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re: Any HAM radio operators here?
Posted on 10/26/16 at 11:51 am to chinhoyang
Posted on 10/26/16 at 11:51 am to chinhoyang
I was a MARS operator when I was in the Navy. Our ship's call sign was NN0CBE.
0
Posted on 10/26/16 at 11:52 am to GeauxxxTigers23
quote:
I want to talk to the spaceships. What class do I need for that?
ISS occasionally responds on 2M. All the info you need should be online, but you'll need some luck as well.
Posted on 10/26/16 at 12:15 pm to Broke
.... ..
Posted on 10/26/16 at 12:21 pm to Broke
quote:
I also own a Financial Planning Firm.
I really think I know who you are now.
Can't help with the HAM radio stuff, but it's something I've thought of getting into at some point.
Posted on 10/26/16 at 12:21 pm to Yellerhammer5
quote:
ISS occasionally responds on 2M.
That's pretty cool.
Posted on 10/26/16 at 1:54 pm to Mo Jeaux
quote:
I really think I know who you are now.
Hell, just email me and I'll tell you who I am.
Posted on 10/26/16 at 2:27 pm to Broke
What's the point of being a ham radio operator? I'm genuinely curious, don't know what it is outside of the old me with the ham operator license plates and giant antennas on their cars.
Posted on 10/26/16 at 2:31 pm to CaptainsWafer
quote:
What's the point of being a ham radio operator? I'm genuinely curious, don't know what it is outside of the old me with the ham operator license plates and giant antennas on their cars.
I don't even know man. I just wanted to learn about it so I signed up and took the test. I have no idea what to do now.
ETA: I ain't putting shite on my truck
This post was edited on 10/26/16 at 2:32 pm
Posted on 10/26/16 at 2:42 pm to Broke
I took the class with my kids a few years ago at the library but never got around to taking the test. It was interesting to learn how it all works.
Posted on 10/26/16 at 2:45 pm to CaptainsWafer
quote:I'd say it's a hobby mostly, but HAMs are useful when storms and other catastrophic events knock power out, etc. I think it's cool that you can talk across the world with minimal equipment and minimal power. I've talked to Australia and Ireland, and all over the US on a CB.
What's the point of being a ham radio operator? I'm genuinely curious, don't know what it is outside of the old me with the ham operator license plates and giant antennas on their cars.
Posted on 10/26/16 at 3:52 pm to White Bear
quote:
I'd say it's a hobby mostly, but HAMs are useful when storms and other catastrophic events knock power out, etc. I think it's cool that you can talk across the world with minimal equipment and minimal power. I've talked to Australia and Ireland, and all over the US on a CB.
Pretty much this. I'm not very active, but most of the practice is about using primitive antennas, and battery powered equipment that can be hastily deployed when needed.
Before the Internet we know now existed, ham operators had a network of their own that operated basically the same way called packet radio. A network of computers that shared data over radio waves.
People with yachts in the Carribean can be heard calling home while at sea.
Transmitter hunting is a fun way to lean about directional antennas, and has a practical application when locating radio interference that can disrupt your wifi, car alarm, or garage opener.
If you really wanted to go off the grid, ham equipment is what you would want. It's far more difficult to trace transmissions on there than it is through cell, Internet, or other forms of modern communication.
I have no antennas that you can see.
This post was edited on 10/26/16 at 3:53 pm
Posted on 10/26/16 at 3:54 pm to CaptainsWafer
quote:
What's the point of being a ham radio operator? I'm genuinely curious, don't know what it is outside of the old me with the ham operator license plates and giant antennas on their cars.
It has many aspects, but probably falls in to three categories, technical experimentation, social interaction, and public service.
In the technical realm there is currently a lot of experimentation in digital communications, integrating the internet, radio, and GPS technology for various purposes. Space communications using voice and digital modes, there are several amateur satellites that anyone can use with the necessary equipment. Some do hardware and software development for all of the above. A lot of cutting edge design in telecommunications started on the kitchen table of ham operators.
Those that use it for social interaction will talk to friends locally or all over the world, many have carried on friendships for decades with people they have never met in person. There are those that are basically collectors, they try to contact someone in every state, and as many different countries as possible.
And this is just scratching the surface.
The public service is the most well known thing, providing communications when everything else has failed due to some disaster.
Posted on 10/26/16 at 4:05 pm to lodestone
DO you radio guys talk about anything other than signal strength, location and weather? 
Posted on 10/26/16 at 8:25 pm to fatboydave
quote:
DO you radio guys talk about anything other than signal strength, location and weather?
When Katrina came through our area they talked about how to get life-saving meds and medical supplies to people so they didn't die.
Posted on 10/26/16 at 9:43 pm to djangochained
quote:
OK loser
Go play with your fricking radio
Posted on 10/26/16 at 9:44 pm to LongueCarabine
Didn't the internet kinda make the whole nerdy HAM radio thing obsolete?
Posted on 10/26/16 at 10:28 pm to Jim Smith
quote:
Didn't the internet kinda make the whole nerdy HAM radio thing obsolete?
How do you figure that? When Katrina came through, our hospital had a HEAR radio, Internet, landline phones, SAT phones and cell phones.
ALL of it went down after the storm came through. Didn't take long for the cell towers to run out of gas to run the generators to keep their sites up. The HEAR radio antenna became a casualty when the winds came through. Landlines and Internet went down about the same time. The HAMs in the area saved the day. Even the SAT phones were almost worthless. You had to find an area to stand in to get reception, and you couldn't move from it. It's kind of a nice thing to be able to bring your communications to where the problems are.......
The HAMs could move to where you needed them, and since a lot of them are ex-military, they knew something about logistics, which helped us immensely.
I became a HAM after that. It's a shame that people have already forgotten the lessons of Katrina.
LC
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