QRZ! Ham Radio 4/QRZ Ham Radio Callsign Database - Volume 4.iso/digests/infoham/940757.txt

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Date: Thu,  7 Jul 94 04:30:09 PDT
From: Info-Hams Mailing List and Newsgroup <[e-mail]>
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Subject: Info-Hams Digest V94 #757
To: Info-Hams


Info-Hams Digest            Thu,  7 Jul 94       Volume 94 : Issue  757

Today's Topics:
              "boatanchors" mailing list? no response...
                Anyone experienced with Cushcraft R7?
                      A Proposed Message System
            Copying CW, and why it's friendlier than phone
                         GQRP Society contact
                     Humorous Field Day Stories?
                    remote controlled ATV station

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We trust that readers are intelligent enough to realize that all text
herein consists of personal comments and does not represent the official
policies or positions of any party.  Your mileage may vary.  So there.
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: Thu, 7 Jul 1994 07:20:12 GMT
From: news.Hawaii.Edu!kahuna![e-mail]
Subject: "boatanchors" mailing list? no response...
To: [e-mail]

In article <2vg4ri$[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Bill VanAlstyne) writes:
>I was given the mail address...
>
>[e-mail]
>
>...to be put on the "boatanchors" mailing list. However, I've received
>neither a "bounce" nor any mail, and this was more than a week ago. Does
>anyone know if this address is correct? A "whois" search on this address
>doesn't show it to be active, according to a friend of mine who would
>also like to get on the list.
>
>Bill VanAlstyne, N6FN
>[e-mail]

Bill and anyone else interested in this wonderful forum:
Sometimes it takes Paul a bit of time to respond to sub and unsub
requests so please be patient.

Jeff NH6IL

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 7 Jul 1994 08:08:35 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!dog.ee.lbl.gov!agate!library.ucla.edu!csulb.edu!csus.edu!netcom.com![e-mail]
Subject: Anyone experienced with Cushcraft R7?
To: [e-mail]

Subject: Anyone experienced with Cushcraft R7?
Newsgroups: rec.radio.amateur.antenna
Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 261-4700 guest)
Summary:
Keywords:

I am in a restricted antenna house, and I am looking for suggestions on a
antenna for HF.  In previous lives, I have tried to use several different
vertical antennas including Butternut and Hygain, only to be very
disapointed.

The Cushcraft R7 has caught my eye, and I would appreciate hearing from
anyone with experience with it.

I am also curious about the GAP antenna, and would appreciate any other
suggestions for good performing HF antennas in a limited space and
restricted envirnoment.

Thanks.

--
[e-mail]

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 7 Jul 1994 07:29:47 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!swrinde!howland.reston.ans.net!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!usenet.ucs.indiana.edu![e-mail]
Subject: A Proposed Message System
To: [e-mail]

                                 A Proposed Message System,
                                            or,
                        How I Intend to Save the World with Ham Radio
                                    L. Gene Battin, N9XAM

Observations/problems

1. The FCC has recently done what it could to assist the growth of message-
handling systems by stating that relaying stations wouldn't be punished for
inproper message content.

2. This leaves a percieved "bottleneck" at the originating station, who must
still examine each message for legality before sending it into the system.

3. Most non-hams are probably totally unaware that the Amateur Radio Service
can legally handle messages for them of a trivial, non-commercial nature.

4. Even if a non-ham does know about it, they are not likely to make any
sustained effort to locate a traffic-handling ham, particularly for a trivial,
non-commercial message, unless they happen to stumble across one at, say, a
county fair or something.

4a. Because of the collapse of Western Civilization, the percentage of people
attending county fairs is prbably decreasing with time.

5. Result: less traffic through NTS than might -potentially- occur.

A Brief History of My Next Project:

I recently bought an IBM PS/2 30-286 and a cheap 14.4kbaud modem. I am having
a second, computer-dedicated phone line installed. Plan 'A' was to set up a
landline BBS, just for fun.

