The Arsenal Files 6/The Arsenal Files 6 (Arsenal Computer).ISO/ham/news0217.zip/NEWS0217.TXT

Text File | 1996-03-10 | 25KB | 531 lines

SB NEWSLIN @ ALLBBS $NLIN.966
Amateur Radio Newsline #966 17 Feb 1996

The Newsline Information and Copyright Notice is now published seperately
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NEWSLINE RADIO - CBBS EDITION #966 - POSTED 02/17/96

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   The following is late news about Amateur Radio for Radio Amateurs
as prepared from NEWSLINE RADIO scripts by the staff of the AMATEUR
RADIO NEWSLINE, INC. -- formerly the WESTLINK RADIO NETWORK.  Amateur
Radio Newsline is a audio news service distributed via telephone.

   This hardcopy version is produced by Dale Cary - WD0AKO from scripts
provided to him weekly by Newsline.  It is then distributed to on-line
services, bbs networks and internet user jointly by Dale Cary and
Steve Coletti.

   Editorial comments, news item and all other business should be
directed to:

                 Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF
                 Newsline Producer & Editor

            Internet E-mail: [e-mail]
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                      Phone: [phone]
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   Hardcopy comments or complements can be directed to:

                 Dale Cary, WD0AKO
                 Hardcopy Distribution for Newsline

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[966]

(* * * * *    C L O S E D   C I R C U I T   A D V I S O R Y    * * * * *
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(*      The following is an important closed circuit advisory.         *
(*   Attention all bulletin stations.  Newsline is once again on the   *
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(*      This ends the closed circuit with Newsline report number 966   *
(*   for release on Friday, February 16th, 1996 to follow.             *
(*                                                                     *
(*                                                                     *
  * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *                        The following is a QST

   The FCC meets to talk future spectrum needs, threats to a new ham
band are diverted and guess who's going to Spacecamp.  Find out on
Newsline report number 966 coming your way right now!

(*****
                       SPECTRUM HEARING DATE SET

   The FCC has set March 5th as the new date of its hearing on
spectrum policy and management.  The original hearing date was January
31st. It had to be rescheduled because of the Federal furloughs
triggered by the congressional budget deadlock and heavy snow which
extended the shutdown. At the hearing, the FCC will hear oral
presentations and will allow a direct exchange of viewpoints between
individuals and representatives of affected industries.  The
commission will select panelists from among those who have submitted
letters of interest. They will address future spectrum demand and user
needs, trends in technology, and approaches to spectrum allocation and
assignment, including licensing and uses.

(*****
                       EXPAND PRB-1 REQUEST FILED

   PRB-1 could be expanded to further protect the rights of radio
amateurs to erect towers and install antennas.  This, if the American
Radio Relay League gets its way.  The League wants the commission to
take additional steps to compel state and local governments to make
reasonable accommodation for Amateur Radio under PRB-1 and apply the
least restrictive means to regulate amateur antennas and activity.
   In a petition for rulemaking filed February 7, the league calls on
the FCC to amend Section 97.15(E) to say that any state or local
ordinances restricting ham radio antennas to heights below 70 feet
would be presumed unreasonable, unless the state or local authority
could show its restrictions support a clearly defined health, safety
or aesthetic objective.  State and local governments also could not
impose substantial application costs on amateur service licensees.
   The league also wants the FCC to acknowledge that it has an
interest in the effective performance of amateur radio stations in
areas regulated by deed restrictions or restrictive covenants rather
than by local zoning ordinances.
   The league says clarifying the preemption policy of PRB-1 will help
guide municipalities to enact provisions that make fair accommodation
for amateurs and avoid highly divisive litigation between hams and
localities.
   Under the suggested changes, state and local governments could
apply to the commission for a full or partial waiver of the amended
rules in unusual circumstances.  At air time, the FCC has not assigned
a rulemaking number to the League petition.

