In this episode, we join Martin Butler M1MRB, Dan Romanchik KB6NU, Caryn Eve Murray KD2GUT and Edmund Spicer M0MNG to discuss the latest Amateur / Ham Radio news. Colin Butler (M6BOY) rounds up the news in brief and the episode's feature is GB0ROC Bunkers on the Air Station.

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•    Young DXPeditioners Prep for Guyana •    Some ARRL Reversals and Deferred Decisions •    Ham Club Provides Mobile-Radio Donation to Humanitarian Effort •    QRP Self-Spotting Website •    Hams get Credit for Advancing the Information Age •    HAMSCI Workshop to Review Annular Eclipse Findings •    "Underground Radio" has a Different Meaning Inside a Bunker •    RSGB British Science Week Activities •    Amateur Radio Club Donation Helps Mississippi Library •    ARRL Kids Day a Success in Nebraska •    Class Licence Structure Arriving in Australia

Ham College episode 109 is now available for download.

Extra Class Exam Questions – Part 47
E9E Matching: Matching Antennas to Feed Lines, Phasing Lines, and Power Dividers.

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Make a working receiver and more on your computer

At our January 2024 monthly general meeting (held via Zoom) Kevin McQuiggin VE7ZD/Kn7Q presented on GNURadio,

What is this GNU?

Aside from the wild beasts of Africa, GNURadio is an open-source software toolkit that provides signal processing blocks to implement software-defined radios (SDRs) and other digital signal processing systems. It allows users to design, simulate, and deploy radio systems in software, enabling the development of a wide range of radio communication applications.

Here are some key aspects of GNU Radio:

Software-Defined Radio (SDR): GNU Radio is widely used in the field of SDR, where radio functionality is implemented in software rather than hardware. This provides flexibility, allowing users to modify and experiment with radio protocols, waveforms, and processing algorithms.

Signal Processing Blocks: GNU Radio provides a collection of signal processing blocks that users can connect to create custom signal flow graphs. These blocks perform functions like modulation, demodulation, filtering, frequency shifting, and more. Users can combine these blocks to create complex radio systems.

Wide Range of Applications: GNU Radio can be used to develop a variety of applications, including but not limited to:

• Communication Systems: Design and implement various communication protocols, such as AM, FM, SSB, LTE, Wi-Fi, etc.
• Radar Systems: Create radar signal processing chains for applications like target detection and tracking.
• Radio Astronomy: Process and analyze radio signals from space to study celestial objects.
• Wireless Sensor Networks: Implement communication protocols for distributed sensor networks.

Extensibility and Customization: Users can extend GNU Radio by creating their own signal processing blocks, allowing for customization and the integration of specialized functionality.

Graphical User Interface (GNU Radio Companion): GNU Radio comes with a graphical tool called GNU Radio Companion (GRC), which allows users to visually design signal processing flow graphs. GRC simplifies the creation of complex radio systems by providing a drag-and-drop interface for connecting signal processing blocks.

Active Community: GNU Radio has a vibrant and active user community that contributes to its development. This community-driven approach results in continuous improvement, updates, and the sharing of knowledge and resources.

GNU Radio is widely used in academia, research, and industry for prototyping, experimenting, and implementing various radio communication systems. It plays a crucial role in advancing the field of software-defined radio and empowering individuals and organizations to explore and innovate in the domain of wireless communications.

You can watch Kevin's presentation on YouTube;

Further Information:

Agent 86 in the 1965 NBC Television comedy, Get Smart, was a raging success during the years it was on network television. The phrase, Get Smart, became a water cooler slogan in the United States. While it was a comedy of errors on the part of the “smart” agents, the phrase has continued on for a half century.

We are reviving that phrase but it’s no comedy! As part of the Plant the Seed, Sow the Future initiative with the ARRL, I have resurrected an acronym that I created some years ago. S.M.A.R.T. stands for Saturday Morning Amateur Radio Time. Saturday morning is a time when many amateur operators and the public are away from their weekly schedules and attend to other matters. Like hobbies.

David KC5AAW used that phrase to organize a couple of outings in local parks in Madison MS before the ARRL’s National Parks on the Air program was created and, of course, prior to POTA^(tm) becoming popular. It fizzled out after a few highly enjoyable outings due to KC56AAW entering graduate school while maintain his professional career but I had not forgotten the acronym.

