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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQS);faqs.326 (pre-4/92) --Rec.radio.amateur.misc Frequently-asked Questions------------------Part 4-- ** How do I use the incoming and outgoing QSL bureau? To use the outgoing QSL bureau, you must be a member of ARRL. In general, you send a bundle of foreign (not States!) QSL cards to the outgoing bureau in Newington, Connecticut, along with a label off of your QST magazine (which shows ARRL membership), along with $2 per pound of cards (approximately 150 cards) or $1 for 10 cards or less. To use the incoming QSL bureau, you do NOT have to be a member of ARRL. Send one or more Self-Addressed Stamped Envelopes (size 5x7 or 6x9, NO BIGGER, NO SMALLER) with one ounce of postage attached and with your callsign in 3/4" letters in top left hand corner where the return address label would go. If you expect a large quantity of foreign QSL cards, attach extra money or postage with a paper clip; do NOT affix extra postage to envelope. Send the envelopes to the QSL bureau for your callsign area. If your callsign is xx3xxx/5, you would send it to the 3rd call area, NOT the 5th call area. Addresses for QSL bureaus are listed in QST (and below); if you don't have access to a QST magazine, ask another ham. IMPORTANT: BE PATIENT! Turnaround time for a US QSL bureau, not considering foreign QSL bureaus, is about 3 months. Foreign QSL bureaus and hams can be as fast as 2 months or as slow as TEN YEARS, while average is about 6-12 months. Addresses for US Incoming QSL Bureaus: USA 1 - W1 QSL Bureau, Box 216, Forest Park Stn, Springfield, MA 01108 USA 2 - ARRL 2nd District QSL Bureau NJDXA, POB 599, Morris Plains, NJ 07950 USA 3 - C-CARS, POB 448, New Kingstown, PA 17072-0448 USA 4 - All single-letter prefixes ONLY Mecklenburg Amateur Radio Club, POB DX, Charlotte, NC 28220 others:Sterling Park Amateur Radio Club, Call Box 599, Sterling Park, VA 22170 USA 5 - ARRL 5th District DX QSL Bureau, POB 50625, Midland, TX 79701 USA 6 - ARRL 6th District DX QQSL Bureau, POB 1460, Sun Valley, CA 91352 USA 7 - Willamette Valley DX Club, POB 555, Portland, OR 97207 USA 8 - 8th Area QSL Bureau, POB 182165, Columbus, OH 43218-2165 USA 9 - Northern Illinois DX assn, Box 519, Elmhurst, IL 60126 USA 0 - W0 QSL Bureau, Ak-Sar-Ben Radio Club, POB 291, Omaha, NE 68101 Hawaii- Wayne Jones NH6GJ, POB 788, Wahiawa, HI 96786 Alaska- Alaska QSL Bureau, 4304 Garfield St, Anchorage, AK 99503 ** Anyone know anything about the QSL Post Office? The QSL Post Office is a private venture who also supplies QSL service as long as you let them put their advertisements in the envelopes. You can keep a SASE there in case you get cards returned via the QSLPO. Instructions: Send multiples of 10 QSL cards with check, cash or money order ($1 for each 10 cards). Do not put postage on the cards. Do not place cards in individual envelopes Write callsign only in address area, or address as well if it's different from callbook. Send to: QSL Post Office 767 South Xenon Court, #117 Lakewood, CO 90228 303-987-9442 ** Are there any news groups for CAP? There is no news group just for Civil Air Patrol discussions. However, rec.aviation is appropriate for CAP aviation discussions and for CAP radio information, these rec.radio.amateur.