QRZ! Ham Radio 4/QRZ Ham Radio Callsign Database - Volume 4.iso/digests/infoham/940550.txt

Internet Message Format | 1994-11-13 | 25KB

Date: Fri, 20 May 94 15:35:51 PDT
From: Info-Hams Mailing List and Newsgroup <[e-mail]>
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Subject: Info-Hams Digest V94 #550
To: Info-Hams


Info-Hams Digest            Fri, 20 May 94       Volume 94 : Issue  550

Today's Topics:
                                (none)
                        Atlas 210X Info Wanted
                       Broadbander BB3 Antenna?
                        Cheap Discone Antennas
                  cycles, cycles/sec vs Hz (3 msgs)
                         Internet CW vs. FSK
                   Man named Loomis invented radio?
                       Opinions on ICOM RP-4020
                          sacred frequencies
                    What does HAM mean ? (2 msgs)

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Archives of past issues of the Info-Hams Digest are available
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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: 20 May 94 20:07:30 GMT
From: [e-mail]
Subject: (none)
To: [e-mail]

subscribe info-hams john murphy

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

Date: 19 May 94 07:22:40 GMT
From: dog.ee.lbl.gov!agate!cat.cis.Brown.EDU!noc.near.net!news.delphi.com![e-mail]
Subject: Atlas 210X Info Wanted
To: [e-mail]

where find this Hi Manuals outfit?????I have an Atlas 210......tnx.

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

Date: 19 May 94 07:45:50 GMT
From: dog.ee.lbl.gov!agate!cat.cis.Brown.EDU!noc.near.net!news.delphi.com![e-mail]
Subject: Broadbander BB3 Antenna?
To: [e-mail]

I've never heard of such an animal! If you would photocopy the flyer and
send it to me I PROMISE I'll send u back a dollar bill to pay for the stamp
and the photocopy that day.....a. noble, N6WR, PO Box 189490,Sacramento,
CA 95818.....tnx mucho appreciate.

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

Date: 19 May 1994 03:36:35 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!ucsnews!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!noc.near.net!usenet.elf.com!rpi!rebecca!albnyvms.bitnet![e-mail]
Subject: Cheap Discone Antennas
To: [e-mail]

In article <2r5qmd$[e-mail]>, [e-mail] (Information Missing) writes:
>Hello all,
>
>Recently I saw an ad in one of the hundreds of scanner/ham radio magazines I
>subscribe to for an inexpensive (around $29.95) discone antenna.  However, I
>cannot seem to find the ad after many hours of looking.  Since I am looking to
>purchase five of these antennas, I would like to find the best deal possible.
>
>If anyone knows of a good source for inexpensive discone antennas, I would
>appreciate it if you passed the information along to me at: [e-mail].
>
>Thank you for the help.
>--Daryl
>
Why don't you try Copper Electronics.  They have a line of good Scanner
antennas, mobile and base.  Their phone number is 1-800-626-6343 and ask for a
catalog.  They have a base antenna starting at 14.99.  Hope this helps!

     ___________________________________________________________________
     |   Ronald Poserina Jr.                 ([e-mail])  |
     |                  *** S.U.N.Y. at Albany ***                     |
     |       Box 1477 State Quad, SUNY Albany, Albany, NY 12222        |
     -------------------------------------------------------------------
          |"A place where anything can happen, and usually does!"|
          --------------------------------------------------------

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

Date: 20 May 94 18:29:38 GMT
From: dog.ee.lbl.gov!agate!kustu1.berkeley.edu![e-mail]
Subject: cycles, cycles/sec vs Hz
To: [e-mail]

In article <[e-mail]>, kevin jessup
<[e-mail]> wrote:

> What really make me laugh is when a ham (99.9% of them) tell me
> how many FEET their 40 METER beam is above the ground.

Crack open a Ham license study guide sometime if you really enjoy that
sort of thing.

