packet digi-peaters and FD

Fri Jul 1 16:05:50 EDT 1994

Don't like digipeaters on FD?  How about emergency digi's?
Here at IEARS (Intel Emergency Amateur Radio Service) we've
built up some emergency digi-peater nodes by packaging
batteries, 2M rig, and KPC-3 into surplus ammunition boxes
painted "Obnoxious Yellow".  What if we fling two or three
of these babies out on mountain tops during the FD drill, and
use those for our digipeater contacts?  That should count,
seems to me.

73, Dave NG0X
dcurtis at mipos2.intel.com

>From Steve Harrison <sharriso at sysplan.com>  Fri Jul  1 23:27:45 1994
From: Steve Harrison <sharriso at sysplan.com> (Steve Harrison)
Date: Fri, 1 Jul 1994 18:27:45 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: slow FD ops
Message-ID: <Pine.3.87.9407011845.D968-0100000 at eagle>

None of all that talk about the variable sidetone pitch, passband 
tuning, and operators unfamiliar with different radios during FD explains 
why the exact same phenomenon is so prevalent in both SS and DX contests. 
Actually, if you don't know where you are transmitting relative to your 
receive frequency, what is so difficult about using your second radio to 
find out?

The reason I am so peeved about this is because a strong CQer and his 
responses occupy a lot more bandwidth than a good CW filter, effectively 
taking twice the bandwidth really necessary. I wonder if this could be 
one of the reasons the CW bands sometimes seem so much more crowded than 
a few years ago?

Are you now trying to tell me that it is a lot more difficult to operate 
a radio on CW than on SSB because of all the new adjustments available? 
And, what are all those adjustments supposed to be doing? I thought they 
were to enhance the single-signal reception! So, if nobody is going to 
call anybody on frequency any more, what's the point of having 2 Hz 
selectivity?

This is unbelievable...Steve, KO0U/4

>From eric%modular.UUCP at cs.arizona.edu (Eric Gustafson)  Sat Jul  2 01:02:41 1994
From: eric%modular.UUCP at cs.arizona.edu (Eric Gustafson) (Eric Gustafson)
Date: Fri, 1 Jul 94 17:02:41 MST
Subject: slow FD ops
Message-ID: <9407020002.AA18168 at modular>

 >None of all that talk about the variable sidetone pitch, passband 
 >tuning, and operators unfamiliar with different radios during FD explains 
 >why the exact same phenomenon is so prevalent in both SS and DX contests. 

I thought I was discussing only FD operations (silly me, I read the subject
line).

 >Actually, if you don't know where you are transmitting relative to your 
 >receive frequency, what is so difficult about using your second radio to 
 >find out?

At field Day, the second radio (and all other additional) is typically in
use by someone else.  At home a lot of folks can't afford a second radio
and wouldn't know how to use it to verify the sidetone-to-filter-to-carrier
alignment of their primary radio if they did.

 >The reason I am so peeved about this is because a strong CQer and his 
 >responses occupy a lot more bandwidth than a good CW filter, effectively 
 >taking twice the bandwidth really necessary. I wonder if this could be 
 >one of the reasons the CW bands sometimes seem so much more crowded than 
 >a few years ago?

Probably.  Life is tough and then you die.

 >Are you now trying to tell me that it is a lot more difficult to operate 
 >a radio on CW than on SSB because of all the new adjustments available? 

No just an unfamiliar radio which has controls with familiar names that do
unfamiliar things when you (or the previous op) turn them.

 >And, what are all those adjustments supposed to be doing?

You got me here.  I really have never found any utility in all the PBT crap
_EXCEPT_ for what Kenwood (and some others) used to call IF shift.  It left
the carrier in alignment with the sidetone and shifted the receiver's
passband relative to the BFO.  THAT one had several practical uses.

 >I thought they were to enhance the single-signal reception!

Whatever they were for, they don't do that.  A good narrow filter installed
in the signal path ahead of the AGC detector (as close to the antenna as
possible) works pretty well.  There are no real good substitutes for that.
Though I have encountered radios so equipped which did not have any
correspondence between the filter passband, the sidetone frequency and the
carrier offset.  The IC765 is a prime example.  You can position the
sidetone as far as 1200 Hz away from the carrier offset with a front panel
control.  There is no facility provided to force the sidetone/carrier
offset to 0 Hz.

 >So, if nobody is going to call anybody on frequency any more, what's the
 >point of having 2 Hz selectivity?

So you can hear the guy who is calling you on frequency.

 >This is unbelievable...Steve, KO0U/4

Somewhat unfortunate yes, unbelievable, I don't think so.  I guess it just
peeves me a bit less than it does you.

73,  Eric  N7CL

>From Fred Hopengarten" <k1vr at k1vr.jjm.com  Fri Jul  1 13:17:03 1994
From: Fred Hopengarten" <k1vr at k1vr.jjm.com (Fred Hopengarten)
Date: Fri, 01 Jul 1994 08:17:03 EDT
Subject: Phonetics
Message-ID: <2e140941.k1vr at k1vr.jjm.com>

Sorry, I can't resist.

One of my favorite sets of phonetics is:  9 2 9 10.

(N2NT).
-- 
                      Fred Hopengarten K1VR
           Six Willarch Road * Lincoln, MA 01773-5105
     home + office telephone:  617/259-0088 (FAX on demand)
                   internet:  k1vr at k1vr.jjm.com
"Big antennas, high in the sky, are better than small ones, low."

>From Eugene Walsh <0004504465 at mcimail.com>  Sat Jul  2 06:58:00 1994
From: Eugene Walsh <0004504465 at mcimail.com> (Eugene Walsh)
Date: Sat, 2 Jul 94 00:58 EST
Subject: A little whine with dinner?
Message-ID: <94940702055849/0004504465PK2EM at mcimail.com>

My first field day was in 1952 at Union Cty ARA (NJ). 
Everyone got a chance to contribute by operating.
I was unlicensed and awe struck, and my shot was
45 minutes of heaven to me.  That is what field day
is, everyone having a great time.

All of the complaining about inexperienced ops sounds
silly; like " I am a real important person and you
must be what I expect you to be".  Relax - perhaps
Doctor DX would be more appropriate instead of trying
to work actual people.  If the poor op was a ZD9 in 
some other event, it would be self congratulation for
how well you handled getting the multiplier.

These ops are also learning while having a great time.

The trick in any event is to work more of the people 
available, no matter who they are, than anyone else;
and enjoy it.  If you wanna be a winner, you have to
do it.  If you dont do it, it's not their fault.

Some years ago the philosopher Richard Gelber told me
after hearing my petty complaint about the operating
techniques of someone we both knew: " Well, we can't
all be K1AR".  The message is; kick back, have fun
and play it as it is, not as you wish it was.

73 Gene N2AA