In this issue:
-> THE TECHNICAL
COORDINATOR
-> AFFILIATED CLUB
COORDINATOR REPORT
-> THE SECTION EMERGENCY
COORDINATOR
-> THE PUBIC INFORMATION
COORDINATOR
-> THE SECTION TRAFFIC
MANAGER
-> OUT AND ABOUT IN
SOUTHEAST OHIO
-> CARBON MONOXIDE (CO)
POISONING
-> LET'S TALK
-> THINGS TO DO… CONTEST
UPDATES
-> THE OFFICIAL OBSERVER
COORDINATOR
-> IS YOUR COMPUTER BACKED
UP
-> WEBSITE STATS
-> SPECIAL EVENT STATIONS
IN OHIO
-> OHIO HAMFEST CALENDAR
****************************************************
THE TECHNICAL COORDINATOR
Jeff Kopcak - TC
Hey Gang,
During the State Emergency
Test (SET), the Medina ARES group had some issues getting Fldigi working
correctly. Not because they didn’t know
what they were doing but because when you use Fldigi once or twice a year, you
forget what to do. I got an email
wanting to know if I would develop a training session on NBEMS standards using
Flgidi and Flmsg.
NBEMS stands for Narrow Band
Emergency Messaging System (or Software, depending who you ask). It is a set of standards developed to define
passing email and text-based traffic over Amateur Radio. We have many digital modes available to
us. The VHF/UHF standard is MT63. MT63 is a sufficiently robust mode to deal
with background noise and poor band conditions.
This doesn’t mean you can have a party at your station and still send
MT63 messages but it does well with ambient noise. In contrast, HF NBEMS uses Olivia.
This request was right up my
alley as I love to operate digital, educate other hams, and help them get on
the air. Much of my time this month was
dedicated to putting together a presentation covering: digital communication,
use case in Emcomm situations, interfacing options, talking about the Fldigi
and Flmsg programs used, setting them up, and workflow.
We though this training might
be useful to the section so we invited the leadership. Stan N8BHL and Scott N8SY came. There were County Emergency Coordinators
(ECs) who were also in attendance. No
pressure. We had a lot of people who
wanted to learn about NBEMS, Fldigi, and the capabilities we have. After the presentation, we did hands-on
demonstrations with Dave NF8O, Bob K8MD, and Fred K8FH as instructors and
transmitting stations so students could see transmitting and receiving all in
one place. A lot of great questions and
discussion was had. Thank you to the
instructors and everyone for coming out!
The presentation is available: http://www.k8jtk.org/2015/11/10/vhfuhf-nbems-an-introduction-using-fldigi-and-flmsg-presentations/.
One of my points during the
presentation was always practice with these technologies BEFORE you need use
them. Do a class for beginners. Have the students bring their setup --laptops,
go-boxes, radio interfaces, and radios.
Find some space to hold the class –EOC/EMA building, restaurant, or
library. Then walk through the whole
nine yards --installing the applications, setting up Windows audio, setting up
the applications, and demonstrate the various tasks they would need to
perform. Additional instructors who can
assist students or send example transmissions (prepare these ahead of time)
should be available. Have the students
participate by transmitting messages.
This will get them more comfortable and it’s easier to troubleshoot
on-site than over-the-air. Make plans
for some on-the-air meetings to practice ahead of a test or drill. Meet for an hour or so for a couple weeks
until everyone is comfortable.
In Cleveland on Thursday
nights, I assist with the LEARA Digital Practice Net on the 146.880/R at 9PM
(you don’t have to be a member to participate).
The net will operate Fldigi for a number of weeks and switch to SSTV for
a time. Our net even ran a simulation
drill with ICS forms and everything!
Turned out to be a HUGE hit. I
wrote up some tutorials for our net.
They include: getting your radio interface setup with optimal settings,
how to use MMSSTV, Fldigi, Flmsg, and Flwrap.
The Fldigi suite tutorials are mostly written to FM NBEMS standards. Links are at the end of this article.
The OHDEN (Ohio Digital
Emergency Net) is on Tuesdays at 8:00pm. 3.585 USB. The net uses OLIVIA 8/500
with PSK31 as an alternate. They do not
run voice on this net which might be unusual for some. All checkins and announcements are done using
Olivia. More info: www.ohden.org
I encourage groups throughout
the Section to start their own digital practice nets on FM, HF, or both! The tutorials are available to modify to fit
your net. These are great opportunities
to help hams become familiar and knowledgeable about their digital
equipment. Do make sure you obtain
permission from the repeater Trustee if you plan to use any repeater. If you do have a digital practice net that
originates from the Ohio Section, let me know and I’ll put plug in the future.
Earlier, I mentioned Bob
K8MD. Bob is the latest addition to the
Technical Specialists. Welcome! He has a lot of experience with networking
and has been utilizing MESH. Ottawa
County is certainly aware of this as he helped their EMA build out a VOIP
(Voice over Internet Protocol) system to use during their incidents.