- Tim Ikeda ([e-mail])

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

Date: Thu, 19 May 1994 23:54:19 GMT
From: news.acns.nwu.edu!math.ohio-state.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!gatech!psuvax1!news.cc.swarthmore.edu!netnews.upenn.edu!msuinfo!harbinger.cc.monash.edu.au!trlluna!titan!pcies4.@@ihnp4.ucsd.edu
Subject: cycles, cycles/sec vs Hz
To: [e-mail]

In article <2re4in$[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Derek Wills) writes:
>From: [e-mail] (Derek Wills)
>Subject: cycles, cycles/sec vs Hz
>Date: 18 May 1994 22:24:23 GMT
>If you guys are going to worry about kilocycles vs kilocycles/sec
>you might also want to worry about the frequent use of milliHertz,
>as in "144 mHz", "27 mHz", these low frequencies are not usually
>what is meant - 1 mHz is 1 cycle per 15 minutes.
>
>You might also wonder why we usually refer to the ham bands by
>their wavelengths, but 160, 80 and 40m are the "low bands".
>If you are on 20m, do you tell someone you are going up to 80m,
>or down to 80m?
>
>I suppose we should be happy if there is nothing more serious
>to worry about in the hobby.
>
>
>Derek "QRZ the frequency" Wills (AA5BT, G3NMX)
>Department of Astronomy, University of Texas,
>Austin TX 78712.  (512-471-1392)
>[e-mail]

This silly business of using mHz instead of MHz crept in, as far as my
observations go, when PC speeds became such an advertizing issue. The
computer industry today overwhelmingly specify their PC speeds as 33 mHz,
66 mHz... and so on. Pretty darned slow?

73, Drew, VK3XU

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

Date: Fri, 20 May 1994 12:47:37 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!agate!library.ucla.edu!csulb.edu!csus.edu!netcom.com![e-mail]
Subject: cycles, cycles/sec vs Hz
To: [e-mail]

Derek Wills ([e-mail]) wrote:
: If you guys are going to worry about kilocycles vs kilocycles/sec
: you might also want to worry about the frequent use of milliHertz,
: as in "144 mHz", "27 mHz", these low frequencies are not usually
: what is meant - 1 mHz is 1 cycle per 15 minutes.

: You might also wonder why we usually refer to the ham bands by
: their wavelengths, but 160, 80 and 40m are the "low bands".
: If you are on 20m, do you tell someone you are going up to 80m,
: or down to 80m?

: I suppose we should be happy if there is nothing more serious
: to worry about in the hobby.


Just another example of the titanic issues with which we hams must daily
grapple.
--
                                             [e-mail]
                                             Glendale, CA
                                             AB6WR

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

Date: 20 May 94 22:56:50 GMT
From: [e-mail]
Subject: Internet CW vs. FSK
To: [e-mail]

Text item: Text_1

>Where a dit is "_" and dah is "-" and it's easier to type; you merely
>toggle the shift key to go between a dit and dah.

Let's get away from this obsolete dit/dah stuff. HEXly-coded-ASCII
makes a lot more sense. Note how much more efficient this is than
dits and dahs.

44 45 20 4B 47 37 42 4B

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

Date: 18 May 1994 04:58:28 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!news.acns.nwu.edu!math.ohio-state.edu!usc!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!netline-fddi.jpl.nasa.gov!nntp-server.caltech.edu!mustang.mst6.lanl.gov!newshost.lanl.gov!beta.lanl.gov!wolf@@
Subject: Man named Loomis invented radio?
To: [e-mail]

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Jim Buchanan) writes:
>
>[...]
>
>Dr. Loomis was a dentist. If I remember correctly, he used a non-powered
>system where he simply connected his "transmitting" antennae to ground via
>a telegraph key. I assume that at all time a very small potential
>difference existed between the antennae and ground, when the key opened and
>closed, a small current flowed and excited the antennae at its resonant
>frequency. I'm not sure what  he used as a detector, but it did work.

possibly the first case of the reception of rf by one's dental work ! :-))

david r. wolf - wb4vcq

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

Date: 17 May 94 19:09:00 GMT
From: lll-winken.llnl.gov!overload.lbl.gov!agate!usenet.ins.cwru.edu!eff!news.duke.edu!duke!wolves!psybbs!1-151-160-0![e-mail]
Subject: Opinions on ICOM RP-4020
To: [e-mail]

MPD>I'm in the process of upgrading one of our 440mhz repeaters here in
MPD>the area, and I'm looking at the ICOM RP-4020. I'm curious if anyone
MPD>has had any experience with this machine.
MPD>Specifically, I'm wondering how easy this repeater is to modify.
MPD>It does not come with an autopatch, for instance - has anyone
MPD>added a patch to one of these repeaters, and if so, how difficult
MPD>was it?
MPD>Another annoying quirk of the repeater is that it IDs every time
MPD>someone lets the tail drop. This does not appear to be a user-changable
MPD>feature. Anyone know of firmware patches available?

