Ham radio operators are saving Puerto Rico (2017)(edition.cnn.com)
edition.cnn.com
Ham radio operators are saving Puerto Rico (2017)
https://edition.cnn.com/2017/09/27/us/puerto-rico-maria-ham-radio-operators-trnd/index.html
91 comments
I suggest taking a bunch of these tests. You might be able to schedule one test and get both technician and general. I did two tests in one day (and missed like 2 or 3 from getting my general). But the technician is fairly easy, but there is some memorization that you need to do.
http://aa9pw.com/radio/
http://aa9pw.com/radio/
Good advice, but honestly just put in the time and you'll get general first time around. There a few good study apps that helped me pass the first time around with some basic high school physics and a month of shitter study sessions.
I recommend https://hamstudy.org/
Thanks for the link. I was in Puerto Rico when Maria passed and having a ham radio would have made things so much better. I felt a really deep remorse for never taking the exam. I'll study and get certified now.
Can anyone recommend equipment choices for a noob?
Can anyone recommend equipment choices for a noob?
Seconded. I spent about two weeks studying with the mobile version of this site in my free time and managed to pass the technician, general, and amateur extra exams in one sitting.
Thirded, I used hamstudy to pass all of the tests and after a few years on the air I finally know enough to understand the ARRL manuals. I'm reading the extra manual and it's pretty incredible, they walk you through the theory of building a transceiver starting at doping silicone to make semiconductors.
Fourthed, I always recommend hamstudy.org to people. My wife and I both used it to study for a bit each night and easily passed our tests.
We live in an area that doesn't have good cell coverage, or some days the tower just goes down and there isn't any service where there was great service the day before. Even cheap, basic radios are very useful.
We live in an area that doesn't have good cell coverage, or some days the tower just goes down and there isn't any service where there was great service the day before. Even cheap, basic radios are very useful.
I am a German (in Germany) having the Extra Class ham license and soon becoming a volunteer examiner for the ARRL. I can tell you: at least getting the Technician License is a piece of cake. If you just want to have your license, one day of clicking through exams at hamexam.org should be enough preparation.
Definitely. Most of the questions on the tech exam are there to make sure you understand what it means to be a radio operator and responsible for your transmissions. Pass it and you can use HTs (VHF/UHF walkie-talkies), which is pretty nice. General lets you use SSB on HF, which actually lets you talk to distant people. You have to know some basic EM and electrical safety for General. Personally I had a hard time studying from Q&As/exams, and I think the license manuals are worth reading.
...it is worth mentioning that indeed the ARRL license manuals are worth every penny! Just great books.
If you can find a ham-cram session (where a volunteer organization gets together and does test prep and test on the same day), it's pretty easy to go from zero to tech or zero to general in a single day.
Be sure to also learn best practices & procedures on how to be a good operator if you go this route. The ARRL tech manual is great for this.
This is similar to what I did; I bought the tech manual, and then used hamstudy.org to learn the tests. Once you get your radio and are able to actually get on the air, use the tech manual as a reference on how you should operate.
This is similar to what I did; I bought the tech manual, and then used hamstudy.org to learn the tests. Once you get your radio and are able to actually get on the air, use the tech manual as a reference on how you should operate.
The importance of ham radio is that it's infrastructure-less. People are completely used to the Internet and mobile telephones working without thinking about the infrastructure and its maintenance.
With my radios I can talk to people all over the place point to point without any infrastructure at all.
With my radios I can talk to people all over the place point to point without any infrastructure at all.
After an article about the judge who did the case for Oracle vs Google and how he was a ham I got more and more interested in ham radios. The only downside is the cost of some of the equipment, but if you can reach a main city there's usually repeaters up on those buildings from what I've been told. There's so much to learn I feel and I don't know where to start truly, I've just watched a couple of videos and read a few articles. I know I need to get my license first for sure.
> The only downside is the cost of some of the equipment
What about the fact that everyone in the world who can receive your signal will hear and understand what you're saying?
What about the fact that everyone in the world who can receive your signal will hear and understand what you're saying?
I just saw your latest replies in this thread. Can I offer you another way to look at this?
Amateur radio is what it is. It has certain freedoms and certain restrictions. The restrictions include no commercial use and no encrypted communication, along with licensing tests, frequency and power limits, etc.
But the freedoms can be pretty great. You can help in emergencies. You can have a backup radio in case you get in trouble outside cellular coverage. You can explore electronics and antenna design. (I just saw a job listing for an RF/antenna design specialist to work on self-flying cameras.) You can build your own transmitter from scratch. You can talk to astronauts on the ISS or bounce a signal off the moon!
And that's just a tiny fraction of the things you can do. If any of them are interesting, then you just have to ask yourself, "Does it matter to me if anyone is listening in?"
If it matters to you, no harm, no foul, you just find something else to do instead.
Amateur radio is what it is. It has certain freedoms and certain restrictions. The restrictions include no commercial use and no encrypted communication, along with licensing tests, frequency and power limits, etc.
But the freedoms can be pretty great. You can help in emergencies. You can have a backup radio in case you get in trouble outside cellular coverage. You can explore electronics and antenna design. (I just saw a job listing for an RF/antenna design specialist to work on self-flying cameras.) You can build your own transmitter from scratch. You can talk to astronauts on the ISS or bounce a signal off the moon!
