<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 3.2//EN">
<HTML>
<HEAD>
<META HTTP-EQUIV="Content-Type" CONTENT="text/html; charset=us-ascii">
<META NAME="Generator" CONTENT="MS Exchange Server version 6.5.7652.24">
<TITLE>RE: [aprssig] Ham Radio, Use it or Lose it!</TITLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY>
<!-- Converted from text/rtf format -->
<P><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial"> </FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Joseph,</FONT></SPAN>
</P>
<P><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Your story echo's mine….</FONT></SPAN>
</P>
<P><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">I was a "tech" operator, and had put my radios away. </FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Then I stumbled across APRS, my interest was renewed. For several years it was just APRS (trackers, then an igate, then a digi)</FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">The next thing I knew I was taking my General test (and passed), then bought an IC-7000.</FONT></SPAN>
</P>
<P><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">In the past 2 years I have discovered HF (digital and voice), and have started playing with the LEO's (bought a IC-910H)</FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Two weeks ago, I moved my IC-7000 to my vehicle, and 3 days ago ordered my IC-746pro.</FONT></SPAN>
</P>
<P><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Thanks to Bob<I> (for putting up with my dumb questions and mistakes in the beginning)</I> and APRS I am now an Active Ham again.</FONT></SPAN></P>
<BR>
<P><SPAN LANG="en-us"><B><FONT FACE="Arial">Scott Gillis N3UJJ</FONT></B><FONT FACE="Arial"><BR>
</FONT><I></I></SPAN><A HREF="http://location.n3ujj.com"><SPAN LANG="en-us"><I><U><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">My Current Location</FONT></U></I><I></I></SPAN></A><SPAN LANG="en-us"><I></I><I></I><I><BR>
</I></SPAN><A HREF="http://weather.n3ujj.com/"><SPAN LANG="en-us"><I><U></U><U><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">My Amateur Weather Station</FONT></U></I></SPAN></A><SPAN LANG="en-us"><I></I></SPAN>
</P>
<BR>
<P><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">-----Original Message-----</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">From: aprssig-bounces@lists.tapr.org [</FONT></SPAN><A HREF="mailto:aprssig-bounces@lists.tapr.org"><SPAN LANG="en-us"><U><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">mailto:aprssig-bounces@lists.tapr.org</FONT></U></SPAN></A><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">] On Behalf Of Joseph M. Durnal</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Sent: Friday, May 23, 2008 09:07</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">To: bruninga@usna.edu; TAPR APRS Mailing List</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Subject: Re: [aprssig] Ham Radio, Use it or Lose it!</FONT></SPAN>
</P>
<P><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">I must say, APRS is one of the technologies that helped facilitate my return to amateur radio after putting the radios in the closet for about 5 years 99-04. Oddly enough, I live just across town from Bob for most of my first 10 years as a ham 93-03, but I never knew what APRS was. I think that the 5 years of dust that gathered on my radios may not have happened if I would have known about APRS back then.</FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Like many from the no-code tech generation, I entered the hobby the wrong way, passed a copule of written tests and got a 2 meter rig.</FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Now, 2 meter FM was cool to a 15 year old before mobile phones were popular, but even that coolness wore off after a while. APRS was always growing, improving, and there was a lot more you could do to be part of the community.</FONT></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">I send messages all the time with the D710 :) those preprgramed phrases are nice though!</FONT></SPAN>
</P>
<P><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">73 de Joseph Durnal NE3R</FONT></SPAN>
</P>
<P><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">On Thu, May 22, 2008 at 9:42 AM, Robert Bruninga <bruninga@usna.edu> wrote:</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> At the ARRL Technical Challenge Forum at Dayton, the ARRL technology </FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> leaders were lamenting that HAM radio needs something for youth to get </FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> excited about. Something like: "Look at how kids have taken </FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> text-messaging as the be-all-end-all excitement of communications! We </FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> need something like that in ham radio!</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> Why aren't we developing things like this?"</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">></FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> To which I jumped up from the audience and could not contain myself </FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> and exclaimed! "We have! We have had local/global text messaging and </FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> text email from a handheld since 1998 in APRS! It is exactly what </FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> kids are doing today, but we have been doing it for 10 years! But you </FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> know what? All the old fuds in ham radio say 'How crude. We need a </FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> keyboard. No one is ever going to communicate by punching buttons on </FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> the front of an HT'!" SO still, only 1% of ham radio is even aware of </FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> this routine global connectivity from a handheld that we have had for </FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> 10 years.</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">></FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> As pogo said, "we have met the enemy and the enemy is us."</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> Everyone keeps waiting for the "perfect dream" solution and then they </FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> dream of all the things they could do. But you know what?</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> The perfect dream solution is always in the future. The few instances </FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> in ham radio that really excell in actual needed practical </FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> communications are those that ALWAYS take what they have and just do </FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> the MOST with it, NOW!</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">></FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> My 4 cents (inflation)</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">></FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> Bob, WB4APR</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">></FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">></FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> _______________________________________________</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> aprssig mailing list</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> aprssig@lists.tapr.org</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">> </FONT></SPAN><A HREF="https://lists.tapr.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aprssig"><SPAN LANG="en-us"><U><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">https://lists.tapr.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aprssig</FONT></U></SPAN></A><SPAN LANG="en-us"></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">></FONT></SPAN>
</P>
<P><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">_______________________________________________</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">aprssig mailing list</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">aprssig@lists.tapr.org</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN LANG="en-us"></SPAN><A HREF="https://lists.tapr.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aprssig"><SPAN LANG="en-us"><U><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">https://lists.tapr.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aprssig</FONT></U></SPAN></A><SPAN LANG="en-us"></SPAN>
</P>
</BODY>
</HTML>