Hi Mike! We just installed a RP-2210 (220 mhz 25 watt version here in
Wendell, NC.

It doesn't have a patch. In fact, the controller is pretty basic
(timeout timer, hang timer, CW id, and DTMF controll of CTCSS and shut
down...no courtesy tone). It is pretty standard though, and adding a new
controller shouldn't be too difficult...just more money :-).

There are a few quirks that I've noticed on the machine...
 #1- IDs every 3 minutes sporatically
 #2- Timeout timer doesn't reset on cor drop, but instead on repeater
     tail drop. Kinda annoying...we set the hang timer to 1 or 2 seconds
     so it wouldn't get timed out so much.
 #3- Timeout timer doesn't keep the repeater off the air while the
     offending signal is still present...just drops the repeater for 5
     seconds, pops back on the air with an ID, and goes for 3 more
     minutes.
 #4- Hang timer has to be set via dip switch in the cabinet...no changes
     remotely.
 #5- Squelch instability. Difficult to keep the squelch set near the
     threshold as it wanders about a little. Have to set it at worst
     case setting...not too bad, though.
 #6- CTCSS decoder doesn't gate the repeat audio, only inhibits the cor
     signal. Once the repeater is keyed, noise, other sigs, etc. are
     repeated regardless of CTCSS. Audio gating still relies on squelch
     setting.
 #7- Squelch state seems to be affected by AGC level, rather than as
     most are via noise switches. Lightning during storms will
     constantly key the repeater.

Repeat audio quality is good, RX sens is good, it has an internal power
supply, and runs pretty cool during high duty cycle periods. We set the
hang timer to about 1-2 seconds to avoid constant timeout conditions,
set the squelch a few times until worst case setting was found (over a
few days of trial and error!), and let her fly. It is rated at 25 watts,
but only does about 20...no big deal. Hope that helps es 73 de WB4IUY

___
 X OLX 2.1 X Backup not found: (A)bort (R)etry (P)anic

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

Date: Thu, 19 May 1994 09:13:45 GMT
From: news.Hawaii.Edu!uhunix3.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu![e-mail]
Subject: sacred frequencies
To: [e-mail]

In article <2ras1j$[e-mail]> Erich Franz Stocker <[e-mail]> writes:
>In article <[e-mail]> Roger Buffington,
>[e-mail] writes:
>> : Then you need to put up a better antenna. The maritime net on 14300 kc
>> : has been around for at least 20 years handling traffic, WX and phone

Erich: I said the above not Roger.

>
>This 14300kc interests me. First, I guess the author really meant 14.3
>kc.

No, I meant 14300 kc - no one is down on 14.3 kc except maybe the US Navy.

>Also, I guess that kc was used because it is supposed
>to show a long term connection with radio.

Your supposition is incorrect. I had just finished writing a series of
articles to be published concerning  the maritime calling/distress freq
of 500 kc. `kc' involves two fewer keystrokes than kHz (counting the
shift key). Although, when I got interested in radio kc and mc were
standard.

>However, kc was always
>incorrect as used because it was always supposed to be kc/s.  A time
>unit has to be provided to give a proper frame of reference.

Then I guess wind velocity given in `knots' is also incorrect since
there in no time reference. But we all know that `knots' means
`nautical miles per hour', just like we all know `kc' implies
`kilocycles per second'. Except for Erich...

>This kind of identification with "the true antiquity"  of radio by
>using quaint "older" terms.

The article I was writing dealt with the history of 500 kc, thus kHz
would have been inappropriate. And as I mentioned, I would rather just
use 2 keystrokes (kc) dozens of time in the article rather than 4
keystrokes (k<shift>Hz). I could pick on you since the above is not
a correct sentence, but I won't.

>Always reminds me of being in the Army and
>being trained by older NCOs who always talked about the good old days
>of the "brown shoe" army when "men were men" and everything was just
>a lot better.

As a matter of fact, when I was in Coast Guard Radioman school in 1976
all of our manuals still used kc and mc.

>I guess the Kc is supposed to show that the poster came
>from a time when "hams were ham" and modern changes didn't affect the
>hobby.  Or maybe I'm just being too critical of a slip.

No matter what the period of time modern changes will affect some but
not necessarily others. I build xmtrs on scrap pieces of wood, use
wood screws for terminals, and get components from old TV sets (no ICs,
just old-fashioned transistors). And I just made a `sideswiper' telegraph
key (popular back in the 20s) from a hacksaw blade. I wind my coils on
cardboard toilet-paper tubes. My rigs reflect simplicity. So does `kc'
(fewer keystrokes).