And that's just a tiny fraction of the things you can do. If any of them are interesting, then you just have to ask yourself, "Does it matter to me if anyone is listening in?"
If it matters to you, no harm, no foul, you just find something else to do instead.
I agree with you on all counts—I feel like you guys are massively misunderstanding my comment and somehow taking it as an attack on the notion of ham radio, as if somehow I feel like it's some kind of evil. I don't. I never did. It can be a great, useful, awesome thing. Where did I deny this? All I was saying was that "no downsides except the equipment cost" is emphatically not an accurate picture—and I feel accurate pictures are important regardless of how awesome something is. In this case it matters because I don't want some poor soul to read this, go buy the equipment, and then discover (hopefully not the hard way) that his (say) encrypted communication is illegal, and everything he says must be public to the whole world. I don't get why everyone here is so quick to extrapolate from "X isn't perfect, it has tradeoffs Y/Z" to "X utterly sucks, I hate it, and it needs to stop existing". It isn't helpful; it's a real turn-off that just sucks the energy out of what could be a more meaningful/nuanced/informative discussion.
I'm pretty sure you are reading a lot more into the replies than anyone intended. Your reply to me has a lot of nuance that wasn't in your original comment, where all you said was:
> What about the fact that everyone in the world who can receive your signal will hear and understand what you're saying?
The replies to that comment merely pointed out that this is how amateur radio works, that it is by design public communication. I don't see any indication that anyone interpreted your comment to mean "Ham radio utterly sucks, I hate it, and it needs to stop existing."
A long time ago I took a course in effective communication. I don't think of myself as a great communicator, and I don't remember much of the course. But one thing stuck in my mind: If you feel that people are failing to understand what you are trying to say, don't blame them for misunderstanding you. Instead, look to see how you can communicate more clearly so you will not be misunderstood.
> What about the fact that everyone in the world who can receive your signal will hear and understand what you're saying?
The replies to that comment merely pointed out that this is how amateur radio works, that it is by design public communication. I don't see any indication that anyone interpreted your comment to mean "Ham radio utterly sucks, I hate it, and it needs to stop existing."
A long time ago I took a course in effective communication. I don't think of myself as a great communicator, and I don't remember much of the course. But one thing stuck in my mind: If you feel that people are failing to understand what you are trying to say, don't blame them for misunderstanding you. Instead, look to see how you can communicate more clearly so you will not be misunderstood.
In all honesty I find it borderline impossible to say things in such a way that I will not be misunderstood on HN, at least if I plan to get anything else done during the rest of my day. A lot of people here go out of their way to misinterpret and/or take the most extreme interpretation of every comment, or to just change the discussion topic to something else while ignoring the actual comment.
Case in point for all of these was here: I was trying to replying to was "there is no downside to X but Y", and I replied with "what about Z?". A logical response could have ranged anywhere from "Yes, Z is also a downside that is worth mentioning" to "I'm not sure, because $reasons", to "No, Z is not really a downside because it would cause problem W". But instead people just went out of their ways to just ignore the actual point and provide replies ranging from "if you don't like it don't use it" (this was you, defending ham radio, as if me pointing out 1 downside is an attack on the entire concept) to "feature, !bug" (as if I somehow thought Z was an accident, or as if something being intentional automatically implies it must be an upside) to "that's how V behaves too" (which is wrong because, no, V doesn't force Z to happen, and even when Z does happen, it's far harder to exploit... and which, even if correct, would also be irrelevant to the point in the first place).
It's not that I can't, it's just that it honestly sucks all energy out of me (and the time out of my day) to try to preempt all these kinds of misinterpretations or topic changes from my comment. Not just that, but even when I do find the time and energy to do this, I just find that others come along who just cherry-pick the one sentence they disagree with and ignore all the rest of the comment explaining the nuances behind that one sentence. When I'm writing an article or a paper where the stakes are higher, I do find it worthwhile to try to do that (and it's still not easy). But over here, I just kind of always have this glimmer of hope that people will not go out of their way to start an uphill battle for me when non ever existed in the first place.
Case in point for all of these was here: I was trying to replying to was "there is no downside to X but Y", and I replied with "what about Z?". A logical response could have ranged anywhere from "Yes, Z is also a downside that is worth mentioning" to "I'm not sure, because $reasons", to "No, Z is not really a downside because it would cause problem W". But instead people just went out of their ways to just ignore the actual point and provide replies ranging from "if you don't like it don't use it" (this was you, defending ham radio, as if me pointing out 1 downside is an attack on the entire concept) to "feature, !bug" (as if I somehow thought Z was an accident, or as if something being intentional automatically implies it must be an upside) to "that's how V behaves too" (which is wrong because, no, V doesn't force Z to happen, and even when Z does happen, it's far harder to exploit... and which, even if correct, would also be irrelevant to the point in the first place).
It's not that I can't, it's just that it honestly sucks all energy out of me (and the time out of my day) to try to preempt all these kinds of misinterpretations or topic changes from my comment. Not just that, but even when I do find the time and energy to do this, I just find that others come along who just cherry-pick the one sentence they disagree with and ignore all the rest of the comment explaining the nuances behind that one sentence. When I'm writing an article or a paper where the stakes are higher, I do find it worthwhile to try to do that (and it's still not easy). But over here, I just kind of always have this glimmer of hope that people will not go out of their way to start an uphill battle for me when non ever existed in the first place.
