Date: Sun, 26 Dec 93 04:30:05 PST
From: Info-Hams Mailing List and Newsgroup <info-hams@ucsd.edu>
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Subject: Info-Hams Digest V93 #1510
To: Info-Hams
Info-Hams Digest Sun, 26 Dec 93 Volume 93 : Issue 1510
Today's Topics:
Good Stores/Mail Order/Emergency Use in Car
Good Stores/Mail Order/Emergency Use in Car - very long/rambling
WHERE ARE ALL THE YOU (3 msgs)
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: 26 Dec 1993 04:23:37 -0500
From: library.ucla.edu!agate!howland.reston.ans.net!paladin.american.edu!gatech!udel!news.sprintlink.net!clark.net!clark.net!not-for-mail@network.ucsd.edu
Subject: Good Stores/Mail Order/Emergency Use in Car
To: info-hams@ucsd.edu
In article <CIJt5v.5KG@cbnewsl.cb.att.com>,
david.k.kallman <dkk@cbnewsl.cb.att.com> wrote:
>Two quick questions:
>1. Are there any good stores in the New Jersey/New York
>area for ham radio equipment? Also good mail order? The
>people on the MS group got me hooked up to two incredible
>stores, one that has the patent on the particular type of
>hand control that I just put on my car, and one that
>attends all the trade shows and got me hooked up to this
>brand new breakthrough type of wheelchair. So I'm looking
>for "the best" like this on amateur radio equipment too.
I don't know about stores in your area, but a good mail order place would
be Amateur Electronic Supply (AES) at 1-800-558-0411.
I think amateur radio would be what you need. I hope you don't plan to
use it just when you have an emergency, but if you're just going to do
that, you will be cutting yourself from the friendly people that are on
the air.
Good luck with getting the license.
Matt Roberts
------------------------------
Date: 26 Dec 93 10:31:10 GMT
From: att-out!cbnewsl!dkk@rutgers.rutgers.edu
Subject: Good Stores/Mail Order/Emergency Use in Car - very long/rambling
To: info-hams@ucsd.edu
Folks,
I am impressed!! From a post on Christmas Eve to now late
Christmas day, I've received 6 followup mailings and one
followup posting answering my question: from Sandy Lynch
(WA6BXH), Mark Filteau (KD4GGP), Andy Funk (KB7UV), Sharon
(KC1YR), Skip Sanders, Gary Coffman (KE4ZV), Bruce Toback
(KN6MN). (Hope I didn't miss anyone, my apologies if I
did). This is in addition to several people, Bob Witte
(KB0CY), Richard Masoner, Mark Monninger, and Jim Jaworksi
(VE4JAF) who scanned traffic on the telephony newsgroups
where I started this conversation (as CB vs. cellular) and
got me hooked up with amateur radio. (I've listed the call
signs for the people who listed them in their mail - I'm
sure almost all the others have them too, but I didn't see
them in their mail). Thank you immensely to all who responded!
Basically, I'm totally sold on going with amateur radio for
my needs (this is a highly personal decision - I must, must
be very clear about this). The support and detailed
answers from the dedicated people out there, the FAQ
files on the ARRL server, the knowledge that the whole
world is behind you in a very supportive way, some of the
unique applications available on amateur radio, plus being
a tinkerer by nature make amateur radio a win for me.
The absolutely least expensive way for me to go may be to
get a cellular phone, don't activate it to any service, and
it should work with 911. I didn't know this; none of the
cellular services I talked to went out of their way to tell
me about this. I just asked them for lifeline service, which
is where the $20/month came in. (Note since 911 should
work with an inactivated phone I might just have the
$20/month for one year or so). I can afford the $20/month,
but I had I difficulty in my own mind justifying $240/year
even for one year (and originally I thought it was forever)
for something that I might use once a year, especially
where I do most of my driving on the Garden State Parkway,
where the calvary is at most 10-15 minutes away. Plus
trying to save up to put 3 kids through college. (As a
contrast, I got several mailings from the cellular side
asking how to get a $20/month service, which people thought
was very inexpensive.)
Getting involved with ham/amateur (by the way is there a
sensitivity of one vs. the other? - I'll use them
interchangeably below and I apologize if this is a gaff)
radio wasn't even close to the original question I was
asking, which was CB vs. cellular. It never occurred to me
all that was involved with amateur radio. But definitely
for me amateur has skyrocketed to the number one choice.
Basically it's the people, unbelievable!! And the
technical aspects sound cool too. And I have 3 kids ages
6, 9, and 12 who have been involved with all kinds of home
computers since birth. My wife is the only unenthusiastic
person. Her brother was big into amateur radio, while they
were kids together, and my wife had a license herself many
years ago. I guess this is just old hat to her, but I'll
find that application that will get her involved too.
Based on a first set of answers in comp.dcom.telecom.tech
earlier in the week and the FAQ files (this is before the 7 new
postings/mailings above), I went out and got just about all
the books that Radio Shack had - an unplanned Christmas
present for the family yesterday. My second post on
rec.radio.amateur.misc was just being cautious; it sounded
too good to be true.
Note I'm speaking strictly for myself here, and don't
represent the views of my employeer. For people who need
to make a receive a lot of calls from their cars or while
on the move, cellular is a great service, and I am totally
supportive of that, and so too is the American public. My
profile/needs are different (I want to make/receive calls
from the car only very infrequently) and based on the
wildfire public acceptance of cellular now distinctly in the
minority. That's cool, there's room for diversity.
So now it's time to hit the books! My biggest challenge
over the next month is going to keep my 12 year old away
from the ham radio books. He's a bigger electronic junkie
than I am, but he has a big school project over the next
month that he has to stay really focused on. Once that's
over I think it's going to be a very healthy change for him
to go from spending his spare time playing computer games
on the PC and being hooked up to all the computer BBSs to
being an amateur radio person! And we'll see how long it
takes my 6 and 9 year olds to get licenses too.