I also recently get a 2-meter rig, and decided, since I have a computer, I'd
get a TNC and fiddle around with some packet stuff. (Plan 'B'.)

Now, to some extent, plan 'A' and plan 'B' collide, so I figured I'd merge
them into a new, improved plan 'C'. What I now intend to do is to set up a
BBS system, but not just _any_old_ BBS system. Instead, I envision the
following:

Local Joe College Student has just got an 'A' on his Chemistry mid-terms.
He'd like to brag to his uncle, who lives 1000 miles away, but Joe, being
a typical poor starving college student can't really afford to pay to send
such a trivial message via commercial means. (Insert standard justification
for handling Joe's message via Ham radio here...) So, Joe uses his school
computer account to dial out to my BBS, where he is presented with a
menu-driven, digitzed, lineal descendant of the ARRL numbered, prepackaged
message forms. Because my system allows him to compose an individualized
message (one from column A, two from column B, etc.) from all of the pre-
programmed pieces, he quickly formats his request, fills in the "To" and
"From" fields, and then selects "Save and Transmit". Later that day, or the
next, I perform my routine BBS maintenance, via a cleverly designed sysop
interface that allows me to 1) archive all request messages, 2) review
any message I care to, and then, at the push of a key, 3) connect to the
local packet digipeater (or whatever), and upload all my outgoing messages
safely on their way to the NTS. Note the following: I am _safe_ because the
system only allows legal, non-obscene "trivial" messages. I remain legally
in control of the transmission (none of this confusing "Reverse Autopatch,
whose in control" stuff). If I'm paranoid, I can always veto any message,
but, with a well-written message-composition "door" that really shouldn't
be needed.

Results:

Joe, happy "customer" of ham radio tells all his friends. Comes finals week
and I am buried under requests from kids wanting to send perfectly legal,
trivial messages to their folks and friends. Since hundreds of other hams in
college towns are providing similar services all across the nation, NTS is
in danger of being swamped from traffic overload. In desperation, the ARRL
petitions the FCC to vastly increase the spectrum of the ham bands to prevent
the "imminent collapse of the airwaves", and the FCC, seeing how valuable
and desired a service to the public ham radio is, grants huge extra
spectrum. I go down in history as the savior of ham radio and everone lives
happily ever after. Also, since all the poor freshmen who have never been
away from home before can now cheaply and easily keep in touch with their
folks, friends, and home-town roots, I strike yet another blow against the
disintegration of the family and the collapse of Western Civilization!
Pretty neat, huh?

P.S. If there are setups like this already in operation, could someone
point me to some references so's I won't have to write the needed BBS
doors? Tnx.

Morale:

I'm perfectly happy to save the world, but I'd rather not have to write
the software to do so, unless I really gotta.

P.P.S. Note that I don't _really_ solve the problems presented in items 1 and
2 above, but solve a similar, related problem instead. This is called a
"paradigm shift" and is covered in Creativity 101. I think Ham Radio _needs_
some paradigm shifts right about now. Sorry to get serious on ya.

P.P.P.S. I left out the smileys 'cause I'm not so sure which part I'm serious
about. Really, although I haven't seen any system like this described (which
isn't saying much since I haven't really looked real hard) I'd be somewhat
surprised to find that it _hasn't_ been done. I'd really like to set something
like this up, so if anyone knows if it _has_ been done, point me in the right
direction. Flames will be ignored.

--
Gene Battin, N9XAM
[e-mail]

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 06 Jul 94 20:48:51 GMT
From: spcuna!starcomm.overleaf.com!n2ayj![e-mail]
Subject: Copying CW, and why it's friendlier than phone
To: [e-mail]

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] writes:

>Try this?   QRT LID, NET HR DLY
>
>I'm sure you thought of this didn't you Scott?  Says the same thing and saves
>a lot of time.  Of course without the comma you'd think there was a LID net
>going on daily.  he hehe.  Yeah, imagine that, a LID net.