Go eat a few of Ed's prunes, Erich.

>*  N3OXM                                  *

Oh! THAT explains everything...                                  ;)

.73,
Jeff NH6IL

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

Date: Thu, 19 May 1994 04:54:13 GMT
From: lll-winken.llnl.gov!overload.lbl.gov!agate!howland.reston.ans.net!gatech!kd4nc!ke4zv![e-mail]
Subject: What does HAM mean ?
To: [e-mail]

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Suzanne Rogers) writes:
>This is a newbie question.
>
>I'm sure the answer is obvious for most of you knowledgeable people, but
>seems I looked everwhere -- dictionaries, magazines, books -- with no luck.
>
>What does HAM stand for?

There are several theories on the origin of the term ham as applied to
amateur radio operators. Many hold that it was a term of derision from
telegraph operators who called inept operators hams because supposedly
their Morse sounded like it was sent with a ham on the key. There's
support for this from the term "ham handed". There's also the old
theater expression of scorn for "ham actors" who are clumsy, inept,
and self important.

There is also the idea that HAM came from the initials of three
early amateur operators who had a station before formal callsigns
were introduced. Unfortunately this fails because the initials
don't match.

The best theory I've heard is that there was a popular magazine
at the beginnings of radio called Home Amateur Mechanic that
published popular plans for radio receivers and transmitters.
So people would say that they had one of those HAM radios.

Gary
--
Gary Coffman KE4ZV          |    You make it,     | gatech!wa4mei!ke4zv!gary
Destructive Testing Systems |    we break it.     | uunet!rsiatl!ke4zv!gary
534 Shannon Way             |    Guaranteed!      | emory!kd4nc!ke4zv!gary
Lawrenceville, GA 30244     |                     |

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

Date: 20 May 94 18:51:23 GMT
From: newsgate.melpar.esys.com!melpar![e-mail]
Subject: What does HAM mean ?
To: [e-mail]

[e-mail] (Paul H. Bock) writes:
>save time.  It seems a small thing, but when handling CW traffic
>through the static crashes on LF, using (ugh!) spark, every
>little bit would help.....

     Oops, sorry about that!  If it was "spark" it wouldn't be
"CW", would it?  After all, "CW" is "continuous wave".....I
goofed!  Sorry about that!!!  It should say "...when handling
radiotelegraph traffic..." which covers spark, CW, MCW or any
radio on-off keying mode which uses Morse or International
Morse code.

     73 DE K4MSG

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

Date: Fri, 20 May 1994 12:46:19 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!agate!library.ucla.edu!csulb.edu!csus.edu!netcom.com![e-mail]
To: [e-mail]

References <[e-mail]>, <2rfp8d$[e-mail]>, <[e-mail]>
Subject : Re: sacred frequencies

Jeffrey Herman ([e-mail]) wrote:
: In article <2rfp8d$[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Weuchsowagan) writes:
: >
: >Fine.  Reflect simplicity.  However, if you want your speaking and
: >writing to reflect simplicity of understanding, namely by people who do
: >not know your conventions, you should use kc/s or KHz as they are what
: >you are actually trying to say.  Saying what you mean is always a much
: >better policy than expecting others to figure it out for themselves.

: Will, it's a very good thing your weren't licensed prior to the usage
: of kHz or MHz (when all the literature used kc and Mc) - you'd have had
: lots of ulcers and extremely high blood pressure.

Are these Mhz versus KC people putting us on?  They've gotta be.

Had us going for a nanosecond there, guys!  :-)

73

--
                                             [e-mail]
                                             Glendale, CA
                                             AB6WR

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

Date: 20 May 1994 13:00:50 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!agate!howland.reston.ans.net!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!newsrelay.iastate.edu!news.iastate.edu![e-mail]
To: [e-mail]

References <[e-mail]>, <2rfp8d$[e-mail]>, <[e-mail]>urne
Subject : Re: sacred frequencies


In article <[e-mail]>, [e-mail] (Jeffrey Herman) writes:
|> In article <2rfp8d$[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Weuchsowagan) writes:
|> >
|> >Fine.  Reflect simplicity.  However, if you want your speaking and
|> >writing to reflect simplicity of understanding, namely by people who do
|> >not know your conventions, you should use kc/s or KHz as they are what
|> >you are actually trying to say.  Saying what you mean is always a much
|> >better policy than expecting others to figure it out for themselves.
|>
|> Will, it's a very good thing your weren't licensed prior to the usage
|> of kHz or MHz (when all the literature used kc and Mc) - you'd have had
|> lots of ulcers and extremely high blood pressure.
|>
|> Ask Erich to get you a few of Ed's prunes.

