Tag: Echolink & IRLP

Be Prepared for this Scouting Award

The Scouting 100 Radio Award is awarded for contacting Scout stations during 2007, the Centenary year of Scouting. This is an International award, available to any operator – it is also available on a listener basis, with the same requirements as the operator award.

Objective:
To help celebrate the centenary of Scouting through the medium of radio. To help publicise the Centenary, and to provide radio amateurs the opportunity of gaining another Award. Although not intended for profit, any surplus made will go to support Radio Scouting in developing countries.

Duration:
The Award will begin at 00:00:01 on January 1st 2007 and finish at 23:59:59 December 31st 2007.

Bands and Modes:
The Award is available through all bands and all modes, within the terms of the individual’s radio licence. The Award is also available through Echolink and IRLP modes. The Award can be endorsed for any special modes or bands ie ‘All satellite contacts;’ ‘all QRP contacts,’ etc. Activity for the Award should be focused around the Scout frequencies.

Requirements:
Stations are required to contact Scout and Guide stations to count for
points as follows:

* Each ordinary Scout station counts one point.
* Special Event Scout stations count 2 points.
* The World Jamboree, Gilwell Park and Brownsea Island stations count 5 points.
* Your logs should be verified as accurate by 2 other local radio amateurs.
* Normal log information is required with the following additional information: Name, Scout details and age of the operator of the station you contact. Your age should also be submitted when applying for Awards. Female operators send `YL’ as their age!

Website:
The Award is supported online by a website – full details of the award are available at www.scouting100award.org. An Honour Roll of Award holders will also be published on the website.

Contact: info@scouting100award.org

ARMAD Information Nets Scheduled

Beginning Sunday, January 22 at 2030 Eastern Time, 0130 UTC there will be a nationwide (worldwide?) tri-weekly information and planning net scheduled in preparation for “Amateur Radio Military Appreciation Day” which will take place on Saturday, May 27. The purpose of the nets will be to assist individual amateur radio operators, clubs, and any other interested group with any information that they need on how to participate and get involved.

If you and or your club wish to get involved with ARMAD or just want more information you can check into the net in the *ARMAD* EchoLink Conference, or connect to node 146670, 52301, 106819 or 241401 and check into the net beginning at 0130 UTC on January 22nd. Also if you know of a friend or relative in the military services or a civilian working with the military that is an amateur operator, be sure to let them know about EchoLink and this net so we can help them get involved. You can also get your local American Legion, VFW, DAV, AMVETS, & etc involved in ARMAD.

Real RF radio is the primary tool used for ARMAD and EchoLink, IRLP, and other modes are used to tie it all together and make it all possible. Many troops as well as civilians overseas cannot have any sort of ham shack set up even a simple HT because of where they are, local laws, distance from repeaters, and so forth. However many can get computer and internet access to use EchoLink with their callsigns. This can allow them to connect to an EchoLink node on their local repeater back home and talk to folks as if they were there using a radio through the local repeater. This works both ways as we can also use our RF modes through EchoLink to send our greetings and talk to them from baseball fields, shopping malls, and any other location by connecting from our radios to an EchoLink enabled repeater or simplex link and talking to them on their EchoLink computer node.

For more about ARMAD visit: Armad.Net

Listen to an interview with Emery McClendon here: Emery’s Radio Interview 1-8-06

Following is a history of ARMAD and what it is all about.

Amateur Radio Operators have begun a unique way of showing support for our Military Veterans, and Active Duty Members. Emery McClendon, KB9IBW, founded ARMAD – Amateur Radio Military Appreciation Day as a way to allow the people of communities worldwide to express thanks, and appreciation to those that serve in the military.

Since the inception of ARMAD in May 2004, ARMAD has grown, at a rapid rate, with Amateurs joining in from locations around the world to spread messages of support during this “LIVE” forum.

It all started when Amateurs from Two local clubs decided to hold an event during Memorial Day weekend at a local Baseball stadium. Amateurs were able to set up radio stations inside and around the stadium to allow the fans a chance to say thanks to military members, and to show support to their families during the game. The idea took off with over 25 other Amateur radio groups from around the US, and 7 International groups joining in the effort after hearing about the idea. The Fort Wayne, Indiana event at the stadium drew a crowd of over 6,600 people. Contact was made to several military bases, ships, and foreign military units serving as part of the Coalition Forces. ARMAD 2005 involved over 100 locations worldwide, and troops from Iraq were on the air to listen to the members of our communities say thank you. These troops also responded, and let the world know how much it meant to them to hear our LIVE voices. Emails and letters are great, but through the gift of Amateur Radio those that serve heard expressions of appreciation LIVE, and were also able to respond back with joy, and thanks to us. ARMAD expects to continue to grow, and invites amateur Radio Operators, Clubs, local community members, and Military Amateur Operators to participate in future events. Amateurs can help to bring awareness to our hobby by spreading the word about ARMAD, and setting up for these events at public venues. Together we can “Ham It Up For The Troops.”

