EmComm – Have We Forgotten Our Roots?

Cold War Amateur Radio Operators,  EmComm, Appliance Operators and 9/11.  What is the linkage between these terms?

Cold War Amateurs is a term I recently ran into on another blog. As I understood it, the term relates to the older, more technically refined and highly respected generation of the Amateur Radio operators among us.  In my opinion, these are the guys who have the knowledge to create gear from a box full of parts and fix complex problems deep inside solid state radios.

At times you hear these guys on the HF bands with their quality audio conducting nets or having one on one discussions about equipment.  In the past, I was very fortunate to have met a number of these gentlemen while serving as an officer in the local Radio Clubs. What I learned from them and more importantly about them are wonderful memories which I will never forget.

EmComm is the new (digital sounding) acronym for a process which has always been the heartbeat of Amateur Radio. Traditional Amateur Operators made EmComm a part of their hobby mindset. There was no question about the loyalty of the Cold War Amateurs when this aspect of the hobby was put in motion.

If a true emergency occurred then, there was no direct EmComm chain of command to follow as there is today. Amateur Operators just knew it was their duty to participate in any way possible  and get through the problem at hand.

I volunteered to man Amateur Communications in a local high school during the Wildfires here on Long Island.  It was amazing to see the outpouring from local businesses. There were so many truckloads of food, water and clothing that they had to be turned away. Local repeaters were turned over to us and our local health and welfare traffic was handled smoothly and efficiently.

As I see it, Field Day is still the prime example of traditional EmComm. I know and knew many Cold War Amateurs who had long given up building equipment and working the bands but when field day rolled around, they would always show up to do their part.  Most did not stay but made damn sure that the operation was up and running satisfactorily before they went on with the rest of their day.

Back in the day, no Amateur operator I had met would have turned their back on this crucial aspect of the hobby. Why? Because we  knew that it was the underlying reason that the hobby existed in the first place. Hanging on to frequencies, like anything else has to be justified and EmComm was and is a big part of the reason that the Feds have not sold off our part of the spectrum… yet.

Appliance Operators, according to the post I read is the label that traditional Cold War Amateur Operators have given to some of the post Cold War Amateurs. These Amateurs do not possess the traditional knowledge and skill set held by the Cold War generation.

I suspect that dumbing down of the license requirement and removing code as a rite of passage has given rise to this label. I actually think there is some shred of truth to this but the label will fade as the torch is passed to the next generation of Amateur Radio Operators. Let’s see, what what the term that was used on the older Amateur Community as they were coming up through the ranks? Was it LID?

Both labels have been pasted on my forehead at one time or another during my 27 years with the hobby. I don’t possess that refined knowledge to create RF circuits from a box of parts. My knowledge would barely fill a thimble if I compared myself to some of the  Amateur Operators that I have and had known over the years.  Labels are not productive but are just an unfortunate component of  human nature.

9/11 has changed much in the world. I know, that goes without saying. Getting something close to a strip search occurs every time you fly. Spot checks, occurrences of  racial profiling and cameras exist  everywhere.

9/11 also has changed the face of EmComm.  EmComm Managers no longer hold the same view of the volunteer Amateur Radio Operator.  Strict guidelines have been implemented within government.  At the center of the controversy is the fact that volunteer Amateur Operators can no longer directly communicate with Emergency Managers.

In summary, human nature leads some to believe that there is an embedded “caste system” within the Amateur Radio community. It appears that Cold War Amateur Operators look down upon the newer generation as Appliance Operators. As I mentioned previously, there is an element of truth to this but at the end of day, it will be the post Cold War Amateur Radio Operators that will mold the future of Amateur Radio.

EmComm is more important today then ever. I don’t know how many threats the government receives each year but the facts that are revealed do speak for themselves.

Try not to let anyone’s thinking (or your own) stand in your way when it comes to getting involved with Amateur Radio or EmComm. We all have different skill sets. We can all apply the skills we have toward the common good. Isn’t that what Amateur Radio (and life in general) is all about?

Comment’s Please!

