January . . . . . . . . . . . No meeting Tuesday, February 10 . . . . 7:30p, HP, Oak Room, Cupertino Tuesday, March 10 . . . . . . 7:30p, HP, Oak Room, Cupertino Tuesday, April 14 . . . . . . 7:30p, HP, Oak Room, Cupertino Tuesday, May 12 . . . . . . . 7:30p, location to be announced Tuesday, June 9 . . . . . . . 7:30p, HP, Oak Room, Cupertino July . . . . . . . . . . . . No meeting ... Summer Picnic! Tuesday, August 11 . . . . . 7:30p, HP, Oak Room, Cupertino Tuesday, September 8 . . . . 7:30p, HP, Oak Room, Cupertino Tuesday, October 13 . . . . . 7:30p, HP, Oak Room, Cupertino Tuesday, November 10 . . . . 7:30p, HP, Oak Room, Cupertino December . . . . . . . . . .. No meeting ... Holiday party time!
To Members of Las Cumbres Amateur Radio Club:
Another fresh new year is upon us. The board is already well in to the business of planning for 1998. Plans for some activities are already taking shape. Others have yet to take shape ... all that is needed is you! I encourage you to take an interest in the club and continue to shape it towards our future.
Equipment
In the past year, your club's technical committee has
accomplished many projects. Several Las Cumbres assets have
been recently renewed or purchased. Our new 70cm repeater and
link radios on Black Mountain sound better than they have in
years! The committee has cleaned and peaked our 1.25m repeater,
added PL and phone patch capabilities; how many of you even knew
LCARC had 220 gear? Jim KN6PE has been experimenting with NOS
(TCP/IP) packet and has installed K6FB-5 at Las Cumbres. Jim
will be speaking on this topic at our March meeting. The
technical committee has also begun work to clean up some
outdated systems, add an expansion rack -- all to ensure that
K6FB remains one of the premiere repeater systems from the
Sierra to the Sea!
Meetings
Our January Members Meeting was canceled due to several details
that conspired against us. So, let's look forward to Members
Meetings on 2nd Tuesdays for the remainder of this year at 7:30.
Please mark your calendars now. I'd love for *YOU* to join us.
Is there a topic or a speaker that interests you? Tell us who
or what the topic is, we'll invite a speaker on that topic.
While you have your calendar out, please mark these dates: Saturday May 30th, August 29th, and October 31 for our traditional Fifth Saturday Breakfasts; also note June 27th and 28th for Field Day; then save a Saturday in July for our traditional Summer Family Picnic; and lastly pencil in Friday December 4th for our Holiday Party. Friday evening was broadly popular among attendees at our 1997 Holiday Party. I hope you'll join us this year.
LCARC Board meetings are always open to interested members. Tune in to the weekly Monday net for information on dates, times, and locations.
While I'm thinking about it -- do check in to the weekly nets held each Monday evening at 7:30. It's one of the best ways to stay in touch with upcoming events. Each week net control solicits a volunteer for the following week. We currently have very few individuals that take net control each week -- I challenge each of you to support them and take net control just one Monday in the coming year. We can always get a script to you if you need one.
Las Cumbres ARC is sporting a new web page! Surf the web to http://www.ihot.com/~k6prk/k6fb.html. Check out the pictures of the sites and equipment that your club dues support. (By the way, the Monday net script is available here.)
Where can members make a difference? Your club could really use your help right now in three specific areas...
1.Tell a friend, sign up a new member: The tidal wave of new hams crested a few years ago. Perhaps you remember the quick succession of KD6, KE6, and finally KF6 calls of just few years ago. Member attrition has actually begun to be a cause for concern over the last two years. As attrition takes its toll the club loses it's ability to collect dues, which in turn takes its toll on some of the new, interesting, fun, projects the club could pursue. Encourage your ham buddies to join up!
The board is also revamping the new member packet and creating a prospective member brochure. The board is already taking steps to promote the club at flea markets and ham gatherings, to talk up our club and encourage new members. I hope you will join in this effort.