That's the desired outcome, not a downside.
Desired by... the same people as the ones communicating? In the majority of cases or in the minority?
Desired by the informed majority of the general population.
Ham Radio's "Self Policing" aspect is a huge asset to both the Users and the Regulatory authorities. It's what makes Ham Radio work.
However Self Policing relies totally on user self-identification.
If we allowed anonymity, Ham Radio would become as unusable as CB radio has.
To put it another way, if you want anonymity, use CB radio.
Ham Radio's "Self Policing" aspect is a huge asset to both the Users and the Regulatory authorities. It's what makes Ham Radio work.
However Self Policing relies totally on user self-identification.
If we allowed anonymity, Ham Radio would become as unusable as CB radio has.
To put it another way, if you want anonymity, use CB radio.
That's pretty much the way an awful lot of communication happens on the Internet, too.
...no? I can't read your HTTP communication merely by being with propagation distance. I have to actually have control over the communication channel. Which I don't.
For starters, I've definitely been in shared facilities where "controlling the communication channel" was pretty trivial, including unsecured WiFi, ethernet switches that broadcast everything on every port, etc. Second, I'm actually referring to how little most people care about privacy or security in general. In a disaster scenario where you need backup communications because all other infrastructure has failed, privacy wouldn't have occurred to me to be high on the list of concerns suddenly.
In many cases that propagation is just the distance to the nearest Starbucks WiFi.
Honestly, the best route in is to find a local club.
For the US: http://www.arrl.org/find-a-club
For the UK: http://rsgb.org/main/get-started-in-amateur-radio/first-step...
Most nations have a national society that can help signpost you in the same way.
Also, come join /r/amateurradio, there's a pretty friendly, if small, community there, with a weekly "ask anything" thread and an alright "getting started" wiki.
Also, come join /r/amateurradio, there's a pretty friendly, if small, community there, with a weekly "ask anything" thread and an alright "getting started" wiki.
Do the basic license (whatever that is in your country) and then you can talk to people. Yes, the equipment can be initially expensive, but you don't need to spend a fortune on the latest crazy HF radio.
Ham radio does not necessarily mean expensive equipment. It tends to get expensive, but with some knowledge about electronics, you can build transceivers and antennas very cheaply too - and after all, being allowed to do that is the main, unique perk of a ham radio license. And yes, you can still do long-distance connections that's your goal.
Yes, while using repeaters is one of the less interesting aspects of the hobby, I do strongly recommend (licensed) beginners to get a $35 Baofeng 2m/70cm handheld radio precisely because it gets you some gratification very cheaply and very quickly.
If you're from the US, you would start at http://www.arrl.org/getting-licensed, either with online material or the book. If you're from Germany, I can highly recommend http://amateurfunkpruefung.de/. Additionally, you should check if there's a group nearby: with a licensed instructor present, you can transmit even before getting your own license, which is also very motivating. And a ham radio club will typically give you access to very expensive tools and knowledgeable people who want to help you succeed.
Yes, while using repeaters is one of the less interesting aspects of the hobby, I do strongly recommend (licensed) beginners to get a $35 Baofeng 2m/70cm handheld radio precisely because it gets you some gratification very cheaply and very quickly.
If you're from the US, you would start at http://www.arrl.org/getting-licensed, either with online material or the book. If you're from Germany, I can highly recommend http://amateurfunkpruefung.de/. Additionally, you should check if there's a group nearby: with a licensed instructor present, you can transmit even before getting your own license, which is also very motivating. And a ham radio club will typically give you access to very expensive tools and knowledgeable people who want to help you succeed.
Baofeng radios are only marginally useful on the receive end, and generally terrible on the transmit end.
A decent Yaesu is $165+, but will last for many years and actually fulfill its role if you need it to.
Look up tests of Baofeng radios and you'll see how poorly they carry out their intended function.
A decent Yaesu is $165+, but will last for many years and actually fulfill its role if you need it to.
Look up tests of Baofeng radios and you'll see how poorly they carry out their intended function.
Look, a decent Yaesu costs 5x as much, and the Baofeng fully fulfills the role I recommended it for - which is to get a beginner started quickly. The entire point was that you don't need to take part in the pay to win game.
Noone said Baofengs are high-quality devices. But that's kind of the point, and it is easily good enough to get onto a local relay to get some easy satisfaction and practice the non-technical aspects (like: err, what did he say? and what am I supposed to say now?). Since it's only $35, I own one and have have used a couple of different models. I've done QSO's (connections) over repeaters around 25km away with these from rural but non-elevated positions without any problems. (Ok, I probably used an antenna that costs $10 extra.)
Besides, what's so interesting about 70cm/2m handhelds that makes getting an expensive one worth it anyway? Spending the money on a HF (around 3MHz-30MHz, often a bit more) transceiver seems like a much more interesting choice (long distance, antenna building, atmospheric conditions etc.). (This does not mean there are no interesting things to do on 70cm/2m. But even with a Baofeng you can e.g. work a satellite with the right antenna.)
