Ham Radio!
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Listened to a CB radio lately? Don't bother. What you'll
hear is obscenity, rudeness, ridiculous sound effects and
endless exchanges of childish venom that would make even
Jerry Springer blush.
I wanted to share interesting technologies with my two sons,
but I didn't want to pollute their minds with the pornography
that CB radio has become. So, after a few weeks of
easy study, I passed my Amateur Radio License exam with
flying colors, and I have the call sign "KF6ONE".
News flash!
In the spring of the year 2000, I passed both the General and
Extra exams, so I now hold all possible privileges for Amateur
operators in the United States! I've enjoyed contacts with
hams in Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Kasikhstan, Hungary,
Romania, and Italy. And, of course, plenty of contacts from
U.S. hams!
Interested? Becoming a ham is easier than ever! New FCC rules
have relaxed the testing requirements, especially for learning
Morse code. To learn more, click
here.
My own ham radio activities...
Check out these photos of
portable ham operation in an Oregon treehouse!
Back in 1999, I upgraded my license to the "Technician Plus" class
by learning to read Morse Code at a speed of 5 words-per-minute.
I used Ham University,
a great piece of software that helps you pass both written and
Morse Code ham exams. Besides, it features a picture of a cat,
so it can't be bad!
Ham Radio links you should check out...
The Sierra Repeater
Association (SRA) is a local
repeater club whose
members use a "linked repeater"
system. The club is loosely tied to other repeater clubs in the
"Cactus Intertie".
The first fellow ham I ever met over the air was
George, KJ6VU.
Along with helping to lead
SRA, he also
maintains a pretty cool
ham radio web page
with lots of good links.
Another of my favorite repeaters
to hang out on is WA6TEM.
This repeater is nicknamed "Charlie".
Some of the most friendly hams can be found on the Charlie
repeater, and newcomers are always welcomed!
Over the years, countless lives have been saved, thanks to
the readiness of ham operators worldwide. Public safety and
emergency service is an important part of the Amateur Service;
to learn more about ham emergency services, click
here,
here,
here
and
here.
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