2. Scourge of the Airwaves: As you already know, our two mountain top locations offer great coverage throughout the south bay, Monterey bay, and much of the area coastal waters. All in all, K6FB has a huge RF footprint... and somewhere in this footprint we have one or more yahoos that seem determined to tarnish K6FB for the rest of us. These individuals have several methods to their irksome madness: (a) hanging up autopatch calls, (b) interfering with general conversations/nets/events usually with taped or digitized voice invective, and (c) hacking repeater codes. K6FB is only one of numerous local repeaters affected by these malicious individuals. We would very much like to know the whereabouts of these individuals.
Here's how you can help: if you hear intentional interference while you are monitoring K6FB please switch to monitoring the input frequency (144.85 or 447.575). If you hear the interference on the input frequency then note the time and date, your location, how strong the signal was, and then notify one of the board members as soon as possible by e-mail or telephone. At a minimum, this starts to close in to a search area. Do not announce your findings over the air! Furthermore, do not approach or confront anyone suspected of causing intentional interference. We are working with our Pacific Division ARRL resources towards a resolution.
In general: do *NOT* bait, tease, cajole, acknowledge or encourage any jammer in any way. The most effective tool against them is to ignore them.
3. Sprucing up the Shack: The Las Cumbres shack is starting to show its age; the weather is pretty tough at our mountain top location. It's time to paint and replace the ramp deck. If you have skills, time, or materials to contribute towards these projects please contact me.
Lastly, I wish to recognize and thank our outgoing board members: serving as your Vice President for the past two years, Ken KN6CK; and serving as Member at Large for the last two years, Dick KB6GLX. Frank W6SZS, serving as the Technical Committee Chair for the last two years, is seeking re-election. Good luck Frank! To all of you, my heartfelt thanks for your service to the club. Thank you gentlemen!
It's your turn. How are we doing? Do you have an idea, a suggestion, or a request? I am available to you and encourage you to contact me or any of your elected board members on air, by phone, or by e-mail.
Here's to a terrific 1998! Cheers and 73! Jey
With another year almost behind us, the Board of Directors is getting ready for the 1998 Annual Elections and Meeting.
Top on the priority list right now is getting the slate of candidates lined up for the Board of Directors. This year, we will have three board members with terms about to expire. These individuals are Frank W6SZS, Ken KN6CK, and Dick KB6GLX. The remaining Board members, Jey KQ6DK, Ned KE6ZOZ, Harry K6JTC, and Jim KN6PE, still have one more year left on their term.
So far, the Board has as received nominations for board membership from the following members:
* Frank W6SZS has stated his interest (or was he drafted?) in continuing as a member of the Board and the Club's TCC.
* Dan K6PRK, a long-time club member, has also thrown his hat in the ring.
We are still looking for a third candidate. Anyone interested in running for the Board should contact Jey KQ6DK.
The board is currently working on the 1998 budget. Here are some of the figures we are working with at the moment. Discussion will continue on this topic at the February 3rd board meeting (7PM, American Legion Post Conference Room on Walsh, just east of San Tomas Expressway in Santa Clara).
The table below refers to the working document presented to the board for discussion.
Issues on this have been brought up in e-mail discussions since the last board meeting. I expect that we will be able to nail down the last concerns and details at our next general meeting.
