QRZ! Ham Radio 5/QRZ Ham Radio Callsign Database - Volume 5.iso/digests/infoham/940777.txt

Internet Message Format | 1994-11-13 | 24.7 KB

Date: Tue, 12 Jul 94 03:07:11 PDT
From: Info-Hams Mailing List and Newsgroup <[e-mail]>
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Subject: Info-Hams Digest V94 #777
To: Info-Hams


Info-Hams Digest            Tue, 12 Jul 94       Volume 94 : Issue  777

Today's Topics:
                       Anyone USE DTMF Paging ?
                          Atlanta Hamfest???
                      CW: Complete the Sentence
                         Does CW as a pre-req
         FCC Delays now at 17 weeks!  PLEASE READ!!! (2 msgs)
          HTX-202 S meter - What does it measure during TX?
                        IARU Contest (2 msgs)
                Letter to Washington about FCC delays
                     QSL addresses - please help
What sends COMMAS on CW & very high power in Bowie, MD area? (2 msgs)
                 Where does the name "ham" originate?
                        which Ringo do I buy?

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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: 11 Jul 1994 22:18:47 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!dog.ee.lbl.gov!agate!![e-mail]
Subject: Anyone USE DTMF Paging ?
To: [e-mail]

    IMHO, and you can precede everything I say with that, the paging function
    is only useful if you know you're in a situation that warrants it, such
    as volunteer event communications or sometime when you're expecting a
    call on a crowded frequency.  I don't use it because it's too restrictive
    for me.  I enjoy listening in and responding occasionally to all
    conversations.  If a paging function allowed the use of subtones to cause
    an alert beep, or a data burst in the case of some radios, then normal
    comms could be used in the interim.  Besides, I do listen for my call
    sign when the radio is on.

Another reason to use some sort of squelch mechanism is when you're in an
environment where idle chatter is not appreciated.  My partner finds the
radio quite irritating (in part as a reaction to the operating habits of
one particular operator, a repeater trustee) and i don't always want to
wear a headset mike.  I will ask that people either use a specific PL
(tone squelch) or rather than paging, ordinary code squelch, in part as
there is no standardized method of paging on 2m/440.  That may mean going
simplex if the repeater(s) you prefer are not compatible.  I usually enjoy
listening as well, but try to be courteous to those around me, and on the
infrequent times i use public transit, i am required by local law to use
a headset or some kind of squelch mechanism.

    page enabled, I can't hear what's going on so I don't know if I'm
    stepping on another QSO in progress.  Again, these are only my views and
    should be taken with lots of salt.

Right, you need to turn off tone/code squelch before transmitting!

    You'll find that any repeater that is intelligent or has an autopatch
    will not pass tones.

In my area, most pass through neither DTMF for code squelch or CTSS for
tone squelch.  Hence you need to use simplex or find a suitable repeater
and/or squelch mechanism.

Repeater controller designers:  Please think about a DTMF sequence or CTSS
tone that would cause disable interpretation of such codes until carrier
drops and pass these thru so such mechanisms code be used.

Everyone else in metropolitan areas:  Consider using a commercial paging
service instead and hope those who want to reach you who don't have phones
nearby can use an autopatch to reach you.  Page with a frequency instead of
(or in addtion to) a phone number, many services will let you use '*' to
indicate the decimal point.

    I guess that, in certain situations, paging could be useful, but because
    paging is slightly different for each radio (none of mine can page
    another), all parties involved need to have the same radio, at least the
    same brand.

I find code squelch serves many of the same purposes, and since it used for
access control on selected repeaters, the HT manufactures have had to do
that reasonably compatibly.
                    -- KD6PAG

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

Date: 11 Jul 94 20:09:35 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!swrinde!emory!hubcap.clemson.edu!hubcap![e-mail]
Subject: Atlanta Hamfest???
To: [e-mail]

  I understand that it is Saturday and Sunday, July 23-24 at the Cobb
Galleria Center, which is near Cumberland Mall.