Why Linux/OSS for Amateur Radio?

Fight The Power! AA6E recently posted a very nice article about LINUX Open Source Software and Ham Radio on his blog.  I appreciate this more than others. Here’s why!

FIGHT THE POWER!

During my long journey as an IT Engineer, there were many under-the-radar “Skunk Works style projects” where I implemented OSS on LINUX.  However,  I was considered a corporate  techno-anarchist of sorts because LINUX and OSS fell outside the scope of the corporate mind-set ( not that there was ever much of that anyway).

Here’s a subset of AA6E’s first paragragh. Take a minute to read it and then follow the link to the remainder of the article.

How to explain to a non-computer-geek ham what Open Source Software and Linux are all about? OSS and Linux are important to software users the same way a good repair manual and schematics are important to hams. Not every ham knows what to do with schematics, but those who are inclined to open up, understand, repair, and modify their equipment certainly do.

Before you jump off, there’s two ideas I want to mention. Of course,  it assumes you are interested in digging the old P4 out of the closet and loading the very best KERNEL of all time.

One choice is to download and burn yourself a copy of CENTOS.  CENTOS is what we in the trade call whitebox Redhat. In a nutshell, CENTOS is an exact replica of Redhat with a huge advantage. Since it’s been totally recompiled and is freely distributed, you don’t need a subscription to get the O/S and package updates. What’s the drawback then?

Keep in mind though that CENTOS is not an O/S for those who want nothing more that another plug an play environment like the one you are probably using right now. There is some work involved to make certain things work (like plug-ins inside of Firefox).

Hence, the second recommendation for the experimenter in you. UBUNTU is also a 100% free and open source operating system. There are variants for normal desktop use (for hams) and an educational and children’s version as well.

What??? UBUNTU? Where does that come from?

Ubuntu is an African concept of ‘humanity towards others’. It is ‘the belief in a universal bond of sharing that connects all humanity’.

While I have not been digging around on the UBUNTU site lately, I have experimented with it in the past.  Since I am the ultimate techno-nerd, I gravitate toward choice number one.

As I recall, you can submit a request for your very own copy of the O/S on the Website and  receive it for free – nada – zilch ! Yep – no strings.  Of course you can also download and burn yourself  a copy. For the plug and play oriented crowd this O/S will bring you closer to the wonderful world of Windoze.

I always ask for comments guys!  Some are very generous while others are the meek of the earth. For god sakes… if you have something to say about LINUX or OSS, go for it!  Use a fake name if you want. It’s all for the betterment of the Ham community at large.

If you can’t say too much enter “like” or “dislike” in the comment field (believe me, I have thick German skin and a skull to match! You would have to go a great distance to offend my poor writing skills or lack of subject matter!).

Read AA6E’s full article here…

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Dropping Radio From Its Name?

David Coursey feels like his grew up at Radio Shack, having owned a procession of shortwave radios, CBs, ham radios, and even a cellphone with the company’s brand. And, yes, even a TRS-80 computer. He tweets as@techinciter, can be contacted though his Web site, and runs a ham radio site at N5FDL.com.

Hasn’t anyone told RadioShack how silly comb-overs look? You can change your look, even your name, but you are still just what you are–and people notice.

The Radioless Shack???

It’s odd that at a moment when it sells more radios than probably anytime in its history, that RadioShack may be dropping “Radio” from its name.

This is a case of an old fogey trying too hard to be one of the kids. Radio Shack’s biggest problem–and virtue–is that it’s the 7-11 of consumer electronics. Easy-in, easy-out, but limited selection and the appearance of so-so pricing.

Read N5FDL’s full article here.

LID Operator With the $10k Rig -or- Which Way To The Inlet???

CW (Morse code) mavens (like myself) often talk about the advantages of “the mode” over other modes “like SSB”. After all, CW is a form of a digital mode now isn’t it? CW gets through when other methods fail. Far more QSO’s or contest points are made with CW in the same span of time when compared to other modes such as SSB.