97 97 98
Budget Actual Budget Notes
Income
Dues -Renewal 2500 3106 2640 a
Dues + Initiation 0 0 480 b
Raffle Income 0 0 0
Miscellaneous income 650 0 100
Subtotal, Income 3150 3106 3220
Expenses
Utilities
Electric 200 400 200 d
Telephone 375 368 375
Insurance
Equipment 300 301 300
Liability 500 478 480
Postage & Mailings 700 463 500
Social Events
Picnic 150 122 75
Field Day 150 100 50
Holiday Party 0 156 75
Technical Committee 2000 1755 250
Miscellaneous 100 249 250
Battery Fund 250 0 250 c
Refreshment seed money 0 0 25 f
Raffle seed money 0 0 25 f
FC900 Modules 1.2GH 0 0 0 g
LC Tree Climber 0 0 200 h
Flea Market seed money 0 0 20 e
LC Shack Painting 0 0 125 i
Subtotal, Expenses 4725 4392 3200
Excess (Deficit) -1575 -1286 20
a. Renewing member assumption: 120 @ $22
b. New member assumption: 12+ new members
c. Batteries are aging rapidly, look for
replacement in 1998 or 1999
d. '97 Actuals represents payments for '96 and '97
e. Flea Market stall rental promoting club. Potential fund
raiser selling WA6TVN HT Dipoles. MUST BECOME SELF
FUNDING.
f. Will refreshments and raffles boost meeting attendance?
MUST BECOME SELF FUNDING.
g. Rounds out suite of desirable FC900 modules. Desire is to
purchase them while we can. NOT THIS YEAR. CAPITAL DRIVE
TO FUND IT OK.
h. We now need to hire a tree climber; assumes 1 event @
$200
i. Existing paint is cracking. We need to paint in '98.
Respectfully submitted,
Jey Yelland
LCARC President
December 14, 1997. My time on the air during this year's ARRL 10 meter contest was going to be limited to Sunday since there was still a whole lot of Christmas preparation around the house we had to take care of.
But just the same, I was interested in checking out the 10 meter band in particular since we're already a year into Sun Spot Cycle #23. So, by Saturday night, with the Christmas tree up and the stockings hung by the chimney with care, I sneaked a quick trip to the shack at 9:00 pm to check out the conditions. It was a rainy night, and was still drizzling as I was writing this article. I checked my SWR on 10 meters and it's fair around 28.300. It went from bad to worse as I tuned higher up the band. Not to surprising, the band greeted me with the usual 10 meter hiss.
Sunday morning rolled around and I again retreated to my shack in the garage, bundled up with layers of flannel and sweaters and ready for the cold. This time however, the band was alive and wide open when I tuned up. I was on the air by 10 AM local time and, in the course of 40 minutes, I logged about 15 contacts primarily throughout the eastern states (great signals coming in from Indiana, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Alabama). Other than one or two weak local signals, I didn't hear anything west of Illinois and Wisconsin... a great example of skip in action!
While I heard several South American stations, the bulk of them didn't hear me. I suspect my measly 100 watts was doing a better job drying out my very wet roof rather than radiating up and out.
With about three hours left in the contest, the band conditions changed dramatically resulting in the east coast folding up as if they were never there. All those earlier weak California stations now began to boom in. That's OK... points are points! A New Jersey station was barely poking through from the east coast -- obviously pushing a lot of power into undoubtedly a very nice antenna.
By 12:30 pm local time, the South American stations dominated the scene with stations heard from Argentina, Uzbek, and Brazil.
I ended the contest with a score of 520 points (20 contacts with 13 multipliers). While this palls in comparison with some of the more serious contesters, it was fun just the same and was a terrific indication to me of what's to come over the next several years, courtesy of Cycle #23. If you operate HF, get ready... we're in for a terrific ride!
I've mentioned the "stealth" HF antenna I've got up on the roof more than once in the newsletter. Here's a brief view of what's up there.
I re-installed my latest fanned dipole up on the roof last spring and finally got it working fairly well, considering how close its located to the roof. For those not familiar with this antenna, it uses a single feed line into multiple dipoles, each dipole cut for a specific band. I've designed mine to work on the 10, 20, and 40 meters bands and this installation has been the best so far, if I do say so myself (this is about the forth time I've restrung it).
