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FRS and Amateur Radio
by Bill Talanian 05 May '06

05 May '06

5/5/2006 To: Distribution From: Bill Talanian, Trustee K6TZ It is a fact that in recent years our SBARC repeaters have gone fallow. The reasons vary and are not limited to SBARC as this has become a nationwide reality. Many believe the advent of cellular phones and the Internet has taken away the clientele from the once active repeater systems. Perhaps it is time to rethink how we may better use this asset for the general good in the event of a natural or man-made disaster. The below article suggests that Amateurs could monitor the Family Radio Service (FRS) channels during emergencies and assist the general public. But it also points out the limitations of the FRS HT's. Looking at this in a different light we know that repeaters are generally located on high places and oversee large urban areas. Rather than have Amateurs monitor FRS channels and repeat the traffic there is a case for repeating these distress signals over repeater systems during emergencies. The infrastructure to monitor the FRS channels is relatively in place. Integration of the FRS channels is similar to what we now do with the 2 and 6 meter remote base systems. Total reciprocity using an FRS HT may not always be there but it is far better to use an existing repeater system than to have Amateurs listening from their home locations. If a National SOS system ever becomes a reality we need to have this process vetted through the ARES and Club leadership. All I am suggestion is the machinery to accomplish this task is pretty much in place. Mobile Radio Technology Wavelengths [] National SOS initiative sounds good -- at least in theory By Glenn Bischoff May 5, 2006 A grassroots initiative -- dubbed the National SOS Radio Network -- that announced new support this week (see story below) proposes leveraging FRS radios to create a de facto emergency communications network that the public could use when traditional wireline and wireless communications networks have been rendered inoperable. On the surface, the idea has some merit. According to National SOS, about 100 million FRS-compatible radios already are in the hands of the public nationwide, a figure that's expected to grow by about 12 million radios each year. The idea is that users could transmit mayday messages that would be received by ham operators and GMRS users monitoring FRS Channel 1. Given that there are about 700,000 licensed hams in the U.S. -- who already provide invaluable lifeline communications during crises -- and another 70,000 licensed GMRS users, it seems the infrastructure is in place to make the proposal a reality. However, there are a few problems that need to be addressed before the National SOS Radio Network comes to fruition -- chief among them is that the national organization that represents amateur radio operators seemingly is unaware of the initiative. ARRL Chief Executive Officer David Sumner told me that my call to him seeking comment was the first he'd heard of it. "ARRL is a big organization -- we have 148,000 members -- so I can't swear the conversation hasn't occurred somewhere, but it's not anything I'm aware of," Sumner said. That struck me as odd, given that the entire success of the initiative depends on the involvement of the hams. Sumner agreed. "In principle, in a particular area where there was a concerted effort to organize amateurs to do this, something might come of it," he said. "But just saying there's a program doesn't make it so." There are other pressing challenges. Eric Knight, founder of National SOS, claims that amateur radio operators will be able to receive FRS signals from as far as 17 miles away. But an ARRL spokesman told me that range depends on nearly perfect line-of-sight conditions and that a more typical range is about 4 miles -- a lot depends on terrain and the sensitivity of the receiving equipment. Also, to optimize performance, a ham would use an outdoor antenna designed for the FRS frequencies. Unfortunately, such antennas don't exist, according to Sumner. "FRS radios were deliberately designed so that you can't hook an outdoor antenna to them [because] they're not intended for longer-distance communications," he said. "[Hams] using what they have lying around isn't going to provide an optimum result." Another challenge that will have to be overcome, according to Sumner, is that a ham typically wouldn't monitor FRS Channel 1 unless he or she was coached to do so. "There would need to be an organized effort to encourage hams to dedicate equipment to that purpose," he said. "There hasn't been such an effort to this point." Without that effort, National SOS is pointless. Nevertheless, Sumner believes the National SOS initiative represents an idea worth discussing. "There have been some outstanding examples of FRS radios being used to call for help," he said. "There was an incident -- I think it was on Mount Hood (in Oregon) -- a couple of years ago where a pair of FRS radios were able to communicate over probably 40 to 50 miles. ... It might be fertile ground for discussion, but up to this point, I haven't heard the discussion." I agree with Sumner that National SOS deserves a thorough examination. Frankly, I'm surprised Knight hasn't already placed a call to ARRL headquarters. Promoting an initiative -- which was announced last fall -- that relies so heavily on amateur radio operators without first talking with Sumner seems the epitome of placing the proverbial cart before the horse.