Very funny!!  I know what you meant to say, and I probably would not
have said anything at all except for the idiots on usenet who keep
repeating that CYCLES is the same as CYCLES PER SECOND.  They are not
the same.  Sure, Kc/s was used for a long time, and now KHz is the
convention.  May be when someone said Kc almost everyone else understood
that he/she meant Kc/s, but that doesn't make it correct.

My point above was that simplicity in key strokes does *not* always
guarantee what you type is simple to understand--as you seem to think.
Simplicity is not a word that can stand alone (just like CYCLES when you
mean CYCLES/SECOND.  :)

(By the way, I grew up with the termonology Kc/s, and I have even
heard--infrequently--Kc.  However that does not make Kc correct, and
anyone who preaches that it is correct should have their error pointed
out.  I hope if I would make a similar blunder, that someone would have
the decency to point it out in as civilized a manner as I and many of
the other people here have, until some idiots decided that since I'm not
10000000000 years old that I have no idea what I'm talking about.)
--
Will Turner,  N0RDV         ---------------------------------------------
[e-mail]        | "Are you going to have any professionalism, |
[e-mail]    | or am I going to have to beat it into you?" |
[e-mail]    ---------------------------------------------

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

Date: Thu, 19 May 1994 17:26:26 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!news.acns.nwu.edu!news.eecs.nwu.edu!tellab5![e-mail]
To: [e-mail]

References <[e-mail]>, <[e-mail]>, <[e-mail]>
Subject : Re: repeater slang/lingo.

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Phil Petersen) writes:
>YEah... they say "QSL" all the time (which is not intended for voice
>modes -- especially VHF/UHF) and is improper in the way which it is used.
>
>And the same ones that are always "destinated"
>
>And the same ones that give a "5-by-9" report to someone wanting a signal
>check.
>
>Need I go on....
>
No, I'll do it for you!

The thing that turns my crank is when someone identifies themself
by giving their call and then they say "for I D ".

Of course! that's what their doing isn't it?

Why do they have to be redundant?  I never heard this proceedure
used in the 60's.  Is this something that was carried over from
the "Chicken Band" when they where required to use a call?
When ever I here some one do it I ask if they operated a CB
radio before they where a Ham and usually the answer is yes.

---
   Jack Albert  WA9FVP             Fellow Radio Hacker
                     Tele [phone]
   Tellabs Operations, Inc.     FAX  [phone]
   1000 Remington Blvd.         [e-mail]
   Bolingbrook, IL  60440

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

Date: 20 May 94 21:58:53 GMT
From: agate!howland.reston.ans.net!europa.eng.gtefsd.com!news.umbc.edu!eff!blanket.mitre.org!linus.mitre.org!newsflash.mitre.org!m14494-pc.mitre.org![e-mail]
To: [e-mail]

References <2r8f28$[e-mail]>, <[e-mail]>, <2rc79k$[e-mail]>linus.m
Subject : Re: Man named Loomis invented radio?

>>Dr. Loomis was a dentist. If I remember correctly, he used a non-powered
>>system where he simply connected his "transmitting" antennae to ground via
>>a telegraph key. I assume that at all time a very small potential
>>difference existed between the antennae and ground, when the key opened and
>>closed, a small current flowed and excited the antennae at its resonant
>>frequency. I'm not sure what  he used as a detector, but it did work.

Thanks; a very nice summary. The site where these experiments took place is
near my home, in the Virginia mountains west of Washington, DC; there's a
historical marker there. His "antennas" were very long vertical wires
supported by kites. Loomis thought he was somehow tapping into a flow of
aetheric energy moving through the sky. What he was really doing was
electromagnetic induction, powered by the atmospheric potential difference
between ground level and the top of his skywire some hundreds of feet up. A
true pioneer, he was right for all the wrong reasons.









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

Mike White
[e-mail]
[e-mail]
703-883-7923 office
703-430-8402 home

My opinions are my own, not my employer's.

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

End of Info-Hams Digest V94 #550
******************************