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

Date: 11 Jul 1994 19:36:24 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!usc!howland.reston.ans.net!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!newsfeed.ksu.ksu.edu!moe.ksu.ksu.edu!news.mid.net!crcnis1.unl.edu!unlinfo.unl.edu![e-mail]
Subject: CW: Complete the Sentence
To: [e-mail]

Don Montgomery ([e-mail]) wrote:
  (Stuff deleted)

: BENS BEST BENT _____

: what's the last word?

: Anyone know any more?

: Don K6LTS
: [e-mail]


...WIRE...?

Greg WB0RTK

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

Date: 11 Jul 1994 19:55:31 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!swrinde!howland.reston.ans.net!europa.eng.gtefsd.com!ceylon!news2.near.net!info-server.bbn.com!news![e-mail]
Subject: Does CW as a pre-req
To: [e-mail]

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Cecil A Moore) writes:
   JS>Because the IRU treaty that governs ham radio operations worldwide
   JS>forbids it for now.  Until the treaty is changed, knowledge of morse
   JS>code is required to access frequencies below 30MHz.

   The Japanese don't seem to have any trouble with the treaty. All it
   would take is for the US to tell the other nations that we are not
   going to honor it anymore... that's what the Japanese did.

You forget to mention that the no-code licenses issued in Japan for HF
are restricted to domestic contacts and low power, if I'm not
mistaken.

    /JBL  KD1ON

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

Date: 11 Jul 1994 19:28:20 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!library.ucla.edu!csulb.edu!nic-nac.CSU.net!usc!howland.reston.ans.net!europa.eng.gtefsd.com!news.umbc.edu!haven.umd.edu!cville-srv.wam.umd.edu![e-mail]
Subject: FCC Delays now at 17 weeks!  PLEASE READ!!!
To: [e-mail]

To all of you who are awaiting licenses from the FCC:

This word from my buddy John Creel, WB3GXW, the contact for Laurel, MD VEC:

DO NOT CALL THE FCC FOR INFORMATION ON YOUR LICENSE STATUS!
DO NOT CALL THE FCC FOR INFORMATION ON YOUR LICENSE STATUS!
DO NOT CALL THE FCC FOR INFORMATION ON YOUR LICENSE STATUS!

He said that upon his tour of the FCC license processing facility last week,
they now have SIX computer terminals, but only ONE person processing
licenses (this is, sadly, true).  The FCC may actually consider volunteers
at some point, but there are certain legalities involved with this that
have not been circumvented yet.

He also said that the FCC is receiving upwards of 50 calls a DAY!  And that
in the time it takes to receive a phone call, TWO licenses could be proces-
sed!  The backlog is now at 15,000 Form 610s!!!

If your application has taken over 26 weeks, contact your testing team, or
your VEC - but let THEM call the FCC, if necessary.

Supposedly, the delay is growing BECAUSE so much time is being spent on
fielding these phone calls (guess who answers them?  The person doing the
data entry, who has to leave the computer to get the damned phone!).

I do have a question though - haven't they ever heard of answering machines?

PLEASE HEED THIS MESSAGE!  PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE be patient.  Thank you.

--
73,                            _________   _________  The
                            \ /  Long   Original
Scott Rosenfeld  Amateur Radio NF3I  Burtonsville, MD     |   Live    $5.00
  WAC-CW/SSB  WAS  DXCC - 125 QSLed on dipoles __________| Dipoles! Antenna!

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

Date: 11 Jul 1994 20:52:19 GMT
From: pa.dec.com!src.dec.com!src.dec.com![e-mail]
Subject: FCC Delays now at 17 weeks!  PLEASE READ!!!
To: [e-mail]

I am going to forward this message to my Senators and Congrespeople. I suggest
everyone else with a stake in getting a license do the same. Leave the FCC alone
and bug their boss! With all the intractable problems legislators have to deal with,
they should be delighted to take on such a simple problem as beaurocratic
mismanagement.

