WIANEWS - DECEMBER 15 - VK NATIONAL NEWS ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE BEST NEWS YOU'LL GET ALL WEEK Oh... and to contact us with your news because If It Matters To You It Matters To Us! Email nationalnews@wia.org.au http://www.wia.org.au (click news in member area) Submit your audio news TWITTER http://twitter.com/VK1WIA Please... If you are only submitting text and not audio, write your story as you would expect to hear it being read back and NEVER send just links & url's. When you upload audio email us the txt version. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ WIANEWS WEEK COMMENCING DEC 15 2013. WIA BOOKSHOP SPECIALS WIA DO WE MARKET AMATEUR RADIO CORRECTLY? THESE STORIES AND MORE IN THIS EDITION OF NEWS FROM THE WIRELESS INSTITUTE OF AUSTRALIA FOR WEEK COMMENCING DEC 15 2013. THIS NEWS IS HAPPENING NOW ZS 9 MADIBA – Nelson Mandela – Special Call Sign The SARL will be operating special event stations from around South Africa using the call sign ZS 9 MADIBA. QSLing is via the bureau or by sending your QSL to SARL, P O Box 1721, Strubensvallei 1735, South Africa. You may also use Logbook of the World. To receive the special QSL card by mail, include $1 for postage. ZS9MADIBA is the South African Radio League Special Event Station commemorating the life and recent passing of Nelson Mandela, elder statesman and first democratically-elected President of the Republic of South Africa. Affectionately referred to as “Madiba”, he became one of the most recognised leaders in the world and was instrumental in the peaceful transition of South Africa from minority rule to a constitutional democracy. South Africans join the people of the world in mourning his passing and celebrating his legacy. (IRTS) A new Natural User Interface (NUI) research facility within the University of Melbourne has been established through the partnership of the tertiary institute, Microsoft, and the Victorian Government. The AU$8 million collaborative project focuses on the social aspect of NUI, using voice, gestures, eye gaze, body-movement and touch as a user interface. None of the three parties have disclosed the funding arrangement behind the partnership. (published press releases) Digital-only TV in Australia The final analogue television transmitters in Australia were turned off Tuesday December 10 with the closure of five channels on Melbourne's Mt Dandenong. They were ABV2, HSV7, GTV9, ATV10 and SBS UHF 28. Only HSV7 used the last minutes of analogue transmission to flash highlights including the many personalities and shows of the past. The others decided to forego a truly historical occasion that can be replayed during events of the year 2013, or just to record a momentous time. The commercial stations closed on time at 9am, but the ABV2 and SBS which share the same site, left their old channels nearly two minutes late. A special tribute Amateur Radio Victoria telecast telling the history of TV in Australia, is due to be shown after Christmas on the digitised VK3RTV repeater. (Jim Linton VK3PC) WIA BOARD TALK President Phil Wait VK2ASD vk2asd@wia.org.au Vice President Chris Platt VK5CP vk5cp@wia.org.au Secretary David Williams VK3RU vk3ru@wia.org.au Treasurer John Longayroux VK3PZ vk3pz@wia.org.au Hi I'm Mal For the month of December, WIA members can benefit from a massive 30% reduction on the price of selected titles from the bookshop. Visit the online store for details. Supplies of these books are strictly limited and once they are gone, so is the special price. Orders will be filled on a first come, first served basis, so act quickly to avoid disappointment. WIA will be sending out deliveries until the office closes at 4pm, Friday December 20th. Do we market Amateur Radio? The answer is clearly no, or not enough, if the product of Amateur Radio is not widely known and understood in our society. We have a major product to sell. It should get attention. Marketing can help to get noticed among all of the messages that bombard our society. Carefully look at various audiences to see how they are receiving message. Categorise them into groups - the general public, potential radio amateur, and those already in the hobby. They have the same product but different messages are needed. The public can learn about the modern Amateur Radio, class and assessments, and existing radio amateurs need information relevant to them. In deciding on the right messages, then communicate them. The website can be a powerful marketing tool. Is it tired, static or dated, does the web-space really work for you? The Wireless Institute of Australia through the clubs and individuals is holding its PR4AmateurRadio Expo on April the 13th to the 15th. For details on the exciting event visit the 'What’s On' column of the WIA