* groups are available. CAP-related files are also stored on the FTP site sunburn.cps.udayton.edu in pub/capital. ** What's the name of the QRP club that issues QRP numbers? QRP Amateur Radio Club International, c/o Bill Harding K4AHK, 10923 Carters Oak Way, Burke, VA 22015. ** Can I send ARRL or W5YI electronic mail? Several ARRL HQ staffers can be contacted via the net, using the address username@arrl.org, replace username as shown below: Jon Bloom, KE3Z, Laboratory Supervisor jbloom (arrl.org postmaster) Steve Ford, WB8IMY, Assistant Technical Editor sford (Operating Manual, packet and satellite books) Mike Gruber, WA1SVF, Laboratory Engineer mgruber (product testing) Jerry Hall, K1TD, Associate Technical Editor jhall (Antenna books, propagation) Ed Hare, KA1CV, Senior Laboratory Engineer (RFI) ehare Rus Healy, NJ2L, QST Assistant Technical Editor rhealy (Product Review) Luck Hurder, KY1T, Field Services Dept. Deputy Manager lhurder (Clubs, Field Organization) Chuck Hutchinson, K8CH, Membershipship Services Manager chutch (Contests, awards, DXCC etc.) Bart Jahnke, KB9NM, Volunteer Examiner Dept. Manager bjahnke (Exams, VE coordination, etc.) Jim Kearman, KR1S, Assistant Technical Editor jkearman (license manuals) Joel Kleinman, N1BKE, Associate Technical Editor jkleinma (in charge of editing technical books) Zack Lau, KH6CP, Laboratory Engineer zlau (RF/microwave circuit design, QRP) Steve Mansfield, Public Relations Manager smansfie (news stories, etc.) Dave Newkirk, WJ1Z, QST Senior Assistant Tech. Editor dnewkirk (Hints & Kinks) Paul Pagel, N1FB, QST Associate Technical Editor ppagel (in charge of QST technical editing, Technical Correspondence) Rick Palm, K1CE, Field Services Manager rpalm (Field Organization matters) Bob Schetgen, KU7G, Assistant Technical Editor rschetge (Handbook) Barry Shelley, Chief Financial Officer bshelley Dave Sumner, K1ZZ, Executive Vice President dsumner (policy matters, HQ administration) Rosalie White, WA1STO, Educational Activitied Dept. Mgr. rwhite (info on becoming a ham/training/SAREX) Mark Wilson, AA2Z, QST Managing Editor mwilson Larry Wolfgang, WR1B, Senior Assistant lwolfgan Technical Editor (Beginner's books) Tammy-Beth Zimmerman, KA1WWP, Membership tzimmer Services Administrative Assistant (DXCC, awards, QSL buro) The Washington Area Coordinator for the ARRL, Perry Williams W1UED (sort of our "lobbyist" to the FCC and Congress) has mcimail access at 2242662@mcimail.com. Other mail addresses at ARRL: Technical Information Service tis@arrl.org (technical questions) DXCC dxcc@arrl.org Awards (WAS, etc.) awards@arrl.org Contests contests@arrl.org Outgoing QSL Bureau buro@arrl.org W1AW 76067.3724@compuserve.com For other questions (ARRL policy issues, etc.), try 2155052@mcimail.com, which sends them to the front office. ARRL requests that you include your postal address (the slow kind) in case they need to send you nonelectronic material in answer to your request. Other useful addresses: Tom Frenaye, K1KI, Vice President 2349723@mcimail.com Frank Butler, W4RH, Southeastern Division 3113659@mcimail.com Director Stan Horzepa, WA1LOU, QST (Packet horzepa@gdc.com Perspective) and QEX (Gateway) columnist Fred Maia, W5YI, another large VEC 3511297@mcimail.com. ** "Why doesn't the ARRL do...?" If you want the ARRL to do something, tell them! Direct input from a concerned member (or, actually, any concerned Ham) carries a lot more weight than hearsay from any source. The e-mail addresses are listed above. They want direct input - that's what those addresses are for. ** What magazines are available for Ham Radio? Your local ham store may have some, but here's some popular ones (this is NOT a complete list!): QST, ARRL, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111 - basic projects and contesting CQ The Radio Amateur's Journal, 76 North Broadway, Hicksville, NY 11801 - beginner ham radio articles 73 Amateur Radio Today, WGE Center, Forect Rd, Hancock, NH 03449, FAX (603) 525-4423, email: COMPUSERVE 70310,775 or Internet 70310.775@compuserve.com - more technical ham radio articles QEX, ARRL, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111 - more technical projects WorldRadio, 2120 28th St, Sacramento, CA 95818, (916) 457-3655. Subscriptions to 201 Lathrop Way, Ste D, Sacramento, CA 95815, (800) 365-SUBS - lots of special interest columns, like QRP, ATV, YL, etc. W5YI Report, PO Box 565101, Dallas, TX 75356, 1-800-669-9594 - up-to-date information on Amateur Radio happenings, including VE information and statistics ** How do I become a 10-10 member? 