Short CIRCuits

November, 1997          W9AML - 146.940 Repeater

'Message from the President's Mike'

     My personal thanks go out to all who helped at the Jingle Bell
Race/Walk on Nov 9th - We had 13 volunteers & it was a good
chance for me to brush up on my Net Control skills, something I
don't use too often. I hope I did O.K. Jim WB9UWA did bicycle
mobile, while Miquel N9SMS ran the race. I hadn't met him
before, so we invited him to come to a meeting if he is able.
It was a really nice fall day for an outing & a good time was had
by all, as far as I could tell anyway. Turnout for the event was
good as well, with over 1,000 participants.
People who helped were:
        Floyd W9EX
        Dean AA9BS
        Jim WB9UWA
        Earla N9VXY
        Norm N9ZKS
        Miquel N9SMS
        Chuck N9DKK
        Rick WD9HRU
        Mitch KB9PXL
        Larry N9NPH
        Dave KA9NAQ
        Connie KB9IGT
        Chuck N9RZV
I hope I didn't miss anyone. Eric N0ZOZ checked in afterwards
to see how it went - He & Larry K9ORP have had conflicting
schedules for our meetings (ESDA/NOAA) & hope to get back
when they can.

Trivia Quiz...

Question: The first radio station licensed in the United States
had what call, city and when was it?
Illinois Congressional Email Addresses are listed on the inside of
the newsletter.
(Just in case you wish to let them know how you feel about any
legislature which you might find unfair. ;-(

Don't forget our meeting this month on Nov 26th - bring a friend
Also, the Christmas party at Ozark House on December 4th at
6pm
If you'd like to run for an office, nominations will made at the
next meeting. Try it, you might like it!
Dues are due - if your newsletter label said so (or your
conscience)
Thanks & see you in Nov.
'73 & gl - Chuck / N9RZV

Calendar of Events
Weekly 2 Meter Net
Every Tuesday evening on the 146.940-
repeater at 9:00 p.m.
10/10 Breakfast
        First Saturday of every month at 8 a.m. in the Steak and
Shake at Vernon Ave. and Veterans (Just South of College
Hills Mall).
CIRC Meeting
Christmas Dinner and Meeting
December 4
Ozark House - 6 P.M.

Central Illinois Radio Club
P.O. Box 993
Bloomington, IL  61702-0993


President: Chuck Kostelc, N9RZV
E-Mail  C-Kostelc@govst.edu
Vice President: Rick Kempf, WD9HRU

Secretary/Treasurer: Norman Huber, N9ZKS
E-Mail
nihuber@ice.net



The CIRC is a not-for-profit ARRL special service club whose
purpose is to advance the service of Amateur Radio.  Located in
Central Illinois, CIRC and its members welcome all to use  the
146.94 repeater and to attend club meetings.

Submissions for the newsletter must be received by the 10th of
the month and may be snail or e-mailed to the editor at:
Norm Huber
19268 E. US Hwy 150
Bloomington, IL  61704-5855

e-mail  nihuber@icenet


Permission is granted to Amateur Radio-related organizations to
reproduce contents of Short CIRCuits provided full credit is
given.
 


Minutes From October

by Norm Huber, N9ZKS
The meeting was called to order at 7:42.
A discussion was held about things the membership would like
to do at meetings. We would like to have an interesting
demonstration or activity at each meeting so that we could
interest those who are not coming as well as give those who are
there a chance to share their experience.
We discussed the JOTA weekend which you all read about in
the Oct. newsletter.
A discussion of the menu and plans for the Christmas Dinner
was held. Reservations are due at the November meeting.
Dues are going to be due and a request was made to get them
in at the November meeting so the Secretary can enjoy his
dinner December 4th..
A motion was made to accept Fred Hamms’s collection of QST’s
from his widow as a charitable donation to the club. In
conjunction with that Mitch Bricker was appointed Librarian to
store and lend them as well as any other items in the clubs
archives.
The minutes from September were read and approved.
A discussion of the route and needs for the Jingle Bell run was
held and a volunteer list begun.
A motion to adjourn was made by Rick, seconded by Joe, and
approved by the members.
We then had a display of coax termination techniques by Chuck
and others. It was informative and interesting.

FCC sets RF safety level for repeaters
Meantime, the FCC has released a clarification to its RF safety
rules that sets 500 watts effective radiated power as the limit for
most amateur repeaters. This, before a routine RF safety
evaluation would be required. A safety evaluation will be
required for any repeater running more than the allowable 500
watts effective radiated power that uses a building mounted
antenna or a non-building mounted antenna with a height of less
than 10 meters above ground level. This new standard applies
to all amateur radio repeater systems on all bands.

Classified Ads

Interested in placing an ad here?
If you are a current CIRC club member, simply write down the
ad(s) and send them to the newsletter editor at the address on
the first page of this newsletter.  Ads are free of charge and will
run for one month unless otherwise specified.