website. And from latest NERG Newsletter, a new video slideshow promoting Amateur Radio has been released by the United Nations - see it at: http://youtu.be/bcfJUjcSEz8 (PR4AmateurRadio/NERG) HAMS ACROSS AUSTRALIA. VK2 web service:- http://www.arnsw.org.au/html/news_vk2wi.htm Hi, and here's this week’s update on the Wyong Field day. As we approach the holiday season, it's easy to forget that February will be rushing up on us after the New Year which is one reason I keep reminding everyone to make their arrangements early. Whether you are looking at staying in the area and need accommodation or if you are travelling in from interstate now is the time to make those bookings if you haven't already done so. The Wyong Field day on Sunday the 23rd. of February will be on RAIN OR SHINE, so we'll be there - will you? I hope so as this year we are proud to have the Summits on the Air group with us and not only is the VK2 association manager, Andrew VK2UH, giving a presentation in our seminar program, he and a group of other supporters of SOTA are manning an information stand in the exhibitors area. But not only will there be a SOTA lecture and a SOTA stand, Saturday night will also see a SOTA meet-up for a meal and a good old fashioned "chin-wag". So if you are involved with SOTA or don't even know what it is and want to find out, there's only one place to be next February and that's the CCARC Field day at Wyong! Whether it's seeking that bargain from the flea market, buying that discounted new equipment from the traders stands, educating yourself at the seminars and exhibitors stalls or even taking that licence upgrade assessment. The place to be February twenty three is undoubtedly - The CCARC Field Day at Wyong! 73 'til next week, this is Ed VK2JI, Publicity Officer of the Central Coast Amateur Radio Club. VK4 - QNEWS Send your stories for news. SCRIPT to qnews@wia.org.au send audio to http://www.wia.org.au/members/broadcast/upload/ get local audio news www.wiaq.org.au/ftp/vk4_qnews_64.mp3 get local news emailed qnews-vk-subscribe@yahoogroups.com VK4RAT UHF Repeater Frequency Change - your help needed If you live in the Townsville area and have the capability to receive UHF frequencies then theTARCinc wants you ! As part of a planned change of frequency assignment for the VK4RAT UHF Voice Repeater at Mount Stuart, reception monitoring needs to take place on the recommended frequencies to ensure that they are relatively free from interference from other services in the area. theTARCinc have voted to change the current frequency assignment of output 438.225MHz input 433.225MHz to move the repeater away from the UHF Low Interference Potential Devices band. Recommended frequencies to monitor mainly during weekdays when interference activity seems to be greatest ... Repeater Input frequencies 434.800 434.825 434.875 434.950MHz Repeater Output frequencies 439.800 439.825 439.875 439.950MHz Send your reports to theTARCinc Secretary on email vk4wit@wia.org.au DISCUSSION POINT What use is an F-call? Amateur Radio is a hobby that's been around for over a century. In that time we've seen evolution in electronics, in communications, in science and in society. Our hobby has also evolved with those changes. Every time a new Ham comes along they bring with them their perspective on the world. The rich tapestry that Amateur Radio represents is particularly dense with historic, sometimes even ancient references that need context to understand. In the early days of Amateur Radio, communication was achieved using Morse Code, in itself a fascinating approach to codifying language and for the record, not the only or the first. Today CW is still in use, but other forms of communication have augmented the hobby and the wider communications field as well. Today, when you listen to Amateurs talking, you'll hear them say 73, or QSO, or QTH, or XYL, or any number of weird acronyms that make little or mainly no sense at all. Let me start with saying that sentence again, but now using English words instead. Today, when you listen to Amateurs talking, you'll hear them say "best regards", or "contact", or "home station", or "wife", or any number of weird acronyms that make little or mainly no sense at all. These acronyms have a history of their own. They come from the world of Morse, because every letter counts and if you can get a meaning across with less letters, you can get a message through faster. If you keep having to key "home station", it's simpler to say "QTH". I should point out that for example, "QTH" changes meaning in itself. Officially it means "What is your position in latitude and longitude?", but the more likely use is something like: "My QTH is Perth", that in essence means, "I'm transmitting from Perth." These acronyms don't actually come from Amateur Radio, but from the British government who prepared a list of abbreviations for use on ships and coastal stations. The codes starting with the letter "Q", are called Q-codes. They too have evolved to include Aviation, Military and others. 