Yes, you're relying on the superior equipment and position on the other end, but so what, if it works? Noone tells the QRP (low power) crowd to get an amplifier either, and certainly noone complains about the very crude DIY designs most people build. It's ok.
Noone said Baofengs are high-quality devices. But that's kind of the point, and it is easily good enough to get onto a local relay to get some easy satisfaction and practice the non-technical aspects (like: err, what did he say? and what am I supposed to say now?). Since it's only $35, I own one and have have used a couple of different models. I've done QSO's (connections) over repeaters around 25km away with these from rural but non-elevated positions without any problems. (Ok, I probably used an antenna that costs $10 extra.)
Besides, what's so interesting about 70cm/2m handhelds that makes getting an expensive one worth it anyway? Spending the money on a HF (around 3MHz-30MHz, often a bit more) transceiver seems like a much more interesting choice (long distance, antenna building, atmospheric conditions etc.). (This does not mean there are no interesting things to do on 70cm/2m. But even with a Baofeng you can e.g. work a satellite with the right antenna.)
Yes, you're relying on the superior equipment and position on the other end, but so what, if it works? Noone tells the QRP (low power) crowd to get an amplifier either, and certainly noone complains about the very crude DIY designs most people build. It's ok.
I have a drawer full of new ones so I can show newbies how bad they are. The three that I have all perform differently; they are the same model.
You got one that may perform closely to specification, but frustration for the newbie arrives when they get one that performs poorly....if at all. This is the norm for Baofeng equipment. So you might spend $35 a few times until you get one that works well, and then another $25 for an actual quality antennae ($10 one you have is 100% a counterfeit). Already, the newbie is down $95 and at this point probably not happy with their new hobby. If they do graduate to more interest, that pile of Baofeng gear will be wasted money in a drawer somewhere.
Also, Yaesu and they like are hardly Pay To Win as you say (whatever that means). $165 is small amount of money for something that will last many years and will function as designed and when needed.
Further, the point of radio gear is to communicate. Try using a Baofeng for anything anywhere important for any length of time, and you'll realize they are nothing more than toys and not suitable for the task.
You got one that may perform closely to specification, but frustration for the newbie arrives when they get one that performs poorly....if at all. This is the norm for Baofeng equipment. So you might spend $35 a few times until you get one that works well, and then another $25 for an actual quality antennae ($10 one you have is 100% a counterfeit). Already, the newbie is down $95 and at this point probably not happy with their new hobby. If they do graduate to more interest, that pile of Baofeng gear will be wasted money in a drawer somewhere.
Also, Yaesu and they like are hardly Pay To Win as you say (whatever that means). $165 is small amount of money for something that will last many years and will function as designed and when needed.
Further, the point of radio gear is to communicate. Try using a Baofeng for anything anywhere important for any length of time, and you'll realize they are nothing more than toys and not suitable for the task.
I think your argument is sound, but what OP is trying to say is, it's a $30 radio- and so long as you don't expect it to perform as well as a $300 radio, then it's fine.
I have three Baofengs and they all work spectacularly well, because I purposely purchased non-knockoff models.
For a beginner, who's not sure if it's worth the time and money investing $300 on a radio that might not be used, it's a very good idea to start with a $30 radio first.
As an aside, I feel that consistently denigrating people's choice for less expensive hardware is a very big barrier to the hobby's adoption.
I've had many people tell me that it's one of the things that turned them away from the hobby. Others that still stick around simply avoid discussing what type of radio they're using (not an easy task, when you're rag-chewing, mind) simply because they don't want to deal with these arguments.
For a beginner, who's not sure if it's worth the time and money investing $300 on a radio that might not be used, it's a very good idea to start with a $30 radio first.
As an aside, I feel that consistently denigrating people's choice for less expensive hardware is a very big barrier to the hobby's adoption.
I've had many people tell me that it's one of the things that turned them away from the hobby. Others that still stick around simply avoid discussing what type of radio they're using (not an easy task, when you're rag-chewing, mind) simply because they don't want to deal with these arguments.
Yeah, there's an attitude(you see it a lot WRT the digital modes) to be very dismissive if it wasn't the route you took or a part of the hobby that you care about.
It's a shame because I feel like there's a ton of groups of people(younger, more diverse backgrounds) that would be around if they weren't pushed out. I know a few really sharp people who build their own hardware but got chased off because their aspect of ham radio didn't involve contesting/etc.
It's a shame because I feel like there's a ton of groups of people(younger, more diverse backgrounds) that would be around if they weren't pushed out. I know a few really sharp people who build their own hardware but got chased off because their aspect of ham radio didn't involve contesting/etc.
> Besides, what's so interesting about 70cm/2m handhelds that makes getting an expensive one worth it anyway?
APRS, GPS. I love my Kenwood TH-D74 for hiking around. Before I had it I used a Baofeng UV-82 with a http://www.mobilinkd.com/ TNC paired to my phone with Bluetooth. Smart phones suck up battery, so it is a lot nicer to have APRS all in one unit that doesn't depend on a smart phone.
Does everyone need the bells and whistles? No, but depending on what you want there are some nice features.
APRS, GPS. I love my Kenwood TH-D74 for hiking around. Before I had it I used a Baofeng UV-82 with a http://www.mobilinkd.com/ TNC paired to my phone with Bluetooth. Smart phones suck up battery, so it is a lot nicer to have APRS all in one unit that doesn't depend on a smart phone.
