AmateurRadio.com

This week I conducted a presentation on amateur radio for a neighborhood historical group.  I was a bit nervous going into this as it was my first attempt at explaining our hobby in a presentation to the general public.  For me it’s a challenge to capture the full essence of amateur radio in 45 minutes and not use too much lingo or go off on tangents.  However, the presentation seemed to be pretty well received and I even got some laughs from the audience when talking about things like big antennas in backyards, interference, drinking beer at Field Day, and the 6 meter “magic band.”

This isn’t your grandfather’s amateur radio….

Explaining how radio waves bounce off the ionosphere

After the presentation we had wine, cheese, and various homemade dips and deserts.  I fielded a lot of questions and several folks told me stories about relatives who were shortwave listeners, hams, or radiomen in the war.  A good time was had by all, as they say….

I am sorry to learn via the blog of PC4T that Chuck W5PG passed away on 18 July. Chuck was one of our little community of ham radio bloggers. Losing one of our number is like losing a friend. In his last blog entry he wrote about his efforts to get fit enough to do a bicycle hike later this year. His passing is, to say the least, unexpected.

My thoughts are with Chuck’s family and friends.

The 20 Meter QRP Fox hunt did not pan out tonight.

I heard Arn K0ZK fine for the first half hour; but could not break the pile up. Then his signal faded into oblivion, even with the K3’s APF feature going full bore.

TJ W0EA was just the opposite.  He came up into hearing range in the last half hour; but I couldn’t break the pileup there, either.

Sometimes you’re lucky and sometimes you’re not. Tonight was not a lucky night.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!

A lot of interest has been focused on contest logging of late. We’ve had several comments and questions on the topic. With the recent passage of Field Day and Hamvention, many hams wanted to know what options there were for Linux. As it happens, YFKTest has been on our radar for some time. In order to get the full scoop, we invited Bob, W9YA, the current lead developer of YFKTest to come on the program and let us know what’s going on with YFKTest, what Russ has been doing wrong with it, and where it’s headed in the future.

It turns out that while simple, YFKTest is a competent and fully featured contest logger for many different contests. It works for CW and SSB logging, has rig control built in, and in the future may support network capable logging. There are many more features too numerous to name here. So sit back and let W9YA give you all the ins and outs. And stay tuned to the end of the show where our intrepid hosts tackle feedback from you, the listener. Best of luck in all your upcoming radio ventures.

73 de The LHS Guys

Fellow blogger, Chuck W5PG passed away suddenly, yesterday.

http://pc4t.blogspot.nl/2012/07/chuck-w5pg-silent-key.html

In hist last post, Chuck talked about working up towards doing a Century (100 mile bike ride) later this summer.

Chuck was a good guy and will be missed. Prayers and condolences are with his family.

Larry W2LJ

43 years ago, this week, I was a 12 year old geek (of course) in love with the United State’s Manned Spaceflight program.  Some of my earliest TV memories were of watching the Mercury launches of Alan Shepard and John Glenn.

43 years ago, this week, the epitome, the apex, the goal was reached.  On Wednesday, July 16th we watched as Apollo 11 was launched from Pad 39A from Cape Kennedy.

Three days later, on July 20th, we listened (breathlessly) and Neil Armstrong broadcast, “Houston, Tranquility Base here, the Eagle has landed”. As kids we were ready to go to bed as the EVA (moon walk) was scheduled for the next day. But Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin must have been on an adrenalin high, however, as they asked Houston for permission (and received it) to begin the moonwalk within hours of landing. Our parents suspended bed time rules and allowed my sister and I to stay up and watch all the history being made.

And watch,  we did! We watched the TV spellbound as ghostly images appeared on our screens. Walter Cronkite and Wally Schirra were our guides as Neil Armstrong uttered those now famous words, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind”.  I specifically remember the cameras cutting to Walter Cronkite as events unfolded. He understood the significance of the moment and was almost in tears.

Looking back on it, the accomplishment is even more amazing!  The Lunar Module landed on the moon with an on board computer that had less processing power than a scientific calculator or cell phone of today’s vintage.  Those were the days when the sky was the limit, we had the national will to do great things and the horizon looked endless.  I miss the enthusiasm, the attitude and the ambition of those heady days.

To this day, when I find myself outdoors at night and the moon is out – I still look up there and think to myself, “Wow! We actually went there!”.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!