73 is a code that comes from the world of Telegraph, it too has changed meaning from "My love to you", to "Best regards". Today "Love and Kisses" is signified by 88. Other acronyms like CQ and DX have a history all their own. Next time you hear an acronym, ask the user for its meaning and start using them yourself. Before long you'll get to the point where you'll want to use it in general day to day use. Before I go. 73 means "Best regards", so don't be tempted to add an "S", as in 73s. That would mean Best regards’" and that's just silly. 73 DE Onno VK6FLAB INTERNATIONAL NEWS With Jason VK2LAW:- SOUTH AFRICA Nice words from around the world last weekend, kicked off by the President and Board of The South African Radio League, its council and members joined the world in mourning the loss of South Africa's greatest statesman, Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela. Let us continue to remember and be encouraged by the so many positive things for which he stood. While we mourn his passing, we celebrate his life and the lessons he taught us and the world. SOUTH AFRICA HAMS IN SOUTH AFRICA 'ALL ATUNED.' They are listening out for VK6RIO A BEACON ON 144,950 MHz Trans-Indian ocean two-way contacts on 144 MHz via Tropo Ducting is still the most challenging terrestrial frontier on VHF. A team comprising Andre ZS2ACP, Jim ZS2JF and Mike ZS2FM, in Port Elizabeth are running CW tests with Bill Hosie, VK6ACY/ZS6CCY at Perth, but to date are not receiving any signals at all. Now the Northern Corridor Radio Group at Perth are trying break this hoodoo by using the latest chirp modulation techniques on their VK6RIO beacon, and bridge Australia and South Africa on 144 MHz Keith Bainbridge, VK6RK a spokesman for the Australian group says: "If we can get someone in the right location over there then perhaps we can help with some of the equipment". This project is real amateur radio science! CHINA A national emergency broadcast centre has opened in China as the country speeds up the construction of a nationwide radio network that will spread rescue and relief information in disaster-hit regions. Under the China National Radio (CNR), the China National Emergency Broadcasting Centre is responsible for setting up an emergency broadcast system and building a radio network that links central authorities to grassroots offices. The plan, which will be an important measure for coping with disasters, was inspired by a similar but smaller-scale radio network set up after a fatal 7.0-magnitude earthquake hit Lushan in southwest China's Sichuan Province April. The radio service, jointly initiated by CNR and local radio and TV stations, broadcast government relief measures and secondary disaster warnings to disaster-affected people via loudspeakers, AM radio frequencies and satellite facilities. The centre’s official website started operation, releasing latest data on disasters across the country and providing online rescue and relief guidance. ecns.cn UNITED KINGDOM Embroidered antenna is flexible and water resistant A prototype garment incorporating an embroidered antenna has been produced by researchers from Nottingham Trent University and Loughborough University. Search and rescue teams could benefit from the newly designed antenna, which is fully flexible, lightweight and water resistant. In a bid to transform how wearable radio communications are sent and received, the two universities and several industry partners have developed the technology to design an efficient antenna that can be applied directly onto clothing using a mass production process. ============================================================================= Amateur Radio Newsline TOKYOS FAMED “THE RADIO STORE” CLOSES AFTER 64 YEARS One of the landmarks that helped to create Tokyo Japans famed Akihabara electronics district has closed its doors for good. Amateur Radio Newslines Heather Embee, KB3TZD, is here with the details: -- On Saturday evening, November 30th local time the business known as The Radio Store ceased operations after 64 years. The Radio Store building opened on March 8, 1950. It was the first of Tokyo’s electronics superstores, built by ten of the prominent vendors at the time. The building originally housed only those first ten stores but it lead to the creation of business area that eventually became home to hundreds of other electronics retailers and gained recognition world-wide. It’s said that The Radio Store was responsible for giving this area of Tokyo its Electric Town