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SBARC Wednesday Nets - Trivia Night!
by Michael＠NO6O.com 16 Mar '11

16 Mar '11

SBARC Wednesday Nets -- TRIVIA NIGHT! ------------------------------------- Beginning at 7:00 pm on the following linked repeaters: 146.79 MHz (La Vigia Hill) 223.92 MHz (Santa Cruz Island) 224.08 MHz (La Cumbre Peak) Minus offset, PL 131.8 ---------------------------------- 7:00pm - 7:30pm -- Amateur Radio Newsline (www.ARNewsLine.org) 7:30pm - 8:00pm -- !! TRIVIA NIGHT !! Hosted by Dave Milton, K6HWN 8:00pm - 8:30pm -- Swap Net, hosted by Dave Milton, K6HWN ---------------------------------- Then, at 8:30pm, on 144.210 MHz, is the VHF Single Side Band Roundtable, typically hosted by Ken Owen, N6KTH. This popular roundtable is now in its fourth year. Some People start checking in early between 8:00pm and 8:30pm. For details, visit www.n6kth.com/vhf. ---Michael, NO6O

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Urgent Communiations
by Bill Talanian 15 Mar '11

15 Mar '11

Commercial P2T might be an option for enterprises, says consultant Mar 15, 2011 6:48 PM, By Glenn Bischoff More From Mobile Voice Last week at IWCE 2011 in Las Vegas, wireless consultant Andy Seybold told of the time, five years ago, that he conducted a study for the American Automobile Association (AAA) that explored whether commercial push-to-talk service was a viable option for the organization. The answer was a resounding no, he said, primarily because the technology wasnt ready. For example, one carriers push-to-talk service had a call set-up time of three to four seconds, which Seybold called a disaster. But its a different story today. The technology is better and the time is right, he said, adding that the carrier in question today has a much-improved offering that works very well. The technology is better because carriers invested billions of dollars to improve their networks, according to Seybold. He added that only a handful of significant problems still exist. One concerns group P2T when everybody is in the same cell sector, a bandwidth shortage can occur. Another concerns the fact that with the exception of Sprint Nextel commercial carriers generally offer a limited selection of P2T-capable devices. That will get better as operators get more interested in push-to-talk, said Seybold, who predicted that someday customers would be able to download a client to their existing phones that will make them P2T capable. And while <http://urgentcomm.com/mag/radio_inbuilding_coverage_mustdo/>in-building issues still exist in some places, there arent many spots today where you dont have good coverage, Seybold said. Indeed, a plethora of advantages exists to commercial P2T services for the enterprise sector. One is that commercial coverage footprints generally are much larger than those offered by land-mobile radio (LMR) systems. Another is that myriad functions such as P2T voice, cellular voice, text, Internet access and GPS all can be converged on commercial devices. And, hardened commercial devices are available that are less expensive than LMR devices and more are coming, Seybold said. For these reasons, Seybold believes that any enterprise should take a look at commercial P2T services, including taxi companies, transportation companies, delivery services and any business that employs field technicians or service agents. He even believes that public-safety agencies also should consider commercial P2T services, but only for non-sworn personnel. This is not designed to replace mission-critical voice for first responders, he said. It is especially important, according to Seybold, that any entity that is operating at 512 MHz or below take a long, hard look at commercial P2T service because of the Federal Communications Commission mandate that such systems be converted from the current 25 kHz-wide channels to 12.5-kHz operation by Jan. 1, 2013, a process popularly known as narrowbanding. The P2T fees currently being offered by the commercial operators are at an all-time low, which means that such services might be a far less expensive option compared with narrowbanding an existing LMR system, Seybold said. There are other significant problems associated with narrowbanding beyond cost, according to Seybold. For instance, all radios have to be converted at the same time, which would be a challenge for many organizations. You can mix and match, but the audio quality will go to hell, Seybold said. In addition, Seybold said that licensees should expect up to 25% degradation of the radio signal after narrowbanding. That means you may have to add more sites, he said, which would increase costs considerably. If that wasnt enough, any licensee that opts for narrowbanding will have to modify their FCC license. So, it might be less costly and a lot less problematic simply to convert to commercial P2T service, especially for those entities that have to replace their entire fleet of LMR mobiles and portables. For those who move in that direction, Seybold offered a few tips: * Execute the migration in phases, starting with executives and then moving to field personnel after it has been established that the service is working properly. Use an IP bridge to connect the existing LMR system to the commercial P2T service. * Choose the commercial carrier that has equal to better coverage to that provided by the legacy LMR system. * Ask the carrier not only about the devices they offer today that are P2T-capable, but also about what they are planning to offer in the future. * Ask the carrier to provide a pair of phones so that the P2T service can be tested before any contracts are signed or insist on a 90-day money-back guarantee. If they want your business, they will find a way to work with you, Seybold said. You have to remember that youre not a single customer. The more lines you have, the more interested theyll be in you. What do you think? Tell us in the comment box below.

