November 2011 - arrl-odv - reflector.arrl.org

[arrl-odv:20310] Video: Wireless Technology Prospects and Policy Options
by Bob Vallio 11 Nov '11

11 Nov '11

This was pointed out to me as being well worth 50 minutes of your time if you're interested in spectrum policy and the future of wireless technologies. I agree, and I'm sharing it with you for your own determination of that value. PCAST is the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, and the speaker is the chair of the National Research Council. Video: Wireless Technology Prospects and Policy Options Presentation of David Liddle of the Computer Science and Telecommunications Board (CSTB) to PCAST on November 2nd. Video: < http://www.tvworldwide.com/events/pcast/111102/globe_show/default_go_archiv… Bob Vallio, W6RGG

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[arrl-odv:20309] BPL Further Administrative Appeal of Second Report and Order; ET Docket 04-37
by Chris Imlay 11 Nov '11

11 Nov '11

Greetings. I mentioned to the Board recently that Ed Hare and I would come to you with a proposed plan of action that would preserve the Board's options going forward beyond the filing of a Petition for Reconsideration. While it is typically the role of the Executive Committee to determine the strategies and courses of action in FCC proceedings, and should be now as well, the BPL matter is of sufficient concern that I wanted to share what Ed and I propose to do with the full Board. As Dave Sumner has accurately summarized, there is very little to like about the BPL 2nd R&O. This is especially bitter for Ed and me because we were, and are still absolutely certain that we created a record that obligated FCC to substantially modify the Part 15 rules governing BPL so as to provide some modicum of protection against interference from BPL facilities. We still believe that we are right on the engineering and right on the law, but we clearly underestimated the extent to which our court appeal and our strident FCC filings before and since the Court appeal embarassed OET and caused them to pull out all the stops to defend themselves. The Court Appeal was not a win of any war, it was only one battle, and FCC has now won the subsequent one, which may be decisive. There is little in this 2nd R&O that is promising in terms of a future Court appeal. However, Ed and I feel that the record has been severely misrepresented by OET; that ARRL's arguments have been twisted; and that the record simply does not sustain the findings of the Commission in this document. Because there is no effective way to mitigate BPL interference after the fact; because enforcement is never going to be available post hoc to protect Amateur Radio from BPL interference; and because BPL is not, as is popularly thought, a dead issue, it was and still is critical to do everything we can to get modified rules. So, Ed and I propose to prepare and file on a timely basis a Petition for Reconsideration of the Second Report and Order. The attached memo prepared by Ed and edited as to form only by me summarizes our concerns with the 2nd R&O on a paragraph-by-paragraph basis. It also includes Ed's thoughts on how to structure a Petition for Reconsideration. There is a page limit for such petitions of 25 pages, double-spaced. This seems grossly unfair given that the Second Report and Order is 76 single-spaced pages. The way we got around this the last time we filed such a Petition in this docket was to keep the body of the Petition to 25 pages and to append to it a number of technical exhibits. FCC let us get away with this the last time, so we propose to do the same thing here. What we didn't get from the Report and Order breaks down into several broad categories, though the attached memo from Ed goes into far more detail. We asked FCC for: 1. Full-time, mandatory notching of all Amateur bands. 2. Notch depth minima of 30-35 dB 3. A scientifically valid extrapolation factor reflecting signal decay with decades of distance from the power lines. We got none of these three points. The increase in the capability of BPL systems to notch from 20 to 25 dB is acceptable as far as it goes, but since it is not mandatory, that is illusory relief. Had we gotten mandatory, full-time Amateur Band notching, that would have been enough to declare victory. As it is, we received virtually nothing. We intend to make a major effort on reconsideration to cause mandatory full-time notching, while not pressing for notch depths greater than the 25 dB that the FCC came up with. Ed and I strenuously recommend that we be permitted to file a timely Petition for Reconsideration. It will leave FCC with the impression that we are preparing for a further Court appeal, and indeed we will structure it in such a fashion so that the Board's prerogative is preserved depending on what the FCC does with our Petition. I should stress, however, that at this point, a further Court appeal does not appear likely of success. We will see what the situation is after the reconsideration petition is adjudicated. Of course, the draft document would be reviewed in the normal course by President Craigie and CEO Sumner and by the Executive Committee before filing. The timing would be 30 days after the 2nd R&O is published in the Federal Register, which has not yet occurred. If the Executive Committee would consider approving this plan, Ed and I would be grateful. 73, Chris W3KD Christopher D. Imlay Booth, Freret, Imlay & Tepper. P.C. 14356 Cape May Road Silver Spring, Maryland 20904-6011 (301) 384-5525 telephone (301) 384-6384 facsimile W3KD(a)ARRL.ORG