nickname For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I’m Heather Embee, KB3TZD, in Berwick, Pennsylvania, here in the USA. FEMA AND NPR TEAM FOR ALERTING DEAF TO EMERGENCIES The Department of Homeland Security has announced a pilot project in cooperation with NPR Labs, to demonstrate the delivery of the first-ever, real-time emergency alert messages to people who are deaf or hard-of-hearing in five Gulf states. Twenty-five NPR affiliates in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas have agreed to participate in the venture to transmit emergency alert messages, such as weather alerts, to 475 individuals who are deaf or hard-of- hearing in the stations' listening areas. This to determine how effectively the messages are being sent and received. The public radio stations participating in the project will receive emergency alert messages from FEMA's Integrated Public Alert and Warning System. The stations will then broadcast the emergency alerts to specially designed FM Radio Data System receivers that alert the participants with a flashing indicator. The receivers can also show the content of the alert through the receiver's digital display. Participants can connect a strobe light or bed-shaker alerting device to the receiver to help ensure alerts are noticed both day and night. NAMES OF FOUR PRE-TEENS NOW ON-ORBIT The names of four pre-teens from the town of North Pole, Alaska, have been sent into space, and it’s all thanks to ham radio. Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, is in the newsroom with the story of how it came about -- North Pole, Alaska is just outside of the city of Fairbanks and its where Daniel Perry, age 10, Derik Perry, 9, Riley Perry, 9, and Kailey Perry, 5 all live. But these four youngsters now have something very special in their lives because their names are orbiting some 400 miles above the Earth on a microsat and it’s all because of friendship between to ham radio operators. The honour comes courtesy of their grandfather, Mike Perry, AL7F, who became caretaker to some satellite-monitoring equipment about a year and a half ago. This happened after he became close friends with Mark Kanawati, N4TPY of Space Quest Ltd, which is a technology company based in Fairfax, Virginia. AL7F says it all came about because of a note to the local ham radio club: -- AL7F: “The way this all got started was that Mark, the owner of Space Quest, being a ham radio operator got in touch with the Arctic Amateur Radio Club here in Fairbanks and had a letter posted to our membership site looking for someone who had some property or knew of somebody who had some property that would be a good location for him to install a satellite tracking station. I own some property right off the side of the highway that’s sub-divided into lots and I offered to let him put his tracking station on one of the lots. -- This lead to a close friendship developing between AL7F and N4TPY and in turn to Kanawati offering to fly the names of Perrys grandkids on a satellite that was to be launched this past November. -- According to AL7F, the youngsters don’t quite realize how rare it is to be part of an orbiting satellite. But he adds that will likely appreciate it a lot more as they get older. CES FIVE TECHNOLOGY TRENDS TO WATCH And finally this week a look into this future. This as the Consumer Electronics Association releases the 2014 edition of “Five Technology Trends to Watch.” This is an annual publication that examines five prominent technology movements that will influence the consumer electronics industry in the years ahead. Amateur Radio Newsline’s Norm Seeley, KI7UP, takes a look at what lies ahead: -- According to a press release, this year’s “Five Technology Trends to Watch” examines key developments from the Internet to things like driverless cars, digital health care, robotics to the future of video distribution and consumption. Geared toward industry professionals, the publication provides in-depth analysis and outlines related issues and market forecasts for the coming year. Each section also explores consumer perspectives, partnerships, key players and public policy issues. For example, a chapter titled “A Hundred Billion Nodes” looks at how the Internet is using the Web to “learn” consumer habits and needs. The Consumer Electronics Association Senior Manager of Business Intelligence is Jack Cutts. He looks at where the major auto makers are in testing and refining their driverless vehicles. He also expounds on the legal and social implications of ceding the open road to science in “On the Road to Driverless Cars.” For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I’m Norm Seeley, KI7UP, watching emerging technology from