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July 1999 ; &n bsp; Vol.9 no.7 |
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Dear Fellow Hams, |
and 15 meter dipoles up in the trees, and a
G5RV. We had a mast-mounted 10 meter dipole. KA1ZOE, KW1C, N1JHT, and
N1UYA brought rigs for us to use. Tnx! We only operated two at a time to
keep the 2A rating. N1ZHR made two satellite contacts on
Sunday morning. We operated all Saturday night. 20 meters was open all
night and quite active. I don't have the final figures yet, but KW1C
says if all our bonus points are accepted, we will have a higher score
than last year. Thanks to Marty, Jim, Miles, Jeff and Peter for all the planning, publicity, and setup work. Louie brought cement blocks which were used for the mast. Don got the propane. Gil and Phil Daigle did a great job with getting, setting up, running, and returning the generator. Marty donated the G5RV to the club. Thanks, Marty. Thanks to those who came to operate -- the Daigles (Phil, Sandra, Caralyn, and Noelle), Jessica, Louie, Melissa, Charlie Zafonte, Jeff, Peter, Marty, Jim. And thanks to Mother Nature for giving us two good days! 73/ N1UYA Gale Address comments, questions, or
suggestions to:
Next Meeting: Monday, August 9, 6:30 PM Grindle Conference Room – UMFK
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| Page 2 Per N8VJM Feed-Point, July 1999 |
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Called to Order: 18:42 by N1UYA In Attendance: N1UYA, N1CHF, N1PMS, N8VJM, N1CGV, N7GLR, KA7VNR Secretary's Minutes: Motion to waive reading of minutes was made by N1PMS, seconded by N7GLR. Motion passed. Treasurer's Report (N1CHF): previous balance reported as $474.06 at last meeting; +$.86 (interest); -$65.00 (toilet); -$26.73 (pro?); $383.19 (current balance). Motion to accept by N8VJM, second by N7GLR. Motion passed. Old Business: In the absence of KW1C, N1UYA made a report of the field day activities. Many contacts were made, possibly more than in years past. Problems discussed include QRM between tranceivers. Solutions suggested included bandpass filters and repositioning the antennae. The subject of whether to have a summer picnic or a harvest supper. All seemed to be in agreement that with summer being a busy time and with the success of the previous harvest supper that we elect for the fall gathering. N1UYA has talked to KA1ZOE concerning the school project and will talk to W1BTP. New Business: Date and time for the weekly net were discussed and |
consensus was that the sched
should remain unchanged for the summer months.
N1CHF told of a new repeater in Edmundston, NB on 145.130-. This machine is supposed to be linked to others in NB via a UHF backbone. Also per N1CHF, Rocky Mountain needs antenna work, adjustments, brush work and tower maintenance. Some tower parts may be available from other such fire towers that the state will be disassembling. Discussion turned to ways that we might increase membership and participation with no conclusive results. The idea of fewer meetings being rejected and reference being made to the school project. Next meeting will be MON 12 JUL 99 @ 1830 EST at UMFK, Grindle Conference Room. Adjourned @ 19:51 EDT by N1UYA with no objection from the floor. Program: Digital Pictures and
Digital Cameras by N1UYA and N8VJM. Submitted by N8VJM, secretary.
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SUN 1 AUG Good EME Conditions THU 12 AUG Perseids Meteor Shower
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Happy Birthday: Don Marquis SUN 1AUG |
| Page 3 Feed-Point,July 1999 |
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He goes on to say that several converging events are erasing the artificial line of division. The "convergence of FM repeaters retired from commercial service and the arrival of solid-state technology .... changed 2 meters from a ham radio backwater to the hobby's most popular and most populated band." Before the 1970's, HF ham radio was the "real" ham radio and VHF was for experimenters. As repeaters proliferated "the ranks of locally focused, public service oriented hams grew through the 70's and 80's, until it was nearly equal in strength to the more established HF DXers." W2VU believes neither group understood the mindset of the other group. So, it grew to almost a full-scale war with controversy about HF, VHF, "coders" and "no-coders". Lack of FCC enforcement allowed on-air haggling to get out of hand. Due to several factors, the line between HF and VHF is beginning to disappear. DX clusters on 2- meter packet meant that DXers needed a VHF rig for DX spotting. Then manufacturers began to include 6 meters on HF radios. Next the ICOM-706 came out with HF, and both 6 and 2 meters. Yaesu and ICOM are now trying to put more bands and features |
into a single
radio in a war of their own. Currently there are 3 radios that
allow you to operate from 160 meters to 70 centimeters at a cost of under $2,000. Kenwood even has packet, APRS, and a tiny video camera in one radio! Amazing, isn't it? In other words, for about the same price as an HF radio, you can gets bands and features that take you from bottom to top. One radio can do it all! It is exciting to be a ham now. Let's be adventurous and try some of these new things. The new FCC restructuring will most likely make the entry into ham radio via VHF. The Novice license, the HF entry into ham radio since the 1950's, will probably be eliminated. Also the FCC has begun to crack down on intolerable on-air-behavior on HF and VHF. Just ask some of our members who recently got letters about not identifying often enough! A minor infraction compared to the name-callers and hate-slingers heard on some of the frequencies. Once again, all of us need to remember in our transmissions that many non-hams listen on scanners, and we want them to know that hams are polite, interesting, kind and helpful, and that ham radio is a fun hobby. In the conclusion of W2VU's editorial, he says CQ/VHF is including some features on HF because it's fun to operate all the way across the bands, HFers can find new challenges in VHF and VHFers can be challenged to upgrade. With the new rigs you don't have chose between one or the other. "You can have your cake and eat it,too"! |
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Heavy duty 40' galvanized steel tower, 16" x 16" x 16". Includes mounting hardware. Best Offer. Pair of stacked 7-element beams for 10 meters. Best Offer. Heil BM-10 microphone boom set $35. MFJ 451X keyer $35 Contact Charles Zafonte N1FRX 834-6273 |
Sat. August 14 1999: SnoDevils
Snowmobile Club, St. Albans, Me you can learn about the Universal Licensing System which will go into effect in August.. The system will replace the well known 610 form with Form 605, and applications, modifications, and renewals will be able to be done via the internet. |
| Page 4 Feed-Point, 1999 |
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Published by the St. John Valley Amateur Radio Association and distributed free to members and friends of Amateur Radio. Officers President: Gale Flagg N1UYA Vice President: Miles L. Clouston N8VJM Secretary: Miles L. Clouston N8VJM Treasurer: Steve Boomhower N1CHF Public Information: Cheryl Boomhower, N1CGV Technical Advisor: Steve Boomhower, N1CHF Editor/Publisher/Printer Gale Flagg - N1UYA / Stan Flagg 834-6670 Associate Editor/Web Edition Miles L. Clouston - N8VJM 834-6866 Membership Information (Annual Dues): Regular Membership $ 12 Associate Membership $ 6 Articles: Articles may be submitted by anyone with a good idea, and may be re-printed only in their entirety and with credit going to this newsletter.
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