Regards,
Ira

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

Date: 11 Jul 1994 22:17:46 GMT
From: unix.sri.com!headwall.Stanford.EDU!CS.Stanford.EDU![e-mail]
Subject: HTX-202 S meter - What does it measure during TX?
To: [e-mail]

Hi,
I have an HTX-202 VHF HT and was wondering what the signal strength meter
measures during transmit. The owners manual does not discuss the meter
at all - The local radio shack does not know either. The meter is
the row of lcd tombstones at the bottom of the LCD display.

I assume the conventions used wrt to this meter by the HTX-202 are similar
to other HT's.

Tnx

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

Date: 11 Jul 1994 16:40:20 GMT
From: news1.hh.ab.com!icd.ab.com![e-mail]
Subject: IARU Contest
To: [e-mail]

bad in northern Ohio.  20 Meters is where we did the best.  We made 91
contacts of these 7 HQ multipliers.  This was about 8 hours of working the
contest.

Please E-Mail me at above address!


73,


Brian (N8RPA)

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

Date: 11 Jul 1994 19:17:10 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!swrinde!gatech!news-feed-1.peachnet.edu!news.duke.edu!eff!news.umbc.edu!haven.umd.edu!cville-srv.wam.umd.edu![e-mail]
Subject: IARU Contest
To: [e-mail]

In article <2vrslk$[e-mail]>,
Brian J. Pennebaker <[e-mail]> wrote:
>bad in northern Ohio.  20 Meters is where we did the best.  We made 91
>contacts of these 7 HQ multipliers.  This was about 8 hours of working the
>contest.

This was, by far, the worst conditions I have EVER seen in my 8 years of
contesting!  As you'll see in my .signature, I run a dipole antenna.  Most
of the time, there's at least SOMETHING above 20 meters to speak of.

This weekend, I heard ONE person on 10 meters and nobody on 15.  I remember
back to 1990 when a little guy like me could pop up on 20 and 15, and
work Russians all day.  Eastern Europe was there until last summer.  Now
20 is like a big wasteland for me and DX - I'm forced to 40 and 80, where
the antenna becomes much less effective, so maybe I should pick up on
6 meters and look for e-skip or something like that.

I was looking forward to this contest for quite a while.  I was really
disappointed (but didn't feel so bad about going out to dinner Sat. nite).

Just think, another two years, and we'll be at the bottom!!! :-(
                                                             o
                                                             o
                                                             o

--
73,                            _________   _________  The
                            \ /  Long   Original
Scott Rosenfeld  Amateur Radio NF3I  Burtonsville, MD     |   Live    $5.00
  WAC-CW/SSB  WAS  DXCC - 125 QSLed on dipoles __________| Dipoles! Antenna!

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

Date: 11 Jul 1994 22:30:46 GMT
From: pa.dec.com!src.dec.com!src.dec.com![e-mail]
Subject: Letter to Washington about FCC delays
To: [e-mail]

Here is a copy of a letter I am sending today to my Senators and
Congressmen. I suggest that anyone who cares about the FCC's
beaurocratic bungling of new license requests write their Washington
representatives rather than just beefing about it here. We can all
commiserate with one another, but we can't do anything about it.
Your Senators and Congresspeople can.

regards,
Ira

-----------------------------------ATTACHED------------------------------------
Dear Senator             ,

      Considering all the difficult and intractable problems that come before
you, I'm sure you will be glad to have a simple one brought to your attention.
The FCC requires that amateur radio operators have a valid FCC license before
they can operate their radios. The delay for obtaining this license from the
FCC is now at the absurb length of 17 weeks (see attached).  Anything you
can do to alleviate this beaurocratic snafu will be much appreciated by
the many Ham enthusiasts in your state and around the country. It is now
the summertime, and many students are looking for summer jobs. At the very
least some summer help could be hired to temporarily reduce the backlog
while a better permananet solution is sought. I look forward to hearing back
from you on this trivial but annoying matter of government beaurocracy.