Tutorials:
Sound card setup: http://www.k8jtk.org/2015/04/16/radio-interface-setup-for-getting-started-with-ham-radio-sound-card-digital-modes/
Fldigi, Flmsg, Flwrap: http://www.k8jtk.org/2015/04/16/getting-started-with-fldigi-including-flmsg-and-flwrap/
Thanks for reading
73... de Jeff - K8JTK
****************************************************
THE AFFILIATED CLUBS
COORDINATOR
John Myers, KD8MQ - ACC
Hi everyone,
it’s November again and Thanksgiving Day will be here before you know it. I’d
like to start this month’s column off by sharing one thing that I’m thankful
for. I am very thankful for all of you! At last count, we have 99 ARRL
Affiliated Clubs in the Ohio Section. The energy & enthusiasm that I see
from you is what makes my job so much fun!
Thanks all of you for everything you do for Amateur Radio, and the Ohio
Section. I’d like to wish all of you a Happy Thanksgiving.
Does your club hold License
classes? How many of your new licensees just kind of disappear from the
airwaves, or never get on the air in the first place? I believe that increasing
the number of Hams is great. However, we are doing ourselves and them a
dis-service if they never become active. What more can we do to Elmer these new
Hams, and help to find their niche in Amateur Radio? A lot of clubs (my home
club included), could do a better job in terms of “New Ham retention”. This
isn’t to say that there aren’t clubs who are going above & beyond in this
department, because there are. I applaud those who go the extra mile in this
department. One that comes to mind is the Mt. Vernon ARC, who are holding CW
classes, & participating in JOTA. Or I can mention the Massillon ARC, whose
Mentoring classes are continuing. These Saturday AM sessions cover subjects in
more detail than is normally possible at a club meeting, due to time
constraints.
In a recent posting on
Larry’s List, I found mention of “Ham
101” classes that are being sponsored by KC Hamlink. Looking at KC
Hamlink’s website, they bill themselves
as “A
resource for newly licensed operators in the Kansas City metro area”. You
can find more information KC Hamlink at www.kchamlink.org. You can find the flier for the
upcoming Ham 101 class at tinyurl.com/nkb2ptb.
These
classes help new licensees to get off on the right foot in Amateur Radio. To
quote their flier, “Get your questions answered, meet experienced Hams
that want to help, get assistance with radio programming, and get on the air by
checking into a live Net”.
It would be
great if a program like this could be implemented here in the Ohio section. We
have the talent, we have the numbers, and I believe we have the need! So, if
your club is thinking of ways to increase activity & membership (and what
club isn’t?), then this might be something to look into.
Some of the other subjects
that might be covered in a class like this might include:
· QSLing
· Logbook Of The World
· ARRL Incoming & Outgoing QSL
Bureaus
· What the heck is an ARRL Section, and
which one am I in?
· What day is it? (UTC explained)
You get the
idea, I guess. Some things that are second nature to you might not be so easy
to a new Ham.
By the way, there’s not much
happening in Amateur Radio in the KC area that doesn’t make it to Larry’s List.
The focus is the greater Kansas City area, although Larry, W0AIB has done a
super job of growing the list to well over 1600 members, encompassing an area
much larger than the KC area. You can find more information at www.larryslist.info.
Are any of you planning to
participate in the ARRL National Parks On The Air (NPOTA) Events in 2016?
Activating a National Park Service (NPS) Unit? Activating a NPS is great club
activity, and a good excuse to get your new licensees out into the field for
some hands-on experience. There are nine NPS Units in Ohio.
Since we are in the time of
year when lots of clubs are holding elections, I have a reminder for you.
Please don’t forget to update your officers, and contact information on your
club record at League Headquarters. This ensures that anyone looking for your
club will be able to contact the proper person.
And, while I’m at it, let’s
keep up on those renewals. Your ARRL Affiliation requires that you update your
club report form yearly. If you are a Special Service Club, it is required to
be done every other year. It’s an easy process, and might be a good thing to do
yearly as well, just so it doesn’t get forgotten.
If you are not a Special
Service Club, but are thinking about it, please contact myself, or Scott, N8SY.
Either of us can answer any questions you might have.
As reported a month or two
ago, your changes to your club record are now instantaneous. But here’s a
change you may not be aware of. There are now fields for you to fill out the
contact information you’re your VP, Secretary, and Treasurer. This makes it easier
for people to contact the right person in your organization.
And that wraps it up for this
month. Happy Thanksgiving, and I hope to work a bunch of you on the air this
weekend in the SS!
73 everyone, see you next
month. DE KD8MQ
****************************************************
THE SECTION EMERGENCY
COORDINATOR
Stan Broadway, N8BHL
What are we supposed to do?
I look at the EC monthly
reports, read the numbers and enjoy the comments. They begin to tell a story
and raise a question at the same time.
They tell about frequent service to our cities and towns, helping with
public events and even activating for local emergencies! The question: what do
you do at your monthly ARES meetings?
You ~do~ have monthly training meetings, right? I’ve been a little disappointed that some
counties are reporting no meetings…the number of training sessions is
zero. Many others are consistent in
staging meetings. Either way what do you
accomplish? Do you walk in, discuss what
changes were made to the local repeater then exchange pleasantries before
leaving? If that describes your meeting,
experience dictates that attendance will drop off, interest will wane, and the
EC will begin pulling hair out because it’s harder to find people to volunteer.
What’s more important, the overall effectiveness of your ARES group will
decline. As that happens your requests
for service will decline too, and the spiral continues.