Does everyone need the bells and whistles? No, but depending on what you want there are some nice features.
I upgraded to the Kenwood TH-D74 from the Baofeng for the simple reason that i wanted the ability to actually specify a frequency that i hadn't pre-programmed when out in the field. Doing that on a baofeng is nigh-impossible. the APRS, GPS, and D-Star are just icing on the cake.
the Baofengs are cheap but absolutely suck when it comes to usability. With the Kenwood i can deploy to help our local CERT team, and not worry if they say "oh we changed the band plan... use this frequency" With the baofeng it was... "um... er.... well that sucks..."
Admittedly the Kenwood doesn't have a beginner friendly price but I don't know of any handheld that lets you type in a random frequency without wanting to kill yourself that IS cheap. I'd love to hear about it if anyone knows of one.
the Baofengs are cheap but absolutely suck when it comes to usability. With the Kenwood i can deploy to help our local CERT team, and not worry if they say "oh we changed the band plan... use this frequency" With the baofeng it was... "um... er.... well that sucks..."
Admittedly the Kenwood doesn't have a beginner friendly price but I don't know of any handheld that lets you type in a random frequency without wanting to kill yourself that IS cheap. I'd love to hear about it if anyone knows of one.
Contrats on moving to the Kenwood club! I don't know which Baofeng you have, but my UV-82 is easy. Switch to frequency mode and type in a frequency. I'm sure some of their other ones are different and worse. Entering a repeater isn't as fun, but simplex is simple.
> Look, a decent Yaesu costs 5x as much
Old timer says: My Kenwood (3 tube final amp) cost about $700 in 1978, so I'm a little amazed at modern pricing.
-- KA1BKM
Old timer says: My Kenwood (3 tube final amp) cost about $700 in 1978, so I'm a little amazed at modern pricing.
-- KA1BKM
Not an old timer says: at that price point I would never have bothered with the hobby. At the current price point I still buy very little. I have multiple hobbies all of which could take all my spare income if I let them. - K0COW
Adjusted for inflation, that $700 in 1978 is $2,661.15 in 2018 money.
The latest-and-greatest KENWOOD TS-990S is going for ~$7,979.95 (according to HRO)[1]
I'd say you got a deal back in the day. :)
[1] https://www.hamradio.com/detail.cfm?pid=H0-011672
The latest-and-greatest KENWOOD TS-990S is going for ~$7,979.95 (according to HRO)[1]
I'd say you got a deal back in the day. :)
[1] https://www.hamradio.com/detail.cfm?pid=H0-011672
:) The TS-990S looks to be a smidgen better than my old Kenwood.
It took me a few minutes to remember: Mine was the TS 520, which listed at $600 according to eham. So even more of a bargain than I remember. (not like I paid for it. Thanks Dad. (But then again, it sent me down the giant rabbit hole of analog circuits and devices. Thanks for nothing Dad.) :)
https://www.eham.net/reviews/detail/5430
https://www.ebay.com/p/Kenwood-TS-520-Radio-Transceiver/1296...
Edit: Wow, just spent some time on the TS-990S site. The state of the art is really something to behold for someone who has not been very active in the past couple of decades.
It took me a few minutes to remember: Mine was the TS 520, which listed at $600 according to eham. So even more of a bargain than I remember. (not like I paid for it. Thanks Dad. (But then again, it sent me down the giant rabbit hole of analog circuits and devices. Thanks for nothing Dad.) :)
https://www.eham.net/reviews/detail/5430
https://www.ebay.com/p/Kenwood-TS-520-Radio-Transceiver/1296...
Edit: Wow, just spent some time on the TS-990S site. The state of the art is really something to behold for someone who has not been very active in the past couple of decades.
I've got a TS-520 sitting on the desk next to me. It sounds great on receive but things get intimidating when it comes time to TX... so far I've only TX'd on my TS-570S.
Baofengs are terrible but they're cheap and extremely accessible. Also they provide enough room for experimentation with antennas and basic theory.
Not all equipment has to be the best equipment. Sometimes "OK" is enough.
Not all equipment has to be the best equipment. Sometimes "OK" is enough.
Exactly. I picked up a slightly more expensive baofeng (UV-5X3) for my fist radio. Sured it's far from the greatest radio in the world (although it's leaps and bounds ahead of the UV-5R), but it gave me an inexpensive path forward. My only real complaint is that the included antenna is garbage for transmitting. So I built a cheap roll-up j-pole out of some old twinlead. The radio works quite well with that. I have since bought a signalstick antenna (j-poles aren't exactly portable), but that early experience building an antenna made me comfortable with doing more DIY radio projects.
The nagoya flexible antennas dramatically improve the functionality of the Baofeng HTs (particularly in 70cm). I have had zero trouble with the four or so I have loaned out or otherwise lost. That's the real beauty there, if you lose one it is frustrating but ultimately trivial compared to a yaesu or something.
The nagoya is often recommended for beginners with Baofengs. I got when when I was starting out and it is better than the stock antenna, but you have to worry about who is selling "real" ones and who has fakes.