Sincerely,




Ira Machefsky


Article: 61913 of rec.radio.amateur.misc
Path: src.dec.com!crl.dec.com!crl.dec.com!decwrl!ames!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!usc!howland.reston.ans.net!europa.eng.gtefsd.com!news.umbc.edu!haven.umd.edu!cville-srv.wam.umd.edu!ham
From: [e-mail] (Scott Richard Rosenfeld)
Newsgroups: rec.radio.amateur.misc
Subject: FCC Delays now at 17 weeks!  PLEASE READ!!!
Date: 11 Jul 1994 19:28:20 GMT
Organization: University of Maryland College Park
Lines: 34
Distribution: usa, na, md, dc, va
Message-ID: <2vs6gk$[e-mail]>
NNTP-Posting-Host: rac1.wam.umd.edu

To all of you who are awaiting licenses from the FCC:

This word from my buddy John Creel, WB3GXW, the contact for Laurel, MD VEC:

DO NOT CALL THE FCC FOR INFORMATION ON YOUR LICENSE STATUS!
DO NOT CALL THE FCC FOR INFORMATION ON YOUR LICENSE STATUS!
DO NOT CALL THE FCC FOR INFORMATION ON YOUR LICENSE STATUS!

He said that upon his tour of the FCC license processing facility last week,
they now have SIX computer terminals, but only ONE person processing
licenses (this is, sadly, true).  The FCC may actually consider volunteers
at some point, but there are certain legalities involved with this that
have not been circumvented yet.

He also said that the FCC is receiving upwards of 50 calls a DAY!  And that
in the time it takes to receive a phone call, TWO licenses could be proces-
sed!  The backlog is now at 15,000 Form 610s!!!

If your application has taken over 26 weeks, contact your testing team, or
your VEC - but let THEM call the FCC, if necessary.

Supposedly, the delay is growing BECAUSE so much time is being spent on
fielding these phone calls (guess who answers them?  The person doing the
data entry, who has to leave the computer to get the damned phone!).

I do have a question though - haven't they ever heard of answering machines?

PLEASE HEED THIS MESSAGE!  PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE be patient.  Thank you.

--
73,                            _________   _________  The
                            \ /  Long   Original
Scott Rosenfeld  Amateur Radio NF3I  Burtonsville, MD     |   Live    $5.00
  WAC-CW/SSB  WAS  DXCC - 125 QSLed on dipoles __________| Dipoles! Antenna!



Keywords:

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

Date: 11 Jul 1994 21:22:40 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!swrinde!howland.reston.ans.net!spool.mu.edu!news.nd.edu![e-mail]
Subject: QSL addresses - please help
To: [e-mail]

Could anyone help with the following? I am especially interested in wd0fzw,
who gave me South Dakota on 40 but no longer seems to live in Sioux Falls
(at least, directory assistance doesn't have a number for him). Does anyone
know him?

Callsign servers return "no references found":

n1qwg
n1ran
kg4an
ke4krt
w4ma
kr4mi
kc5ebw
kj5rt
ab7ad
kc7bnh
kc7cli
kb0mlz

Callsign servers return bad address:

kd4pvm  mail returned from: RT 1 BOX 299, HOPE MILLS, NC  28348
n7uvh   mail returned from: POB 786, POST FALLS, ID  83854
wd0fzw  mail returned from: 1400 K AVE LOT 35 ELMWOOD TRLR CT,
                            SIOUX FALLS, SD  57104


Thanks very much,
Charles
N9SQE

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

Date: Mon, 11 Jul 1994 20:14:41 GMT
From: news.Hawaii.Edu!kahuna![e-mail]
Subject: What sends COMMAS on CW & very high power in Bowie, MD area?
To: [e-mail]

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Lightning Bolt) writes:
>One home TV wipes out on all channels when this COMMA machine is on!
>Removes color. Other TVs do not see it. comma & 4 seconds, agn comma.
>(..--..). Not on any ham freq. HF nor 2 nor 6! Abt 15 min at beg. of ever
>hr & 15 min at Half hr.
>Poss. Air Force transmitting station 2 miles away? Dick W1DGA

Isn't ..__.. Morse for `question mark'? The `comma' is __..__  which
is also used to tell someone they're a lid (at least on the marine
frequencies).