(*****
                     VANITY CALL SIGN PROGRAM STALLED

   Meantime the FCC says that it will probably not start up the vanity
call sign program in the foreseeable future.  Newsline has learned
that the FCC will delay until at least mid-1996 announcing the date
when it plans to open the first gate or gates of the program.  A
Commission spokesman says the FCC must first deal with remaining
Petitions for Reconsideration asking for numerous changes in the way
vanity calls will be issued.  The FCC had been expected to announce
opening dates early this year.  Now it could take up to a year or more
before the current crop of petitions for reconsideration are
addressed.
   Ironically vanity call sign application 610-V is now available, but
the FCC says that it will not accept completed forms until it opens
the appropriate filing gates.  That could be many months, or possibly
years away.

(*****
                    FCC SAYS YES TO HAMS ON 219-220 MHZ

   The FCC has affirmed the secondary allocation of 219-220 MHZ to
Amateur Radio.  The action also denies a Petition for Reconsideration
filed by Orion Telecom, an Automated Maritime Telecommunications
System licensee.
   Orion had argued for the FCC to rescind the decision to allocate
219-220 MHZ to ham radio.  It says the 50-mile exclusion distance
between AMTS and amateur operations was insufficient to protect
primary AMTS operations from harmful interference.  Orion asserted
that a 575 mile exclusion distance was necessary.  This would have
precluded Amateur Radio operation in many areas.
   The FCC did however agree with Orion's concern that the amateur
rules do not adequately specify the frequency range of AMTS
operations.  It went so far as to amended its rules to specifically
call attention to the fact that hams must look at 217-218 MHZ
assignments to know what AMTS coast stations are operating in a given
area.
   But what it did not do was what Orion Telecom wanted.  Orion may
object to sharing with radio amateurs, but ham radio will stay.

(*****
               FCC TAKES UNLICENSED FM STATION OFF THE AIR

   A New York City FCC Field Engineer has successfully removed an
unlicensed broadcaster from the airwaves.  FCC Engineer Jud Mansbach
used what appears to be a combination transmitter hunting know-how and
personal diplomacy to put an end to a station called Nasty Radio.
   According to the trade publication Radio World, Nasty Radio first
came to the FCC's attention last September as the result of a citizens
complaint.  The complaint was that a station operating on 91.9 MHZ was
transmitting offensive material.  Engineer Mansbach took a listen and
found that the disk jockeys at the unlicensed station were using
sexual innuendoes and making rude noises.  They were also doing
something that was not all that smart.  They were giving out a request
line call in number with a 718 area code prefix.  That meant the
station was in Brooklyn or Queens and making Mansbach's job a lot
easier in tracking it down.
   And track it down he did.  Using the FCC's radio direction finding
van it took him only fifteen minutes to arrive in front of an
apartment house in Woodside Queens that sported a large mast on the
roof.  And it was at this point where Engineer Mansbach got a rather
brilliant idea.
   Since he was taping Nasty Radio in the van, Mansbach decided to call
the request line to see what kind of a response he would get if he
asked the DJ if he knew the operation was illegal.  The announcers
allowed that their operation might well be illegal, but added that
they assumed the FCC really didn't care.

   "They usually give phone numbers on the air, which are request lines.
When they gave that number on the air I decided to call them.  But the
reason for calling them was not to make a request, but to actually
prove intent.  When I spoke to the guy he said that he knew that what
he was doing was illegal.  He also indicated that the FCC doesn't
care.  Which was nice, nice to know.  Which isn't true of course, not
in the New York area or anywhere in the country.  But, when he said
that I know what I am doing is wrong, a violation of FCC law, I can go
criminal against this guy if I need to, because I proved intent, that
he knew what he was doing was a violation of the law and he never the
less said he wanted to violate the law."  Mansbach

     With that information, coupled with field strength measurements
indicating that Nasty Radio was running at least 100 watts of power,
Mansbach headed back to the office and quickly penned a cease and
desist order.  Nasty Radio went silent in mid December and has not
been heard since.  And while its true that Mansbach had more severe
enforcement options available to him, he told Radio World that his
primary interest was in getting compliance with the rules and getting
the unlicensed broadcaster off the air.

