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Tech Saturday Forum
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Work Saturday - 2022 Clubhouse Projects
Come out and help us spruce up the Clubhouse! Saturday, July 9, 2022 in lieu of a traditional Tech Forum Saturday program, we are holding a Clubhouse Work Day. The goal is to get as many of the small projects on our whiteboard finished and off the board.
There is a job for everyone. Each and every member can contribute, and there is certainly a job that can be done by anyone who shows up.
We all benefit from having the Clubhouse, so we all should help out with these occasional work pushes. It seems as if most members are content to allow just a small handful of caring members to shoulder the load for all of us, but that is NOT how it should be. We all gain by being a part of this Club, and we should all invest a little bit of sweat equity in preserving the Club infrastructure. Besides... it can be downright FUN and it gives a great and warm sense of accomplishment when finished!
For a list of Clubhouse projects, go to : W2MMD Clubhouse Operations
There is a job for everyone. Each and every member can contribute, and there is certainly a job that can be done by anyone who shows up.
We all benefit from having the Clubhouse, so we all should help out with these occasional work pushes. It seems as if most members are content to allow just a small handful of caring members to shoulder the load for all of us, but that is NOT how it should be. We all gain by being a part of this Club, and we should all invest a little bit of sweat equity in preserving the Club infrastructure. Besides... it can be downright FUN and it gives a great and warm sense of accomplishment when finished!
For a list of Clubhouse projects, go to : W2MMD Clubhouse Operations
We would like to invite all of our new members as well as our veteran members to our Tech Saturday Forums to help answer any questions and discuss any and all issues the new members have come across as they progress through the Amateur Radio Experience.
The Discussion Theme is a QSO starting point - a way to initiate a conversation. All Tech Saturdays are an open QSO of all subjects of Amateur Radio interest.
All questions are welcome as well as a venue for hams to show off their latest ham radio projects or gadgets. Have a problem programming that HT, we can help! Not sure what radio or antenna to buy, we can help!
All Club Members who would like Clubhouse access to use its radio equipment would have to have some brief “Elmering” on the Clubhouse rules, such as using the alarm system, the A/C and heaters, the antenna system, and the radio equipment.
All are welcome - Hams and Non-Hams - Club Members and Non-Club Members.
All Club Members who would like Clubhouse access to use its radio equipment would have to have some brief “Elmering” on the Clubhouse rules, such as using the alarm system, the A/C and heaters, the antenna system, and the radio equipment. All are welcome - Hams and Non-Hams - Club Members and Non-Club Members.
Satellite/VHF Room Grounding Project - April 9, 2022
We had some pretty heavy turnout for the April 9, 2022 Tech Saturday Forum. While no specific program was offered, we none the less brought out the membership to see first-hand the work being done in the Satellite/VHF room at the west end of the building.
Sheldon Parker K2MEN took advantage of the fair weather to weed-whack around the building. A big THANK YOU to him for that!
Bill Mollenhauer N2FZ came in as a guest of Jerry Milden K2OOO, and dropped off his membership application while he was there!
We had some pretty heavy turnout for the April 9, 2022 Tech Saturday Forum. While no specific program was offered, we none the less brought out the membership to see first-hand the work being done in the Satellite/VHF room at the west end of the building.
Sheldon Parker K2MEN took advantage of the fair weather to weed-whack around the building. A big THANK YOU to him for that!
Bill Mollenhauer N2FZ came in as a guest of Jerry Milden K2OOO, and dropped off his membership application while he was there!
April 2022 Tech Saturday Forum - clockwise around the room, starting at the near left, is Lenny W2LJR, Mike K2MRP, Jon WB2MNF, Ron NR2B, Frank N3PUU, (unidentified), John K2QA, Al KB2AYU, John K2ZA, Carl KD2YIF, Bill N2FZ, and Jerry K2OOO. Photo taken by Chris AD2CS. Other members were present, but did not make it into the photos, including Charlie N2SRQ, John W2HUV and Sheldon K2MEN.
AD2CS & KD2YIF - Seen at the January 8, 2022 Tech Saturday - Members helping other members at the Clubhouse.
Tech Saturday Is For You!