Jeff NH6IL

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

Date: Mon, 11 Jul 1994 20:33:34 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!swrinde!gatech!newsxfer.itd.umich.edu!zip.eecs.umich.edu!yeshua.marcam.com!news.kei.com!wang![e-mail]
Subject: What sends COMMAS on CW & very high power in Bowie, MD area?
To: [e-mail]

[e-mail] (Lightning Bolt) writes:

>One home TV wipes out on all channels when this COMMA machine is on!
>Removes color. Other TVs do not see it. comma & 4 seconds, agn comma.
>(..--..). Not on any ham freq. HF nor 2 nor 6! Abt 15 min at beg. of ever
>hr & 15 min at Half hr.
>Poss. Air Force transmitting station 2 miles away? Dick W1DGA

>--
>W1DGA

Can you get your hands on a spectrum analyzer and hook it up to your
antenna and see if a blip pops up when the interference is present?

(BTW, comma is --..--)

Dave, KZ1O

--
Dave Bushong, Wang Imaging

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

Date: 11 Jul 1994 18:53:00 GMT
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!swrinde!howland.reston.ans.net!news.cac.psu.edu![e-mail]
Subject: Where does the name "ham" originate?
To: [e-mail]

The  name "ham" for the radio amateur seems to have an unclear origin.

Does anyone have any ideas?

Tnx and 73/Tony

















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

Date: Mon, 11 Jul 94 21:54:21 GMT
From: netcomsv!butch!enterprise![e-mail]
Subject: which Ringo do I buy?
To: [e-mail]

In article <[e-mail]>, [e-mail] (Gary Coffman) writes:
|>
|> In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] writes:
|> >I'm in the market for a 2 meter vertical for use mostly on packet and
|> >it looks like the Cushcraft Ringo is the most popular product. Which
|> >of the 3 varieties, Ringo, Ringo Ranger or Ringo Ranger II should I
|> >plunk my money down for? Is the RR II that much better than the RR in
|> >terms of gain and bandwidth?
|>
|> Alas, the Ringo is popular because it is cheap, not because it is good.
|> It will show an excellent VSWR bandwidth, but so does a dummy load.
|> What it won't offer is a clean pattern, gain comensurate with it's size,
|> or reasonable longevity. A Comet or Diamond will be better, even a J-pole
|> will be better than the basic Ringo. About the only antenna that is worse
|> than a Ringo is a Cushcraft 4-pole (fah, a piece of junk). Short of buying
|> a Cellwave antenna (mucho $$$), a Comet or Diamond will give the best bang
|> for the buck. (Note you can *build* a Comet or Diamond type antenna fairly
|> easily and cheaply. That really gives the best bang for the buck.)
|>
|> A note on VSWR bandwidth. Any *simple* monopole antenna that has a
|> 2:1 VSWR bandwidth over greater than 2 MHz at 2 meters has something wrong
|> with it, like horrible efficiency. (Measurement interpretation errors
|> can fool you here. If the coax has greater than 5 db of loss, you'll
|> never see greater than 2:1 VSWR at the transmitter, even if the antenna
|> is shorted or open.) More complex antenna designs *can* have greater
|> bandwidth and still retain efficiency (log colinear stacks, log periodic
|> yagis, bowties, etc), but only if the implementation of the design is good.
|>
|> Gary

Gary, do you have or can you direct us to any hard data concerning the
commonly available 2m antennas?  You talk about "bang for the buck",
but I would like to have some more meaningful data to consider.