Our highly technical,
extensively constructed communications systems WILL fail. Just ask Medina,
Summit or any of the six counties in northeast Ohio. What’s more, there WILL be
storms, floods and other emergency events in which we can play an important
role. The frustrating thing is this doesn’t happen every month, maybe not every
year. Does that mean we don’t need to be ready when it does decide to
happen? If we approach this right, it
can give us more time to actually get ready.
We can only do that by serious training. The days of “Call me if you
need me” are gone. We will not be of service (we won’t even be let in the
door!) without the basic FEMA courses, and without having the reputation and
trust that our EMA Director recognizes. It’s completely up to US to stay engaged
and prepared. EC’s – you are not expected to be a subject matter on everything.
You should know the subject matter experts. Most will be more than happy to
spend an evening with ARES members training on their subject.
Ask your EMA Director what
his or her “Ten worst headache” list contains: the disasters with the highest
likelihood of happening or causing the most damage in your county. There’s a
list of training topics! How about MARCS radios? Your county communications
manager should be happy to teach your folks how a trunking system works, and
how to find “zones” and “Talk groups” on your radios.
WE ARE THERE TO HELP OUR
AGENCIES! If that means using FRS radios, or grabbing a MARCS handheld for the
Director, or even working a fax or making coffee…get a broader focus and see
where we can be most helpful. I’ve also suggested that our groups can get
involved in the county’s “missing person search” procedures. We should know
about triage, transportation of victims, search and rescue operations, haz-mat
awareness, and many other topics. We should understand completely how the EOC
works.
What does the Red Cross do to set up a shelter? What communications will
they need? What is your department of Health doing for mass inoculations,
post-disaster food inspections, and special needs residents? What’s more we should understand our own
radios! HF, VHF/UHF, and digital! We master this stuff; we become a working
partner with our served agencies. But
it’s up to us! Time to get busy, and get a schedule together for the winter
months! Make each training meeting count!
You’ll find that attendance will grow, people will get more interested
in serving, and you may even get more volunteers. Even better- you’ll be proud of what you can
do!
Update from The Sarge..
Over the days following the
SET, we have had a lot of discussion at The Sarge. I don’t want to steal
Gayle’s thunder in her reporting, but steps are being taken that should resolve
our “deaf antenna” issues, and at the same time set a goal and longer-term program
for the state’s EOC ham station. We are changing a 40 meter dipole over to a
trapped 80-40 inverted V with the apex near 30’. That should increase our
coverage for digital or our second voice radio significantly. Just before the SET, we hung a triangular 80
meter loop antenna on the roof. This is my very favorite antenna….but this one
just heard nothing. It stunk. Thanks to John Beal, W8NX, we now have printed
reports of the performance of our feedlines (some are several hundred feet
long). John’s analyzer produced a baseline for our performance, and pointed out
a couple immediate problems. The
following week, Dale Bauer, W8KTQ, took a look at antenna modeling. He even
worked with Richard Wynkoop, KD8PHG, to re-arrange the loop, moving the
feedline from a corner to the middle of a leg. That brought SWR’s into at least
operational range, and the antenna started to actually hear. More work is
planned, potentially changing to a square configuration with more efforts to
reduce feedline loss.
With the entire staff of The
Sarge, we were able to develop a long term view, outlining the need for several
major improvements: amplifiers, a new HF rig to replace one that doesn’t
transmit, headsets and foot pedals to quiet background noise and better logs to
create a more professional operation. We have even been in discussion about a
larger space. So it looks like we’re poised to move up a century or so and
create a top notch “multi-multi” ham station!
We’re on “state time” so it won’t happen overnight, but we’re working on
it! We appreciate the volunteers who dedicate hours of their time to keep The
Sarge on the air!
The next big operating event..
Tucked in here at the bottom
is an important announcement! Put
January 9 on your calendar- for the first ever Ohio ARES SIMPLEX RADIO
CONTEST!! We’re working up rules now,
but we want to be able to have fun while expanding our ability to work VHF
simplex! How far can you get? How many
stations can you work? How good is that EOC station, anyway? How about your home station?
This will be a civilized
contest- operating hours will be polite and allow for retain the rest of your
life- probably one day only or less. Before winter hits take a look at your VHF
antenna situation- and get something in the air now! Remember, for us it’s a contest now- but it
literally could be life or death then. More coming up next month!!
73, Stan, N8BHL
****************************************************
THE PUBLIC INFORMATION
COORDINATOR
John Ross, KD8IDJ
It seems like just last week
we were passing out the awards for the best newsletters!
Well, it's just about time to
begin the 2016 Newsletter contest and I can't wait.
The newsletters are a BIG
DEAL and really show how much talent and knowledge our Ohio Section clubs and
PIO's have about amateur radio...and how to present it
I know I've said this before,
but I am always amazed at the depth of knowledge, the dedication and the
determination that goes into every club's newsletters. They are all well
written, well researched and well thought out...and rival some of the so-called
"professional" publications. I read them all, I enjoy them all and I
benefit from them all. I'm sure all of our readers feel the same way and
can't until the monthly newsletter arrives.
All of that being said, there
are some minor changes in the 2016 rules. Here's the official rules document:
2016 ARRL OHIO SECTION
NEWSLETTER CONTEST RULES:
In today’s publishing world
there are now many different types of formats for submission of a newsletter to
be entered in the Ohio Section Newsletter Contest (paper, electronic text, pdf,
desktop publishing and html, to name a few). Each one of these different
formats has its own unique positives and negatives, and as such are not part of
the judging / scoring of the contest. Section C of the rules breaks down
how the newsletter will be judged / scored without any bias toward any
particular type of publishing format.