(*****
                            ARIZONA HAM HELP

   A Payson, Arizona teacher is being called a hero for providing aid to
an injured motorist using Amateur Radio.  As students were leaving
school on Wednesday, January 17th, Roger Rohrbach, KB7IPU, heard a
call for help coming over the classroom ham radio station.  According
to the ARRL Letter, the call came a ham who was an accident victim
trapped in his vehicle in a sandstorm.  He told Rohrbach that
visibility was near to zero.  The man wanted Rohrbach to call his wife
and warn her away from the scene.
   Rohrbach called the police 911 emergency number which dispatched
emergency service rescue teams to the site of the twenty five car
pile-up on Interstate 10.
   Rohrbach, who is a fifth grade teacher at Payson Elementary School
was said to be reluctant to accept praise for his actions.

(*****
                            NORTHWEST FLOODS

   When major flooding hit the Pacific Northwest last week, ham radio
was there to provide support for relief operations.  Hard hit were
Western Washington and Oregon where several rivers over-ran their
banks causing massive destruction.  More on this situation in future
newscasts.

(*****
                    FAR OFFERS SCHOLARSHIPS FOR HAMS

   The Foundation for Amateur Radio says that it plans to administer
57 scholarships for the 1996-97 academic year.  This, to help licensed
radio amateurs with their post-secondary education.
   Eight of the scholarships are fully funded with income from grants
and the foundation's annual hamfest in Gaithersburg, Maryland.
Licensed hams are eligible if they plan to pursue a full-time course
of study beyond high school and are enrolled or have been accepted at
an accredited university, college or technical school.
   Awards range from $500 to $2000, with preference given in some cases
to those pursuing certain courses of study or to residents of specific
geographical areas.
   Application forms and information are available by letter or QSL
postmarked prior to April 30th mailed to:

                            FAR Scholarships
                            6903 Rhode Island Ave.
                            College Park, Maryland
                            20740

(*****
                 YOUNG HAMS NEEDED FOR DAYTON YOUTH FORUM

   And speaking about youngsters and ham radio, if you are a young ham
who is planning to attend next May's Dayton Hamvention, then Carole
Perry, WB2MGP, wants to hear from you.  Carole is the New York City
teacher who hosts the annual Hamvention Youth Forum and she needs
articulate young hams to come and speak:

   "What we are looking for are youngsters who would like to get up in
front of what we hope is going to be a large group of their peers and
adults who have come to hear what they have to say.  Who are willing
to speak about and share their experiences in amateur radio.  Describe
what they have been involved with.  And hopefully, youngsters who are
enthusiastic and can convince others teenagers why this is a
worthwhile endeavor for them."  Perry

   With her forum expanded to two and a half hours, there will be lots
of time for a lot of young hams to talk.  If you want to be one of
them, contact Carole Perry by phone or fax:

                           [phone]

   This number is available 24 hours a day.

(*****
                          KANTRONICS ON THE WEB

   In ham radio industry news, Kantronics now has an e-mail account for
customers to get technical support and service.  Questions go to:

                        [e-mail]

   The company says that representatives will respond via e-mail.  By
the way, Kantronics now includes the RF Concepts line of products as
well.

(*****
                         APPLE SPLITS FROM IBM

   Apple and IBM are shutting the doors on their Kaleida Labs.  Kaleida
was multimedia venture and its demise spells the end to a symbol of
their effort to work together.
   Kaleida's core products, including their multimedia software
programming language will be transferred to a development team within
Apple, to be based at Apple's headquarters in Cupertino, California.

(*****
                           NEBRASKA CONVENTION

   The 1996 ARRL Nebraska State Amateur Radio Convention, sponsored by
the Elkhorn Valley Amateur Radio Club will held March 8th to the 10th
at the Northeast Community College in Norfolk.  For more information
you can e-mail to:
                          [e-mail]

(*****
                                GB2RS

   Almost every week, Newsline finds itself quoting the GB2RS News
service as a source of information from Great Britain and the European
continent.  A number of listeners have asked to learn more about this
service, so this is what you want to know.

   GB2RS is the news broadcast service of the Radio Society of Great
Britain and is provided for the benefit of all radio amateurs and
listeners.  Unlike Newsline, the GB2RS newscast is not pre-recorded.
The script is prepared each week at RSGB headquarters.  It is then
transmitted live each Sunday by a network of volunteer news readers on
the HF, VHF and UHF bands, covering the whole of the United Kingdom
and into other parts of the world as well.