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Program for the March 18 SBARC Club Meeting
by Darryl Widman 13 Mar '11

13 Mar '11

Program for the March 18 SBARC Club Meeting Dick Norton, N6AA, is serving us as the Director of the Southwestern Division of the ARRL, the American Radio Relay League. As a member of the CQ Contesting Hall of Fame, Dick Norton is recognized as one of the world’s top operators. Included in his many contesting achievements is the fact that he has been number one in the world in the CQ Worldwide DX Contest, the world series of radio contesting, more times than anyone else. Many DXers strive to contact stations in the world’s 40 zones. Dick Norton has actually operated the CQ World Wide DX Contest from each of the 40 zones, an odyssey that has resulted in an understanding of Amateur Radio worldwide. He has been a judge or participant in all of the World Radio Team Competitions. He understands that Amateur Radio issues may originate in, or impact, any country in the world. While supporting cost-effective approaches to fighting the Broadband over Power Line threat at the national level, he has spearheaded Amateur Radio's technical interface to BPL activities in the ARRL Southwestern Division. Dick is an electrical engineer with an advanced degree and is able to tackle complex technical issues and integrate them within a dynamic environment of technology and politics. Since earning his Novice class license years ago, Dick has constructed transmitters, receivers, and other equipment and services most of his own equipment. Today, he maintains a reasonably large station with an antenna 120 feet up on a tower that he still climbs. Dick is at home with tackling challenging technical issues with the ARRL or on his own workbench. View the video of the DXpedition to the little country of Qatar just north of Saudi Arabia where Dick answered calls coming from around the world. Come to our March 18 SBARC club meeting and meet this fascinating gentleman. You will be inspired. 　 ____________________________________________________________ Mortgage Rates Hit 2.99% If you owe under $729k you probably qualify for Gov't Refi Programs http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL3141/4d7d9d61155851f395fst01duc

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SBARC ATVSIG Roadmap and Workgroup Update... ("State of the SBARC ATVSIG Committee Address")
by rod＠sbatv.org 11 Mar '11