Don't listen to 2m while traveling through NYC metro much, do you? :-)

I must concur that when "coded" consistently, CW QSOs can be very concise
and friendly. Unfortunately, the Elmers ( Elmer? What's an Elmer?)
don't seem to be passing along the time-honored abbreviations and the
Q code has migrated to FM. Or is it that the new breed of operator doesn't
LISTEN and makes up a new CW language as he goes along? I can't tell you
how many times I've sent things like TU FER CALL UR 5NN HR IN NJ K
and the response was "..--.." or worse, "Thank you for returning my CQ.
My QTH here is in North Weedleheimer and the weather is cloudy and my name is
Schlemozzle." And of course the code was

DAAAAAH            DIT  DIT  DIT  DIT                  DIT  DAAAAAAH...

(I KNOW it takes a while for a fist to develop; mine did, and I'm still not
where I want to be. But, c'mon...)

Having been the new guy on the air, I try to be patient and introduce these
folks to shorthand, but it's frustrating. I don't see near as many newbies
getting the personal attention in code I did when I first started. :-(
(One such guide was N2XJ, who taught me how to get "a dozen decent dits"
out of my bug; you've no idea how that helped my straight key fist.)

73 ES CUL
--
Stan Olochwoszcz, N2AYJ - [e-mail]
"Please keep your seat belt securely fastened, keep hands and feet inside the
car at all times, secure loose items, exit to your right, and enjoy your day at
SixFlagsDisneyKing's GreatMagicDominionIsland BerryFarmGardensParkWorldLand."

------------------------------

Date: 7 Jul 1994 09:48:40 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!agate!howland.reston.ans.net!usenet.ins.cwru.edu!cleveland.Freenet.Edu![e-mail]
Subject: GQRP Society contact
To: [e-mail]

Is there someone from GQRP around who could have some info sent
to me?

Bill
.

--
Bill "the Rev" Graham - "May You NEVER Thirst!"
email to: [e-mail]
ampr: [e-mail]  (but I'm in Germany (DA1WG), honest!)
"My head hurts, my feet stink and I don't love Jesus!"- J. Buffett

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 06 Jul 94 22:47:12 GMT
From: spcuna!starcomm.overleaf.com!n2ayj![e-mail]
Subject: Humorous Field Day Stories?
To: [e-mail]

It was on one of my first Field Days with a NNJ radio club.
There was a faction within the club (isn't there always?) that had a
particularly dominant Practical Joke gene. This was about the time the
'A' 2x1 calls were coming out, and there was some confusion as to what
was legit and what was not. Well, W*2*** decided this was too good to pass up,
so he became "RG8U, portable W2", with just a hint of not identifiable accent.

The real pile-ups should have been so good!

(WARNING: Do not try this at home, kids! False IDs are illegal.)

--
Stan Olochwoszcz, N2AYJ - [e-mail]
"Please keep your seat belt securely fastened, keep hands and feet inside the
car at all times, secure loose items, exit to your right, and enjoy your day at
SixFlagsDisneyKing's GreatMagicDominionIsland BerryFarmGardensParkWorldLand."

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 7 Jul 1994 05:57:45 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!library.ucla.edu!europa.eng.gtefsd.com!uhog.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu![e-mail]
Subject: remote controlled ATV station
To: [e-mail]

I am wondering if anyone on this newsgroup has operated a remotely
controlled ATV station (I noticed in rec.models.rc that there is
quite a bit of videocar and videoplane activity, though they were
mostly using small video transmitters that need no license).

Some of the catalogs I have ordered (SUPERCIRCUITS AND PC ELECTRONICS)
feature ATV transmitters that they have designed for use in
radio-controlled cars or planes.  I was wondering if it is necessary
to have the car broadcast the user's call sign, or if the whole setup
falls under the class of `remote control toy' which do not require call
sign broadcast, even though it is really a remote control toy with
confirmation (e.g. full duplex communication is taking place).