By Jon Pearce, WB2MNF
The GCARC Tech Saturday event occurs on the first Saturday following the first Wednesday (the day of the GCARC General Membership Meeting) every month. Its purpose is to provide a forum for hams to discuss technical issues with other hams and to teach and learn about ham radio. It also provides the opportunity for GCARC members to become familiar with the many resources available at the Clubhouse and to get credentialed to gain entry to the Clubhouse and use those resources.
The November Tech Saturday event was a great success in achieving those goals with more than a dozen GCARC members attended at various times. Small groups worked together to program Baofeng and DMR radios or to figure out the best implementation of FT8. John Hill, W2HUV, showed off the HF station and described its remote operation, and several visitors got to work some great satellite passes and see some of the SkunkWorks resources in the VHF room. There was no discussion of personal medical ailments or expositions by the Heroes of Yesteryear about their accomplishments during the Eisenhower administration that have occasionally occurred in the past - instead it was lots of hams helping hams with technical issues.
The Clubhouse provides a great venue for these meetings, having a wealth of table space with seating and electrical outlets along with test equipment, power supplies and various antenna options. It appeared that many of the discussions were impromptu, although a few attendees had previously arranged to meet to work on specific issues. Even if there’s no planned program (as there wasn’t at this meeting) there was still plenty to do. And if you have a specific issue to discuss bring it along and someone will be there to help.
The next Tech Saturday Forum will be on December 4, 2021. The Clubhouse opens at 9:00am although many arrive somewhat later in the morning. Come on out, bring your questions or expertise and have an interesting morning.
By Jon Pearce, WB2MNF
The GCARC Tech Saturday event occurs on the first Saturday following the first Wednesday (the day of the GCARC General Membership Meeting) every month. Its purpose is to provide a forum for hams to discuss technical issues with other hams and to teach and learn about ham radio. It also provides the opportunity for GCARC members to become familiar with the many resources available at the Clubhouse and to get credentialed to gain entry to the Clubhouse and use those resources.
The November Tech Saturday event was a great success in achieving those goals with more than a dozen GCARC members attended at various times. Small groups worked together to program Baofeng and DMR radios or to figure out the best implementation of FT8. John Hill, W2HUV, showed off the HF station and described its remote operation, and several visitors got to work some great satellite passes and see some of the SkunkWorks resources in the VHF room. There was no discussion of personal medical ailments or expositions by the Heroes of Yesteryear about their accomplishments during the Eisenhower administration that have occasionally occurred in the past - instead it was lots of hams helping hams with technical issues.
The Clubhouse provides a great venue for these meetings, having a wealth of table space with seating and electrical outlets along with test equipment, power supplies and various antenna options. It appeared that many of the discussions were impromptu, although a few attendees had previously arranged to meet to work on specific issues. Even if there’s no planned program (as there wasn’t at this meeting) there was still plenty to do. And if you have a specific issue to discuss bring it along and someone will be there to help.
The next Tech Saturday Forum will be on December 4, 2021. The Clubhouse opens at 9:00am although many arrive somewhat later in the morning. Come on out, bring your questions or expertise and have an interesting morning.
Tech Saturday Forum - November 6, 2021
Tech Saturday, July 7, 2021
Remote HF Station Amplifier and Rotator Installation
Tech Saturday, October 10, 2020
W2MMD SkunkWorks
OK, I've Got My License - Now What???
Tech Saturday, February 8, 2020
Raspberry Pi Hardware/Software Training Class
Tech Saturday, January 11, 2020
RTL-SDR Hardware/Software Training Class
SDR Useful Links
By Jon Pearce, WB2MNF
Virtual Audio Cable : https://vac.muzychenko.net/en/index.htm : This is needed for all of the other programs. There are other similar programs, but this is the one that we know.
MMSSTV SSTV Decoder (free for hams) : https://hamsoft.ca/pages/mmsstv.php
WxToImg Weather Satellite Decoder (free) : https://wxtoimgrestored.xyz : UISS ISS and APRS decoder.
SoundModem Programs : http://users.belgacom.net/hamradio/uiss.htm : Free but donation is requested.
