HAM Radio 3/hamradioversion3.0examsandprograms1992.iso/packet/gw881216/gw881216.txt

Text File | 1989-01-26 | 14KB | 298 lines

Gateway: The ARRL Packet Radio Newsletter

Stan Horzepa, WA1LOU, Editor

Volume 5, Number 7                                        December 16, 1988

                          MORE ANTARCTIC ACTIVITY

Roman "Charlie" Cholawinsky, VK6MP/VK0MP, plans to conduct a digital
DXpedition to Antarctica during 1989.  The Australian Department of
Transport and Communications has issued him a special call sign (VK0MP) for
use while he is operating from Antarctica.

VK0MP will be stationed at Casey, one of the Australian National Antarctic
Research Expedition (ANARE) bases as Communications Officer.  For the past
five years, Roman was in the Royal Australian Air Force working in the
communications field.

The ANARE expedition is scheduled to last for approximately 13 months.
During this period, VK0MP plans to use an AEA PK-232 to operate in all
Amateur Radio digital modes including packet radio.

The details of VK0MP's intended operating schedule are not yet final,
however, a six-week survival training course for the expedition was
scheduled to conclude in Tasmania near the end of November and VK0MP was
scheduled to arrive in Antarctica yesterday.

An impressive QSL card commemorating VK0MP's operation from Antarctica is
available for contacts with the station and can be obtained from his QSL
manager, Gil Mays, VK6AGC, at PO Box 53, Hillarys, WA 6025, Australia.
Please include sufficient IRCs for return postage, otherwise, QSLs will go
by way of the VK6 QSL bureau.

When available, regular bulletins detailing the VK0MP operating schedule
and frequencies will be posted on PBBSs.

from Gil Mays, VK6AGC

               THIRD ANNUAL SOUTHWEST OHIO DIGITAL SYMPOSIUM

The Third Annual Southwest Ohio Digital Symposium will be held on January
7, 1989.  Tentative agenda includes:

o   Beginner's packet session;

o   Display and demonstration of several hardware/software/TNC
    combinations, including the following computers:  Commodore, Apple,
    IBMPC, Tandy 100/200, etc;

o   History of digital modes from spark to packet radio;

o   DX cluster board by Jay Slough, K4ZLE;

o   Networking, the next steps;

o   MIDNET 446.50-MHz backbone update;

o   OHIONET 221.11-MHz backbone update;

o   YABB 51.78-MHz backbone update;

o   Cellular networking, a new concept;

o   Multitasking W0RLI PBBS software for the IBM XT/AT computer;

o   TCP/IP protocol and amateur packet radio by Gary Sanders, N8EMR, and
    William Simpson, KI4QJ;

o   Other topics to be determined.

The symposium will be held in Thesken Hall on the Middletown Campus of
Miami University, Middletown, Ohio, with talk-in on 146.01/61 MHz.
Registration and coffee will begin at 9 AM with the first sessions starting
at 9:30 AM and ending about 3:30 PM.  The symposium is hosted by the
Engineering Technology Department of Miami University and the Ohio Packet
Council, Inc.  There is no admission charge nor registration fee.

Lunch will be on a pay-as-you-go basis with several restaurants within a
mile of the campus.

Any topics pertaining to digital modes (spark, CW, RTTY, AMTOR, packet
radio, etc) are within the scope of the symposium.  We still have time to
add to the agenda, so your ideas and suggestions are cordially solicited.
Please send them to the program chairman, Hank Greeb, N8XX, via packet
radio @ KC8TW or by mail to 6580 Dry Ridge Rd, Cincinnati, OH 45252.  For
further clarification or questions contact Hank Greeb, N8XX, at the above
address or telephone [phone].

from Hank Greeb, N8XX

                                STRAY BITS

Digital Radio Systems, Inc (DRSI) is about to release TCP/IP (based on the
W9NK Version 122587.33) for its PC*Packet Adapter (PCPA). Running TCP/IP,
the PCPA supports asynchronous KISS TNCs, however, its internal driver may
be used without KISS.  For more information call 1-800-999-0204 or write to
DRSI, 2065 Range Rd, Clearwater, FL 34625.

Version 9.02 of W0RLI's PBBS software is now available from the usual
sources.  The "usual sources" are CompuServe's HamNet, the WA6RDH BBS
(916-678-1535), the VE3GYQ BBS (active when a new version is out at
519-660-1442), the VE4UB BBS (204-785-8518) and Tucson Amateur Packet Radio
Corporation (TAPR).