A longevity note:  My father has had a 2m Ringo in continuous service
for more than 10 years.  He lives in northern Nevada with high-altitude
sunlight, high winds (bent his 35 foot "self supporting" tubular tower
over 4' above the ground), snow and ice, etc.  Longevity is one
attribute that I can address with authority, and the Ringo seems to be
acceptable.

Can you direct us to plans for homebrew versions of the Comet or Diamond
designs?  I like these antennas, but would prefer one that is made in
the U.S. (by me!)

George Lyle, N7TNJ

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

Date: (null)
From: (null)
CUL

Smitty, NA5K/M

--
Henry Smith ([e-mail])

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

Date: 11 Jul 1994 12:41:33 -0700
From: nntp.crl.com!crl3.crl.com![e-mail]
To: [e-mail]

References <[e-mail]>, <2vjjg4$[e-mail]>, <[e-mail]>
Subject : Re: Copying CW, and why it's friendlier than phone

Andy Domonkos ([e-mail]) wrote:
: In article <2vjjg4$[e-mail]>, Henry B. Smith wrote:

: > My commute is about an hour long and I work 40 CW in the morning
: > (about 6 AM CST) and 20 CW in the evening (about 4:30 PM CST).
: >
: > Give me a call if you hear me!
: >
: > Smitty, NA5K/M
: >
: Smitty,

: Where on 40M CW are you 'parked'? I hang around 7040 - 7050 mobile CW...

: Andy N3LCW

Andy,

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

Date: 11 Jul 1994 18:38:22 GMT
From: eng.iac.honeywell.com!server2.iac.honeywell.com![e-mail]
To: [e-mail]

References <[e-mail]>, <2vka5b$[e-mail]>, <[e-mail]>
Subject : Re: Does CW as a pre-req REALLY Work?

In article <[e-mail]>, [e-mail] (Jeffrey Herman) writes:
...deletia...
|> >(2) An FAA designated examiner, who also gets his job qualification from
|> >    being an experienced pilot and instructor. He doesn't work directly
|> >    for the FAA, yet his job depends on their scrutiny of his actions.
|>
|> Again, he's certified by the FAA, not by just a pilot's organization
|> similar to the amateur's ARRL.
|>
|> Who administers the pilot's written exam? My ground school instructor
|> administered my written; he was certified by the FAA, not by just
|> a pilot's organization similar to the amateur's ARRL.
|>
|> Jeff NH6IL

Correct, but the VE is still "certified" under FCC-established rules.

The controls aren't as tight as they are in the aviation case, and I assume
this is because the risk of error carries less potential for disaster.

- steve, aa7xv


--
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Steve Cornelius                     | If you *don't* like airplane noise,
Phoenix, AZ, USA                    | then why in the #*!! did you buy a
[e-mail]| house next to an airport !?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Not a Honeywell opinion.

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

Date: 11 Jul 1994 12:27:05 -0700
From: ihnp4.ucsd.edu!library.ucla.edu!psgrain!news.tek.com!macs!macs![e-mail]
To: [e-mail]

References <[e-mail]>, <2vrj3s$[e-mail]>, <2vrrja$[e-mail]>p
Subject : Re: Radios for Emergency Use

In article <2vrrja$[e-mail]> Kenneth M. Gianino <[e-mail]> writes:
>                                                                   a civil
>aviation band (116-137MHz AM, worldwide) HT is a good alternative.  The fact
>that all the receivers are at 2000 to 30,000 feet AGL eliminates the need for
>any special power or antenna considerations...


Yes that should work.  The problem is that you would buy an
expensive radio which you could not legally use except in an
emergency (unless you happen to be involved in aviation).  I suspect
few people would be willing to put out the bucks and carry the
weight unless they could also use the radio for more day to day
activities.  Ham, CB and cellular all have day to day applications
so you aren't just waiting for an emergency.

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

End of Info-Hams Digest V94 #777
******************************