[aprssig] Digis everywhere

[Robert Bruninga]

As I visited the Airport today, I was reminded how
APRS groups need to work to serve the traveler.
A small HT powered digi at each high density travel
point should be a goal of all APRS support groups.

Airports, National Parks, train stations etc anywhere
where a fellow HAM might arrive and want local info.

Under the new-N  paradigm, ANY old TNC will work.
The digi serves two important functions:
1) It acts as a fill-in WIDE1-1 digi
2) It beacons every 5 or 10 minutes DIRECT
showing the travler what he needs to know in that
area:
  - Freq of best traverlers repeater that can be hit from the
   location and/or
  - freq of local ECHO or ILRP node

These allow a person with a D7 in their pocket, even indoors to:
1) See the digi's posit which he can copy as his
    present location, (and add 1 mile ambiguity)
2) Send out any message or email back home
3) Know what voice frequency to monitor or call for local info
4) Know how to call back home with ECHO or IRLP

yet, being low power and probably at local height, their
fequent local direct packets will have no impact on the
rest of the local APRS activity.... yet provide a great
service to travelers.

ANy old TNC and old HT laying around could be used.

Bob, WB4APR