10-10 is simply an organization to sponsor the use of the 10 meter band. It was first conceived when propagation was poor on 10 meters, as a method to get more hams to use 10 meters. The past few years have been great for 10 meters worldwide. However, "the bands are closing down" again, and 10 meters will once again be limited more for local communications, except for sporadic band openings, until the next sunspot cycle. To join 10-10, work ten 10-10 members and LOG each 10-10 number, call sign, operator's name and location. Send the list to your numeric call sign or DX area manager (as shown below), with $5.00 U.S. new membership registration fee ($6.00 for foreign addresses). 10-10 International Area Managers: USA 1 - Al Kaiser N1API, 194 Glen Hills Rd, Meriden, CT 06450 USA 2 - Larry Berger WA2SUH, 9 Nancy Blvd, Merrick, NY 11566 USA 3 - Chester Gardner N3GZE, 9028 Overhill Dr, Ellicott Cty,MD 21042 USA 4 - KY, TN, FL, VA, NC, SC only Rick Roberts N4KCC, 7106 Ridgestone Dr,Ooltewah, TN 37363 USA 4 - GA, AL, Puerto Rico only Jim Beswick W4YHF, 112 Owl Town Farm, Ellijay, GA 30540 USA 5 - Grace Dunlap K5MRU,* Box 445, LaFeria, TX 78559 *summer addr Jun-Oct Box 13, Rand, CO 80473 USA 6 - Dick Rauschler W6ANK, 4371 Cambria St, Fremont, CA 94538 USA 7 - Willie Madison WB7VZI, 10512 W Butler Dr, Peoria, AZ 85345 USA 8 - John Hugentober N3FU, 4441 Andreas Ave, Cincinatti, OH 45211 USA 9 - Jim Williams N9HHU, 240 Park Rd, Creve Coeur, IL 61611 USA 0 - Debbie Peterson KF0NV, RR 1 Box 35, Duncombe, IA 50532 All DX- Carol Hugentober K8DHK,4441 Andreas Ave, Cincinatti, OH 45211 ** How do I join MARS? To join MARS, you have to be 14 years or older (parental consent required under age 17), be a US citizen or resident alien, possess a valid Amateur Radio license, possess a station capable of operating on MARS HF frequencies, and be able to operate the minimum amount of time for each quarter (12 hours for Army and Air Force; 18 hours for Navy-Marines). Novices must upgrade to Technician within 6 months, else be dropped from MARS. No-Code Techs can apply, provided they have transmit and receive HF capability for MARS frequencies (they don't need transmit capability for Amateur HF frequencies). For application forms contact: Chief, Air Force MARS Det 1, CSC/CMM (MARS) 203 W. Losey St. Room 2154 Scott AFB, IL 62225-5247 (618)256-5552 Fax: (618) 256-5126 Chief, Army MARS HQ, US Army Information Systems Command ATTN: AS-OPS-OA Fort Huachuca, AZ 85613-5000 Chief, Navy-Marine Corps MARS Naval Communication Unit Washington, DC 20397-5161 ** How do I join RACES? Contact your nearest Civil Defense or Emergency Management Agency. The Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service is a part of a municipal, county, or state government. This does not mean, however, that every such government has a RACES program. If your government does not have a RACES, ask them to refer you to the nearest jurisdiction that does have a RACES program. ** What organizations are available to help handicapped hams? Courage Center Handihams 2915 Golden Valley Rd Golden Valley, MN 55422 (612) 520-0515 ARRL has a Handihams information package (get it by requesting it thru 2155052@mcimail.com) and a book called "The ARRL Plan for the Disabled", available at no charge from the ARRL Regulatory Information Branch. ** I am looking for a specific ham, can anyone help me find him? Rather than sending out a message on Usenet, you might first try directory assistance from the phone company or the locator service provided by the Salvation Army. A Salvation Army post in your local area may be able to help you. If you have his/her callsign or name, you might also try one of the on-line callservers shown above. Also, the Quarter-Century Wireless Assn maintains a collection of callbooks going back to "the