Here
are the rules for the 2016 entries:
A.)
An eligible newsletter must be regularly published at least four (4) times per
year by an Ohio Amateur Radio organization. The Ohio Section Journal and the
newsletter for any club that the current PIC is affiliated with are not
eligible.
B.)
Each organization submitting a newsletter for the contest must enter at least
two (2) issues starting with January 2016 for judging. All Amateur
organizations that have regularly been sending newsletters to the Ohio PIC are
automatically entered (as long as these publications qualify under rule A, or C
if applicable). Unless you are automatically entered, the deadline for entries
is Thursday, June 30, 2016, and all entries must be in the hands of the Ohio
PIC by that date.
C.)
Electronic (Web based) produced newsletters may also enter. Non-amateurs, in
the Public Relations industry will do the judging. They will be judging on
style (15%), content (35%), service to membership (35%), and clarity of
presentation (15%). Style means newsletter design of all pages. Content means
amount of useful information contained in the newsletter. Service to members
means amount of information using individual members' names. Clarity of
presentation means readability of the newsletter including accuracy of English
grammar.
D.)
No entries can be returned and all decisions of the judges on content and
eligibility are final. The Ohio PIC only serves to certify entries, to provide
the judges with entries, and to announce their decisions only.
E.)
The decision of the judges is final.
Like
last year we are keeping our Honorable Mention categories. It allows the judges
to award special and unique efforts.
Remember, officially, the
contest is for 2106 newsletters. You can send your January 2016 newsletter in
late December if that's when you usually publish it.
Our judges for the past three
years are again on board for 2016. They are all seasoned journalists and public
relations professionals. They have been in the trenches and understand the work
it takes to turn out a newsletter every month. And, they have been impressed
every year with the effort that every club makes and the tremendous evolution we
have made as amateur radio operators and communicators.
So, crank up the presses and
send me your 2106 newsletters. Good luck, and remember, everyone is a winner!
More next month of the 2016
Newsletter Contest and some plans for our PIO's.
Have a great Thanksgiving!
73, John, KD8IDJ
****************************************************
THE SECTION TRAFFIC MANAGER
David Maynard, WA3EZN - STM
TIS THE SEASON FOR LISTS
Well here we are in
November already. The October SET has been completed and we can settle back and
wait for that inevitable white stuff. By the time you read this we will be on
the doorstep or very close to Thanksgiving. I hope each and every one of you has
a full and bountiful table on Thanksgiving. Since this is the season of list
here are some lists of things to do.
1. Buy
you turkey early; the TV news says the prices are going up.
2. Hunt
up your recipes and review what you will need for that dinner
3. Make
a list of the ingredients you will need
4. Shop
early for those ingredients to avoid the crowds
5. Find
someone to prepare the dinner and do all the work
6. Find
relatives to go to for Thanksgiving in order to avoid all the work
7. and
lastly resort to finding a restaurant that will be open and make reservations J
After last month’s
report on blackouts I thought something a bit lighter was appropriate for this
month. However, not to spoil the mood but shortly after Thanksgiving comes
Christmas. I think a review of my Christmas Hint list is in order. Here is a
list of places to leave that hint so your significant other will be sure to
find it.
I doubt that many of you
will get them to buy you that $2000 HF rig but maybe a new mobile rig or a Hiel
headset with microphone or an ARRL membership with subscription to QST. How are
they going to know what you want if you don’t “hint” them?
Here are a few
suggestions where to leave him or her you hint so you get the ham radio items
you want for Christmas. You can use a page from a catalog or magazine to be:
1. Taped
to their car steering wheel.
2. Taped
on their cereal box or coffee cup
3. Taped
on the bathroom mirror
4. Leave
the store catalog on the coffee table open to the right page
5. Clipped
to the lamp on the night stand
6. Taped
to the door going to the garage or outside
7. Put
a hint in her underwear drawer. Note: this doesn’t work for men
8. Put
one on his or her computer monitor
9. Pin
one to their pillow
10. Talk
about it every chance you get
I am sure that if you
think real hard you can come up with some good “HINT” places of your own.
This is a good time to
think about winter safety. It doesn’t matter if you are just heading out the
door to work or taking that trip to grandma’s house you should be thinking
about car safety. Here are some things you should do to prepare for that winter
weather.
For the car check your
tire conditions, battery, anti-freeze and check your lights. Also have window
scrapers, shovel, cat litter, a flashlight and check that it lights. For
personal safety you should have blankets, winter coats, boots, hats and gloves
for everyone in case you get stuck and have to walk your way out. You should
have food and water for everyone in the vehicle so if you can’t walk your way
out you can at least wait comfortably for help to arrive. If you do get stuck
and run you vehicle for heat make sure the exhaust pipe is open and clear and
remains that way. It is also a good idea to keep your gas tank at least half
full on a daily basis and to fill up before leaving on the ride to grandma’s
house for Thanksgiving or Christmas. After all we need you and yours to remain
safe and have a happy holiday.
If you not going
anywhere on New Year’s here is something fun to try. The ARRL Straight Key
Night is coming up on January 1, 2016. Why not dust off that old straight key
and give it a try. Who knows you may like it and have some fun. Straight Key
night starts at 0000Z and ends at 2359Z (UTC). More details can be found at www.arrl.org/straight-key-night
.