November Offerings
?????


Submitted without Comment

 Postulate 1:
  KNOWLEDGE is POWER
 Postulate 2:
  TIME is MONEY

 As every engineer knows...

          Work
          --------  =  Power
          Time

 Given that Knowledge = Power, and Time =  Money, we can
substitute...

          Work
         ------------  =  Knowledge
          Money

 Solving for money, we get...

             Work
         ----------------  = Money
           Knowledge

 Thus, as Knowledge approaches zero, money approaches
infinity,
 regardless of the work done.

 Conclusion:  The less you know, the more you make....

EXAMS
by Ken Teutsch
To All,
 
The Volunteer Examiners in Bloomington, IL have set the
following dates for Amateur Radio Exam sessions for 1997.
        The testing is held at, the Bloomington Public Library,
205 East Olive St. in Bloomington, IL.  We will start the exams,
after setup, around 1:30 pm.
        We are requesting that those who plan to sit for exams
pre-register by calling or contacting myself or one of the other
examiners.  They may contact me on my cell phone or leave a
message on my cell phone voice mail at 309-830-NX9M (6996).
If you leave a message on the voice mail, I will put you down as
being registered and will expect to see you on exam day.
        Walk-ins are ALWAYS welcome for Amateur exams.
We just would like to be able to know how many to expect.  Your
help with this matter will be greatly appreciated.
 
Here is the schedule for the 1997 calendar year.
September none
Sunday    November  23th      1:30 p.m.

I am sure we would do better to have the exams on the same
day of the month but with my work schedule and the
Bloomington Library schedule it just does not work out that way,
sorry.
        By the way we are NOT doing Commercial Exams
anymore.  We decided that it was just too much trouble and
have returned all test materials to the NRE.
 
   73's Ken NX9M.


News from the FCC

          The FCC has announced that as of January 1, 1998,
Amateur Radio  applicants may only submit FCC Forms 610,
610A and 610B that carry an  edition date of September 1997.
After the first of the year, previous  editions of Form 610 will not
be accepted for filing by the FCC or by  Volunteer Examiner
Coordinators (VECs). Amateurs should begin using the new
Form 610s.  But, Amateur Radio Supplement B of Bulletin 65,
which has  additional information on how to conduct a routine
RF safety evaluation and  explains other aspects of RF safety,
was still in the draft stages and not  yet available as this
newsletter was being written in early November.
        ARRL Executive Vice President David Sumner, K1ZZ, said
it's  essential that the FCC make Supplement B available in time
for hams to  complete their evaluations to meet the deadlines in
the rules. ARRL Lab  Supervisor Ed Hare, W1RFI, who's been
involved in reviewing the draft  supplement, said he expects the
FCC to release it in November. ''Above all,  it is important that
the required station evaluation be as easy as possible  for
hams,'' he said. ''The FCC has pretty much met that goal.
Additionally,  most hams, by virtue of their power levels, will not
need to do an  evaluation at all.''  (The latest version of Now
You’re Talking -- the  second printing of the third edition --
contains last-minute revisions made  to cover the FCC’s action
on RF Safety.)
        The major change on the new form is a certification that
says the  applicant has ''read and will comply with Section
97.13(c) of the  Commission's Rules'' regarding RF radiation
safety and the amateur service  section of OST/OET Bulletin No
65, Evaluating Compliance with FCC-Specified  Guidelines for
Human Exposure to Radio Frequency Electromagnetic Fields.
Section 97.13(c) says that before you transmit ''from any place
where the  operation of the station could cause human exposure
to RF electromagnetic  field levels in excess of those allowed,''
you have to perform a routine RF  environmental evaluation if
your transmitter PEP exceeds these limits: 160-40  meters, 500
W; 30 meters, 425 W; 20 meters, 225 W; 17 meters, 125 W; 15
meters, 100 W; 12 meters, 75 W; 10 meters, 50 W; VHF (all
bands), 50 W; 70  cm, 70 W; 33 cm 150 W; 23 cm, 200 W, 13
cm 250 W, SHF/EHF (all bands) 250 W.  If the routine
environmental evaluation indicates that the RF electromagnetic
fields could exceed the maximum permissible exposure limits,
you must take  action to prevent human exposure.
          The new Forms 610 should be obtainable from the FCC'
Web site via  the Internet at http://www.fcc.gov/formpage.html,
at  ftp://ftp.fcc.gov/pub/Forms/ or by fax at 202-418-0177
(request index, or  for Form 610 use form code 000610, for
Form 610A use form code 006101, for  Form 610B use form
code 006102). The FCC Forms Distribution Center will  accept
FCC forms orders at 800-418-3676.
          ARRL VEs and VE teams will be able to obtain a supply
of the new  Forms 610 in late November. Individual amateurs
may obtain a copy of the new  Form 610 by sending a self-
addressed, stamped envelope (SASE) to: ARRL/VEC,  225 Main
St, Newington CT 06111. Include 32 cents postage for each
Form 610  requested.