beginning of time". Their address is: 1409 Cooper Drive, Irving, TX 75061. Also, the Callbook has a dial-in line for accessing new ham callsigns. Try (1-708-234-8011) at 2400 baud. ** Is there an on-line copy of the FCC Part 97, or FCC Amateur Radio ** allocations or question pools? Part 97 is part of the FCC regulations and only applies to the USA. The text to part 97 is available by ftp from several locations: Western US ftp.amdahl.com /pub/radio/amateur/part97.txt.Z Central US pacific.mps.ohio-state.edu /msdos/ham/part97.arc Eastern US gandalf.umcs.maine.edu /pub/ham-radio/part97.txt ftp.uu.net /networking/ka9q/part97.arc The *.arc files are MSDOS ARC files with the same ASCII text. An ASCII copy of the question pools are available by ftp from uxc.cso.uiuc.edu (128.174.5.50) in /pub/ham-radio/<class>-pool.txt.Z, where <class> is novice, technician, general, advanced or extra. ** Can I post my neat new ham related program on rec.radio.amateur.misc? This is really not a good idea, since many of the readers receive these newsgroups as mail digests. Posting is also a one-shot thing. If you post and someone missed it, it is gone. A better way would be to announce the existence of your program here, along with information on how to obtain a copy of your program. You can also submit it to one of the FTP archive sites, which will allow the world to access it without you having to mail it to each requestor. If you just GOTTA post it somewhere, post it to more appropriate groups, like comp.sources.unix or alt.sources or comp.binaries.ibm.pc. Xref: bloom-picayune.mit.edu rec.radio.amateur.misc:26801 news.answers:3629 Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!tamsun.tamu.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sun-barr!ames!pacbell.com!charon.amdahl.com!amdahl!uts.amdahl.com From: ikluft@uts.amdahl.com (Ian Kluft) Newsgroups: rec.radio.amateur.misc,news.answers Subject: rec.radio.amateur.misc Frequently Asked Questions (Part 5 of 6) Message-ID: <ham-radio-faq-5-719748482@uts.amdahl.com> Date: 22 Oct 92 10:08:13 GMT Expires: 9 Nov 92 08:00:00 GMT References: <ham-radio-faq-1-719748482@uts.amdahl.com> Sender: netnews@uts.amdahl.com Reply-To: hamradio-faq@uts.amdahl.com (Ham Radio FAQ Coordinators) Followup-To: rec.radio.amateur.misc Organization: Amdahl Corporation, Santa Clara, CA Lines: 402 Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.Edu Supersedes: <ham-radio-faq-5-718452483@uts.amdahl.com> X-Posting-Frequency: posted on the 7th and 22nd of each month Posted-By: auto-faq script Archive-name: ham-radio-faq/part5 Revision: 2.13 05/13/92 19:45:21 Rec.radio.amateur.misc Frequently Asked Questions Part 5 - Common Advanced and Technical questions ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Questions discussed in Part 5: (dates indicate last modification) ** What are the different US amateur classes and what can each of them do? (pre-4/92) ** What is the best way to learn Morse Code? (new 10/92) ** What is the standard for measuring Morse code speed? (pre-4/92) ** I'm confused. What do all those abbreviations mean??? (5/92) ** What do all those "tones" mean? (pre-4/92) ** Where can I learn more about Amateur Radio if I live outside the US? (4/92) ** How can I get a "reciprocal license" if I am a licensed ham from another country or if I am a FCC licensed ham who wants to operate in another country (on vacation)? (pre-4/92) ** My apartment or housing complex does not allow outdoor antennas, now what do I do? (pre-4/92) ** I got TVI...HELP!!! (pre-4/92) ** Did you know that you can get college credit for being a ham? (pre-4/92) ** On what frequencies do JPL and GSFC retransmit the shuttle audio? (10/92) ** Can I take my HT on an airplane and operate it if I get the permission of the captain? (4/92) ** How do I modify my current Amateur license? (4/92) ** I'm confused about XXX, should I ask the