RADIOACTIVITIES Newsletter of the Argonne Amateur Radio Club
Volume XLII, Number 1	January, 2001

CQ says the dual goals of the new program are to recognize individuals who have made significant contributions and to focus public attention on the far-reaching and longstanding value of Amateur Radio in society.

Nominees will be judged on the basis of qualifying in one of two broad areas: Individuals, licensed or not, who have made significant contributions to the Amateur Radio hobby; and radio amateurs who have made significant contributions to society in general.

CQ is accepting nominations for the inaugural class of the Amateur Radio Hall of Fame until March 31, 2001. A nomination form, along with full details, will be available on the CQ Web site, http://www.cq-amateur-radio.com. Initial selections will be announced at the 2001 Dayton Hamvention next May. — CQ news release

The FCC says requiring individuals and entities to obtain an FRN will help it to better track and manage the collection of fees. The FCC proposes requiring that FRNs be provided with any filings that require payment of a fee, such as the vanity fee for amateurs.

The FCC is proposing to reject filings requiring an FRN that do not include the number. The Commission said its proposed rules “would make the use of the FRN mandatory in certain circumstances so that anyone not yet assigned an FRN or who has not yet obtained one must obtain one.”

An individual does not have to hold an FCC license to obtain an FRN. The FCC says the information collected by CORES includes the “entity name and type,” Taxpayer Identification Number or TIN — typically a Social Security Number for an individual, contact address and e-mail address. CORES information is not made public.

Comments on the FCC rulemaking notice are due 30 days from the date of publication in The Federal Register. Reply comments are due by 45 days from the date of publication.

The FCC began implementing CORES earlier this year. CORES registration eventually will replace Universal Licensing System, or ULS, registration. The FRN will co-exist with the Licensee ID Number issued by the ULS, an FCC spokesperson said this week.

More information on CORES is available on the FCC Web site, http://www.fcc.gov (click on the CORES registration link).

Anybody who couldn’t make it to the Christmas party missed a good time. To me one of the best parts of the holiday season is getting to see old friends and family that I don’t see very often, sometimes only once or twice a year. And to see those people in a party atmosphere makes it all that much more special.

I will extend an apology for not taking the opportunity to combine the Christmas party along with the breakfast. I admit to not making many of the breakfasts (as Saturday mornings for me are my time to run around and get personal business done) and this takes me into “out of sight, out of mind” territory.

As your new president I will do my best to further the interests of the AARC and represent our club in official matters.

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27% of the full members and 35% of the associate members have signed up for 2001. There should be another 2001 membership application form included with this newsletter if you have not already signed up. Please swamp me with applications in January. Please DO NOT staple or tape your check/cash to the application. It is unnecessary and does create some interesting guesses at times. Your application usually winds up getting torn and I can loose some information from the application.

Also, please don’t cut the application forms; leave them full sheet size. I have gotten some forms without calls, so I fill out your membership card without a call, then a few days later, I find there is a call in my database, but, sorry, too late, the membership card has already gone out. I do not have my database handy when I fill out the membership cards. For the ANL people, PLEASE put your building & room number on your application. For ANL-W, use your building number NOT just ANL-W or Idaho. If there is an X in the lower right corner of your address label, you have not paid for 2001 according to my records.

ARRL members now will be able to post free ads up to 100 words — subject to a few rules. Members first must register for access to the ARRL members-only pages and be logged on as a member in order to post ads. Classifieds listed on Radios On-Line will remain posted for 30 days unless canceled earlier.

Radios On-Line is for noncommercial, personal use. There are no provisions for nonmembers to post classified advertising. The service provides for listings in more than two dozen categories. Members may list ads seeking or selling Amateur Radio-related equipment. The site includes a search engine to look for specific items.

The ARRL does not warrant any items advertised on Radios On-Line, nor are individual advertisers subject to scrutiny. The ARRL reserves the right, at its discretion, to decline a listing or to discontinue an ad without prior notice.

Visit the Radios On-Line site http://www.arrl.org/RadiosOnline to place or view ads. For information on how to join the ARRL, visit ARRLWeb, http://www.arrl.org, and click on the “JOIN ARRL” button.