I use 24 gauge wire because its' essentially invisible from the ground once installed (you have to know where it is, then stare at it to see it!), heavy fishing line to secure the ends, and a balun. In the garage, I cut the lengths and attached to a balun, I roll the whole thing up and head for the roof. Once installed, I've used my MFJ-259 HF/VHF SWR Analyzer to tune up each band, make length adjustments, then checking everything one more time. This is an excellent piece of test equipment and a must for every shack.
Because I run out of roof, the 40 meter dipole has a bend it which doesn't seem to affect its overall performance. For the moment, 80 meters seems out of the question.
Back in the shack, I typically do a final SWR survey to understand the optimal portions of each band. I'm pleased with the results I get and continue to hope restringing the antenna doesn't turn into an annual affair. in the mean time, I just imagine living somewhere with a more respectable antenna farm in the backyard!
The following is in reply to a message posted to the Society of Amateur Scientist mail list on the topic of long wave antennas. By way of an introduction, the question posed was "what were some practical ways to build up very low frequency antennas?" We now join the discussion already in progress. -- ed
"Rebar is fine if you can scrounge some. If you have to buy it you will probably have to buy a 10 ft. length. A lot of hardware stores etc. have an assortment of metal shapes in 3 ft. lengths. A 3 ft. length of 1/2 inch steel rod should cost a few dollars.
"I would be inclined to use a length of 3/4 inch black iron pipe. The rebar is rough and that makes winding a neat coil difficult. For this type of antenna bigger is better (up to a point).
"The wavelength of a 1Hz signal is 300,000,000 meters. So our antenna is tiny compared to the signal it is trying to receive. For comparison, a TV antenna is roughly the same size as a wavelength of the TV signal. The size of professional antennas for these low frequency EM waves is measured in acre turns (number of turns times the area inside the coil). A rough estimate says the "effective" size of the project's antenna is 0.3 acre turns (not too bad).
"I was thinking about this some time ago and came up with the following solution for an antennae to receive long waves. Use railroad tracks.
"Railroad track rails are long continuous metal rails now that stretch for many miles in one direction (especially out west). Hook up to one and listen for long wave signals.
"Railroad companies currently transmit signals through track now as part of a track break detection system as we learned from CNN when that train was derailed in apparent sabotage a few months ago. For this reason one should not just go hooking up stuff to any railroad track and there may be some interference and well as the need to avoid injecting spurious signals INTO the track. Perhaps an old abandoned line would be the best option or an in use track with the proper permissions.
"Anyway I think a detection network consisting of 1000 mile railroad tracks acting as antennas in different directions (east west, north south) might be capable of picking up long wave signals and lower multiples of even longer wave signals. Perhaps there are other alternative installed long metal pseudo antennas in place such as cables or metal water pipes or oil and gas lines that could also be put to this use in a non invasive way but Railroad tracks seem to be the most accessible.
"If anybody does do a study of long wave signals using this technique I would appreciate a notice and a mention.
Thanks,
George Watson
71360.2455@CompuServe.COM
Have you ever wondered why we radio amateurs are called HAMS? Well it goes something like this.
The word ham was applied in 1908 and was the call letters of one of the first amateur wireless stations operated by some of the members of the Harvard Radio Club. They were Albert Hymen, Bob Almy and Peggie Murray. At first they called their station Hyman-Almy-Murray. Tapping out such a long name in code soon called for a revision, and they changed it to Hy-Al-Mu, using the first two letters of each name.
Early in 1909, some confusion resulted between signals from HYALMU and a Mexican ship named Myalmo, so they decided to use only the first letter of each name and identified their station as HAM. In the early pioneer and unregulated days of radio, amateur operators picked there own frequencies and call letters.
Then, as now, some amateurs had better signals than some commercial stations. The resulting interference finally came to the attention of congressional committees in Washington, DC and they gave much thought to proposed legislation designed to critically limit amateur activity.