FCC? (4/92) --Rec.radio.amateur.misc Frequently-asked Questions------------------Part 5-- ** What are the different US amateur classes and what can each of them do? Novice - has CW (Morse code) privileges on 4 HF bands (80, 40, 15, and 10 meter), Voice privileges on 10 meters, and privileges on 2 VHF/UHF bands (220 MHz and 1290 MHz). Required are 5 wpm Morse code test and 30-question Novice test. Technician - has full privileges on all VHF/UHF bands above 30 MHz. Required are Novice test and 25-question Tech test. Technician may access Novice HF bands by passing the 5 wpm Morse code test. General - has all Technician privileges, plus larger access to more HF bands, including CW and Voice on 160, 80, 40, 30, 20, 17, 15, 12, and 10 meter bands. A General class amateur can give Novice tests. Required are 13 wpm Morse code test, Novice, Tech and 25-question General test. Advanced - has all General privileges, plus wider band access on 80, 40, 20, and 15 meter bands. An Advanced class amateur can also become a VE and give tests to Novice and Tech tests. Required are 13 wpm Morse code test, Novice, Tech, General and 50-question Advanced test. The Advanced test is the most difficult of the five written tests. Amateur Extra - has full privileges on all amateur bands. An Extra can become a VE and give all amateur tests. Required are 20 wpm Morse code test, Novice, Tech, General, Advanced and 40-question Extra test. ** What is the best way to learn Morse Code? This is becoming an increasingly common question as many "no-code" Technicians realize they can add more privileges to their license if they learn Morse Code. The following list of suggestions should be helpful in finding ways to approach the effort. * Listen to code at a rate faster than you can copy. * Participate in Novice-Roundup and/or Field Day. Practice whenever you get the chance! * Avoid the "deciphering" plateau around 5 WPM and and character plateau at 10 WPM by listening to the fast Farnsworth-paced "beat" of each letter and the "beat" of common words. (See the question on Morse code speed for more information on Farnsworth pacing.) * Practice to develop a "copy buffer" so you copy about 5 characters behind. (This is not easy but it's how the higher speeds are done.) * Practice both with headphones and "open-air" copy as the code test may be in either format. (If you only practice one, you may fumble on the other.) * Most of all, don't give up! Recognize when you reach plateaus and keep trying until you break through them. ** What is the standard for measuring Morse code speed? The word PARIS was chosen as the standard length for CW code speed. Each dit counts for one count, each dash counts for three counts, intra-character spacing is one count, inter-character spacing is three counts and inter-word spacing is seven counts, so the word PARIS is exactly 50 counts: PPPPPPPPPPPPP AAAAA RRRRRRRRR IIIII SSSSSSSSS . - - . . - . - . . . . . . 1 1 3 1 3 1 1 3 1 1 3 3 1 1 3 1 1 3 1 1 1 3 1 1 1 1 1 7 = 50 ^ ^ ^ ^Intra-character ^Inter-character Inter-word^ So 5 words-per-minute = 250 counts-per-minute / 50 counts-per-word or one count every 240 milliseconds. 13 words-per-minute is one count every ~92.3 milliseconds. This method of sending code is sometimes called "Slow Code", because at 5 wpm it sounds VERY SLOW. The "Farnsworth" method is accomplished by sending the dits and dashes and intra-character spacing at a higher speed, then increasing the inter-character and inter-word spacing to slow the sending speed down to the desired speed. For example, to send at 5 wpm with 13 wpm characters in Farnsworth method, the dits and intra-character spacing would be 92.3 milliseconds, the dash would be 276.9 milliseconds, the inter-character spacing would be 1.443 seconds and inter-word spacing would be 3.367 seconds. ** I'm confused. What do all those abbreviations mean??? AM Amplitude Modulation AMSAT Amateur