Since then I've discovered these: https://signalstuff.com/product/super-elastic-signal-stick/ They are my go to antenna for HTs. I've never had one break, they perform great and they aren't too expensive. I love that I can take it off and tie it in a knot to shove into a small pocket in my backpack. Try that with a nagoya.
Since then I've discovered these: https://signalstuff.com/product/super-elastic-signal-stick/ They are my go to antenna for HTs. I've never had one break, they perform great and they aren't too expensive. I love that I can take it off and tie it in a knot to shove into a small pocket in my backpack. Try that with a nagoya.
And closing the loop with some other comments in this thread, sales of the Super-Elastic Signal Stick help fund https://hamstudy.org/ which several people have highly recommended.
Those are very similar to the Nagoya NA-717, which I have on my UV-82. I love how flexible it is; I never worry about it, and like you can bend it way over while stuffing it in the backpack.
Yup, that's the signalstick that I bought. Great little piece of kit.
Yes, Baofengs are the bottom of the barrel, but they are an excellent way to get someone into the hobby. If they decide they don't care they are out $40 instead of hundreds. I only had Baofengs for a few years and was able to join in the rag chew on the local repeater.
Fast forward a few years and I've graduated to a Kenwood in my truck and a Kenwood HT with all the bells and whistles. Are they better? Of course they are, but the UV-82HP was plenty to get started with.
Fast forward a few years and I've graduated to a Kenwood in my truck and a Kenwood HT with all the bells and whistles. Are they better? Of course they are, but the UV-82HP was plenty to get started with.
Doesn't Icom make an entry-level 2m radio anymore?
I have an Icom sitting around somewhere that I am pretty sure I got brand-new for under $100 back in 2004-2005. It's pretty primitive, sure, and I don't think it even came with a rechargeable battery at that price (but you can drop eneloops into it and it's just fine), but I suspect it doesn't produce nearly as much QRM as a Baofeng.
If Icom/Yaesu have stopped making entry level radios, shame on them.
I have an Icom sitting around somewhere that I am pretty sure I got brand-new for under $100 back in 2004-2005. It's pretty primitive, sure, and I don't think it even came with a rechargeable battery at that price (but you can drop eneloops into it and it's just fine), but I suspect it doesn't produce nearly as much QRM as a Baofeng.
If Icom/Yaesu have stopped making entry level radios, shame on them.
Dunno, pretty commonly I see reviews where cheap baofeng's reach repeaters better than more expensive Yaesu radios. Personally my ft-70dr doesn't hit distant repeaters as well as my baofeng. Is it a nicer radio in many ways, but not particularly good for distant repeaters. The yaesu does seem better in noisy environments though.
The menu system is MUCH harder to use and MUCH more inconsistent. Drives me nuts that when you find a menu, spin the selector to make a selection, to select you hit the PTT, sometimes you hit f, sometimes you hit V/M. Worse is often the manual doesn't even mention that part.
The menu system is MUCH harder to use and MUCH more inconsistent. Drives me nuts that when you find a menu, spin the selector to make a selection, to select you hit the PTT, sometimes you hit f, sometimes you hit V/M. Worse is often the manual doesn't even mention that part.
I see your point, but the argument is that if you're just getting started, $30 is a much easier pill to swallow.
As for your tests on the Baofengs, I'd be interested to see your sources and the exact models tested.
As a counterpoint: Here's a video of an Official Baofeng UV-5R being stress tested, and demonstrating how resilient the front-end is: https://youtu.be/KqVq2G9dY5Q
I don't think that a Yaesu HT would continue working after running without an antenna, but I wouldn't want to try it myself.
As for your tests on the Baofengs, I'd be interested to see your sources and the exact models tested.
As a counterpoint: Here's a video of an Official Baofeng UV-5R being stress tested, and demonstrating how resilient the front-end is: https://youtu.be/KqVq2G9dY5Q
I don't think that a Yaesu HT would continue working after running without an antenna, but I wouldn't want to try it myself.
Check out some of their newer hardware. The UV-5X3 doesn't have the spurious emissions problem common in previous models.
Granted, the included antenna is garbage. I ended up building a j-pole and picking up a signalstick for mine. It works quite well with both.
Granted, the included antenna is garbage. I ended up building a j-pole and picking up a signalstick for mine. It works quite well with both.
If you are in anyway maker-inclined there are a bunch of QRP kits that are not expensive. You won't be immediately spending all evening rag chewing with the old farts on your local repeater, but to take a bag of semiconductors and turn it into a radio that can actually talk with other people is amazing!
The QRP kits are cheap (and some very clever!) but QRP operation can be very challenging as a way to start in.
Personally, I think an inexpensive 10m rig is the way to go, although if you live in a place with a decent 2m or 70cm repeater network there's an argument to be made for getting a cheap HT first. There's almost an assumption in most clubs that everyone has a 2m HT (e.g. talk-in channels for events and stuff).
A club that I joined years back handed me an old Radio Shack 10m SSB on my second meeting, it was sort of the "village bicycle" radio that everyone got to use until they bought their own. That was a fine way to start; I think it put out 10-12 watts or so (I'm dead sure internally it shared a lot of parts with some CB radio they must have sold at the same time), but that's enough to get a feel for things without too much frustration, even if your antenna isn't optimal.