And now more on the
business side of traffic handling here is a list of things that I hear on the
OSSBN that are just wrong. We all need to make improvements and become more
efficient.
1. Please
roger my traffic…just say “number”
2. Please
copy number…. just say “number”
3. Today’s
date…just give the date
4. Going
to…..is not an NTS pro-word don’t use it
5. Going
to your station….just give them the call
6. Break
for text…. just say “break”
7. Break
for signature…just say “break”
8. End
number………just say “end”
9. Roger
number…..just say “roger”
10. Roger
your traffic... just say “roger”
11. Common
text…. Is not used anymore it is “BOOK”
12. Common
parts…. is not an NTS pro-word just say “BOOK of”
Now I am not perfect
either so if I make one of these mistakes I don’t need to be reminded that it
is not correct…. I already know that.
And now a reminder from
Dennis W8YS and yes it is another list from the ARRL NTS Methods and Practices
Guidelines:
The first pro-word
(procedural word) in a radiogram is “Number”.
There is NO response to
“Break”, unless a fill is needed.
The first pro-words in
booked radiograms are “Book of ___”.
There is NO response to
“Break”.
Copy is NOT an NTS
pro-word. Do NOT use it.
There is NO response to
“Break”.
Common parts are NOT NTS
pro-words. Do NOT use them.
There is NO response to
“Break”.
The last pro-word in a
radiogram is “End”.
There is NO response to
“Break”.
On the phone nets the
pro-word that the receiving operator uses to signify that he/she has copied the
radiogram 100% correctly is “Roger”. QSL is used on CW nets and NOT on phone
nets.
It is redundant, and not
efficient to say, “I roger your number 2364, routine”. Say, “Roger” only.
I like to smile. It
makes people think I am up to something!! To you and yours, have a good
Thanksgiving.
That’s all for this month.
73 and 88 if appropriate,
David, WA3EZN
****************************************************
OUT AND ABOUT IN SOUTHEAST
OHIO
Lyn Alfman, N8IMW - Assistant
Section Manager (SE)
October was a very busy month
for me, thus the format. Of course, I
took pictures at many of the events and worked on articles for the CARA
Communicator newsletter that I publish quarterly. Area amateurs meet for lunch
at a local restaurant every Thursday except holidays. See W8VP Calendar for
location: www.w8vp.org.
October 1—I attended amateur
radio lunch and I sent details for our December 5 Waller-McMunn 1914 Hamshack
(and mid-1920s AM broadcast station, WEBE) Special Event Station to ARRL
October 2—I updated W8VP web
site calendar to reflect October’s Net Control Stations; submitted Cambridge
Amateur Radio Association’s
CARA Club Notes [September 26 meeting minutes (minus monies and detailed
discussion of issues)] to local paper.
October 3—I participated in
the Guernsey County ARES Simulated Emergency Test drill.
October 4—Sonny, W8FHF, and I
attended the Sunday Creek Amateur Radio Federation meeting in Glouster where they
were making final arrangements for their January 17, 2016 hamfest.
October 5—I attended the
Muskingum Valley Ham Radio Club meeting in Zanesville where they were
soliciting for operators for the November Sweepstakes, making plans for
Christmas dinner meeting, elections, and meeting date changes for next year.
October 6—I attended the
Zanesville Amateur Radio Club meeting in Zanesville where they discussed their
$600 Sportsman’s Raffle ticket sales, Christmas dinner, programs for the November
meeting, and the election of a Trustee and checked into the CARA net.
October 7—I put CARA’s
October 31 meeting information on local newspaper and radio station event
calendars.
October 8—I helped the
Muskingum Co. ARES provide communications at Drive Thru Flu Clinic at
fairgrounds. This exercise includes all county agencies as well as local
criminal justice and nursing students.
October 9—Sonny and I talked
to the Byesville Halloween Parade organizer who requested CARA’s help.
October 10—I operated and
logged for CARA’s Y-Bridge Special Event Station W8Y in Zanesville.
October 12—I received
confirmation at our December 5 SES is listed on ARRL Website and will be listed
in December QST.
October 13—I attended the
Marietta Amateur Radio Club’s Fall Potluck meeting (I took baked beans and
apple
pie) where I updated them on
the condition of former ASM Connie Hamilton, N8IO and club member and checked into CARA net.
October 14—Started designed
the W8Y Y-Bridge Special Event Station Certificate
October 15—I attended amateur
radio lunch.
October 16—Sonny and I met
with Byesville Halloween Parade organizer to discuss route, staging, and
registration.
October 17—I, along Sonny,
W8FHF, helped Tim Murphy, KC8TDS, his son Matt Murphy, KC8BEW, and Billie
Dickson, WB8TRK talk to Scouts about amateur radio for Jamboree on the Air
(JOTA) at Muskingum
Valley Scout Reservation near
Coshocton
October 18—I participated in
a ZOVETS (a Laurel Group) exam session in Zanesville.
October 19—Finished design of
W8Y Y-Bridge SES certificate
October 20—I checked into the
CARA nets.
October 22—I attended amateur
radio lunch.
October 23—Sonny, Larry
Dukes, KD8QYV, and I met with Byesville Halloween Parade organizer about lineup
order, street closures, etc.