Besides downloading from CompuServe's HamNet, the Macintosh version of
KA9Q's TCP/IP software package is available by sending $5 or a blank,
formatted 800-kbyte disk and self-addressed disk- mailer with sufficient
return postage to Doug Thom, N6OYU, 1405 Graywood Dr, San Jose, CA 95129 or
Rich Clemens, KB8AOB, WV Wesleyan College, Buckhannon, WV 26201.

The AMSAT BBS recently changed its telephone number to 314-447- 3003.

Version 5.1 of the CBBS software is now available from CompuServe's HamNet.
CBBS is a multiuser PBBS intended for the IBM PC/XT (and clones) using a
single mail and user file that runs under DESQview.

The first issue of WA8DXD's Digital Digest has been published.  A bimonthly
"devoted to digital Amateur Radio communications," its premiere issue
contained a number of articles about packet radio, including two tutorials.
In addition, there were articles about AMTOR, RTTY and computers in the ham
shack.  For more information, write to Digital Digest, 4063 N Goldenrod Rd,
Winter Park, FL 32792.

         FIRST MECHANICAL DESIGN REVIEW OF PHASE IV AND MICROSATS

Dick Jansson, WD4FAB, AMSAT-NA's Chief Mechanical and Thermal Design
Engineer, visited Weber State College's (WSC) Center for Aerospace
Technology last week to review the progress which WSC has made in the
manufacture of the MicroSat spacecraft structure and the Phase IV
full-scale "mock-up." The staff and students of WSC's Manufacturing
Technology School have now completed the fabrication of a number of
machined parts to be used in MicroSat satellites.  WSC's numerical
machining equipment is quite advanced and many parts which would have been
quite difficult, if not impossible, to make manually are now made
routinely.  The availability and experience in using these numerically
controlled machining tools has brought about many improvements in the
MicroSat structural and mechanical designs.  Also, Dick had several
excellent technical discussions with staff and students during this first
of three scheduled visits to WSC this academic year.

During the AMSAT-NA Board of Directors meeting in Atlanta, the Board
approved a Statement-of-Work by WSC to build a full scale spacecraft model
which will allow students and AMSAT-NA engineers to get an idea what the
structure of the Phase IV geostationary satellite will look like.  Although
the first impression is that the structure looks simple, it will not be
easy to build.  This composite structure will contain the "adaptor ring"
which will connect two separated satellites to be carried on the same
rocket.  Phase IV will be "wrapped around" this composite material "cone"
in order to form a satellite.  The WSC full scale model will give AMSAT an
idea as to what the real working volume and contents of Phase IV will be.
The building of this 1:1 scale model will also allow AMSAT to examine some
of the difficult problems it will face when it proceeds to fabricate the
actual flight structure.  One thing which Dick pointed out is that the
Phase IV spacecraft will have plenty of room for equipment and experiments.
WSC has proposed to solicit support from other academic institutions who
wish to fly experiments on this AMSAT satellite.

from AMSAT NA News Service

                             SHARED RESOURCES

I was very interested in some of the things mentioned in Gateway, Volume 5,
Number 5, concerning another "backbone network," this one on 51.78 MHz
which may explain what happened to a friend of mine this past weekend.  Jim
Mellon, KA3IDN, has been the SYSOP of a PBBS on the VHF band for several
years.  The idea of a PBBS on HF interested him and this past weekend, he
opened a node on 10 meters.  Immediately, he was told, "You can't put your
(expletive deleted) PBBS on this frequency." The same thing happened on
several other frequencies that he tried.

The description of the backbone network on 6 meters goes a long way to
explaining why someone would tell Jim that he cannot operate on a
particular frequency.  However, it is apparent that it must be repeated yet
again, that the ham bands always have been, are now, and always will be,
shared frequencies.

Now, I should provide some brilliant, diplomatic suggestion that will heal
all wounds and bring back tranquility.  Unfortunately, I cannot. However,
there is the following.

At a very young age, my niece commonly said things like, "that's mine, you
can't have it" and "If you don't give it to me, I'll hold my breath" and
she would hold her breath, turn blue and faint... THUD!