When contesting with CW, you can work at least a 5 to 1 ratio (I am trying to be kind here, it’s probably more like 10 to 1) over SSB contacts. For example, I had a limited amount of free time two weekends ago and decided to work the IARU contest for awhile. In the span of about an hour or so I worked around 100 stations and took a bunch of short breaks while operating. It takes seconds for each Q. If you are using a keyboard of course  pre-programming the function keys is the best way  to send your call, the customary 599 signal report and the I.T.U. region number.

When ragchewing, CW’s narrow bandwidth permits more stations to leverage the same bandwidth without affecting other QSO’s. Of course the features built into the newer, more expensive rigs sold today make a huge difference in removing unwanted adjacent signals.

I have never had the opportunity to operate a radio with fancy gadgets like roofing filters or DSP but have read other posts that state the virtues of these awesome features. I don’t own a $20k ham shack but my old TS450S with its AIP, IF shift, Notch and selectable filters does a fairly good job at picking out what I want to work. We all know how those features greatly reduce operating fatigue.

Icom IC-756 ProIII

I think the disadvantage of options like roofing filters, is that operators come on the air with them engaged and call QRL, hear nothing and start calling CQ without ever hearing the operators already working on or close to a specific frequency. There’s nothing like a LID with a $10k radio.

Being inconsiderate and not knowing how to use your equipment reminds me of a time when I was out bay fishing. Here we are in an open 17 ft skiff, quietly enjoying the day, when all of sudden a huge cabin cruiser slows down next to us, pushes up a big wake that caused us to roll heavily for a moment. I looked up to noticed a small radar dish going round and a boatload of antennas. From the upper bridge the guy yells down to me “Which way is the inlet???“. I wanted to point right to the closest sand bar, but just shook my head in total amazement and pointed.

Luxury Cruiser Yacht

So, now it’s Amateur operators with their $10k rigs acting like the guys in the $200k cruiser. These guys just don’t seem to give a damn about others and just bully their way in. One can only hope that they will learn to operate their equipment properly some day.

Even though CW is touted as an “outdated” mode, it is, and will always be a very effective mode of communication. In my opinion, it was a sad day when the FCC dropped CW as a licensing requirement.

With the megatons of space junk floating around the earth providing countless forms of commercial and military signals, I am glad that I still have a traditional way to communicate that gets the job done without a $10k station. I guess I will always be the guy in the 17 ft  skiff directing the $200k Luxury Cruisers to the inlet and getting my personal “last laugh“.

Post A Comment Below And VOICE Your Opinion!

Inappropriate Transmissions During Emergencies? What’s Next?

From the ARRL Web site and the 7/24/09 ARRL Letter:

Inappropriate Use of Amateur Radio: The Board authorized the President to appoint an ad hoc committee to prepare guidelines for use by the amateur community and others to identify inappropriate uses of Amateur Radio, while preserving our role of providing communications during times of disasters and for public service events. The Board asked the committee to present its findings to the Executive Committee within 30 days.

In recent months the FCC has started an all out war on the way Amateur Radio Operators serve their communities. Once again the Feds are quick to demonstrate their lack of regard for the service Amateur Radio Operators provide. They seem to readily discount the potential Hams have to saves lives and property during disasters.

Does the ARRL really need to create new and amend existing guidelines to pave the way for Amateur Radio Operators to work with the Feds? Why are more regulations necessary to allow Amateurs to do what they have done for a very long time? I just can’t believe that big government and the ARRL have to stick their noses further into the goings on of the Amateur Radio Service.

We all agree that using Amateur Radio properly makes sense. But when those rules prevent a (paid) local emergency manager from talking about an ARES matter with a volunteer ARES leader over the air,  in my opinion, the FCC has begun to outlive it’s usefulness.

Click on the comments link below and VOICE your opinion!

Middle School Kids Learn About Shortwave Radio

Kids these days are consumed by cell phones, Twitter Tweets, text messaging and Facebook.

However, there is a group of youngsters in Calabasas, CA. that have become licensed Amateur Radio Operators. That action has led them to become leaders in a new wave of shortwave listeners.