October 24—Sonny and I, along
with three other local hams, went on the CARA Field Trip to the Museum of Radio
&Technology in Huntington, WV
October 26—I attended the
CARA Officers’ meeting to set the agenda for the October meeting.
October 27—I checked into the
CARA nets.
October 29—I attended amateur
radio lunch and the Cambridge Holiday Parade Committee meeting for CARA.
October 31—I attended the
CARA meeting, and I and seven other CARA members provided organization and
communications support for
the Byesville Halloween Parade that evening
As you can see, I get around
a lot representing the Ohio Section..
Remember to be Radio Active!
73, Lyn, N8IMW
****************************************************
CARBON MONOXIDE (CO)
POISONING
Hi Gang,
I’m sure that a number of you
are asking what the heck is the Section Manager writing about this stuff for..
It’s not Amateur Radio related!! Well my
friends, you are very mistaken. It’s not only Amateur Radio related, it’s
something that as a HAM operator you may not ever have thought about. Where's
your ham shack located? In the basement, garage or out building? Most generally
ham shacks are not in the living room or main part of the house. As such,
heating devices are usually some sort of a supplemental heater/furnace.
First, let’s describe what
Carbon Monoxide (CO) is. Carbon Monoxide (CO) is the poisonous gases emitted
from carbon fueled heat sources.. (i.e.. gas or fuel oil furnaces, wood burning
fire places or stoves, kerosene heaters, propane heaters..) I could go on and on but I think you get the
idea. It’s colorless, odorless and it will definitely kill you if you breathe
very much of it in. How does this gas kill? It actually migrates into the blood
stream and replaces the oxygen in your blood with the Carbon Monoxide. Once it
invades your blood stream it will be with you for a very long time, in fact,
most of your life! Just ask any firefighter about that. Going into burning
buildings without an air supply on will definitely subject you to Carbon
Monoxide poisoning and it takes years and years to get it out of your system,
if ever. Sometimes, if consumed in a large enough quantity, you may need a
complete blood transfusion to just keep you alive. Yes Virginia, it is that
deadly!!
Why am I writing about this?
It’s very personal to me. A number of years ago a very close friend (and his
entire family) died in their sleep because they consumed Carbon Monoxide (CO)
without knowing it. They lived in an old house on the north side of Mansfield
and because it was old, it was drafty with leaks around the doors, windows and
the walls didn’t have any insulation in them. We had gotten a cold snap in
early November, and back in the middle 1970’s kerosene heaters were all the
rage to supplement heat in just this kind of house. Well, with the help of my
co-workers we were able to purchase a big kerosene heater to help them through
this cold snap. They got the heater all set up and running and all was fine for
the first several days, then on the third day the dad came to work complaining
of a very bad headache. None of us thought much about it that day and the dad
continued his job on the assembly line with the rest of us. The next afternoon
we all found out that the heater had been malfunctioning and every member of
the family had died of this very dangerous gas.
I was absolutely torn apart.
I had been one of several people at work that help take up the collection to
purchase the heater. It took me a long, long time to get over that. Don’t get
me wrong, there’s nothing wrong with using these types of supplemental heating
sources, but be very careful when you do. At that time CO detectors were truly
non-existent for homes, and the ones that were available were for scientific
and commercial use and cost hundreds and hundreds of dollars. That’s all
changed now. CO detectors are as cheap now as smoke detectors. You can get one
for as little as $10 now. That’s an extremely cheap form of protection from
this deadly gas.
Winter is almost here. I
don’t know about how it is at your house, but here in the little burg of
Lexington, when it gets cold outside, you’ll see the smoke coming out of many
chimneys around here. That means that the temperature has dropped to below where
it is comfortable. This is the point where the furnaces come on and people
start thinking about lighting up the fireplaces and so forth. Now if these
devices haven’t been recently serviced, birds can make nests in the chimney’s
and like your car, the heat source most likely needs a tune-up to make sure
that it’s running efficiently and safely. Having the chimney stuffed up with
bird nests or the heat source not burning correctly can cause Carbon Monoxide
to accumulate in your house without you even knowing it. That’s where the
detector comes into play.. Please, please buy one, or two of these really
inexpensive CO detectors for your safety and use it! During my trips around the
state, I have been giving not only a CO detector but a smoke detector out to
some lucky individual as my gift to them.
By the way, it’s not all
about detection either.. Do you have a properly rated fire extinguisher within
your reach? If not, get one. Learn how to properly use it. It will save you
from a lot of damage if you know how to use it properly..
****************************************************
LET'S TALK
Scott Yonally, N8SY - Section
Manager
Hi Gang,
Can you believe that just in
a few days from now we will be stuffing ourselves with more food than our eyes
can even look upon? This fall I was in Connecticut for Section Managers
training and while I was there Janie and I took a drive over to Plymouth
Massachusetts to look at the famous Plymouth Rock. It’s really not much to look
at; after all it IS just a rock. But it’s really not about the rock, it’s about
that huge leap that our ancestors made to make a better life for themselves. Remember
that when you’re stuffing your face with all that food!! ALSO.. Let’s not
forget that even though we are safe and sound on this holiday, we do have those
of us guarding our great nation that aren’t home.. Please add them to your thoughts
and prayers this season.