Cheers, thanks for all your help, and Happy New Year all!!
Dave Kallman
P.S.: Thanks also for individual offers of help. I will
get back to you separately on them.
P.P.S.: Excuse the rambling nature of the post above. It
was already late tonight when I got on the computer and was
overwhelmed by seeing the 7 new responses. I wanted to
respond right away before going to bed, and I'm only
semi-coherent now. It's much later now ;-).
--
----
Dave Kallman, AT&T, 480 Red Hill Rd., Middletown, NJ 07748
d_k_kallman@att.com, (908)615-2989, fax: (908)615-2507
------------------------------
Date: Sat, 25 Dec 93 12:16:27
From: netcomsv!netcomsv!lavc!lawrence.goodwin@decwrl.dec.com
Subject: WHERE ARE ALL THE YOU
To: info-hams@ucsd.edu
N> It took me 6 weeks of intensive work to get to 5 WPM, and 2 more years
N> to reach 13 WPM, but I agree that I was extraordinarily motivated to
N> get the amateur license and I wasn't going to let the code stop me.
Hello Gary. The point I was trying to make was that it has NEVER been
easier to obtain an amateur license than it is now. When I see people
say that they'd LIKE to enter amateur radio, but won't/can't because of
the code requirement, I do a double-take! I really expected to see an
end to this kind of whining with the advent of the no-code ticket, and
am amazed to see it thriving almost three years later. Considering that
most future amateur contributions to radio arts will take place above
VHF, the Tech privileges are very broad, and are only 45 easy
questions away from everyone.
N> However, not everyone has an easy time with Morse, and some have
N> learning quirks that make the sounds run together or even reverse,
N> a sort of aural dyslexia. To them it's more than hard, it's often
Anyone with a learning disorder and a doctor can get a code waiver by
just making an appointment. I know a few people who have gotten one
by simply picking up the phone and telling their doctor they need it!
How much easier does it have to be before all these "enthusiasts" get
their long denied licenses?
N> are born to be guitar players, others are forever doomed to be a
N> beat behind. Manual rhythm skills aren't something that people
Code at 5WPM is hardly rhythmic. Count the damn dits and dahs, pass
the silly test and move on. If someone can't even do that, surely
they are a good candidate for a code waiver. Again....move on, and
start enjoying the hobby!
N> code, even at 5 WPM. He's a ham now though, at least in a limited
N> fashion, thanks to the code test free Tech license. So there are
N> people who can't easily learn Morse, or even learn it at all, but
N> who still have a burning desire to be hams.
See above mention of code waivers....the means to accomodate such
people is already in place, and there is no reason for anyone with
a legitimate need to not take advantage of it. I applaud your
friend for jumping in and getting his Tech, and I don't feel his
license is as limited as you think.
I'm no code enthusiast...I seldom use it (have only about 50 or so CW
QSO's under my belt) and am not very good at it. Furthermore I recognize
it as a nearly obsolete mode that is primarily still alive for sentimental
reasons. I just feel that an amateur license is a privilege to be earned,
not a right we are entitled to. Eventually the code requirements will be
relaxed (if not dropped) and until that time people certainly have the
right to protest and try to bring about change. But in the meantime,
those who simply stay on the sidelines and refuse to take advantage
of the alternatives (no-code tech and waivers) are only cheating
themselves.
73 and Merry Xmas de Larry, KC6WOG
------------------------------
Date: 26 Dec 1993 03:48:55 -0500
From: swrinde!gatech!udel!news.sprintlink.net!clark.net!clark.net!not-for-mail@network.ucsd.edu
Subject: WHERE ARE ALL THE YOU
To: info-hams@ucsd.edu
In article <2ffvul$qi9@apple.com>, Kok Chen <kchen@apple.com> wrote:
>lawrence.goodwin@support.com writes:
>
>>>Where are all the young enthusiasts?
>>
>>>> They are waiting for the obsolete code requirements to be eliminated.
>>
>>Nonsense. No real "enthusiast" would let 5 WPM or even 13 WPM stand in
>>their way. Geez, I learned morse at 5 WPM in three evenings of casual
>>practice; no reason why others can't.
>
>
>5 wpm is as arbitrary a speed as 20 wpm. What if the rules say that
>you have to pass 20 wpm to get access to HF? And, really, some of us
>only had to practice a couple of weeks to attain that speed and no
>real "enthusiast" would let a wimpy thing like that getting in their
>way. Do you then still think that a Morse requirement is a good idea?
I think the code requirements should be relaxed. You're right in saying
that the code speed is arbitrary. The emphasis should be placed on the
theory, not how fast you can send and receive code. Some people have
said that code is an old mode of communication. I don't agree with that
reasoning but we need to look at what the ITU requirements say. As I
recall, they only require a knowledge of the code but it doesn't say you
have to send and copy at a certain speed. In other countries, the code
requirements are not as strict as they are in the USA.
73, Matt Roberts N3GZM
------------------------------
Date: 26 Dec 1993 04:03:27 -0500
From: swrinde!gatech!udel!news.sprintlink.net!clark.net!clark.net!not-for-mail@network.ucsd.edu
Subject: WHERE ARE ALL THE YOU
To: info-hams@ucsd.edu
Here is some information on the code waver. You can't get it unless you
have passed the 5WPM code test. There are some people who can't even do
that because of learning disabilities. If these people are allowed to
get a Novice, General, Advanced, or xtra they won't be able to use their
privileges. The ITU requires *ALL* HF operators to know code.
I hope I have shed some light on the subject.
73, Matt Roberts N3GZM
------------------------------
End of Info-Hams Digest V93 #1510
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