So, I am asking you to please, gently remind those fellows who get the urge
to tell someone to get off their frequency, not to hold their breath, they
might break a hip when they hit the floor.  Note that I am not advocating
deliberate, malicious interference, but that coincidental, unintentional
interference is a fact of life on any shared frequency. The mature operator
will be able to cope, the childish one will have a tantrum and hold his or
her breath until it goes away.

from Thomas Lenon, K8XE

                           NOVICE NOTCH: CHICAGO

This installment of the "Notch" lists Novice packet-radio activity in the
Chicago metropolitan area.

The frequency for Novice packet-radio activity in the Chicago area is 223.4
MHz.

The following three network nodes on 223.4 MHz are interconnected to area
LAN frequencies.

KK9H-2, serving Winnetka, connected to KK9H-1 on 145.03 MHz.

N9GBH-2, serving Mt Prospect and the northwestern suburbs, connected to
N9GBH-1 on 145.01 MHz.

WA9AEK-2, serving Lisle and the western suburbs, connected to WA9AEK-3 on
145.01 MHz.

Also K9VXW-9, a 223.4-MHz to 145.07-MHz gateway and K9VXW-7 KA- NODE in
Naperville, serve the western suburbs.

Note: The 145.01-MHz network frequency is also linked into a four-node
network in the 220-222 MHz subband operating at 9600 bauds with locations
in the Chicago loop, Gurnee, Naperville and Aurora.  K9NG modems are used.

from Carl Bergstedt, K9VXW

(Gateway would like to continue publicizing Novice packet-radio activity,
so if you know of any, please let me know, too. - WA1LOU)

                          NET/ROM AIDS AVAILABLE

Doug Everitt, N5DUB, editor of The Node NET/ROM newsletter, is offering two
documents that assist NET/ROM users and operators.

One document is the "N5DUB NET/ROM Map," which charts NET/ROM, TheNet,
TexNet and other network devices located in a good chunk of the central
part of the US.  The map extends as far north as Omaha, Nebraska, as far
east as Springfield, Missouri, as far south as Palestine, Texas, and as far
west as Lamar, Colorado.

The other document is called "Using 'Reliable Neighbor' Routing as a
Friendly Alternative to Fixed NET/ROM Routing," which was written by Doug
expressing his recommendations for the optimal NET/ROM routing parameters.

These documents may be obtained by sending an SASE to Doug at PO Box 76452,
Oklahoma City, OK 73147.  Please specify which document you wish to
receive.

                     WESTERN US NETWORK MAP AVAILABLE

Budd Turner, N7EOJ, has just released the latest version of his
packet-radio network map of the western United States.  The map covers the
6th and 7th call districts plus 0-district state Colorado and 5th-district
state New Mexico and includes digipeaters, PBBSs, gateways, and nodes of
the KA-Node, NET/ROM and TheNet variety.  The map and an accompanying node
alias-call sign cross-reference table are available by sending an SASE to
Budd at 412 N Belvedere Av, Tucson, AZ 85711.

By the way, Budd produces his maps on a Macintosh computer using SuperPaint
and he is looking for other "Macketeers" to produce similar maps of other
regions of the US, specifically, the High Plains, Midwest, East Coast and
Southeast.  Any takers can contact Budd, N7EOJ @ W1FJI.

                          NEXT GATEWAY, NEXT YEAR

'Tis the season when WA1LOU takes an extra week to get out the next issue
of Gateway.  Why?  To insure that Gateway is published only
25-times-per-year, there must be a three-week lag between issues twice each
year (instead of the normal two-week lag).  Therefore, the next issue of
the newsletter (Volume 5, Number 8) will be dated next year, specifically,
January 6, 1989.  Until then...

Happy Holidays from the WA1LOU family!

Laurie (Mrs. LOU), Hayley (Li'l LOU) & Stan (WA1LOU)

                           GATEWAY CONTRIBUTIONS

Submissions for publication in Gateway are welcome.  You may submit
material via the US mail to:

   Gateway
   Stan Horzepa, WA1LOU
   75 Kreger Drive
   Wolcott, CT 06716-2702

or electronically, via CompuServe to user ID 70645,247.  Via telephone,
your editor can be reached on evenings and weekends at 203-879-1348 and he
can switch a modem on line to receive text at 300 or 1200 bauds.

The deadline for each issue of Gateway is the Saturday preceding the issue
date (which is typically a Friday).

                     REPRODUCTION OF GATEWAY MATERIAL

Material may be excerpted from Gateway without prior permission, provided
that the original contributor is credited and Gateway is identified as the
source.