This year has really flown
by. The motorcycle is now winterized and locked away until spring.. The
Buckeyes are getting just that much closer to another championship and the
furry animals are getting bedded down for a long winters nap. How’s about you?
Have you got your furnace, fireplace and chimney checked out yet? Please..
don’t just fluff this off, if you haven’t had them checked out, do so.. It
could mean your life!
I’ve kept myself somewhat
busy this year by traveling all over the state visiting with all of you at your
hamfests, club meetings, picnics and breakfast’s. It’s been fantastic! I’ve
enjoyed every minute of it! As you know,
the Ohio Section is the largest Section in the country. It’s even bigger than a
Division or two. So, with that in mind, it’s only fair to say that Ohio also
deserves to have a full time Section Manager. So, don’t be surprised when I
just “pop-in” at your meeting or function.
My visits to the Boy Scout
troupes around the state have paid off.. I now can say with pride we have 4
more hams in Ohio. Congrats to them and their troupe leaders.. Speaking of the Boy Scouts.. Our JOTA exercise
here in the metropolis of Lexington was a huge success. We had a bunch of
visitors, including one of Lexington’s own village council members.. It was
fantastic watching these little guys AND GALS eyes light up when they got to
participate in making contacts.
CLUB LEADERSHIP.. You need to
make sure that your club is involved with youth groups. Make sure that you have
a contact with the local Boy Scouts / Girl Scouts as well as a teacher or
teachers from the middle schools involved with your club.. Don’t forget, the
youth of today will be taking over this great “hobby” of ours, but not without
your support and willingness to bring them along. These kids are out there, YOU
just need to take the first step forward and approach them on it.
Club Presidents.. Are you
passing along that vital information that needs to go to your successor?? I’m
finding that the reason for a lot of clubs being behind on their club record
updates to not only the League, but also to the State of Ohio and the Internal
Revenue Service (for those who are 501 (c) (3) organizations) is primarily
because the newly elected club president wasn’t informed that this was
something needed to be done. Let me make a suggestion here.. Put a paragraph or
two into your by-laws that state ALL club records are to be reviewed at least
once each year, and definitely when a new president takes over. This will help
not only the president, but the club members as well.
Are you getting those emails
from the Great Lakes Director or Section Manager? Now, for those of you who may
not want to go to all the bother of checking your account with the League, or
you are just not League members, you still have a chance to get these important
emails. All you have to do is to “Opt-In” to receive them. Heck, just send me
an email –n8sy@n8sy.com- , I’ll get you added to the ListServer. There’s a
link to do this on the Ohio Section website, it’s on the bottom left corner..
For your convenience, here’s a direct link to it: http://arrl-ohio.org/forwarder/forwarding.html I urge all of
you to make sure that everyone, regardless of whether they are a League member
or not, get signed up for one of these options. You can always “Opt-Out” at any
time if you feel this is not what you were expecting. But, who in their right
mind would want to miss out on anything coming out of the Great Lakes Director
or the Ohio Section Manager?
I want to talk to all of you
about the Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2015 -- H.R.1301 in the US House of
Representative and S 1685 in the US Senate --
We now have 114 House of Representatives on board with this.
This Bill directs the FCC to
extend its rules relating to reasonable accommodation of Amateur Service
communications to private land use restrictions. Now I do want to stress this, even if this
passes, it doesn’t guarantee that you’ll be able to construct an antenna farm
on top of your 20 story apartment building. What it will do however, is at
least give you a voice to the HOA’s for something everyone could live with! If
you haven’t already sent a letter to Congress, I strongly urge you to do so..
Want more information about this Bill?? Go to..
http://www.arrl.org/amateur-radio-parity-act
The Ohio Section Website..
You can find the Ohio Section Website at: http://arrlohio.org If you don’t have this website
set as your home page, I urge you to do so. This website is one of the
exceptions to the rules.. It changes all the time. It’s never stagnating, and I
would highly recommend that you check into the website at least 3 times per
week or more if you can. Yes, it does change that much! Now, how do I know so
much about the website?? I’m the webmaster for it!
Ohio's Speaker Bureau.. Need
a speaker for your club meeting? I’m available. Please, feel free to give me a
call. I’ll do my very best to be at your function.
HEY, did you see that there’s
another NEW – one question – questionnaire on the Ohio Section Website. I’ve
been changing the questions about once every couple of weeks or so. It only
asks one question and it will take all of about 2 seconds for you to answer it,
and you can see how your answer stacks up with others instantly. If you haven’t
done it yet, please do.. I really want to hear from you.
Are you a member of the
ARRL?? If you aren’t a League member, this is a great opportunity to become
one. ALSO.. with Christmas coming up in just a month, this makes an excellent
gift to receive, or give.. and don’t forget, dues will be going up starting
January, 2016, so if you want to save $10, get your dues in before the first of
January.
Want more information on how
to join? Here’s the link: http://www.arrl.org/membership-levels. There’s even a 90 day FREE trial that you can apply
for if you’ve never been a member.. Got questions about being a member or what
the League is all about? Send me an email.. n8sy@arrl.org I’ll be happy
to call or write to you or even call you if you’ve given me your phone number.
We can even have coffee if you’d like.. and I’ll buy!!