They still consider Morse Code and the old guy with a box of radio parts and coax cable to be very old fashioned.

One middle school 16 year old always thought that cell phones were the most reliable form of communication,. “After all”  he said, “Everyone uses cellphones”.

That thinking changed one day when there was a power outage in his area.

He then realized that cell phones and the Internet, things he took for granted every day,  just stopped working!

He also learned that battery powered radio equipment and solar powered repeaters continue to provide communication when “shore power” is dead.

When the youngster’s science teacher talked to his class about learning basic radio principals and receiving extra credit for passing the FCC Amateur Radio license exam, the youngster was all ears.

17 students passed the FCC exam that school year.

Over the next three years, 57 middle school students have earned their license. Plans are being made to offer the two day learning sequence in the coming school year.

The basis of the teacher’s motivation to bring Amateur Radio into the classroom was his personal decision to become a licensed Ham Radio operator right after the 1994 Northridge earthquake.

The youngster said he was nervous when he first signed on after he obtained his license and his new radio.

“I heard all these adults talking and thought, What will I say? I have only talked to one person my age over the radio. But they can hear your voice and know that you’re young.” he said.

Since high school students have tried and failed to find teachers that will sponsor the program, an attempt will be made to create a high school club to serve as a follow-up to the middle school class and help to keep teens active on the air.

I helped my son achieve his No Code Tech license when he was 11 years old. We attended a two day learning sequence sponsored by  SPARC, the Suffolk Police Amateur Radio Club of Long Island New York.

I served as a VE for a number of years and held sessions at Suffolk Community College.

I assisted a long time friend and fellow Amateur KF2P with classroom instruction for the No Code Tech License while working at Brookhaven National Laboratory.

Click on the comments link below and add your personal follow up to this story:

Are you a youngster with a Ham License? Who helped you get into the hobby?

As an adult, have you helped youngsters achieve their license?

Are you a teacher that would like to comment on this idea for your own classroom?

HR 2160 Gains More Support in Congress

This week, four more Congressmen — John Boozman (R-AR-3), Bob Filner (D-CA-51), Dennis Moore (D-KS-3) and David Wu (D-OR-1) — pledged their support for HR 2160, The Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Enhancement Act of 2009 http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c111:H.R.2160:. This brings the total number of cosponsors to 18.

Introduced by Representative Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-TX-18) in April http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2009/04/30/10792/?nc=1, if passed, HR 2160 would “promote and encourage the valuable public service, disaster relief, and emergency communications provided on a volunteer basis by licensees of the Federal Communications Commission in the Amateur Radio Service, by undertaking a study of the uses of Amateur Radio for emergency and disaster relief communications, by identifying unnecessary or unreasonable impediments to the deployment of Amateur Radio emergency and disaster relief communications, and by making recommendations for relief of such unreasonable restrictions so as to expand the uses of Amateur Radio communications in Homeland Security planning and response.” The bill has been referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.

Some In Congress Do Care About Ham Radio

If enacted into law, HR 2160, would instruct the Secretary of Homeland Security to undertake a study and report its findings to Congress within 180 days. The study would spell out uses and capabilities of Amateur Radio communications in emergencies and disaster relief. The study shall:

* Include recommendations for enhancements in the voluntary deployment of Amateur Radio licensees in disaster and emergency communications and disaster relief efforts.
* Include recommendations for improved integration of Amateur Radio operators in planning and in furtherance of the Department of Homeland Security initiatives.
* Identify unreasonable or unnecessary impediments to enhanced Amateur Radio communications — such as the effects of private land use regulations on residential antenna installations — and make recommendations regarding such impediments.
* Include an evaluation of Section 207 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-104, 110 Stat 56 [1996]).
* Recommend whether Section 207 should be modified to prevent unreasonable private land use restrictions that impair the ability of amateurs to conduct, or prepare to conduct, emergency communications by means of effective outdoor antennas and support structures at reasonable heights and dimensions for the purpose in residential areas.

The Secretary of Homeland Security shall utilize the expertise of the ARRL and shall seek information from private and public sectors for the study.

