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President's LetterJonathan Pearce, WB2MNFFebruary 2025 |
February 2025
As we welcome February, it's great to see our progress and to share the exciting updates for this month. January set a robust foundation for our plans, and we are poised to build on that momentum.
Tech Saturday CW Training Session : John Zaruba K2ZA did an outstanding Tech Saturday Forum on January 8th on learning Morse Code (CW). He covered how the brain processes audio messages like CW and how to structure training to maximize its effectiveness. He also brought several keyers for demonstration, making the session both informative and engaging. We appreciate John's effort in enhancing our members' skills and knowledge.
Implementing a DMR Repeater : Significant progress is occurring on the DMR repeater that will soon be operational at the Rowan University site. The configuration is being designed to allow operation on the usual Brandmeister network on timeslot 1, optimized for group chat on a GCARC-specific talk group as well as private calling. Timeslot 2 will be configured to connect to a GCARC node, facilitating cross-connections to Yaesu System Fusion (YSF) radios and potentially the M17 radios that are in development. We hope to have this system operational by early February. The Tech Saturday Forum on February 8th will be an overview of DMR operation for those unfamiliar with this communication mode. Several other Saturday Clubhouse sessions will be dedicated to setting up DMR radios and local hotspots to take full advantage of these resources.
The New VHF Station in the ARRL VHF Contest : The VHF team of Al KB2AYU, John K2QA, and Frank N3PUU operated during the ARRL VHF Contest on January 18th and 19th. The team reported working through several technical issues involving getting radios, computers and software to work together. Band conditions weren’t great and 6 meters only had occasional openings making QSOs sparse. FT8 was helpful in expanding the contact list and the team was able to come close to the previous high score. The experience not only highlighted the station’s potential but also provided valuable learning opportunities for all participants. We look forward to more such events where we can utilize our station and enhance our operating proficiency.
Got My License, Now What?" Session : We have planned a "Got My License, Now What?" session for newly-licensed hams for early February based on the large number of new licensees since our last session about six months ago. This session, presented by several of our Club leaders, will offer a high-level survey of many different areas of the ham radio hobby. It is intended to be a starting point for new hams to explore the numerous aspects of the hobby and identify the ones that interest them the most. We encourage all newly-licensed members to attend and take advantage of this opportunity to kickstart their ham radio journey. Announcements of the date will be made once it's finalized.
Emergence of New Handheld Radios and Modifications : There has been a surge in new handheld radios and various modifications, both in hardware and firmware. For instance, the BTECH UV-PRO radio features a USB-C port for charging, Bluetooth connectivity for programming, is waterproof, and has an internal KISS TNC for packet communication with phone apps, including Winlink. In addition Chris AD2CS recently built the KV4P HT, an ESP-32 based radio that connects to an Android phone through a USB-C cable, turning the two devices into a VHF HT.
Many firmware modifications are available for Quansheng HTs, adding functions such as a spectrum analyzer and other functionalities. For DMR use, the low-priced Radioddity and TYT HTs can be flashed with OpenGD77 firmware, creating a ham-capable DMR radio at a much lower cost (albeit with less functionality) than the common Anytone radios. Additionally, Chris is undertaking a hardware modification for the TYT MD-380 radios to enable them to run OpenRX firmware, utilizing the new ham-developed M17 digital mode. Given the variety of these options, we are planning to dedicate a Tech Saturday Forum in the Spring to explore these exciting developments.
M17 Experimentation : We are also excited about the experimentation with the M17 protocol. M17 is a ham-developed digital voice and data protocol that is open-sourced and being developed by the M17 Foundation (https://m17foundation.org). Although it's still experimental, its use is promising as it frees ham radio from the proprietary modes used in DMR and other similar modes. We have ordered several of the M17 development modems along with the TYT HTs that Chris is modifying, and the new digital repeater at Rowan University may soon have M17 capabilities. There are also software solutions running on Windows or a Raspberry Pi computer that may be interesting for members to explore. If you're an experimenter, you might be interested in getting involved in this innovative area.
Looking towards warmer weather (because almost anything would be warmer than today’s 22 degree high) we’re planning some new construction projects, fox hunting opportunities, technical projects like bouncing signals off of the Moon and continuing with a full schedule of speakers at General Membership Meetings and Tech Saturday Forums. The Clubhouse is always open on Saturdays, so stop in to see what’s happening or if you have questions about any aspect of ham radio.
73 de Jon WB2MNF
As we welcome February, it's great to see our progress and to share the exciting updates for this month. January set a robust foundation for our plans, and we are poised to build on that momentum.
Tech Saturday CW Training Session : John Zaruba K2ZA did an outstanding Tech Saturday Forum on January 8th on learning Morse Code (CW). He covered how the brain processes audio messages like CW and how to structure training to maximize its effectiveness. He also brought several keyers for demonstration, making the session both informative and engaging. We appreciate John's effort in enhancing our members' skills and knowledge.