(*****
                             IEEE MEETING

   And from GB2RS comes word that the Institute of Electrical Engineers
hosted an international conference on 100 Years of Radio at Savoy
Place in London at the beginning of September.  The opening of this
three day event was graced by the presence of Princess Elettra
Marconi.  Several hundred leading personnel from the electronics field
gathered for this unique conference, which included a series of 30
papers on the present state of the art, including some related to
amateur radio.

(*****
                                   DX

   In DX, PA3GBQ, is now active from Ghana as 9G5BQ on all bands.
Check around 3515 kHz around 0240 zulu and 7010 kHz around 01:15 zulu.
The length of his stay is unknown at this time.  QSL via his homecall.

   Also, PY5CC says he will be on Fernando de Noronha Island for about
a week starting on the 27th of March and on 6 meters.  His call sign
will be PY0FM.  QSL to his home call via the bureau.

(*****
                              NEWSLINE 1000

   Mark Friday October 4th on your calender.  That's the day that we
here at Newsline will release our 1000th newscast.
   Yes, we did say our 1000th newscast and we want your ideas on how to
celebrate nineteen and a quarter years of bringing you news and
information about ham radio.  If you have a suggestion please mail it
to us at:

                             NEWSLINE
                             P.O.Box 660937
                             Arcadia, California
                             91066

                           or electronically to
                            [e-mail]

(*****
                       YHOTY WINNER TO SPACECAMP

   And finally, the youngster selected as the 1996 Young Ham of the Year
will almost get to fly in space!  This, with the announcement that CQ
Magazine will treat this years winner to a week at Spacecamp.  Rich
Moseson, NW2L is the editor of CQ VHF Magazine and a spokesman for the
company:

   "As an extension of our co-sponsorship of the Young Ham of the Year
Award as we enter our second year of the program we're going to
provide the winner this year with a one week paid visit to Spacecamp."
 Moseson

   In addition to Spacecamp, the 1996 Young Ham of The Year will be
treated to an expense paid trip to next August's Huntsville Hamfest.
There, he or she will receive a gift of a commemorative plaque and a
piece of ham gear.  The trip and the radio equipment is courtesy of
Yaesu USA Corporation.  The plaque is from us here at Newsline.
According to Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF who administers the award, its a
giant step forward for the youth of ham radio:

   "We began almost eleven years ago with a very simple idea.  We
wanted to honor young hams of their accomplishments the same way that
grownup hams are praised for theirs.  And we started with nothing more
than an idea and a plaque.  Yaesu made it possible for the winner to
be presented the award at a ham convention banquet.  And they added a
gift of their own.  Now CQ and especially Dick Ross, K2MGA, over at CQ
is adding another gift.  The gift of a week at Spacecamp as a fun and
educational experience.  Who knows where that will take this years
winner in his of her career in years to come." Pasternak

   CQ's Rich Moseson agrees:

   "For a kid who may be considering a career in technology.
Wether or not it is space technology, I don't think there isn't
anything that can compare with the experience that they will have in
the week at Spacecamp.  It's, from everything I've seen and heard
about that place, it's just a wonderful experience for everyone who
goes through it." Moseson

   The Young Ham of the Year Award program, now entering its second
decade, is presented annually to a United States licensed Radio
Amateur who is 18 years of age or younger.  A ham who has provided
outstanding service to the nation, the community or the betterment of
the state of the art in communications through the Amateur Radio hobby
service.
   All nominations must be submitted before June 30, 1996 on an
official application.  Application forms are available by sending a
self addressed stamped envelope mailed to the:

                      1996 Young Ham of the Year Award
                      c/o Newsline
                      28197 Robin Avenue
                      Saugus, California
                      91350

   Forms are also available for electronic download from several sites
that provide Newsline materials over the World Wide Web and from the
general interest ham radio files area on America Online.

(*****

   And for this week, that's all from the Amateur Radio Newsline.  You
can write to us at:

                            NEWSLINE
                            P.O.Box 660937
                            Arcadia, California
                            91066

   For now, with Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF at our editors desk, we at
Newsline say 73 and we thank you for listening.

(* * *  Newsline is copyright 1996 & all rights are reserved.  * * *
--