“HR 2160 presents the Amateur Radio Service with a unique opportunity — but also carries with it the important responsibility of making your voice heard,” said ARRL Regulatory Information Manager Dan Henderson, N1ND. “HR 2160 stands as the first step in trying to address the long standing problem of extending the protections afforded Amateur Radio operators under PRB-1 http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/regulations/PRB-1_Pkg/prb-1.pdf to deed restrictions and covenants. To be clear, passing HR 2160 is not going to achieve that goal right away. But it will help lay the ground work by assessing the impact such restrictions have on our ability to train for and respond to disasters and other emergencies.”

HR 2160 is also sponsored by W. Todd Akin (R-MO-2), Michael Arcuri (D-NY-24), Roscoe Bartlett (R-MD-6), Madeleine Bordallo (D-Guam), Bart Gordon (D-TN-6), Brett Guthrie (R-KY-2), Michael Honda (D-CA-15), Mary Jo Kilroy (D-OH-15), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA-16), Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO-9), Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI-11), Charlie Melancon (D-LA-3), Bennie Thompson (D-MS-2) and Peter Welch (D-VT).

Check the ARRL Web site http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2009/05/12/10818 for information on how to encourage your Congressional representative to sponsor HR 2160.

Source:

The ARRL Letter Vol. 28, No. 28 July 17, 2009

DX News

clipped from mt-shortwave.blogspot.com 5V – Franco, I1FQH will be active as 5V7PRF from Togo on 22-31 July. He plans to operate mostly CW with some SSB on 80-10 metres, running 100 watts to a Spiderbeam for 15, 17 and 20 metres, verticals and wires for the other bands. QSL via home call, direct or bureau. He will upload his log to LoTW and eQSL.cc; updates will be posted to http://twitter.com/i1fqh [TNX I1FQH]

Companion Bill to Senate Radio Spectrum Inventory Act Introduced in House

clipped from www.arrl.org In March, Senator John Kerry (D-MA) introduced the Radio Spectrum Inventory Act (S 649) in the Senate. Earlier this month, that bill passed the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee. Last week, Representative Henry Waxman (CA-30) introduced a companion bill — HR 3125 — in the House of Representatives; the bill has been referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. The bills, if passed, would mandate an inventory of radio spectrum bands managed by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the Federal Communications Commission. The Senate version calls for an inventory of frequencies between 300 MHz-3.5 GHz managed by the two agencies, while the House bill would mandate an inventory of 225 MHz-10 GHz.

It’s not Ham Radio but an Interesting Tidbit of Maritime History

The U. S. S. Constitution (Old Ironsides), as a combat vessel, carried 48,600 gallons of fresh water for her crew of 475 officers and men. This amount of water was sufficient to last six months of sustained operations at sea. She carried no evaporators (i.e. fresh water distillers).

However, let it be noted that according to her ship’s log, “On July 27, 1798, the U.S.S. Constitution sailed from Boston with a full complement of 475 officers and men, 48,600 gallons of fresh water, 7,400 cannon shot, 11,600 pounds of black powder and 79,400 gallons of rum.”

Her mission: “To destroy and harass English shipping.” Making Jamaica on 6 October, she took on 826 pounds of flour and 68,300 gallons of rum.

Then she headed for the Azores , arriving there 12 November. She provisioned with 550 pounds of beef and 64,300 gallons of Portuguese wine.

U.S.S. Constitution (Old Ironsides)

On 18 November, she set sail for England . In the ensuing days she defeated five British men-of-war and captured and scuttled 12 English merchant ships, salvaging only the rum aboard each.

By 26 January, her powder and shot were exhausted. Nevertheless, although unarmed she made a night raid up the Firth of Clyde in Scotland .

Her landing party of Marines, captured a whisky distillery and transferred 40,000 gallons of single malt Scotch aboard by dawn. Then she headed home.

The U. S. S. Constitution arrived in Boston on 20 February 1799, with no cannon shot, no food, no powder, no rum, no wine, no whisky, and 38,600 gallons of water.

GO NAVY!