Morse on the Web

          Chuck Adams, K5FO, is giving Morse training via his
Web page.  He  asks everyone to get the ARRL’s  Your
Introduction to Morse Code CD audio  set, because, as he says:
"You can't wear them out and you can copy them  onto audio
tapes to listen to in the car."  He also likes the fact that you  can
instantly skip to any section of the CD that you need practice
with.   Chuck is doing Morse training, because it is his favorite
mode of operation  in our great hobby, and he wants to share
the fun.  On his Web page, he  reminds folks that Morse is a
language of sound that is learned by some  memorization, and
then further ingrained into students’ brains as they use  it often,
on the air.  He tells students to throw away any book or written
information about Morse, since it is an activity that uses auditory
skills,  and is best learned by stressing auditory practice.  He
asks students to set  a speed goal and be positive about getting
to it.  Then he gives a number of  tricks about learning code. To
check out Chuck’s Web page, go to    http://reality.sgi.com/adams/
http://reality.sgi.com/adams/

Christmas Dinner and Meeting
December 4
Ozark House - 6 P.M.


Illinois Reresentatives to the House

District        Name                      Email Address
1st     d       Bobby Rush            bobby.rush@mail.house.gov
2nd    d       Jesse Jackson        jesse@jackson.house.gov
3rd     d       William Lipinski        bill@lipinski.house.gov
4th     d       Luis Gutierrez          luisg@hr.house.gov
5th     d       Rod Blagojevich
rod.blagojevich@mail.house.gov
6th     r       Henry Hyde              henry@hyde.house.gov
7th     d       Danny Davis           danny.davis@mail.house.gov
8th     r        Phillip Crane           phil@crane.house.gov
9th     d       Sidney Yates          sidney.yates@mail.house.gov
10th    r       John Porter             john@porter.house.gov
11th    r       Jerry Weller            jweller@hr.house.gov
12th    d       Jerry Costello        JFCIL12@hr.house.gov
13th    r       Harris Fawell           hfawell@hr.house.gov
14th    r       Dennis Hastert        dhastert@hr.house.gov
15th    r       Thomas Ewing         thomas@ewing.house.gov
16th    r       Donald Manzullo      donald@manzullo.house.gov
17th    d       Lane Evans              lane.evans@mail.house.gov
18th    r       Ray LaHood              ray@lahood.house.gov
19th    d       Glenn Poshard         glenn@poshard.house.gov
20th    r       John Shimkus            shimkus@mail.house.gov

d=democrat, r=republican, ft^2 = fingers tired from typing
...(Whew)


Nets in the Area

Monday             9:00 P.M.       146.730 123.0 PL   Open Net
Tuesday             7:00 P.M.       146.910 Tazwell County ESDA Net
Tuesday             9:00 P.M.       146.940 CIRC Open Net
Wednesday       9:00 P.M.       147.060 Open Net  Has Newsline
Wednesday       9:00 P.M.       442.250 123.0 PL   ARES Open Net
Wednesday       Varies            147.100
Trader’s Net follows ARES Net on 442.250
Thursday         9:00 P.M.       146.760 Open Net with Newsline
Tuesday           9:00 P.M.       146.895 North central IL Traders
                                Net
Friday              7:30 P.M.       147.345 Open Net with Traders Net
Sunday            8:30P.M          147.075 Open Net with Newsline
Sunday            8:15 A.M.        1818 KHz Central ILL.  160 Meter Net
(Please help me correct this list.  I know it’s not up to date at this
time.   Norm N9ZKS)

Blomington-Normal Area Repeaters

Freq    Callsign                Location                PL

145.390 N9EZJ           Lincoln
145.430 KD9F            Gridley
146.790 K9CYW        Bloomington
146.940 W9AML        Bloomington
147.015 NX9M            Normal          88.5 (open*)
147.150 WD9FTV       Bloomington
147.345 K9ZM            Lincoln
442.700 WB9UUS       Normal          107.2 (open**)
443.325 KE9HB          Gridley         107.2
444.350 W9EX            Bloomington     107.2
444.975 N9FZF           Normal          136.5

* Repeater is currently in open mode with pl for those with QRM
** Repeater RX with tight carrier squelch and loose tone squelch (107.2)


Local DX Packet Cluster Information

Bloomington  Access and Transport node  BMIDX1 (AB9M-7)
144.91  1200 baud
Champaign    Access and Transport node  ILDX1 (KA6A)
144.91  1200 baud
Champaign    Network Node Server        CMIDXC (K9CW)
144.91  1200 baud


Connections to the network are made by first connecting to
BMIDX1, then connecting to ILDX1, then connecting to K9CW.
The primary purpose of BMIDX1 is to provide local access for
DX Packet Cluster.

________________________________
  Norm Huber - N9ZKS