Scottsdale, Arizona. ============================================================================= OPERATIONAL NEWS - DATELINE 2014 AMSAT STRAIGHT KEY NIGHT JANUARY ONE WIA Summer VHF-UHF Field Day 11/12 January WIA John Moyle Field Day weekend March 15-16 WIA VK Harry Angel Memorial Sprint May 3 10-10 INTERNATIONAL SUMMER CONTEST Aug 2 - 3 WIA REMEMBRANCE DAY (THE RD) CONTEST Aug 16 - 17 Manly-Warringah Radio Society's Flagpole contest September. SPECIAL EVENT STATIONS, DX, BEACON REPEATER AND NET ADVICE DXCC 2013 DEADLINE IS DECEMBER 31 In DX up-front, Bill Moore, NC1L, who is the ARRL Awards Branch Manager wants to remind to all DXCC program participants that the deadline for the 2013 calendar year ends on Tuesday December 31st. Moore says that in order to appear in the Annual Listing published in the electronic version of the DXCC Yearbook, you must have your submission postmarked no later than that date. Since the DXCC workload usually peaks around this time each year, Moore recommends that applicants not wait until the last minute to get their submissions in. Complete details are posted on the web at arrl.org/dxcc-blog (arnewsline) ARRL granted use of W 1ŘŘ AW for League’s centennial. The FCC has authorized the Maxim Memorial Station W 1 AW to also use the call sign W 1ŘŘ AW during 2014, the ARRL’s centennial year. LCL QSO Party The Amateur Radio Lighthouse Society (ARLHS) invites you to participate in their annual 'Lighthouse Christmas Lights 2013 QSO Party' which is held between 0001z, December 21st and 2359z, January 1st, 2014. Rules, operating guidelines, logging requirements, and prizes can be found at: arlhs.com/LCL-2013.html MEDIA WATCH www.cq-amateur-radio.com/WorldRadio.html VK Club Bulletins http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aarnie/ VK2 CCARC news ccarc.org.au/wp/2012/09/ccarc-news-12-31/ Calling in on Barry VK6BW's broadcast of this news was VA7MLW Glenn who is Maritime Mobile out of Vancouver and is well along on his non-stop solo around the world voyage. VA7MLW had hit the Indian Ocean heading for Falklands via ZS on his westerly circumnavigation from Victoria, British Columbia which is expected to take 10 months before returning to home port. His 40-foot sloop named "Kim Chow" has had extensive modifications for the trip. Glenn has an ICOM 802 SSB marine radio. Follow the daily reports of the intrepid adventurer as he files daily Winlink 2000 position reports that can be seen with this link: www.winlink.org/dotnet/maps/PositionreportsDetail.aspx?callsign=V... RSS feed: http://www.winlink.org/dotnet/maps/RSSPositionReports.aspx?callsign=VA7M... WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- ATV (Every pixel tells a story) - Video Digital Amateur Television Success in the upper Spencer Gulf South Australia David VK5DMC has been busy over the past 18 months building equipment and experimenting with the transmission of DVB-T (Digital Video Broadcast - Terrestrial). A Digital modulator kit was purchased from Germany and duly assembled producing a whopping 1mw of output power, further pre-amps were constructed producing a modest 12 watts of output this increased transmitter range from a few feet to across town, however, this would not suffice, so a 600w UHF Linear amplifier Kit was purchased from America and after much work, this was pressed into service resulting in an output power of about 120 watts and with some antenna tricks an ERP of about 360 Watts was achieved. Recently a signal was successfully sent across Spencer Gulf from VK5DMC's home location in the centre of Port Pirie, to a portable station on Mount Laura just north west of Whyalla operated by Alex VK5ALX, distance covered, around 50km with a strong signal received. The future for ATV in the upper Spencer Gulf area; Permission has been obtained to locate the Translator at the TRAX FM site on the top of the Flinders Ranges at about 2400 feet in elevation and 14km to the east of Port Pirie, this location should provide reliable coverage of Port Pirie, Port Augusta and Whyalla in the north and west, and Kadina / Wallaroo to the south, this location is just up the track from the commercial television stations transmitters this means that most television receivers will already have their antenna pointed in the right direction and with the correct polarity, this should make reception very easy for those who are interested in viewing the signal. A licence has been applied for and work has commenced on the control equipment necessary for remote operation. Inputs will be on 1275.00Mhz analogue, and 1290 DVB-S (Digital Video Broadcast- Satellite) with the output on 446.500Mhz DVB-T. All interested in the project or wanting to help in any way can contact David VK5DMC at tocsin@tpg.com WW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS --- DIGITAL APCO P25 