AmateurRadio.com

Welcome to the latest installment of Linux in the Ham Shack. In this episode we present some topics of the day related to ham radio and Linux, as well as veer a little off course and put forth a thought experiment, comparing Linux, Windows and MacOS in a purely subjective way. We also look at open pharmacology, Linux distros, German food and a lot more. Thanks for listening, and please let your friends know about us.

73 de The LHS Guys

Russ Woodman, K5TUX, co-hosts the Linux in the Ham Shack podcast which is available for download in both MP3 and OGG audio format. Contact him at [email protected].

Once upon a time my digi experience

With reports of the solar cycle on the decline and considering I'm not a big gun station that can belt out 1KW into a multi element beam I have to somewhat raise the white flag. I'm not going to give up on CW , getting contacts into the states is great and Morse code is like having a second language and I'm not going to give it up! When the solar cycle is in a low time I find it amazing that during a CW contesst my QRP signal is still able to get across the pond. It makes me think that just the idea of a decline in the solar cycle just has hams not turning their radios on and not giving it a go. For me I'm in a condo with the MFJ mag loop antenna and then to add to it QRP power I figure over the long haul the digi modes are going to be my best option for reeling in some DX. I have reformatted my PC's hard drive and just installed Windows 7 so it's time to start fresh! I have WSPR installed and up and going, in the past I had JT65HF and PSK31 installed and making contacts………..so ham folks what's out there that you have having had great success with?? I have a balcony antenna and QRP power that can go to 5 watts max. Whats nice with the digi modes is the MFJ 1788 will not have to be constantly returned. The bandwidth required is so narrow I can concentrate of making contacts.What programs do you use and where do you get your support when things don't work out as planned? I have always become frustrated with setting up the digi modes but I am going to have to bite the bullet and plow through the up's and downs of setting up the digi modes on my PC along with my rig.     
Mike Weir, VE9KK, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from New Brunswick, Canada. Contact him at [email protected].

In a recent conversation with my good friend Lewis, we started discussing Morse code, training and the old equipment that was used to educate and teach the code to newcomers. In particular we discussed the old Datong D70 practice oscillators.  Lewis carried on the tell me that his Datong  like so many others started sending odd illegal characters and essentially rendered the kit useless. Of course you could whip of the lid and replace the logic chips, but I thought of recreating the Datong functionality in a new Arduino sketch.

So here is a breakdown of what the Datong offered:

1. Either Mixed, letter or number combinations
2. Groups of 5 characters
3. Variable speed ( up to 37.5 word per minute)
4. Variable character spacing (up to 4 seconds)

The Datong also allowed you to connect a telegraph key, and your headphones. But for now I will focus on the code generation element of the project.

The finished project has just a handful of components and can easily be created on a breadboard, or indeed if you have an old broken Datong you can reuse the box and panel to really replicate the old kit.   The complete project includes 3 variable resistors (1K LIN) for Character speed, gap and volume. It also needs a 3 way switch to select the mode.

The Arduino I’m using is the UNO. Arguably the most popular Arduino on the market, but I have also tried the sketch on a Nano and it works fine – just some customisation of pin assignments is all that is needed.

On start up the Arduino checks to see which switch is LOW – it also saves the current mode and checks if the saved mode is the same as the current selected switch. If this is different, then the Arduino has had a change in the mode selection and resets.

When generating the tones, the Arduino randomly selects a character from an array. With that chosen letter – it calls a function and plays the corresponding tone functions. 2 functions exist as a DIT and a DAH.

The rest of the functions are dedicated to allowing the speed and gap to alter and also displaying the results on the LCD panel (completely optional).

Here is a short video of the kit working, and a link to the source code.

Dan Trudgian, MØTGN, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Wiltshire, England. He's a radio nut, IT guru, general good guy and an all round good egg. Contact him him here.

In a recent conversation with my good friend Lewis, we started discussing Morse code, training and the old equipment that was used to educate and teach the code to newcomers. In particular we discussed the old Datong D70 practice oscillators.  Lewis carried on the tell me that his Datong  like so many others started sending odd illegal characters and essentially rendered the kit useless. Of course you could whip of the lid and replace the logic chips, but I thought of recreating the Datong functionality in a new Arduino sketch.