My resurrection of S.M.A.R.T. is this. The Gallup organization has found that women and youth frequent public libraries twice as often as they do movie theaters. It’s the most common cultural crossroads for these two demographic groups in the United States. Supporting the newly-approved program by the ARRL to assist affiliated clubs to partner with local public libraries, the concept is for a local club to organize periodic ham radio activities at area public libraries on Saturday mornings. These programs are not directed at fellow amateur radio operators but to the general public. Patrons can thus Get S.M.A.R.T. at the library!

To kick this off locally, I’ve been working with the Jackson Amateur Radio Club to implement a formal partnership with the Madison County (MS) Public Library System. The JARC is securing funds to donate material and equipment to help build-out the MCLS “maker spaces” for STEM programming. JARC recently donated $2,000 of books and posters to the MCLS as described on the ARRL News feed. They are attempting to secure funds to donate the first of several 3D printers to the system, among other “maker” equipment.

A Get S.M.A.R.T. at the Library series will begin on March 2, 2024 with an introduction to patrons about today’s world of amateur radio. In May, when the weather is more predictable, a live activation of the Madison MS Branch Library is planned. It will be in a garden area behind the building, containing a gazebo and several permanent picnic tables. There are large, tall oak trees for antenna placement! We will setup portable stations so patrons can see and participate in today’s amateur radio action. (I’m looking for a hotdog vendor…) All of the Library System Administrators are anxious to attend and get a turn operating a radio. The flyer I’ve developed for the first event is shown at the end of this post.

Activities like these are planned to continue. The JARC will gauge the interest for a Technician Class during the year. The STEM programming from these activities will significantly enhance the Library system’s offerings to the public. We expect that new hams will become minted as a result.

Here is the standardized logo for branding the concept. It’s designed to be reusable with new dates, times and places. This will help build logo recognition for the program over time. If you’d like to use this concept at your local club, just drop me a note at my QRZ.com email address for permission to use the copyrighted logo. I’ll send you a blank one for your artwork and non-commercial use.

Amateur radio clubs should consider “getting smart” at their local libraries as an educational outreach program. The future viability of the hobby may just depend on it. Plus, it’s fun to share what you do in amateur radio with others who are already at a place because they want to learn stuff.

The Get S.M.A.R.T. at the Library concept has now gone international. The Sutton & Cheam Radio Society in South London has adopted the program (with express permission). Martin M1MRB and Chris M0TCH will lead an eight-week series at a local library, teaching the public about today’s amateur radio scene. Martin has created a website for “smart radio” in the UK to support the efforts. It’s exciting to see this idea gain traction across the pond!

This program concept can easily be replicated wherever there are ham radio groups and public libraries. It is far, far easier to get into libraries, who actively seek outside groups to provide content programing, than it is schools. Both are important for training a new generation of hams. Public libraries are the place where “home schooled” children frequent to get educational resources. So “schools” are not the only place where children are getting “schooled” as the home-schooling movement is significant in terms of size. A Washington Post article claimed it is the fastest-growing form of education outside of a conventional school setting in the U.S. Most estimates of the total numbers range from 3-4 million children nationwide.

See my previous blog articles on engaging with public libraries as another “served agency” for amateur radio. Libraries want ham radio clubs there for STEM programming. Just build a relationship with the Library System Director, much like an Emergency Operations Center relationship. Similarly, this is not a “drive by” donation to a library but a served agency relationship that is built over time.

The ball is in your court. We are already dribbling here in Central Mississippi!

AmateurLogic.TV Episode 189 is now available for download.

George hacks a gamer headset for radio use. Emile has video from Swamps On The Air. Mike begins his BitX 40 build.

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There have been times when as a ham I have needed things for the shack. As I look online and see the options out there and the cost I have my frugal within me kick in. I have had this internal argument in the past and it has worked out and saved me money other times it has cost me money. To be honest most of the time it has cost me money. 

What am I referring too you ask..let me give you some examples. At one time I needed a coax switch and there was the Alpha Delta and the other ones. The price point was almost 1/2 and I decided to go with the non-Alpha Delta brand. Bad move as in short order I started to have issues with the coax switch and ended up spilling the beans for the Alpha Delta. As a side note, the Alpha Delta was fantastic and NEVER an issue. 

Then there was the mobile antenna mount and I ended up getting the Larson and also a Diamond mount after a failed cheaper mount. Then the bargin power supply which was noisy and garbage was replaced with an Astron supply and I have never looked back. The cheap snap-on toroid chokes were replaced with quality toroids. 

I have learned my lesson over time and know that the pain of spending a bit more removes the larger pain when you have to spend again but I have to admit it took a few purchases for me to see the big picture. As a side note the brands that I mentioned are not by any means the only quality products just the products I purchased to replace the mistakes that I bought.