It could be. Since 2006, I have routinely posted about one article per day here. In April I had some health and other issues that kept me from posting for a while.
A sincere plea was made in late April for some moral support from you readers in the form of a signal that my time spent on the blog was not being wasted. I wasn’t asking for money, just an e-mail of thanks, or encouragement.
I received not so much as one e-mail saying “thanks, keep it up”. Not only that, but since April thirteenth no one has even inquired to see if I were dead, or alive.
I got the message — loud and clear. Therefore, I have enjoyed the spring without the burden of concern for this blog, or its readers. I have to say, it is becoming quite habit forming.
Whew! It has Benn a long time since I have been able to post an update. Here is the current status of the blog.
The last few weeks have seen a confluence of bad luck, ill health, multiple computer equipment failures, a death in the family, and the time and energy requirements of owning a large yard in springtime.
I am aware of the issues with the blog and will make the necessary repairs as soon as I can. Please keep checking back, I value your visits. Please also be patient and realize that this is a labor of love, rather than a profit-making endeavor. An e-mailed word of encouragement to bob at kc8dne dot com would go a long way toward providing me with increased motivation.
This post is for the benefit of new hams and others wanting to know more about QSL cards. The excellent definition of QSL from Wikipedia says:
QSL is one of the Q codes used in radio communication and radio broadcasting. A Q code message can stand for a statement or a question. In this case, QSL means either "do you confirm receipt of my transmission?" or "I confirm receipt of your transmission". A QSL card is a written confirmation.
QSL cards confirm either a two-way radio communication between two amateur radio stations or a one-way reception of a signal from an AM radio, FM radio, television or shortwave broadcasting station. They can also confirm the reception of a two-way radio communication by a third party listener. A typical QSL card is the same size and made from the same material as a typical postcard, and most are sent through the mail as such.
I have gathered some additional useful links to further your education.
.: ARRLWeb - ARRL’s Outgoing QSL Service
.: QSL Cards - How to Make Your Own
.: RadioQTH - Amateur Radio QSL Card Creator
.: Shortwave Listener’s QSL Card Museum
.: K8CX’s QSL Card Gallery
.: GlobalQSL - The Revolutionary technology of QSL cards exchange!
.: Mailing and Addressing the QSL Card
Much can be learned from reading about the experience gained by the operators who were involved with this EmComm activity.
ARRL and Amateur Radio has supported a medical mission to Haiti. Project Medishare was founded in 1994 by the University of Miami Medical School and Haiti physicians and health officials. Over the years, Medishare constructed several health clinics, all of which were destroyed in the earthquake. In the quake’s aftermath, Medishare was able to rapidly deploy medical teams and assets to begin the overwhelming task of meeting medical needs. A field hospital was established within the relatively secure boundaries of the Port-au-Prince Airport. Large tents were supplied to set up makeshift operating rooms, patient treatment and recovery areas and mass sleeping quarters for the volunteers.
Overall conditions were basic to primitive. An immediate need was to establish a logistics chain for supplies from cots, food, water, medical equipment and pharmaceuticals to handling the more than one hundred volunteers rotating in and out every five to seven days.
Anyone who has ever worked providing emergency communications from locations like a shelter, knows that you will always need some piece of equipment that you did not bring with you. The solution is to carry a fully stocked “Go-bag”.
The bag should contain items that will be needed for a prolonged stay in an isolated location without reliable electrical power. Tool boxes and bags can work well and inexpensively for this purpose. However, there are bags that have been specifically designed for this type of use. They are available from law enforcement and fire service supply stores.
The bag in the photo, for example, is a Blackhawk Battle Bag. It is available in black, tan and OD green from LA Police Gear, Inc. and other sources.
On March 24, the FCC released a Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) proposing to amend the Commission’s Amateur Radio Service rules "with respect to Amateur Radio operations during government-sponsored emergency preparedness and disaster readiness drills and tests." While current rules provide for Amateur Radio use during emergencies, the rules prohibit communications where the station licensee or control operator has a pecuniary interest, including communications on behalf of an employer. In October 2009, the FCC released a Public Notice clarifying the Commission’s rules relating to the use of Amateur Radio by licensed amateurs participating in drills and exercises on behalf of their employers. To date, the FCC has granted several dozen waivers under this new policy.
The FCC notes that while there are some exceptions to this prohibition, "there is none that would permit amateur station control operators who are employees of public safety agencies and other entities, such as hospitals, to participate in drills and tests in preparation for such emergency situations and transmit messages on behalf of their employers during such drills and tests." Based on that, the Commission proposes to amend the rules to provide that, under certain limited conditions, Amateur Radio operators may transmit messages during emergency and disaster preparedness drills, regardless of whether the operators are employees of entities participating in the drill.
In case you have been wondering why you could not connect to the ARRL’s Web site lately:
The ARRL’s launch of a new Web site has been delayed following problems that appeared as the huge computer programs were being transferred to their main Web server. Normally the Web site connects ham radio operators around the world, dynamically presenting the services that ARRL offers the ham radio community at www.arrl.org. "When we tried to switch over to the new Web site today, we encountered unanticipated technical issues during the process of transferring to the new Web site," said ARRL Chief Operating Officer Harold Kramer, WJ1B. "It appears that some of the computer coding from Fathom has problems (Fathom is the Hartford-based firm that led ARRL through a multi-year strategic Web site planning process including focus groups, site architecture development, design, content generation and functionality). We have temporarily switched back to the old Web site until they are resolved. Obviously, we are trying to complete this transfer as quickly as possible and we will keep you informed of our progress."
SOURCE: the American Radio Relay League
In response to a 2006 ARRL Petition regarding spread spectrum issues, the FCC released a Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) on March 16 (WT Docket No 10-62), proposing to amend Part 97 to facilitate the use of spread spectrum communications technologies by eliminating the requirement that amateur stations use automatic power control (APC) to reduce transmitter power when the station transmits a spread spectrum (SS) emission and reducing the maximum transmitter power output when transmitting a SS emission. Through an Order attached to the NPRM, the Commission also made "certain non-substantive revisions" to the Amateur Service rules.
Spread spectrum techniques are methods by which the information signal of a particular bandwidth is intentionally spread in the frequency domain. At any point of bandwidth the SS emission occupies, either the power spectral density of the transmitted signal is reduced to a comparatively low level or the duration of a transmission on any frequency in the frequency segment is very brief. Consequently, stations in the same area can transmit SS signals without causing harmful interference to or experiencing harmful interference from each other or a station transmitting a non-SS signal over the same spectrum segment.
There is no instance of a nation benefiting from prolonged warfare.
—Sun Tzu, general (6th century BCE)
David Kostrey, KD1BD, age 57, of Derrby, Connecticut, was an assistant director in the city’s Office of Emergency Management. Early Wednesday morning he pulled his sister Joann from their burning house. Upon realizing that his dog was still inside, Kostrey re-entered the house, never to be seen alive again.
Derby Fire Chief James Butler said that when firefighters arrived on scene at about 2:30 AM Wednesday they found “heavy smoke, followed by heavy fire” in the multi-family, wood-framed structure.
Kostrey was a member of the Greater Bridgeport Amateur Radio Club. In an on-line memorial to Kostrey the club posted “In memorium — our friend Dave. We will miss him”.
Kostrey’s dog did not survive.
VIA: The Middletown Press
My name is Bob, and I am a ham radio operator, freelance web developer and a retired commercial radio personality. It turns out that I also enjoy blogging...