So here is a breakdown of what the Datong offered:

1. Either Mixed, letter or number combinations
2. Groups of 5 characters
3. Variable speed ( up to 37.5 word per minute)
4. Variable character spacing (up to 4 seconds)

The Datong also allowed you to connect a telegraph key, and your headphones. But for now I will focus on the code generation element of the project.

The finished project has just a handful of components and can easily be created on a breadboard, or indeed if you have an old broken Datong you can reuse the box and panel to really replicate the old kit.   The complete project includes 3 variable resistors (1K LIN) for Character speed, gap and volume. It also needs a 3 way switch to select the mode.

The Arduino I’m using is the UNO. Arguably the most popular Arduino on the market, but I have also tried the sketch on a Nano and it works fine – just some customisation of pin assignments is all that is needed.

On start up the Arduino checks to see which switch is LOW – it also saves the current mode and checks if the saved mode is the same as the current selected switch. If this is different, then the Arduino has had a change in the mode selection and resets.

When generating the tones, the Arduino randomly selects a character from an array. With that chosen letter – it calls a function and plays the corresponding tone functions. 2 functions exist as a DIT and a DAH.

The rest of the functions are dedicated to allowing the speed and gap to alter and also displaying the results on the LCD panel (completely optional).

Here is a short video of the kit working, and a link to the source code.

Dan Trudgian, MØTGN, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Wiltshire, England. He's a radio nut, IT guru, general good guy and an all round good egg. Contact him him here.

In this episode, Martin M1MRB / W9ICQ is joined by Leslie Butterfield (G0CIB), Chris Howard (M0TCH) and Edmund Spicer (M0MNG)  to discuss the latest Amateur / Ham Radio news. Colin (M6BOY) rounds up the news in brief, and this episodes feature is Software Defined Radio Dongles.

• Bermuda Closes AM / Medium Wave Radio Transmitters
• Acorn II 40m SDR Construction
• Indian Government Employees to learn Amateur / Ham Radio
• Chess Controversy and Morse Code
• Ofcom Suggest 70.5 MHz for Internet of Things
• Reflectorless Yagi Radio Antennas Designs
• Councillors Vote in Favour of Ham Radio Mast
• Malta Digital Repeater

Colin Butler, M6BOY, is the host of the ICQ Podcast, a weekly radio show about Amateur Radio. Contact him at [email protected].

In this episode, Martin M1MRB / W9ICQ is joined by Leslie Butterfield (G0CIB), Chris Howard (M0TCH) and Edmund Spicer (M0MNG)  to discuss the latest Amateur / Ham Radio news. Colin (M6BOY) rounds up the news in brief, and this episodes feature is Software Defined Radio Dongles.

• Bermuda Closes AM / Medium Wave Radio Transmitters
• Acorn II 40m SDR Construction
• Indian Government Employees to learn Amateur / Ham Radio
• Chess Controversy and Morse Code
• Ofcom Suggest 70.5 MHz for Internet of Things
• Reflectorless Yagi Radio Antennas Designs
• Councillors Vote in Favour of Ham Radio Mast
• Malta Digital Repeater

Colin Butler, M6BOY, is the host of the ICQ Podcast, a weekly radio show about Amateur Radio. Contact him at [email protected].

Ham club newsletters exist in abundance. Most to inform members about upcoming events or to celebrate recently concluded activities with words and pictures. But there are those that serve a much larger audience — with timely advice and stories that cover the broader spectrum of amateur radio.

One of my favorites is The Gray Line Report — a quarterly publication of the Twin City DX Association.

The September edition is another good one. I’m reading ‘Adding an Amplifier to a Low Power Contest Station’ by Al Dewey, K0AD.

An there’s plenty more where that came from. Don’t miss it.

Tagged: dx, newsletter, tcdxa

Jeff Davis, KE9V, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Indiana, USA.