Mike Cumbo, ND4S, will have the program for the May meeting. Mike always gives a good program. Be sure to be on hand for an interesting time.
We had Wayne Williams, K4MOB, with us for the April meeting. Wayne gave a history of the Southeastern Repeater Association and led an interesting discussion on the future of hamfests.
The American Diabetes will not have their Walktoberfest this year. The HPARC normally helps with communications for this event. We will however help with their Diabetes Fair to be held on May 15. If you need more information, contact Judy Walker.
We have been having a good number for our club meetings. Hope we can count on seeing you “in the crowd.” See you at the meeting.

Swatch Watch says the “Beatnik” satellite will not be sent into space from the Russian Mir space station as planned. The watchmaker says “a virtual Beatnik” will carry the messages in cyberspace instead and invited “Beat” fans to “stay tuned and join the first cybermission!”
At the same time, both the Associated Press and Reuters are reporting that a satellite was launched by hand from Mir during a space walk by ESA astronaut Jean-Pierre Haignere, FX0STB, and Russian cosmonaut Viktor Afanasyev. If the reports are accurate, it’s not clear whether the satellite launched was the planned “Beatnik” spacecraft or a spare mini-Sputnik that’s been aboard Mir since 1997. Reuters said the satellite was one “built by French amateur radio enthusiasts.” The report quotes Russian space center spokeswoman Vera Medvedkova as saying, “It is finished. They launched the satellite.”
AP said the satellite put into space was one “made by Russian and French schoolchildren” that contained “a recording of their voices.” The spare mini-Sputnik aboard Mir--a duplicate of the one launched in 1997 to mark the 40th anniversary of the original Sputnik--is believe to contain only a 2-meter beacon transmitter.
As of April 16, there have been no monitoring reports.
Swatch announced early April 16 on its Web site, http://www.swatch.com/beatnik/frameset.html, that the controversial messages the satellite was to have transmitted on the 2-meter amateur band would instead be read by a Russian cosmonaut aboard Mir during an April 22 videoconference, to be broadcast via the Internet.
The controversial messages, gathered via the Swatch Web site, related to the Swatch company’s campaign to establish the “Swatch Beat” as a new “global concept of time.” Swatch had solicited more than 5000 messages--including voice and text files--for possible transmission on the new satellite. Messages selected for use were supposed to include a reference to the “beat” theme.
Although Swatch asserted the messages were not advertising, Sumner pointed out to Hayek that the commercial nature of the arrangements to transmit the messages on amateur frequencies was contrary to international law. “I think this was a new thought to him, frankly, because this is not the way they had been viewing it,” Sumner said.
--The ARRL Letter Online, Volume 18, Number 16 (April 16, 1999)