Satellite Corporation AMTOR Amateur Teleprinter Over Radio. A more sophisticated version of RTTY. Also used commercially as SITOR (Simplex Teleprinter Over Radio). ARRL American Radio Relay League ATV Amateur Television - a way to see who you're talking to! CAP Civil Air Patrol is a volunteer organization that searches for downed aircraft and missing kids and uses frequencies just outside of the ham bands and often uses modified Amateur radios CB Citizen's Band radio, this is NOT part of Amateur Radio and does not require any license to operate CQ An on-the-air request for a conversation with anyone "dupes" A dupe sheet is a duplicate check sheet, in matrix format, used to quickly check that you have not had a "duplicate" contact with someone (on a specific band or mode) in a contest Elmer An amateur radio mentor, or "Master Craftsman" to a new ham. Could refer to anyone, regardless of age or gender. FCC Federal Communications Commission, the "law enforcers" FM Frequency Modulation FieldDay A June activity to practice emergency communications for 24 hours....wives call it 'an exercise in male bonding' :-). HF High Frequency - 3 MHz to 30 MHz HT Handy-Talky, a shorthand for "hand held radio" LF Low Frequency - 30 kHz to 3 MHz MARS Military Affiliate Radio System, military affiliated Amateurs who provide free communications for overseas GIs and other Federal services. MARS operators are licensed under DoD instead of FCC. NTS National Traffic System, a way to send radiograms OF Old Friend, or Old F#$%, used to denote an older ham OM Old Man, refers to any ham, including female hams packet computer bulletin boards/electronic mail via Amateur Radio PRB Private Radio Bureau, administers Amateur and CB services QSO One of the Q signals used in Morse code to mean "conversation" QCWA Quarter Century Wireless Association, membership means you've been a ham for more than 25 years RTTY Radio Teletype - older form of computer communications on HF SAREX In Amateur Radio talk, Shuttle Amateur Radio EXperiment, a chance to talk to astronauts in space. In CAP talk, Search and Rescue EXercise, practicing for the real thing. SK Silent Key, a nice polite way to say a ham has passed on "to that great antenna farm in the sky" SSB Single Side Band - need less band width than AM or FM SSTV Slow Scan TeleVision - REALLY slow, low data rate, typically used on the lower frequency bands UHF Ultra High Frequency - 300 MHz and above ULF Ultra Low Frequency - 30 Hz to 300 Hz VHF Very High Frequency - 30 MHz to 300 MHz VLF Very Low Frequency - 300 Hz to 30 kHz, audio frequencies WARC World Administrative Radio Conference, a summit meeting that occurs every few years, required by international treaty to determine how the spectrum get sliced up to all vying communications services (last one was in 1992) XYL eX-Young Lady, or wife YL Young Lady, non-ham girlfriend or female ham 2m Shorthand for "2 meters" (144-147.995 MHz), which is a reference to the wavelength of a common Amateur frequency band used for local communications ** What do all those "tones" mean? Sub-Audible Tone: A low tone that you're not supposed to be able to hear. It's used as a "PL Tone." PL is "Private Line", a trademark of Motorola for their implementation of CTCSS (Continuous Tone Coded Squelch System). Basically, the transmitter sends the signal with the Sub-Audible tone and the receiver only opens when it hears signals with that tone. Signals without the proper tone are ignored. This is useful for "closed" repeaters, or for repeaters on the same frequency that have overlapping geographic areas. Tone encode refers to the feature of providing the tone on transmit. Tone decode refers to the feature of responding to the tone on receive. Tone squelch refers to all of the above. DTMF refers to Dual Tone Multi-Frequency, or "Touch Tone" which is a trademark of AT&T. DTSS probably means Dual Tone Squelch System