The next main ARMAD event will be on May 27, 2006. For more information please visit Armad.Net, and get involved. Please post this information for your organisation members, and consider a link to the ARMAD web page on your web sites.

JOTA – 48th Jamboree on the Air – 15-16 October 2005

JOTA is an annual event in which about 500,000 Scouts and Guides all over the world make contact with each other by means of amateur radio. It is a real Jamboree during which Scouting experiences are exchanged and ideas are shared, thus contributing to the world brotherhood of Scouting The JOTA is a world-wide event. Units may operate for 48 hours or any part thereof, from Saturday 00.00 h until Sunday 24.00 h local time. It is for members of the World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM), and also for members of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS).

World Scout Frequencies:

Band
SSB (phone)
CW (morse)
80 m
3.740 & 3.940 MHz
3.590 MHz
40 m
7.090 MHz
7.030 MHz
20 m
14.290 MHz
14.070 MHz
17 m
18.140 MHz
18.080 MHz
15 m
21.360 MHz
21.140 MHz
12 m
24.960 MHz
24.910 MHz
10 m
28.390 MHz
28.190 MHz

Also on EchoLink: HB9S (World Scout Bureau)

The amateur radio station of the World Scout Bureau in Geneva, HB9S, will transmit directly from the office building for the 48th JOTA. Both HF radio and Echolink will be used. Your operators this year are:
Jochen Sulovsky, DK8ZM; Ernst Tomaschek, OE1EOA; Yves Margot, HB9AOF and Richard Middelkoop, PA3BAR.

While browsing the website I saw that there are weekly and monthly scouting nets that take place worldwide:

SCOUT NETS

Country day time frequency netcontrol
Denmark Saturday 13.00 GMT 3.740 MHz  
European Scout Net Saturday 09.30 GMT 14.290 MHz PA3BAR
Japan 3rd Saturday of month 23.00 local 21.360 MHz JA1YSS
Norway Saturday 15.30 local 3.740 MHz  
Sweden Saturday, even weeks 15.00 local 3.740 MHz  
Sudan Sunday 12.00 GMT 21.360 MHz ST2M
United Kingdom Saturday 09.00 local 3.740 MHz G3BHK
United States Sunday 20.30 GMT 14.290 MHz K2BSA
World Scout Net*) 1st Saturday of month 22.00 GMT Echolink 131124 PA3BAR

*) connect to node 106440 or 131124.

Been busy with…..


– Tried to contact KD6EUG (at his alternate QTH in Mi-Wuk Village, CA) via EchoLink last night, no luck. I tried on two different EchoLink repeaters: one near Tuolumne (N6EA, 146.115) and another near Modesto (WA6OEC, 441.350).

Going to try again tonight and see if we can make contact.

– I got NOVA for Windows up an working.
“Nova for Windows has become the most popular Windows-based satellite tracking program in the world. In use by NASA, the U.S. Air Force, industry, and thousands of amateur radio operators, Nova sets the standard for excellence.” [It’s a great program.]

I can use NOVA to track amateur radio satellites, the International Space Station, and the Space Shuttle (when it’s up).

– Sparked up the RX-320 this morning and got Radio Sweden (15.240 MHz).

“The year 2005 marks the centenary of the birth of Greta Garbo. One of Sweden’s most famous exports, her name still evokes glamour and mystery.”

“Join Radio Sweden’s Juan Navas for a special half hour program looking at the life and times of one of the world’s biggest stars, Greta Garbo.”
More about Greta Garbo

Tuesday Night Hedberg Talk Net


Above is a picture of my dad, KN6ILL/KD6EUG around 1954 in his bedroom Hamshack running 75 Watts input to a 4D32 Output final Tube on a HT-20 transmitter on all HF Novice Bands – using a National NC-57 for a receiver. The antenna: an 80 meter dipole up about 50 feet feed with RG-8 52 ohm coax pointing north and south with the power lobes going east and west.

Here’s KD6EUG from his Mi-Wuk Village QTH

Had an enjoyable time tonight via EchoLink talking with my dad.

EchoLink


EchoLink® software allows licensed Amateur Radio stations to communicate with one another over the Internet, using voice-over-IP (VoIP) technology. The program allows worldwide connections to be made between stations, or from computer to station, greatly enhancing Amateur Radio’s communications capabilities. There are more than 150,000 registered users in 152 nations worldwide!

I installed the EchoLink software and was able to have a brief QSO with my dad, KD6EUG. I was on my laptop and he was using his HT. I connected in to a repeater in Saratoga, CA and it worked very well.