Personally, I think an inexpensive 10m rig is the way to go, although if you live in a place with a decent 2m or 70cm repeater network there's an argument to be made for getting a cheap HT first. There's almost an assumption in most clubs that everyone has a 2m HT (e.g. talk-in channels for events and stuff).
A club that I joined years back handed me an old Radio Shack 10m SSB on my second meeting, it was sort of the "village bicycle" radio that everyone got to use until they bought their own. That was a fine way to start; I think it put out 10-12 watts or so (I'm dead sure internally it shared a lot of parts with some CB radio they must have sold at the same time), but that's enough to get a feel for things without too much frustration, even if your antenna isn't optimal.
Most people are talking about Baofengs and similar Chinese-brand radios for inexpensive radios, which are mostly VHF/UHF range. There's also HF rigs that are inexpensive, like the uBitX (http://www.hfsignals.com/index.php/ubitx/), which you buy as an easy-to-assemble kit. It can do 10W on HF, and it's only 109$.
I wish the Wi-Fi Alliance would develop a (really) long-range unlicensed wireless standard, too, and then have it built into all Wi-Fi chips. That's what would finally enable the meshnet.
Apparently this exercise was not quite what it was made out to be:
http://adam.curry.com/html/PleasecancelyourARRL-1508324966.h...
http://www.kb6nu.com/weighing-puerto-rico/
(FCC Amateur Extra class here)
http://adam.curry.com/html/PleasecancelyourARRL-1508324966.h...
http://www.kb6nu.com/weighing-puerto-rico/
(FCC Amateur Extra class here)
That story on Adam Curry's blog was not written by Curry himself, but by a Richard Dougherty (NS0S) of Kansas City. The Reddit story it linked to was deleted, so take this all with a grain of salt.
That said, it doesn't surprise me in the least. There are a lot of wannabe-cop wannabe-military whackers in the amateur radio community, unfortunately.
(NW5W here)
That said, it doesn't surprise me in the least. There are a lot of wannabe-cop wannabe-military whackers in the amateur radio community, unfortunately.
(NW5W here)
Its one of the things that has kept me away from amateur radion. I'm interested in decentralized/emergency communications and have a good understanding of RF, I've even picked up a couple of Baofeng handheld units to listen in on things and get more familiar with that part of the spectrum but the other people involved in the hobby aren't exactly the kind of folks I want to hang around enough to learn from.
I'm a ham and I agree with you but you're missing the fact that the people you may hear locally aren't indicative of the broader hobby. Yes there are a lot of grumpy old elitists chatting up the airwaves every day, but there are also people who rarely if ever talk but still do things with the hobby (like myself). There are so many sub-genres in the hobby that someone can always find something they enjoy.
If anything we need more people like you to get involved so we can have more diversity of thought.
If anything we need more people like you to get involved so we can have more diversity of thought.
Yes. That ^^^
I rarely talk on mine, and the folks who are really into it aren't generally the type i'd want to hang with, but i want to be of service to my community in an emergency, and i want to be able to communicate with others in an emergency for purely selfish reasons.
also, it's kinda cool to be in a strange area, start talking, and find locals who can point you to a good place to eat, or spend the night, or whatever. ;)
I rarely talk on mine, and the folks who are really into it aren't generally the type i'd want to hang with, but i want to be of service to my community in an emergency, and i want to be able to communicate with others in an emergency for purely selfish reasons.
also, it's kinda cool to be in a strange area, start talking, and find locals who can point you to a good place to eat, or spend the night, or whatever. ;)
Indeed. If you're athletic or want to get there, I highly recommend checking out Summits On The Air (SOTA). It's all about climbing mountains with backpack- or goat-portable ham gear and building clever but lightweight antennas on the summit for hasty conversations. It's a blast and the people are almost universally interesting and nice. The total opposite of the guy with the fake police car and yellow flashing light bar on the roof.
I like it for the electronics and hacking - like I said I've got an Amateur Extra class license and a 2x1 call sign, and I have literally NEVER keyed up - not even once.
Please note the channels you pick up on the Baofeng are VHF which are generally very close. As such the quality of the conversations will vary greatly from region to region.
Overall the HAM community is like any other in that it is varied and diverse. To truly enjoy HAM radio you will need to get a general license so you can get on 80,40, 15, and 10 meter bands. You will then get to find people all over the world, often times broadcasting from very remote or interesting places.
Overall the HAM community is like any other in that it is varied and diverse. To truly enjoy HAM radio you will need to get a general license so you can get on 80,40, 15, and 10 meter bands. You will then get to find people all over the world, often times broadcasting from very remote or interesting places.
Except on 7.255Mhz. Stay away from those lids
As a non-ham can you explain 7.255Mhz? I saw some youtube recordings of 7.255Mhz and it seemed like wacky people talking. What is the reason that frequency has a bad reputation?
> "WAR ZONE" of 7250 KHZ - 7260 KHZ primarially on the two frequencies of 7255 KHZ and 7258 KHZ with occasional excursions to 7253. Those excursions to 7253 force the inhabitents of 7255 to move up 1 KHZ to 7256 to avoid interference. Their 'buddies' purposely left on 7258 start "Cranking the Hate Machine" saying the resulting interference on 7258 KHZ is intentional. Of course the guys on 7253 have no intention of moving. And on and on it goes every day, every day, every day, every damn day.
