[VHFcontesting] Internet assistance

[Bob Burns W9RXR]

At 03:07 PM 1/27/2013, Mike (KA5CVH) Urich wrote:

>True but you are assuming too much, this is the additional expense 
>of one more radio, tnc and antenna I have to deal with if I were to 
>ever get back into roving or even as a portable station.

I don't want to make assumptions about another guy's ability to 
afford the additional equipment. That said, given what some of you 
rovers have invested in your contest gear, the cost of a 2m radio, 
TNC, and quarter-wave vertical is relatively small.

>Also I imagine that a number of places people may want to rove or 
>operate portable from that there is a slim chance of being able to 
>get into APRS.

True. A look at APRS.fi will help you see whether or not there's 
digipeater and I-gate coverage in the area you are roving.

>This is where a phone app would excel and I already have a phone and 
>service plan.

The one downside of any Internet-based APRS app is that most I-gates 
do not reverse gate APRS position reports from Internet to RF. The 
point I'm making is that if APRS could be used to "spot" rovers and 
you were using an Internet-based APRS app to beacon your position, 
the guys relying on the RF-based APRS network, most likely other 
rovers, would not know your location.

As for the ARRL contest rules, that's a tougher nut to crack.

My overall point, though, is that the infrastructure exists to 
provide current locations of rovers.

Bob...