In 1911, Albert Hyman chose the controversial Wireless Regulations Bill as the topic of his thesis at Harvard. His instructor insisted that a copy be sent to Senator David Walsh, a member of the committee hearing the Bill. The Senator was so impressed that he sent for Mr. Hyman to appear before the committee. Hyman was put on the stand and described how the little amateur station, HAM, was built, and he almost cried when he told the crowded committee room that if the bill went through, they would have to close up the station because they could not afford the license fees and other requirements which were set up in the bill.
The debate started and the little station HAM became a symbol of all the little amateur stations in the country that were crying out to be saved from the menace and greed of the big commercial stations who did not want them around. Finally the Bill got to the floor of Congress and every speaker talked about the poor little station, HAM.
That's how it all got started. You can find the whole story in the Congressional Record. Nationwide publicity identified the station HAM with amateurs. From that time to this, and probably to the end of time, in radio, "Every amateur is a HAM"....
There's only one thing wrong with this tale -- one that's been making the rounds since 1947 -- it's utterly false.
John Huntoon, now W1RW, and for many years the ARRL General Manager, researched this story when it first appeared in a New York physicians journal in 1947. He (Huntoon) contacted the person who had been the president of the Harvard Radio Club during the period of interest; the ex-president had never heard of Hyman, Almy, or Murray. Huntoon retrieved a copy of the Congressional Record covering those years, and contrary to the statement that "You can find the whole story in the Congressional Record," and "...every speaker talked about the poor little station, HAM," there are no such comments there; there's no mention whatever of Hyman-Almy-Murray in the Congressional Record.
Further, Senator Walsh wasn't a member of the committee, and in fact he wasn't even elected senator until 1922. As Huntoon has written, "Dr. Hyman's story is a figment of his imagination."
I have personally checked out some additional claims. I have checked for HAM in Callbooks going back to 1907. There is no such listing. I've checked the New York Times through the period of the hearings, and there is no mention whatever of Hyman, Almy, or Murray or their testimony (those who really *want* to believe this story can check out the Times themselves - most major libraries have it on microfilm).
Huntoon tried to stamp out this false story for years, with no success. He finally gave up. Now that we have packet and internet, the story has been gaining acceptance once again.
73. Jim, W6CF
And now you know the rest of the story. Thanks Jim for the write-up and Bob W6OPO for finding and passing them on. -- ed
Compliance with the new guidelines should be relatively easy for the vast majority of hams and should require few changes in current operating practices. These Amateur Radio rules will deal with the general public for the first time in a new substantial manner; therefore, compliance is very important.
There are numerous information resources - an excellent summary of the guidelines is contained in October QST, pages 51 and 52. An article titled "How To Do a Routine Evaluation," starting at page 50 in the January 1998 QST, will answer most questions. Also, an ARRL book on this subject should be available soon.
Recent Pacific Division Updates have contained "run-up" articles. These documents are available on the Pacific Division web site at http://www.pdarrl.org/.
FCC has published OET Bulletin 65, "Evaluating Compliance with FCC Guidelines for Human Exposure to Radio frequency Electromagnetic Fields," Edition 97-01, August 1997, and Supplement B, "Additional Information for Amateur Radio Stations."
For the latest news on this matter and linkage to related Web sites, visit the ARRL RF-Safety Web page at http://www.arrl.org/news/rfsafety. To obtain the FCC documents directly refer to the FCC site at http://www.fcc.gov/oet/rfsafety.
As part of the implementation of these new guidelines, there is a new Form 610 series, dated Sept. 1997. There are three new forms in this series: Form 610 is for basic transactions, Form 610-A is for operating privileges for foreign nationals, and Form 610-B is for club stations. These new forms MUST be used for all licensing transactions after Jan. 1, 1998. The new forms all contain a statement to the effect that the applicant understands and complies with the new RF Safety regulations. The new 610 form series can be obtained on the FCC WWW site at http://www.fcc.gov, the ARRL Web page at http://www.arrl.org, by contacting the FCC Central Phone Service at 1-888-CALLFCC (225-7245), by writing FCC at 1270 Fairfield Road, Gettysburg PA, 17325-7245, or by contacting the ARRL at (860) 594-0200 or at 225 Main St., Newington CT, 06111-1494.