> This stupid WAR has been raging since late 1968.
http://www.eham.net/articles/1120
> This stupid WAR has been raging since late 1968.
http://www.eham.net/articles/1120
There are plenty of ugly people in any hobby, but getting your license and spending time on the air is the best way to hone your skills so that when the emergency happens, you'll be able to make a difference.
I read the original post on reddit before it was deleted and it was quite damning
The Finnish media reported last month how the government wants to collaborate with the radio hobbyists who have a network that is more resilient than the official networks. Any longer issue in the mains network causes an emergency and the official radio networks won't stay up long either in the countryside.
Interesting, but I couldn't find anything; link?
I can't find anything in English but here's a news item in Finnish (translated title "The fire department is interested in the amateur-built network in Northern Carelia"): https://www.karjalainen.fi/uutiset/uutis-alueet/kotimaa/item...
EDIT: Tweet from the Defence Department in Finnish ("--the backup network Varve is a great example-- --collaboration between the government and the civil society"): https://mobile.twitter.com/DefenceFinland/status/96808789403...
One year ago in Finnish ("The role of radio amateurs growing in emergency communications"): https://yle.fi/uutiset/3-9268716
EDIT: Tweet from the Defence Department in Finnish ("--the backup network Varve is a great example-- --collaboration between the government and the civil society"): https://mobile.twitter.com/DefenceFinland/status/96808789403...
One year ago in Finnish ("The role of radio amateurs growing in emergency communications"): https://yle.fi/uutiset/3-9268716
Story is from September 27, 2017.
Great to see American Radio Relay League members doing this important work for the citizens of Puerto Rico in their time of need.
Great to see American Radio Relay League members doing this important work for the citizens of Puerto Rico in their time of need.
Thanks! We've updated the title to clarify.
There was a lot of drama on this. Personality conflicts and such. But I'm glad the amateurs could help. I tried to go, but they filled the volunteer slots very quickly.
If I remember the original request from ARRL one of the things they were looking for was HF operators who could use the data modes that exist in the ham world to allow communication to insurance company internet resources based in the mainland.
I thought this request was intriguing but wondered why they weren't able to deploy BGAN for this purpose. A surgeon friend of mine said that after Katrina sat phones were of minimal utility because the broadcast networks had contracts that were consuming virtually all of the bandwidth. I'd be interested to hear from anyone who can comment on this.
Some of the most interesting amateur radio technologies today are hybrid modes like DMR that leverage the internet along with traditional amateur radio technologies. With DMR it I have been able to speak from NYC to Malta with crystal clear signal from an HT. While this is fun and I like DMR, in some ways it is like a worldwide cellular party line. It would not be a go to solution for a situation like Puerto Rico.
I thought this request was intriguing but wondered why they weren't able to deploy BGAN for this purpose. A surgeon friend of mine said that after Katrina sat phones were of minimal utility because the broadcast networks had contracts that were consuming virtually all of the bandwidth. I'd be interested to hear from anyone who can comment on this.
Some of the most interesting amateur radio technologies today are hybrid modes like DMR that leverage the internet along with traditional amateur radio technologies. With DMR it I have been able to speak from NYC to Malta with crystal clear signal from an HT. While this is fun and I like DMR, in some ways it is like a worldwide cellular party line. It would not be a go to solution for a situation like Puerto Rico.
Another thing I want to point out to all those talking about the expense - buy an SDR. The RTL-SDR is cheap, and with direct sampling and a length of wire can receive HF. Monitor stuff, find out how it works, and when you are bitten with the bug, you can get licensed and start shopping for transceivers.
Radio can be a lifesaving tool in these kind of emergencies. A friend in PR told me that even the non hams were able to utilize radio when the power was down, by using CB units hooked to car batteries.
To anyone interested in taking up the hobby, it's very easy to get started and if you get into the rhythm of studying it's possible to go from Foundation to Advanced in about a year. I was fortunate enough to go from M6 to M0 (I'm in the UK) in just under a year. Intermediate (2E0) isn't much of a stretch past foundation but the advanced (M0) took dedicated study time. The excellent bit about gaining Full licence is the ability to transmit in most other countries (providing you adhere to the local laws).
Whatever happened to mesh networking?
pretty sure the main problem is distance on the frequencies and power ratings that are available to unlicensed users. Hams can use more power (because in theory we know how to do it without cooking nearby people) and we can transmit on wavelengths with greater potential for travel. https://disaster.radio is one of the groups trying to address similar problems via unlicensed mesh networks but the problem they (and others) have is that you just need a boatload of nodes to get the signal across any distance.
You can't roll that out in an emergency, and it's a logistical nightmare to buy, setup, power, and maintain enough of them that in an emergency (including power outage) there will be enough of them to get the message from the people in need to the people who can do something about it.
You can't roll that out in an emergency, and it's a logistical nightmare to buy, setup, power, and maintain enough of them that in an emergency (including power outage) there will be enough of them to get the message from the people in need to the people who can do something about it.
I want to take this time to thank everybody that has sent help this way, and those that have enabled for help to reach this.
Everybody from ham radio operators, to the electrical service brigades from dozens of States, to emergency personnel, everybody.
Thanks.
PS: I should start finally working on my ham radio license!