11 Mar '11

Hello SBARC ATVSIG Members and Friends, I'm very grateful that Cyril AF6GW drove to KTYD yesterday to help me with the projects. Thank you. We had some success and some disappointment. My brain has been churning today and I have some ideas (underlined) that might help us get where we want to go. SBARC ATVSIG ROADMAP - These are the projects, priorities, status and plans. 1. 5.8 GHz Link from Oxnard (Won't it be great to get solid video from L.A.?) - Oxnard is receiving Oat Mtn P5, but no signal is detected in Santa Barbara yet . Installed new 28dbi antennas, leaving old ones in place; aligned using lasers to spot locations . Used my Spectrum Analyzer to look for a signal; none was seen . Cyril is fabricating a calibrated laser mount to attach to the antenna . Mike WA6SVT is assembling a 5.8 GHz preamp . Bob W6KGE is investigating how to build a 5.8 GHz driver amp to give us 1-watt at the antenna . Rod is investigating how to use 5.8 GHz WiFi units (EnGenius EOC-5610) to help align the antennas . We may try again this evening - or - as soon as we feel we have what we need to succeed 2. 2.4 GHz Audio Level (This will allow you to hear me and the new Club Station TX) - 2.4 GHz is done; others need tweaking . Determined that the RX only outputs out -10 db audio at 10k ohms, not adjustable . Increased audio modulation so -10 db at the receivers (controller inputs) and at the controller output produces 100% modulation . The 2.4 GHz RX audio level is good now; 434 MHz and other RX audio levels (not TX levels) need to be lowered to the -10 db standard (from the original 0 db standard); I plan to make adjustments sometime today 3. Club Station 2.4 GHz Signal Optimization (Ensure a high-quality video signal into the repeater) . Mount adapter bracket and align 2.4 GHz antenna - K6QD (sometime after Tuesday) . Identify the source of WiFi interference at KTYD and correct the problem - Need a volunteer or two (Is this the function of the SBARC RFI Committee?) 4. 2.4 GHz Link To Santiago Peak (Won't it be great to send solid video to L.A.?) - Need to package, test and install equipment . Draw up a block diagram of modules to be mounted - WB9KMO . Connect subsystems, test them and ensure that they work properly - Need a couple of volunteers . Plan the physical layout of modules and connectors in the box - Need a volunteer . Mount the modules and connectors in the box - Need a volunteer . Verify that everything works properly - WB9KMO . Mount the box on the antenna pole at KTYD and connect antennas and feed line - Need a couple of volunteers . Test the feedline from the bias-T in the equipment rack, apply power and verify proper operation - WB9KMO . Optimize operation of all systems - WA6SVT 5. SBARC ATVSIG Committee (Increase ATV activity and use ATV regularly in SBARC operations) . Help plan ATVSIG activities, projects, proposals and purchases - Need a few members to meet regularly, identify action items, assign them and coordinate completion 6. 2.4/5.6 GHz WiFi (This offers incredible flexibility; you may want to try hitting this from your house.) - Starting proof of concept . I'm looking for someone to take the lead on this project . I have two EnGenius EOC-5610 units and two EnGenius EOC-2610 units for this project . The units have built-in antennas that will be used if they are adequate; optionally, we'll use external antennas . I'm prototyping this at home today to prove the concepts . Today, if time allows, I'll do a site survey to see what's active around KTYD (aka identify interference) . The first objective is to bridge KTYD to an Access Point at my house on 2.4 or 5.x GHz . Using Part 15 is preferable, otherwise I'll use Part 97 (Amateur Radio) . The second objective is to set up a "Public to Radio Amateurs" 2.4 or 5.x GHz Access Point at KTYD . Integrate WiFi into the Rover and interface it with the Internet and WinLink . Consider creation of an Amateur Radio Mesh network in the Santa Barbara area 7. Computer Installation (This will allow all sorts of exciting new features, including WiFi high-definition pix and video) - Laptop installed . I'm looking for someone(s) to take the lead on this project (or parts of it) . Installed Sony VAIO laptop (Windows XP) . Need to complete assembly of rack-mount desktop PC (currently Windows XP, considering OS change) . Need to install router, probably Linksys BEFSX41 (at least initially) . Need to connect to bridge, AP, etc. . Need to assess, plan and implement numerous interfaces and applications 8. Camera installation (SB, Goleta and ocean views from the mountain whenever you want) - No progress . I'm looking for someone to take the lead on this project . Extend cables or relocate two outdoor cameras; use ferrite beads to prevent interference . Relocate one indoor camera . Install in indoor pan and tilt webcam . Install an outdoor pan, tilt and zoom camera 9. Move out rack, mower and weed-whacker (tidying up a bit to be good citizens) - All items are staged for pick-up . For the rack, pay $50 to the Club Station Rent Fund (or swap something with me), first come, first served . For the lawn mower, pay $30 to Rod Fritz . For the weed-whacker, pay $30 to Rod Fritz 10. Other SBARC ATVSIG projects. . Determine where to permanently locate the 32" LCD TV - Club Station Committee (need volunteers) . Permanently install the 32" LCD TV - AF6GW . Build and install hard line from Club Station tower to ham shack - W1UUQ and K6QD . Plan and install ATV and WiFi equipment in Rover - Rover Committee (need volunteers) . Run video cables from ham shack to TV in outer room - Need a volunteer . Copy numerous videos (mostly high-definition) to DVD for SBARC Video Library - Need a volunteer . Edit selected videos in high-definition for output to Blu-Ray for the SBARC Video Library - Need a volunteer . Organize and manage the SBARC Video Library - Need a volunteer . Make copies of SBARC Video Library discs for presenters and club members, as needed - Need a couple of volunteers . Manage backups and video storage on the Club Station Windows PC - Need a volunteer . Set up video streams for SBARC events and meetings, as needed - Need a volunteer . Act as Net Control for the SBARC ATV Net on Tuesday nights at 8:30pm - Need a couple of volunteers . Assess ATVSIG inventory to use or liquidate equipment and accessories - Need a volunteer . Help videotape Construction Night (starting March 3rd at the Club Station) and other SBARC activities, as needed - Need a couple of volunteers . Help create and maintain an ATVSIG Members List - Need a volunteer 11. Other ATV Repeater projects. . Install 1.2 GHz Remote Base (Voice and control communication to Santiago Peak and the rest of ATN) - WB9KMO . Install 146 MHz Remote Base (Voice and Slow-Scan TV Simplex Repeater communications to the Santa Barbara area); possibly frequency-agile . Interface 220 MHz Repeater to AllStarNet or EchoLink (Allow world-wide access to audio on the ATV Repeater) . Implement the best way to connect the ATV Repeater to the Internet for two-way audio and video access . Consider linking ATV to other sites, locally, in Ventura County, in northern Santa Barbara County, in SLO County and beyond. What do you want to help with? Let me know and let's make this happen. If you have email addresses for the following people, please pass them on to me and route this email to them: KJ6MID, KI6SXA, KJ6FAF, KJ6KEK, K6LCM, WT6JS, KI6PWE, AF6VM, KJ6GDS, KE6YMW, KG6NRW, W9ELG, KJ6AAL, KD7DMQ, AF6YB, KO6OJ and AC6W. Thank you all for your interest and participation in SBARC ATVSIG, Rod WB9KMO SBARC ATVSIG Chair P.S. I installed a 2.4 GHz ATV transmitter at the Club Station. The signal is P4 and may improve when the antenna direction is optimized. WiFi is interfering significantly. I'm tracking down the source to determine how we can remove the interference.