Here are the key dates to remember:
1. New licensees after Jan. 1, 1998, must be in compliance with the new regulations at the time of first licensing. The applicant will certify compliance by the very act of signing off on the new 610.
2. All those licensed prior to Jan. 1, 1998, will have to be in compliance with the new RF exposure regulations whenever a new Form 610 is filed for license renewal, upgrade, or other modification.
3. All licensees, new or old, must be in compliance with the new regulations no later than Sept. 1, 2000. This date must be met whether a Form 610 has been filed previously or not.
Over the years, countless letters and articles have been written in the pages of QST about Elmers, those patient, inspired souls who thoroughly enjoy bringing newcomers into the world of Amateur Radio. Now, the ARRL's new Radio Coaches program takes Elmering to new levels. Through the Radio Coaches program, you and your fellow club members can become part of a national effort to better the lives of youth using Amateur Radio. And ARRL will provide the game plan and materials!
Radio Coaches stems from the kickoff of America's Promise, the Alliance for Youth, a national campaign to improve the lives of the nation's young people and put them on paths for brighter, more productive futures.
The mission will be to give young people an ongoing relationship with a caring adult and a marketable skill through effective education. Amateur Radio will be our chief tool.
Through Radio Coaches, we want to reinforce the idea that Amateur Radio is a "sport for the brain." Ham radio provides not only a lifetime of enjoyment, but also, potentially, a lifetime career.
To get involved contact Radio Coaches, c/o Field Services Department, ARRL, 225 Main St., Newington CT, 06111; or e-mail coaches@arrl.org.
Thanks, ARRL Letter, Nov. 14, 1997.
If you will let me know when and where classes and code practices are to be held within the Pacific Division, I will post this information on the Pacific Division web site.
Information on "How to Become a Ham," education books and materials, instructors, etc.,. can be found by calling ARRL Education Activities Department at 1-800-32NEW-HAM or by visiting the ARRL web site at http://www.arrl.org. On the web site look under the category of "How to Become a Ham."
Some selected education information gathered to date - "one-on-one" code practice using MCW on the KM6DZ repeater in Monterey (146.655- after 9:00 PM Thursdays); KN6FR in Monterey teaches classes regularly; K5FO holds code practice on his web site at http://reality.sgi.com/adams/.
One of the New Year activities for the Board is securing the Club's general meeting room. Because of when we receive our insurance, we're usually last in line for the HP Oak Room each year (Jim tells me that next year, we're going to try another approach... they just may hold it as compared to reserve it earlier).
So, the Board scrambled to get the insurance paid and paperwork signed, with I's dotted and T's crossed, to reserve the Oak Room for January. We were able to get the 2nd Tuesdays of each month with the exception of May. That would have put our January meeting on this Tuesday Jan 13 ... with the board meeting on Wednesday Jan 14. Because the Board would not have a chance to review the proposed budget for 1998 by then, we agreed this now pushes the Annual Meeting out until March.
So, given the short notice on the general meeting date change, and the scheduling between board and general meetings, we agreed to cancel the January meeting.
Join us in February for our next regular scheduled meeting for a review of the slate of candidates and a discussion on the budget.
1. A number of different approaches are being tried.
(We are still guessing at this point.)
2. Close project coordination.
(We sat down and had coffee together.)
3. An extensive report is being prepared on a fresh
approach.
(We just hired three punk kids out of school.)
4. Major technological breakthrough!
(It works OK; but looks very hi-tech!)
5. Customer satisfaction is believed assured.
(We are so far behind schedule, that the customer will take
anything.)
6. Preliminary tests were inconclusive.
(The darn thing blew up when we threw the switch.)
7. Test results were extremely gratifying!
(Unbelievable, it actually worked!)
8. The entire concept will have to be abandoned.
(The only guy who understood the thing quit.)