Also, I was wondering if anyone has tried SUPERCIRCUITS products, as they
sell 3 different systems that appear suitable for my project:
1.  A 915 MHz 10w linear amplifier for use with the `Rabbit' or Retocon
    FCC approved video link that normally does not need a license, but
    presumably with their 10 watt amplifier falls under a ham license.
    If I got this product, might I want to change the freq. slightly
    so as not to bother anyone who is using a 915 MHz link in their home???
2.  A 439.25 MHz 2w ATV transmitter and downconverter.
3.  A 1 watt 1.2 GHz FM-ATV video link.

I was wondering which of these would likely give me the best performance
in an urban or indoor environment surrouned by hundreds of computers
and other heavy machinery (e.g. something that could get nice clean video
from the basement to the fourth floor of a typical building, without
any dropouts as the transmitter and receiver are moved around).

[e-mail]
  N1NLF

------------------------------

Date: 7 Jul 1994 07:05:21 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!agate!darkstar.UCSC.EDU!nic.scruz.net![e-mail]
To: [e-mail]

References <[e-mail]>, <[e-mail]>, <[e-mail]>ª
Subject : Re: CW - THE ONLY MODE!

In article <[e-mail]>, [e-mail] (JJ Martin)
says:

[deletions...]
>
>Wonder what others think here...wouldn't it be best to learn code by head copy
>and not paper & pencil copy?  I know Luck alluded to using a computer and
>your favorite word processor, but then you would have to know how to type also.
>The COVOX idea seems sound enough though.  But looking back, I wish I had been
>taught to copy without the aid of any external memory storage devices, other
>than for maybe jotting down notes for the sake of QSO continuity or something
>like that.  Those of us who learned code the "old fashioned way" pencil & paper
>took a lot of hits when we'd miss a character.  Later we learned how to just
>press on past those missed characters.  I wonder how much less time would have
>been involved in getting the speed up to say 25 wpm or so if we had not gone
>that route?
>

I too started learning code (teaching myself, actually) using pen and paper. (I
never have been able to tolerate using a pencil. Too scratchy.) As a Novice, I
dutifully wrote down everything that was being sent to me, and after I had copied
it all down, I would go back through it, and draw little lines between the words,
and read them back to myself. But you can do that at 5WPM. When you start trying to
do it at 15WPM, or 20WPM, then it gets kinda wild.

Anyway, this brought to mind my "enlightenment experience" about copying CW...

It was about 1964, and I had just gotten my General. I was attending a meeting of
the Rochester (NY) Amateur Radio Association, and the guest speaker was Mabel
Rager, W2RUF. During the sixties, and for many decades before that, she was a
mainstay on the NTS (National Traffic System), always 100% CW; she could (and did)
copy 35-40WPM plus, on paper without error, for hours on end. But, interestingly
enough, her talk that evening was about the _other_ kind of CW operation, basic
ragchewing. She couldn't imagine why anyone would want to write all that stuff
down, like some kind of court stenographer! Well, I was pretty awed by Mabel, and
she made head-copying sound so easy and so logical, I started trying to do it. It
was hard at first, but within just a week or two, I found that I was starting to
accomplish it with less difficulty. And it got easier and easier the more I did it.

Thing is, it's pretty hard to hold it all in your head at 5WPM, or even 10WPM. But
as you start copying faster, you start hearing whole words, not just letters. It
actually starts to get like a _language_, and you find yourself hearing the sounds
of _words_. Often, unfamiliar words will have to be assembled mentally out of their
constituent letters, but this becomes easy, too, with practice.

The other interesting thing about this approach is that I've never "forgotten" the
code, even though I've been off the air HF/CW-wise for quite a few years. I can
still copy 25-30WPM in my head. I think there may be a threshold you pass when it
starts to get like a real language. You wouldn't forget how to speak English if you
lived in China for five or ten years, would you? Of course not.

So it seems to me that it's just a matter of learning a different way, and
practicing it a lot. Maybe there are certain kinds of brains that can do it easier,
but I've seen no evidence of that. (I also think there is a value to being able to
take written copy well, too. Why limit yourself?)

73,
Bill VanAlstyne N6FN
[e-mail]

------------------------------

End of Info-Hams Digest V94 #757
******************************