Contributed Article

November’s General Meeting

November 1, 2016 by JD Toony

Our speaker for November 15th will be Jonathan Brandenburg. He is currently a professor at UTD and active in the DFW area Raspberry Pi user group. He owns a drone education and consulting company, has his pilot license, is an FAA certified advance ground instructor, recently obtained an FAA certificate to fly commercial unmanned aircraft, and loves to scuba dive.

He will be giving a presentation providing information and updates on exciting AMSAT activities and opportunities. These include Amateur Radio on the ISS, as well as recent and upcoming launches of amateur satellites. There will be discussion of progress on a geosynchronous amateur payload and even work on a lunar satellite. He hopes his presentation will pursuade our club to experience satellites through AMSAT and perhaps consider advancing the state of radio art.

The Chili Social After Action Report

October 25, 2016 by Steve Parks

The October General meeting and Chili Social was enjoyed by all who attended. A special “Thank You” to each person who brought chili, cheese, chips, beans, salad, and etc. Oh yes, and we even had some yummy deserts! On the Monday Net, Ben (K5NEB) said that his cookies didn’t turn out good. Well, by Tuesday night they got good enough that they pretty much disappeared at a fast pace. Ed (K5ZPC) thoughtfully brought a jar of antacid tablets to aid with the after-effects of too much spicy food. Teamwork prevailed with the set-up and clean-up and there were lots of friendly conversations to be heard as folks enjoyed the opportunity to visit and catch up with one another. It was good to meet and get to visit with family members that do not always attend the meetings.

We are looking forward to another opportunity to get together and eat and visit at the December Christmas dinner. Then there will be Field Day in June, and another October Chili Social.

Looking forward to seeing everyone at the November meeting!

Pat (KB5YPP)

Ham Radio Elmers

October 19, 2016 by Steve Parks

When I began my ham radio journey I was looking for elmers. I was interested in building things, HF, and CW. Russ Thompson (KX5G) was one of the first to help. He gave me a power supply (that I still use). I also met up with John Langridge (KB5NJD) who helped me configure a number of home antennas and gave me my first set of paddles. I think I must have sent John at least a thousand emails asking questions. He politely responded to every single one of them.

And yet. . . it wasn’t enough.

My desire to learn could not be satisfied. I turned to media of all kinds. Books, blogs, podcasts, etc. Over time I have cultivated a list of media I enjoy. I thought I should share it. If YOU are wanting to learn more and have worn out your actual Elmer, here are some places you can learn a lot!

Blogs:

Podcasts:

Books:

Solder smoke Global Adventures in Wireless Electronics – Bill Meara

Elements of Radio – Marcus and Horton (This book is out of print, but you may find it at a ham fest. I did.)

Solid State Design for the Radio Amateur – Hayward and Demaw (Also out of print)

Experimental Methods in RF Design- Hayward, Larkin, and Campbell (this book is the follow up to solid state design. It also appears to be out of print.)

The Handbook

YouTube Channels:

QRP School – I actually got to meet Cliff on an NPOTA activation this year

WG0AT – Steve is the goat guy featured twice in QST this year. He is often manning the Buddipole table at HamComm.

QRP CW – I believe this guy is in Spain, but he always has interesting short videos

And if you are looking for the Rocky Balboa Radio video — I think this is it. The Rev. George Dobbs of GQRP fame talks about why QRP.

So — If your new to radio and interested in building things or learning things, these are some resources to get you started. Enjoy!

-Steve-

KF5RY

Annual Chili Cookoff and Fellowship

October 4, 2016 by Steve Parks

SAVE THE DATE!! OCTOBER 18, 2016

SWDCARC CHILI SOCIAL AND COOKOFF

WINDSOR PARK BAPTIST CHURCH

Pleasant Run Rd. and Westmoreland 6:00 pm-8:00 pm

Chili mild, Chili Hot, Chili Hot n’ Spicy, Chili meaty, Chili with Beans, Vegetarian Chili, Chili, Chili Chili!!!

Some like it without beans, some like it with beans, some like it with cheese, some like it with raw onion. Some like it with skillet cornbread. Some like it with old fashioned original corn chips.

How do you like it?

If you don’t like chili, fix something you like to eat and some to share.

Come and enjoy the food and fellowship!

Amateur Radio Parity Act

September 23, 2016 by Steve Parks

The Amateur Radio Parity Act Has Passed in the House!

Amateur Radio history was made on September 12, when the US House of Representatives approved the Amateur Radio Parity Act, H.R. 1301.

The wording directs the FCC to enact rules prohibiting the application of deed restrictions that preclude amateur radio communication on their face or as applied. Also prohibited would be deed restrictions that do not permit an amateur radio operator living in a deed-restricted community to install and maintain an effective outdoor antenna on property under the licensee’s exclusive use or control.

But we’re only halfway there. Now we must pass the corresponding bill in the Senate.

NOW IS THE TIME FOR ALL HAMS TO GET INVOLVED IN THE PROCESS!

If you want to have effective outdoor antennas but are not currently allowed to do so by your Home Owner’s Association, SEND AN EMAIL TODAY!!
If you already have outdoor antennas, but want to support your fellow hams, SEND AN EMAIL TODAY!!
If you want to preserve your ability to install effective outdoor antennas on property that you own, SEND AN EMAIL TODAY!!

The ARRL has made it easy for us. They’ve created a web page where you enter your name, address, telephone number and email address. All you need to do is click here:

I typed this in and filled out the form in 2 minutes and 7 seconds. Surely you can do it in 5 minutes. Please do it for those of us who live in HOA neighborhoods!

Thanks,

Justin K5JTL