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Technical Elmering Net
by Michael＠NO6O.com 10 Mar '11

10 Mar '11

Come Join the Technical Elmering Net ------------------------------------ Thursday, 7:30pm until 9:30pm On the following repeaters: 146.79 MHz (La Vigia Hill) 223.92 MHz (Santa Cruz Island) 224.08 MHz (La Cumbre Peak) Minus offset, PL 131.8 Hosted by Dave Milton, K6HWN All Amateur Radio-related topics are welcome. Bring your questions, experiences, and/or expertise. ---Michael, NO6O

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Site construction
by Bill Talanian 09 Mar '11

09 Mar '11

To: SBARC Recipients From: Bill Talanian Pre-construction breakdown of equipment has commenced at La Vigia Hill before replacement of the 35 year old shed that houses SBARC equipment. Periodic outages of systems will occur over the next three months. As milestones are reached you will find a pictorial update on the SBARC web site.

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SBARC Wednesday Nets
by Michael＠NO6O.com 09 Mar '11

09 Mar '11

SBARC Wednesday Nets -------------------- Beginning at 7:00 pm on the following linked repeaters: 146.79 MHz (La Vigia Hill) 223.92 MHz (Santa Cruz Island) 224.08 MHz (La Cumbre Peak) Minus offset, PL 131.8 ---------------------------------- 7:00pm - 7:30pm -- Amateur Radio Newsline (www.ARNewsLine.org) 7:30pm - 8:00pm -- Weekly Club Net 8:00pm - 8:30pm -- Swap Net, hosted by Dave Milton, K6HWN ---------------------------------- Then, at 8:30pm, on 144.210 MHz, is the VHF Single Side Band Roundtable, typically hosted by Ken Owen, N6KTH. This popular roundtable is now in its fourth year. Some People start checking in early between 8:00pm and 8:30pm. For details, visit www.n6kth.com/vhf. ---Michael, NO6O

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Technical Elmering Net
by Michael＠NO6O.com 03 Mar '11

03 Mar '11

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SBARC Wednesday Nets
by Michael＠NO6O.com 02 Mar '11

02 Mar '11

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WB6RDV's car and solar...
by Jay Hennigan 01 Mar '11

