS in Peachtree City, Georgia has been restored. Over 3 years ago, the Fayette County Amateur Radio Club (FCARC) learned they would lose the use of their 190 foot tower, which stood on private property. The tower supported the FCARC flagship repeater and the hub repeater for the Peachtree City NWS SKYWARN linked repeater system. Numerous hours were spent scouting viable sites to relocate these critical repeaters. The hard work of David Benoist, AG4ZR, Fayette-Coweta County Emergency Coordinator (EC); Robert Burton, KD4YDC, District EC, NWS, Peachtree City, Georgia, and Captain Pete Nelms, Fayette County Emergency Management Coordinator, paid off. Location, Authorization and Capitalization A site was found on Ellis Road just north of the previous location and would provide the necessary coverage for the NWS. Initial efforts to put private Amateur Radio equipment on a state owned tower met with resistance due to the unprecedented nature of the request. To get the project...Read More >>