9. It is in process.
(It is so wrapped in red tape that the situation is completely
hopeless.)
10. We will look into it.
(Forget it! We have enough problems already.)
11. Please note and initial.
(Let's spread the responsibility for this.)
12. Give us the benefit of your thinking.
(We'll listen to what you have to say as long as it doesn't
interfere with what we have already done or with what we are
going to do.)
13. Give us your interpretation.
(We can't wait to hear your bull.)
14. See me or let's discuss.
(Come to my office, I've screwed up again.)
15. All new.
(Parts are not interchangeable with previous design.)
16. Rugged.
(Don't plan to lift it without major equipment.)
17. Robust!
(Rugged, but more so)
18. Light weight.
(Slightly lighter than rugged)
19. Years of development.
(One finally worked)
20. Energy saving.
(Achieved when the power switch is off.)
21. No maintenance.
(Impossible to fix)
22. Low maintenance.
(Nearly impossible to fix)
23. Fax me the data.
(I'm too lazy to write it down.)
24. We are following the standard!
(That's the way we have always done it!)
25. Self calibrating!
(Wrote specs based on output, impossible to adjust)
Saturday, Feb 21 Starts at 8:00am National Guard Armory Monterey Peninsula College Indoor Demonstrations - Spread Spectrum - Voice and CW - ATV - Slow Scan TV - Computers - Red Cross Van - Santa Cruz ARES Van - Satellite - packet - MARS - APRS Indoor Flea Market Outdoor Tailgate Market Door Prizes Free Ham Radio Public Service Event
Brad Wyatt K6WR, Director, Pacific Division, ARRL
(408) 395-2501 (Phone and FAX)
Packet: K6WR@N0ARY.#NCA.CA.USA.NOAM
Internet: K6WR@arrl.org
WWW Pacific Division Home Page --
http://www.pdarrl.org/
FCC Electronic Renewal Form 900 Works Well
The FCC's Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (WTB) has consolidated eight renewal forms for various services into one. Form 900, Application for Electronic Renewal of Wireless Radio Services Authorizations," is an interim measure to permit all licensees of the WTB, including hams, to renew their licenses on-line.
Form 900 is only for renewals within 120 days prior to license expiration. You can only enter changes (e.g., name, address).
I was able to renew my license on line in December (my license was due to expire on Jan. 19, 1998). Based on my experience, it's best to first go to http://www.fcc.gov/wtb/amateur/amrenw.html for directions on what to do. You will then be lead to http://www.fcc.gov/wtb/electcom.html. One of the choices in this page is to go to the "Production Page for Electronic Commerce Applications" which contains the Form 900 entry button. There are also instructions for a Renewal Query so you can learn if the Renewal was made. Finally, I also found that my license appeared as renewed on QRZ.com within a day or so. Thanks, ARRL Letter and Paul Burton, AA6Z.
WRC-97 Is Over; Ham Radio Came Out Unscathed
While we did well at WRC-97, it is likely that we may have to fight the "Little LEO" matter all over again at WRC-99. Also, WRC-99 may be postponed.
Further, the entire ITU Amateur Radio licensing and rules and the 40 meter band harmonization matters have been postponed by the ITU until WRC 2001 at least.
FCC Asks for Comments Concerning Potential Changes to Morse Code Waiver Rules
In late November the FCC announced that the public Comment period on the ARRL Petition for a Changes to Morse code Waiver Rules, now called RM-9196, will end on Dec. 29, 1997. Basically this proposal asks for "rather minor changes" in the Rules so that a candidate at least would have to attempt the code test - with any and all necessary accommodations - before being granted an exam waiver based on a physician's certification. Also, Volunteer Examiner Coordinators (VECs) would be entitled to request medical information pertinent to an applicant's handicap from the certifying physician. VECs also would be required to have this information on file before the application is forwarded to the FCC for processing.
Please comment (in hard copy format only) in a positive fashion to help encourage FCC to issue a Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) on this matter.