Implementing a DMR Repeater : Significant progress is occurring on the DMR repeater that will soon be operational at the Rowan University site. The configuration is being designed to allow operation on the usual Brandmeister network on timeslot 1, optimized for group chat on a GCARC-specific talk group as well as private calling. Timeslot 2 will be configured to connect to a GCARC node, facilitating cross-connections to Yaesu System Fusion (YSF) radios and potentially the M17 radios that are in development. We hope to have this system operational by early February. The Tech Saturday Forum on February 8th will be an overview of DMR operation for those unfamiliar with this communication mode. Several other Saturday Clubhouse sessions will be dedicated to setting up DMR radios and local hotspots to take full advantage of these resources.
The New VHF Station in the ARRL VHF Contest : The VHF team of Al KB2AYU, John K2QA, and Frank N3PUU operated during the ARRL VHF Contest on January 18th and 19th. The team reported working through several technical issues involving getting radios, computers and software to work together. Band conditions weren’t great and 6 meters only had occasional openings making QSOs sparse. FT8 was helpful in expanding the contact list and the team was able to come close to the previous high score. The experience not only highlighted the station’s potential but also provided valuable learning opportunities for all participants. We look forward to more such events where we can utilize our station and enhance our operating proficiency.
Got My License, Now What?" Session : We have planned a "Got My License, Now What?" session for newly-licensed hams for early February based on the large number of new licensees since our last session about six months ago. This session, presented by several of our Club leaders, will offer a high-level survey of many different areas of the ham radio hobby. It is intended to be a starting point for new hams to explore the numerous aspects of the hobby and identify the ones that interest them the most. We encourage all newly-licensed members to attend and take advantage of this opportunity to kickstart their ham radio journey. Announcements of the date will be made once it's finalized.
Emergence of New Handheld Radios and Modifications : There has been a surge in new handheld radios and various modifications, both in hardware and firmware. For instance, the BTECH UV-PRO radio features a USB-C port for charging, Bluetooth connectivity for programming, is waterproof, and has an internal KISS TNC for packet communication with phone apps, including Winlink. In addition Chris AD2CS recently built the KV4P HT, an ESP-32 based radio that connects to an Android phone through a USB-C cable, turning the two devices into a VHF HT.
Many firmware modifications are available for Quansheng HTs, adding functions such as a spectrum analyzer and other functionalities. For DMR use, the low-priced Radioddity and TYT HTs can be flashed with OpenGD77 firmware, creating a ham-capable DMR radio at a much lower cost (albeit with less functionality) than the common Anytone radios. Additionally, Chris is undertaking a hardware modification for the TYT MD-380 radios to enable them to run OpenRX firmware, utilizing the new ham-developed M17 digital mode. Given the variety of these options, we are planning to dedicate a Tech Saturday Forum in the Spring to explore these exciting developments.
M17 Experimentation : We are also excited about the experimentation with the M17 protocol. M17 is a ham-developed digital voice and data protocol that is open-sourced and being developed by the M17 Foundation (https://m17foundation.org). Although it's still experimental, its use is promising as it frees ham radio from the proprietary modes used in DMR and other similar modes. We have ordered several of the M17 development modems along with the TYT HTs that Chris is modifying, and the new digital repeater at Rowan University may soon have M17 capabilities. There are also software solutions running on Windows or a Raspberry Pi computer that may be interesting for members to explore. If you're an experimenter, you might be interested in getting involved in this innovative area.
Looking towards warmer weather (because almost anything would be warmer than today’s 22 degree high) we’re planning some new construction projects, fox hunting opportunities, technical projects like bouncing signals off of the Moon and continuing with a full schedule of speakers at General Membership Meetings and Tech Saturday Forums. The Clubhouse is always open on Saturdays, so stop in to see what’s happening or if you have questions about any aspect of ham radio.
73 de Jon WB2MNF
Sunday, February 2, 2025
Sunday, February 9, 2025
Tuesday, February 11, 2025
Friday, February 14, 2025
Full Snow Moon - February 12, 2025 @ 0854 Hours.
In the 1760s, Captain Jonathan Carver, who had visited the Naudowessie (Dakota) and others, wrote that the name used for this period was the Snow Moon, “because more snow commonly falls during this month than any other in the winter.” The Cree called this the Bald Eagle Moon or Eagle Moon. Bear Moon (Ojibwe) and Black Bear Moon (Tlingit) refer to the time when bear cubs are born. The Dakota called this the Raccoon Moon, and certain Algonquin peoples named it the Groundhog Moon. The Haida named it Goose Moon. The Cherokee names of “Month of the Bony Moon” and “Hungry Moon” give evidence to the fact that food was hard to come by at this time.
Old Farmer’s Almanac - www.almanac.com