and refers to the feature of providing a predefined sequence of Touch Tone digits to open the repeater for transmit. DTSS is an alternate method from CTCSS, which provides a way to use a "closed" repeater even if your radio doesn't do Sub-Audible Tones. ** Where can I learn more about Amateur Radio if I live outside the US? Write to the ARRL and ask. They can usually tell you how to get a license in your country. If you know of any location where this information is available electronically, whether by an e-mail server, anonymous FTP, or a contact person, please mail it to us so we can include it here. Send it to hamradio-faq@uts.amdahl.com. ** How can I get a "reciprocal license" if I am a licensed ham from another ** country or if I am a FCC licensed ham who wants to operate in another ** country (on vacation)? You need to submit a FCC Form 610-A to the FCC, PO Box 1020, Gettysburg, PA 17326. They will then send you a reciprocal permit for alien amateur licensee (FCC Form 610-AL). You must be a citizen of a country with which the United States has arrangements to grant reciprocal operating permits to visiting alien Amateur operators. For FCC licensed hams operating abroad, the following guidelines apply: * A reciprocal license is required in all foreign countries (that have a reciprocal operating agreement with the US), except Canada, where the FCC license is automatically valid. * Send a SASE to ARRL Regulatory Information Branch, telling them which country you are going to visit and they will send you the info and an application form. Foreign hams can likewise request information from their national Amateur radio society. * Submit your application with a certified copy of your Amateur license (ie, notarized copy), and fee if applicable (use a bank draft of a bank that does business in that country) to the appropriate licensing administration of the foreign country. Processing may take 30 to 90 days. * If less than one month, you could try sending the application and pick up the permit upon arrival in that country. * Most countries will not allow you to bring communications equipment into their country without a license or permit. If you applied, but haven't received the permit yet, show the copy and your FCC license to the customs officer, however, the equipment may still be held at customs until your departure. * Be sure to use only those frequencies covered by your FCC license which are also used in the foreign country, unless otherwise authorized. ** My apartment or housing complex does not allow outdoor antennas, now what do I do? First of all, don't despair. Many hams have similar problems. Many books offer advice for the growing group of hams that cannot put up antennas. Some options are: * Install an "invisible" antenna made of magnet wire. * Disguise an antenna as a flag pole. * Install an antenna in the attic. * ASK the apartment manager. You may find they will let you put up something as long as it "is invisible" or "doesn't disturb your neighbors" or "doesn't attract lightning". * Operate primarily from your car. * If the restriction is due to local ordinance, you may have relief via PRB-1. Meet with the local government and seek an informal compromise. It is possible to win in court...but it's expensive and time consuming. * If you are restricted by "covenants" attached to the deed of your home, your options are severely limited. Covenants are considered to be private, voluntary contracts between individuals and are outside of the intended application of PRB-1. In many cases, you can petition the Homeowner's Association for an exception. Sometimes you can win in court on the basis that other violations of the covenants by others without action taken constitutes abandonment of the agreement. * For further information, contact the General Consel's office of the ARRL, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111.