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SBARC at Hope Ranch School Science Night
by Tom Saunders 09 Apr '06

09 Apr '06

SBARC Members, SBARC has been invited to participate in Science Night at Hope Ranch School this Thursday evening, April 13. We will bring the Rover and have ham radio demonstrations. This is a great opportunity to show ham radio to the public. We need members to staff this event that would like to demonstrate ham radio and answer questions. We will have HF radio and VHF repeater capability. Also, Rod Fritz will be demonstrating Amateur Television. Hope Ranch School is located at 3970 La Colina in rear parking lot. Setup will begin at 5:00 PM and demonstrations will run from 5:30 to 8 PM. Please call me at 967-7351 if you can participate in this event. Thanks, Tom N6YX

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Amateur Radio magazines
by Darryl A. Widman 08 Apr '06

08 Apr '06

Dear fellow ham, In an effort to make more space in my shack, it appears I will need to find another home for all the Amateur Radio magazines I have been saving up over the years. The ones I need to find a new home for are as follows: Ham Radio box 1 1969 - 1975 box 2 1976 - 1983 QST box 1 1966 - 1971 box 2 1972 - 1975 box 3 1976 - 1979 73 box 1 1976 - 1979 Please take them all. Find a nice place in your shack or in the house somewhere so you may refer to them when you need them. They offer a very nice selection of articles on the older equipment (some of which you may own) and the advertisements are quite entertaining considering some go back over 40 years! The price is right! Give me a call at 805-969-2326 or reply to this e-mail. 73 and hope to hear from you soon. Darryl Widman, KF6DI Santa Barbara

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Bill Hepp's has changed his call sign to K6TZP
by Bill Hepp 07 Apr '06

07 Apr '06

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April KeyKlix
by Marvin Johnston 05 Apr '06

05 Apr '06

The April KeyKlix is now available on the SBARC website in PDF format (the size is about 500K.)

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Saturday Field Day
by Bill Talanian 31 Mar '06

31 Mar '06

To: All Hands From: Bill Talanian SATURDAY MORNING FIELD DAY There is a 40% chance of rain tomorrow. However, brush cleanup is only a two hour window. If it is not actually raining around 9AM we will continue with the open house cleanup at the 146.79 La Vigia site.

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Saturday Morning Field Day
by Bill Talanian 30 Mar '06

30 Mar '06

To All Hands From: Bill Talanian Subject: Site cleanup SATURDAY MORNING FIELD DAY This coming Saturday, 9AM, 1 April (no jokes please :-)), at the 146.79 site, La Vigia Hill, (Vic Trace Reservoir) we need a few people to help load cut brush onto pickup trucks. The brush will be hauled to the back of the site about 200 yards away. This activity should take less than 2 hours and we could use a few personnel. If you have a pickup truck that can haul cut brush and small tree trunks then bring it along. If you don't care to work then come along anyway. The site is open to all. We won't ask you to work if you show and just want to visit the source of the VHF/UHF Repeaters, IRLP, APRS, Packet, ELT Rcvr, and node for the Santa Cruz Island streaming video. Direction: Go up Carrillo Hill from SB. At the crest of the hill is La Coronilla Drive, take a left. CAUTION: Be careful taking the left as cars from the opposite direction cannot see you. Go up La Coronilla about 1/4th mile, go past Dolores. On the right near 1633 will be a blind driveway on the right and a chain link fence. Gate will be open, just drive in. The antennas are not always visible as you drive up La Coronilla. If it is a rain day then we will call it off and schedule another day.

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SBARC March 2006 Meeting
by Tom Saunders 14 Mar '06

14 Mar '06

SBARC members, The meeting topic for Friday, March 17, will be an auction followed by a mini-bazaar. The club will sell many of the items that it has accumulated. Please note that the club may not hold a bazaar in July this year. Members may bring items to sell at this meeting. You can either donate the item to the club or enter it as a 'Red Tag' item in which the club gets 10 % of the sales price. All items must be ham, electronic, or computer equipment. Please do not bring non-ham items such as vacuum cleaners or Ford transmissions. If you bring an item and it does not sell, you are responsible for taking it away. Display space is limited, so please limit the amount of items to a reasonable amount. Please contact me if you have any questions. Please have Bill Gross, Marvin, or myself check each item before offering it for sale. The meeting will start at 7:30 PM with the auction starting at 7:45. If you want to preview the items for sale, you should do so between 7:00 and 7:30. The auction items will begin with a minimum bid. The item will not sell if a minimum bid is not met. The bazaar will begin after the auction has completed. Bazaar prices will be fixed at bargain prices and will not be further reduced. Payment must be made at the meeting in cash or check. Please send any questions or comments on the auction/bazaar to me. Happy hunting this Friday, Tom Saunders, N6YX

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SBARC KeyKlix Online
by Marvin Johnston 10 Mar '06

10 Mar '06

We are starting to put our newsletter online in PDF format, with the February and March issues online. We had a problem that wouldn't allow older versions of Netscape to view the files (spaces in the file name) that has been fixed. If you have any problems reading or accessing it, please let me know. Thanks! Marvin, KE6HTS

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KeyKlix Online
by Marvin Johnston 09 Mar '06

09 Mar '06

The March issue of KeyKlix is now online at http://www.sbarc.org/ in two versions, printable and viewable. The files sizes are approximately 240K. Some of the older versions of Netscape have a problem (including mine) in retrieving and/or viewing the PDF file. If you are having problems, please let me know. Thanks! Marvin, KE6HTS

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