Ok.. I know that I push the
website and website edition of the Ohio Section Journal a lot.. I’m even sure
some of you think it’s way tooooo much. But, the main reason for pushing this
so hard is that it’s where all the news is.. Yes, I know that there are some
who don’t even own a computer and won’t own one either, and that makes me very
sad. Not that they won’t own a computer, but they are missing out on so much
that’s going on because of it. These a lot of very good and exciting news and
happenings on the Ohio Section website.. If it isn’t your home page on your
browser, it should be!!
There’s a link on the left
side of the main page of the Ohio Section Website “Follow The Section Manager”
Come on, follow me as I go around the state visiting with all of you folks. I
post pictures of where I am and have a lot of great folks commenting and liking
my posts. Hey, I even have Kay Cragie, the President of the ARRL following
along with me. It’s a lot of fun and you’ll get to see all the places I go and
the folks I meet along the way. Not on Facebook? It’s easy to join in and the
best part of it is, it’s FREE!!
73, Scott, N8SY
****************************************************
THINGS TO DO… CONTEST UPDATES
From the ARRL
"The ARRL Sweepstakes
Phone contest will be underway this weekend. If you are new to Sweepstakes
(SS), you will quickly discover it is a terrific opportunity to work stations
all over the US and Canada (including territories and possessions.) It doesn't
require a huge station either - 100 watts and simple antennas will do a great
job. Check out the ARRL November Sweepstakes webpage for the rules and some operating tips. Work at least
100 stations and you can get one of the popular Participation Pins for 2015. An
even bigger challenge: Make contact with each of the 83 section multipliers and
qualify for a 2015 Clean Sweep Mug.
Try to get 'in the rhythm' with
the lengthy Sweeps exchange. Write out the format on a card to help you
remember the correct order of information. Don't forget that your callsign
should be included as part of the exchange - and please use standard phonetics.
Take a breath, then say it clearly and smoothly - once is usually enough - no
need for "please copy" or "you are", just give the
exchange. So jump in, make some QSOs, and share in the fun of the oldest domestic
contests."
-- Larry, K5OT, Sweepstakes
contest manager
BULLETINS
Another new contest! In the
new UK/EI DX Contest, United Kingdom and Ireland Amateurs are "home" while the
rest of the world is "DX." The SSB side of the event occurs on
December 5-6, 2015, and CW is January 23-24, 2016. Just for 2015 and 2016,
all contest entrants work all other entrants for QSO points and multipliers.
This should be a fun contest! Logs are due just TWO HOURS after the
contest end!
****************************************************
THE OFFICIAL OBSERVER
COORDINATOR
John Perone, W8RXX
The
Amateur Auxiliary of the FCC…
A. The Amateur Auxiliary is composed of approximately 700 ARRL volunteer-appointees, known as Official Observers (OO) who monitor the bands and notify Amateur Radio Operators of technical and operating discrepancies.
OOs are helpers and advisors, not "band cops." In cases involving serious rule violations, such as malicious interference, they are trained and certified to gather and forward evidence that can be used by the FCC in enforcement actions. The program is based on a formal agreement between the FCC and the ARRL.
During October Ohio OO's monitored a total of 973 hours
OO Cards sent = 1
Good operator cards sent = 1
73, John, W8RXX
****************************************************
WEBSITE STATS – ** arrl-ohio.org
**
Reported period: Oct 2015
Unique visitors # of visits Pages Hits Bandwidth
1,451 2,743 232,778 891,221
1.73 GB
****************************************************
IS YOUR COMPUTER BACKED UP??
Have you considered a back-up
program for your computer? With Christmas coming up in just another month from
now, you might want to consider asking for a subscription to one of the cloud
based backup companies.
How important is this? Let’s
look at this this way, can you afford to go out and just replace the current
computer that you have? Most of us can’t.. Also, if your hard-drive craps out,
like mine did, how do you recover the data from that none working drive. The
synchronous motor just froze up on mine. Do you really want to spend hours and
hours trying to recover from a crash or virus and maybe never fully recover? If
you aren’t successful, are you willing to just lose all of your non-replaceable
pictures or data? A lot of us have our logging programs on these devices and
that too will be forever gone. That’s how important this really is. Now having
some actual experience with a cloud based backup program I can tell you I’m
totally sold.
Yes, I my computer hard-drive
decided to go belly up, but knowing all of my data is backed up on the clouds I
didn’t panic. I will admit, my gut was churning a bit until everything was
fully recovered onto the new hard drive. This particular backup worked just as
it was advertised. I was up and running again in a matter of a few hours.
Nothing lost, except $40 for the new hard-drive. But that is a very small price
compared to a new computer today.
Give it some thought.. this
is an excellent Christmas present.
****************************************************
SPECIAL EVENTS STATIONS IN
OHIO
12/05/2015 | 1914
Waller-McMunn Hamshack
Dec 5, 1400Z-2200Z
W8VP, Cambridge, OH.
Cambridge Amateur Radio
Association.
7.240 7.230
Certificate. Cambridge
Amateur Radio Association,
PO Box 1804,
Cambridge, OH 43725.
Roy Waller, founder of the
club in 1913, and his brother-in-law
Homer McMunn used this
building as their radio shack 1914,
and later (briefly) as an AM
broadcast station (1924).
Please QSL with contact
information and $1 for postage
****************************************************
OHIO HAMFEST CALENDAR
12/05/2015 | Fulton County
ARC Winterfest
Location: Delta, OH
Sponsor: Fulton County
Amateur Radio Club
****************************************************
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