Article on decoding NOAA satellite images using only the RTL-SDR radio and the cheap rabbit-ears dipole in the kit that we recommended. They use different software for the SDR radio and VAC, but the WxToImg program is the same. If you have that kit it’s certainly worth a try. NOAA passes vary in their elevation and consequent signal strength, but the occasional overhead pass can be very clear. Here’s the link : https://hackernoon.com/weather-sat-9620228789c8
John K2QA has set up a page on the Skunkworks website with the handouts and presentations from the January and February Tech Saturday sessions : http://skunkworks.w2mmd.org/tech_Saturday
By Jon Pearce, WB2MNF
Virtual Audio Cable : https://vac.muzychenko.net/en/index.htm : This is needed for all of the other programs. There are other similar programs, but this is the one that we know.
MMSSTV SSTV Decoder (free for hams) : https://hamsoft.ca/pages/mmsstv.php
WxToImg Weather Satellite Decoder (free) : https://wxtoimgrestored.xyz : UISS ISS and APRS decoder.
SoundModem Programs : http://users.belgacom.net/hamradio/uiss.htm : Free but donation is requested.
Article on decoding NOAA satellite images using only the RTL-SDR radio and the cheap rabbit-ears dipole in the kit that we recommended. They use different software for the SDR radio and VAC, but the WxToImg program is the same. If you have that kit it’s certainly worth a try. NOAA passes vary in their elevation and consequent signal strength, but the occasional overhead pass can be very clear. Here’s the link : https://hackernoon.com/weather-sat-9620228789c8
John K2QA has set up a page on the Skunkworks website with the handouts and presentations from the January and February Tech Saturday sessions : http://skunkworks.w2mmd.org/tech_Saturday
Tech Saturday, October 6, 2018
Tech Saturday, November 5, 2016
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Matt N2EEE shows off his VHF/UHF SDR receiver. During Tech Saturday, we hooked it up to the Clubhouse's ALT/AZ satellite antenna, and used it to listen in on amateur satellite conversations in progress during a satellite pass over the W2MMD Clubhouse. |
Tech Saturday Forum - March 5, 2016
Frank Bratton, KD2HIK
Tech Saturday Forum continues to be a big hit out at our new W2MMD Clubhouse. On the first Saturday after the general membership meeting for March 4, 2015, we had a number of people come out and stop by, at least for a little while, in spite of the cold weather and snow still covering the grounds.
 John Zaruba, K2ZA
In the main room, John K2ZA had a chance to show off his Arduino project in process, and have some conversations around D-Star and System Fusion radios that people had brought in.
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Al Arrison, KB2AYU
In the VHF/UHF room, Al was hunting amateur radio satellites using computer control of the clubhouse’s alt/az antenna, clearly locking in on some voices from one bird during a favorable pass. Maybe next time he’ll make a 2-way contact. Stop on by April 4 to find out!
At the other end of the Clubhouse, in the HF room, the 10 meter band was found to be hopping with lots of stations from Europe in a contest able to be heard. Some of our ‘new to HF’ members got a chance to log some of their first trans-Atlantic radio contacts, with a little help from their fellow Club members. Were you one of them? It’s amazing what one can do with less than 100 Watts. What a great experience!
Even when not behind the microphone, we had fun trying to pick out the callsigns from the sideband signals we were hearing, and looking them up via QRZ.com on our cellphones. Care to give it a try? Thank you again Al for that Wi-Fi, and the internet extension out at the clubhouse. It sure comes in handy!
Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Even when not behind the microphone, we had fun trying to pick out the callsigns from the sideband signals we were hearing, and looking them up via QRZ.com on our cellphones. Care to give it a try? Thank you again Al for that Wi-Fi, and the internet extension out at the clubhouse. It sure comes in handy!
Jim Wright, N2GXJ
W2MMD Clubhouse
Gloucester County 4-H Fairgrounds
235 Bridgeton Pike (Rt 77)
Mullica Hill, NJ, 08062
GPS Heading : 39.717000, -75.209950
Gloucester County 4-H Fairgrounds
235 Bridgeton Pike (Rt 77)
Mullica Hill, NJ, 08062
GPS Heading : 39.717000, -75.209950