The governors of the US Postal Service this week announced that the price of a first-class letter will rise to 34 cents, but the cost of each additional first-class ounce will decrease from 22 cents to 21 cents. The new 34-cent letter-rate stamps go on sale December 15.

International mailing rates also will rise January 7. An airmail postcard (QSL) will cost 50 cents if bound for Canada or Mexico and 70 cents to anywhere else in the world.

For other mail, the basic unit rate has been raised to one ounce — 60 cents/ounce for Canada and Mexico; 80 cents elsewhere in the world, meaning users actually will be able to mail more for less. The complete rate schedule is available on the USPS Web site, http://www.usps.gov/news/2001rate.htm. — USPS news release

I am gratified to learn that the heritage I’ve nurtured and continued to use in my past 30 years of hamming is now also passing a major milestone. A website dedicated to vintage equipment has drawn attention to the centennial anniversary:

Several years prior to his first broadcast by radio, Reginald Fessenden had perfected a new method of sending Morse code more effectively than Guglielmo Marconi. To him goes the credit for successfully transmitting the sound of the human voice between two 50-foot towers on Cobb Island located in the Potomac River, Washington D.C., December 23^rd, 1900.

Here is some background:

The popularity of AM and vintage gear on the shortwave ham bands has come partly as a result of modern technology. It may seem counter-intuitive (after all, newer is better, right?), but increasingly there are people who have become bored that the radio “does” everything for them, depriving them of any sense of being connected to the act of crafting or creating something.

The basis for Amateur Radio has included a mandate for a pool of technically qualified operators. Those qualifications can include being able to competently set up and convey emergency communications, but once also included an emphasis on having a hands-on knowledge of radio electronics.

In a nostalgic return to some of radio’s “roots” about ten years ago, people began to seek out, repair/restore AND operate vintage vacuum tube radio equipment. The shift paralleled a rise in popularity for “hollow state” audio, and the superior fidelity many audio enthusiasts believe is possible only from vacuum tube devices.

People re-discovered the pleasure of a technical pursuit, tracking down and rooting out old failed components, and reviving with a sense of history the radios manufactured 40-50 years ago. Also renewed was a sense of human-sounding audio, and an appreciation of hams years ago who as a matter of achievement tried to emulate the sound of the big AM Broadcast Stations.

Homebrew or handcrafted equipment has also caught on again, but the challenge is far more difficult these days than when component-level parts were available from many radio supply houses. It is the challenge of locating vintage components that adds a certain amount of authenticity to the final product.

The use of AM on the shortwave ham bands is a melancholy specialty, a well-regarded facet of the hobby folks can turn to when the mainstream modes and activities no longer hold allure.

By C. Ennit Meiwiegh

The boss of a big company needed to call one of his employees about an urgent problem with one of the main computers. He dialed the employee’s home phone number and was greeted with a child’s whispered, “Hello?”

Feeling put out at the inconvenience of having to talk to a youngster the boss asked, “Is your Daddy home?”

“Yes,” whispered the small voice. “May I talk with him?” the man asked.

To his surprise the small voice whispered, “No.”

Wanting to talk with an adult, the boss asked, “Is your Mommy there?”

“Yes,” came the answer. “May I talk with her?”

Again the small voice whispered, “No.”

Knowing that it was not likely that a young child would be left home alone, the boss decided he would just leave a message with the person who should be there watching over the child.

“Is there anyone there besides you?” he asked the child.

“Yes.” whispered the child, “A policeman.” Wondering what a cop would be doing at his employee’s home, the boss asked, “May I speak with the policeman?”

“No, he’s busy,” whispered the child.

“Busy doing what?” asked the boss.

“Talking to Daddy and Mommy and the Fireman,” came the whispered answer.

Growing concerned and even worried as he heard what sounded like a helicopter through the earpiece on the phone the boss asked, “What is that noise?”

“A hello-copper,” answered the whispering voice.

“What is going on there?” asked the boss, now alarmed.

In an awed whispering voice the child answered, “The search team just landed the hello-copper.”

Alarmed, concerned, and more than just a little frustrated, the boss asked, “Why are they there?”

Still whispering, the young voice replied along with a muffled giggle: “They’re looking for me.”