The April meeting of the High Point Amateur Radio Club was called to order by President Scott Carmichael, KB4ZFV. The meeting drew 22 individuals including 18 members and 4 visitors.
Scott reported that Myron now at home but can not receive visitors at this time. There were no other reports of anyone else being sick. The minutes were read by Chris Horne, W4CKH, and with a correction on the March Tech Minute from Sam Hall. Mark McMahan, KB4MFP, read the Treasurer’s report.
The old business for the month was a proposal from the Board to purchase a repeater controller to remotely turn off either the 2 meter or 440 Mhz machine in case of interference or telemarketers calling the autopatch. A motion was made to accept the repeater controller and all members were in favor.
Chris Horne, W4CKH provided a “TECH MINUTE” on a Link Budget. The Tech Minutes are turning out to be very interesting.
Roy Neal provided a update on the illegal capture of spectrum by Russian space pioneer Sergei Samburov who along with other Cosmonauts have been transmitting from the Spaceship “Mir” since 1986. It appears the Russians are involved in the use of some frequencies they are not authorized to use.
The April program was presented by Wayne Williams, K4MOB. Wayne began his Amateur Radio activity being first licensed in 1958 and ventured into the business of selling radios in 1974. In 1971 Wayne was affiliated with W4GG, the Greensboro Amateur Radio Club. Also in 1971, Wayne began to coordinate SERA, the Southeastern Repeater Association. Since 1977 he has been the editor of the SERA Journal. In 1955, he retired from the Winston Salem Journal and in 1977 sold his last part of Williams Radio Sales. Those of you who dealt with Wayne in his business were appreciative of his professionalism. Wayne presented his program in a very informal but enlightening format discussing hamfests, business, and the SERA Journal. Hamfests, he says, are down because there is little support for them by the public. Some folks are now going elsewhere for their equipment and clubs have to work hard to even break even. See the hamfest survey at [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>. Roy Neal responded to Wayne’s comment by saying there has been a general attrition in Amateur Radio for 8-9 years now. You can also see the W5YI web page for stats on Amateur Radio population. The SERA Journal is produced by Wayne using a sophisticated computer and local printer. SERA also coordinates frequencies using a computerized propagation tool and the directory of repeaters is updated regularly.
W4CKH comments: In response to the discussions on the Amateur Radio attrition, most of us can use Ham Radio to inspire or enlighten other people. Wireless communications is fascinating. Look at all the people using “cell phones”. The good news is, cell phones are used more and more for business. Ham Radio should be for fun and learning and public service. The issue with Ham Radio is that it must be a way of life for it to survive. What’s is more rewarding? Building a transceiver and talking on it atop a mountain with your family or surfing the net in your room? There are many great things going on in Ham Radio and you can make an impact by doing the little things to contribute: serving on a committee, presenting a “Tech Minute” or talking to others about Amateur Radio. I plan to bring my wife and two kids to club meetings because they enjoy the people of which we have some wonderful souls and great minds. Will you bring a friend? See you on May 3 to enjoy fellowship, food, and lively discussions on our great public service organization of Amateur Radio.
-- Submitted by Chris Horne, W4CKH, HPARC Secretary

A link budget is analogous to a checking account whereby power figures are added or subtracted from the budget. The budget is actually made up of a transmitter, cables, connectors, and the antenna (or receiver). By knowing the transmitter output and cable loss, one can determine the input power to the antenna. In a link budget, power is expressed in Decibels (dB) or dBm. A dBm = dB - 30. So if the transmitter generates 100 Watts of signal power (20 dB or 50 dBm) and you are using 100 foot of cable with a loss of 3 dB, then the antenna input connector is receiving 47 dBm (50 dBm - 3 dB = 47 dBm). Incidentally, the formula for db = 10 * Log (power in watts).
-- Chris Horne, W4CKH

CW was once again a life saver. This time for a pair of fishermen who were stranded after their small boat swamped on New Jersey’s Round Valley Reservoir.
The February 25th edition of the Hunterdon County Democrat news reported the plight of the two would-be anglers. Not having any radio gear or a cellular telephone with which to summon assistance, the two used a flashlight to send an SOS distress call in Morse. As luck would have it, a passing motorist recognized the message and called the rescue squad. They located the two men about three miles from where they’d put their boat into the water.
As an aside, the news report said that the motorist had learned the code as a Boy Scout. And talk about coincidence. The story also reported that he spotted the fishermen’s SOS as he was listening to a radio broadcast dealing about the bronze whistle recovered in 1993 from the doomed passenger liner Titanic.
--Newsline, #1128 - 03/26/99

For the first time, the ARRL is making available annual Field Day pins to show your participation in the 1999 event. You don’t have to make a minimum number of contacts or achieve a particular score level. You just have to participate!
Pins are $5 each. Field Day groups are advised to collect the money for the pins and send a single order stating the number of pins needed to ARRL Contest Branch, ATTN: Field Day Pins, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111. The League will ship the pins back to the club for distribution.
--The ARRL Letter Online, Volume 18, Number 17 (April 23, 1999)

This notice is for those who haven’t heard yet of our decision to postpone the HPARC Lomer L McMahan Memorial Hamfest. Most of our club members are already aware of this year’s postponement.
The decision came because of less dealer participation and slow sales. The postponement affects 1999 only. We will make a decision later on for the Hamfest in 2000. If you have any ideas for the hamfest, please contact the board.