01 Mar '11

http://www.west.net/~jay/images/voltsolar.jpg Wow! I didn't expect that much interest. Gory details... The car: Chevrolet Volt, 2011 model. Made in Detroit, USA. Lithium-ion battery, 16 kWh capacity, of which it uses about 10. The reason they don't use it all is to prolong battery life and to keep enough juice to spin up the gasoline engine as the battery is depleted. About 35-45 miles electric range, depends on how heavy your foot is and the climate. Best range in stop-and-go city driving. Worst on the freeway when it's very cold. If I baby it I can go from Goleta to Carpinteria and back all-electric. 100 MPH top speed. No, Loren, I haven't verified this - yet. When the battery is depleted, there's a gasoline engine that primarily acts as a generator to power the electric motor. Wheels are driven by electricity under almost all circumstances. When the battery is depleted and speeds are over 70 MPH the gas engine is coupled to the wheels as well as the electric motor. At higher speeds with no battery left this is more efficient. If you never exceed electric range before recharging you theoretically never will need to buy gas. However the engine is programmed to run briefly every couple of months to circulate the oil and burn off stale fuel. On the other hand if you want to go cross-country you can do so and just fill it up like a regular car. Charging is via J-1772 SAE standard connector. "Charger" equipment is essentially a smart extension cord that delivers 120 VAC or 240 VAC to the car along with a PWM pilot signal to tell the car the maximum charge rate to pull without tripping the breaker. GFCI and handshake keeps the output pins dead until car is connected, communicating, and requesting to charge. A "proximity" pin disables the drive electronics while the connector is plugged in to prevent you from driving off and dragging he charger behind you. There are a few free public charging stations around town but most of them are the old style inductive coupling paddle. The Nissan dealer has the new ones, and Costco is supposedly going to upgrade theirs. Rabobank in Goleta has one too. Charging time is four hours from 240 volts, ten hours on 120 volts if the battery is fully depleted. The car is smart enough to charge based on departure time for off-peak rates. In other words, if I plug it in at 6 pm and have programmed it that my morning drive never starts before 6 am, it will start charging at 2:00 am if the battery is fully drained, later if not. One minor annoyance... You have to set the clock! What's up with that? This car has TWO extremely accurate sources of time built in; a GPS receiver and a CDMA cellular phone (OnStar). The GPS can even update the time zone on the fly based on your location. Yet they make an inaccurate human set the clock! Really fun to drive, standard equipment includes all the bells and whistles. Totally blows the doors off of a new Prius when the light turns green. Don't ask me how I know this, but the guy really gave me "the look"... There's a waiting list unless you want to pay way over sticker. (I didn't). Graham Chevrolet just didn't have their act together in three separate visits and numerous phone calls starting in July 2010. This may have changed. Sunset in Lompoc was awesome to deal with. I had a GM order number in hand within 20 minutes of walking in the door, no markup over sticker, no dealer tricks. Chevy and GM are really in touch with anyone buying this car. They have a "Volt Advisor" team that assists with questions, order tracking, charging equipment, etc. I took delivery on January 5. Tank holds 9.3 gallons, dealer filled it up and charged the battery before delivery. I bought gas for the first time last Friday, February 25. It took six gallons, 1356 miles on the odometer. Not bad. The solar: 18 modules, each rated 230 watts peak output. Maximum net measured from the array so far is about 3600 watts after inverter losses, etc. I use Enphase inverters, made in USA. This system is kind of different from the typical grid-tied arrangement. Typically, the panels are connected in a string for about 600 VDC which goes into a big inverter that converts it to AC where it connects to the electrical panel. Enphase uses one inverter per solar module (panel). This means no HV DC to deal with, no extra DC safety disconnect, and also means that bird droppings on one panel don't pull down a whole string. It also makes things much more scalable as you can add a single panel to an array. The inverters are totally weatherproof potted assemblies that mount under each panel. Another advantage is that each inverter and thus each panel can be individually monitored to show performance and alert to any problems. For example... http://enlighten.enphaseenergy.com/public/systems/zyRu12037 If you view the animation you can see that there's low output from the lower right panel until about 10:00 in the morning. That's due to the shadow of a Ku-band FTA satellite dish. Not a big deal and I'll move it eventually. I'm kind of curious to see if it's an issue in the summer when the track of the sun moves farther north. Overcast days and clouds passing overhead are very clear on the graphs and take a big hit on power produced. The panels are REC Solar, made in Norway. I was going to go US made here as well, SolarWorld in Chatsworth makes nice panels but they're on backorder. Edison will pay you for your excess electricity as well as a large chunk of the cost of the system including installation. I just got the smart meter about a month ago. This month I've sold Edison 505 kWh and bought 493 kWh. The cool thing is that you can go on a time-of-use metering plan. This means that you're selling electricity in the afternoon at high rates when the sun is shining. Then you buy it back (to charge your car) at super off-peak rates between midnight and 6 am. This system has no batteries and will automatically shut down in a power failure, so don't depend on this type of arrangement as a backup. A small generator makes more sense from a cost perspective for backup power. You would need enough battery to power your house (and optionally car) in the event of three or four cloudy days if you really want to go off-grid. Not practical. The inverters shut down if utility power fails as a safety mechanism. You don't want to risk back-feeding the utility lines and endangering Edison workers who would think that the load side of a fault is dead. Utility power has to be present within voltage and frequency limits for five minutes before the inverters will turn on. With tax and Edison rebates the net cost is about 40% of the quoted price to just buy it outright. I saved additional money by doing the electrical wiring and some of the physical labor but wanted to use a licensed contractor for the roof penetrations (scary for me) and to deal with the permit process. Payback should be about four years. [Feel free to borrow any or all of this for Key-Klix if you like.] -- Jay Hennigan - CCIE #7880 - Network Engineering - jay(a)impulse.net Impulse Internet Service - http://www.impulse.net/ Your local telephone and internet company - 805 884-6323 - WB6RDV

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