Digital repeaters linked via the Internet. P25 was originally a public safety grade commercial digital voice mode that has recently gained popularity within the Amateur radio community. Now equipment has become cheaper and more readily available on the used market interest in this mode has started to increase. As reported a few months back here on WIA National News several repeaters are located around the Sydney area that support P25, in particular the VK2RCG P25 repeater located on Governor Phillip Tower in the Sydney CBD. Matt Robert, VK2LK, and John ZL4JY have set up an experimental link between this repeater in Sydney and another P25 repeater located in Waikaie, New Zealand. The linking is particularly interesting as traditionally, P25 repeaters have been difficult to link and have required expensive Telco grade equipment or specialised microwave links to connect them together. The linking solution between these two repeaters was implemented in true HAM radio fashion and uses very cheap and commonly available second hand networking equipment that costs well under $100 each and also provides an extremely solid and reliable commercial grade link. After much testing and experimentation, the link has been made available for public use. Among those using the repeater we see John, ZL4JY Matt, VK2LK Mark, VK2ZB Robin, VK2VRB Tanu, VK2MHZ Greg, VK2GK Greg, VK2VGM and Hugh, VK2XHP, not a bad roll up! More countries and extra repeaters will be added to this network as time, money and interest permits. All appropriately licensed operators with P25 equipment are more than welcome to hop on anytime and put out a call, let’s see even more activity on this excellent system. Finally, Matt, VK2LK would like to express thanks and gratitude to Justin, VK2CU, and Keith from Metwide Communications for their generous contributions towards 70cm HAM radio in Sydney. (73's Matt VK2LK) SOCIAL SCENE 2014 Jan 24-27 VK4 TARC Australia Day Long Weekend Family Radio Camp at Girl Guides Campsite Bluewater. (vk4zz@wia.org.au) Feb 23 VK2 Wyong Field Day and it is on come rain hail or shine. Apr 13-15 VK PR4AmateurRadio Expo. Apr 18 WW Amateur Radio Day: Your Gateway to Wireless Communications. Apr 25 vk3 ANZAC Day event Ballarat Showgrounds johnkarr@bigpond.net.au May 2- 4 VK4 Clairview Gathering Clive VK4ACC 0429 632 815 Nov 2 VK5 HamFest Adelaide Hills Amateur Radio Society FEEDBACK I wish Mr Mitchell luck. (MARCONI TX IN LAST WEEKS NEWS) I was a volunteer at Qld museum and found it was interested in social history mainly, and not technological items. In addition, the water-cooled transmitter from Bald Hills Qld is lying in the open at the Caboolture Historical Village. I asked around and was advised that there is likely no interest in its being added to a collection anywhere. It requires a long-tray truck or car-carrying trailer to move it, for a start. Is it the only surviving water-cooled transmitter in Australia? Peter Hadgraft VK4APD Submitting news items If you would like to submit news items for inclusion in the VK1WIA broadcasts, please email your item in text to nationalnews@wia.org.au to submit audio read "how to submit items" in the weekly news page on wia.org.au Remember the sooner you submit material the more the likelihood of it being broadcast in the very next edition of WIA National News. Each item will only be broadcast once, if you want a couple of mentions, please submit different slants to keep your event 'fresh ‘and always if the news room is to read your item write in the 3rd person. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ============================================================================= WIANews - we've reported...YOU decide. TWITTER http://twitter.com/VK1WIA Societies and Club News Letter Editors can EXCHANGE a feed prior to the actual broadcast date, e-mail nationalnews@wia.org.au Call-backs follow the RF editions, but also for text readers you may lodge a quick reply to let us know you read it, who knows, you might even get a "cheerio call". Thanks to our dedicated band of broadcast volunteers who utilize their time and equipment in bringing you this weekly broadcast. The purpose of "WIANews" is to rapidly provide news of interest to active amateurs residing in Australia and the globe. We strongly encourage membership in the Wireless Institute of Australia and participation in the activities of local clubs. Opinions expressed in "WIANews" are those of the writers who submit material and do not necessarily reflect those of the rebroadcasters, nor the National WIA, but are broadcast in the spirit in which they were submitted." Material may be reproduced in whole or in part, in any form, a credit to WIANews wouldn't go astray... Compiled by VK4BB on behalf of the National WIA. -------------