QST for December 1997 on page 75 has an article on this matter, as does the November issue of the Pacific Division Update. See also the editorial "It Seems to Us" by David Sumner, K1ZZ, in QST for October 1997, page 9. The Pacific Division web site contains the petition text, more details, and a sample letter.
Latest Congressional News
Congress has recessed until at least Jan. 26, 1998. As a result, there has been no action on HR 2369, the Wireless Privacy Enhancement Act, after it was rewritten to reflect the concerns of Amateur Radio operators, volunteer fire fighters, scanner enthusiasts, and others. The ARRL worked with a coalition of other organizations to make sure your voice was heard on The Hill.
Similarly, there has been no action on S. 1350 or other bills. See DC Currents in Jan. QST, for more details.
Vanity Call Sign Gate 4 Opened Dec. 2, 1997
General, Technician Plus, Technician and Novice Class amateur operators may now request a vanity call sign. The details for requesting a vanity call sign follow the pattern used on the previous gates. QST, Pacific Division Updates and other publications detail the use of Forms 610-V and 159 for filing electronically and in paper document format. The fee is $50 for the 10 year license.
Handi-Ham Camp in California Announced
The next session of HANDI-HAM Radio Workshop (Camp) will be held at Camp Joan Mier, Malibu, from February 24 to March 1, 1998.
This camp will provide ham radio instruction at all levels for persons with severe physical (not learning) disabilities and/or sensory impairments.
The camp in 1998 will be FREE for California residents who are going for a first ticket or upgrade. All normal care, food, lodging, and Amateur Radio instruction for the session will be provided AT NO COST to the campers.
If you or anyone you know is interested, contact Jane Rova, Secretary, Courage HANDI-HAM System, 3915 Golden Valley Road, Golden Valley, MN 55422; (612) 520-0512; e-mail handiham@mtn.org.
LCARC is a California non-profit mutual benefit corporation dedicated to Amateur Radio Service and Emergency Communication. It's purpose is to support scientific investigation in radio engineering and emergency communication skills development for its members.
Repeaters & Services operated by LCARC
K6FB/R: 145.450 MHz (-), PL=100, linked with K6FB/R: 442.575 MHz (+), PL=100 K6FB/R: 223.880 MHz (-), PL=100 K6FB-1 Digipeater: 145.050 MHz K6FB-2 Bulletin Board: 145.050 MHz K6FB-7 Node (alias LCARC): 145.050 MHz K6FB-5 tcp/ip "losgatos" [44.4.8.1], 145.750 MHz
Nets and Meetings
The LCARC Net is held every Monday evening at 7:30pm local time on the K6FB/R repeaters. Guests and visitors are welcome to check in. Volunteers for net control for the following week's net are solicited (and encouraged) at the end of each net.
General meetings are held at the Hewlett-Packard Cupertino Site, Oak Room, Building 48, located at Wolfe Road and Pruneridge Avenue (entrance on Pruneridge) at 7:30 PM, on the second Tuesday of every month unless otherwise noted (see page 1 for location and dates). Talk-in on K6FB/R.
Officers and Board of Directors
Jey Yelland / KQ6DK . . . . . . President Ken Carey / KN6CK . . . . . . . Vice President Harry Workman / K6JTC . . . . . Treasurer Ned Rice / KE6ZOZ . . . . . . . Membership Jim Oberhofer / KN6PE . . . . . Secretary Frank Butcher / W6SZS . . . . . TCC Tom Campbell / K6KMT . . . . . Trustee Dick LaTondre / KB6GLX . . . . Member at Large
Summit Sentinel
The Summit Sentinel is published monthly by the LCARC. Permission is granted to reprint from this publication with appropriate source credit. The deadline for submitting items is the first Friday following each general meeting. Send your contributions to Jim KN6PE at:
packet: KN6PE@N0ARY or leave on K6FB-2
internet: jimo@cup.hp.com
Phone: 408-746-5568