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[arrl-odv:20308] IN-News
by Kustosik, Lisa, KA1UFZ 10 Nov '11

10 Nov '11

<<110911.doc>> IN-Newsletter <<Microsoft Word Picture>> Vol. 34, No. 45 November 9, 2011 -- Covers the period October 30-November 5. Upcoming Meetings and Events Programs & Services Committee November 12 - ARRL HQ Ballot Counting for Director/Vice Director Elections November 18 - ARRL HQ Administration & Finance Committee November 19 @ 8:30am - ARRL HQ Regulatory Information Reported by Dan Henderson, N1ND A lot has transpired during the last two weeks... We have been reassuring members that the well-publicized upcoming test of the Emergency Alert System does not affect amateur radio and they do not need to worry about being on the air during the event. At the request of John Chwat, a letter was drafted to Rep. Richardson and sent to Dave, K1ZZ for editing and transmission to President Craigie. The letter was a request not to include the frequency swap provisions found in H.R. 607 (that affected the 420-440 MHz allocation) in a new bill that was being marked up by the House Homeland Security committee. We have had several telephone exchanges with Al, KH6MD, who is in a dispute with a neighbor over his tower in Hawaii. We reviewed PRB-1 with Al, and he has successfully received his permit from the city. The neighbor is continuing to object and we have provided Al some materials to support his PRB-1 position. We will continue to monitor this situation. A member in Texas was referred to the VCE listings for help with a tower installation question from the town of Richardson. With the help of Katie Glass, KB1ULQ, the VC database has been updated (Thanks Katie!). Several queries about items for sale on eBay were received, including modifiable amplifiers that would cover CB and a radio advertised as "a free alternative to cell-phones by using the ham bands". The FCC has been clear they are not going to deal with individual sales of items on eBay or similar sites. In addition, while selling the "free cell phone radio" (which is a Kenwood TM-641A) is not illegal, using it would be. Until that occurs, nothing can be done about the situation. We received a copy of an upcoming "Rules and Regulations" column written by John Johnston, W3BE, in which he claims that ARRL Field Day rules for the GOTA station promote, in essence, illegal operating. After reviewing the rules and conversations with both General Counsel and an official of the FCC, we do not agree with John's assessment of the rule. The rules for Field Day and the FAQ sheet in the Field Day packet specifically underscore proper operating procedures, including having a control operator present at the control point whenever someone who is not licensed is participating. A question was asked by a member about utility "smart meters" operating on the 902 MHz band. Provided they meet the Part 15 rules for intentional radiators, they are permissible. The ARRL Lab also underscores that since they only respond for a very brief period (a couple of seconds once a month) when being queried by the utility "meter reader" they do not appear to be causing what would fall under the definition of "harmful interference". A question was raised by a member about the permissibility of digital ATV on bands higher than 420 MHz. He mistakenly categorized it as "digital" instead of "image" communications. We explained the difference and that the digital baud rates in 97.307 (f) did not apply. Rather, the good engineering practice stated in 97.307 (a) applied since broader-spectrum emissions were permissible on bands above 420 MHz. At the request of Director Frenaye, we responded to a member asking a question about how to identify when using a club callsign. FCC rules do not require the control operator to identify their own callsign when using a club callsign. We referred an RFI power line noise situation brought to us by Robert Wood, W5AJ, to the ARRL Lab. We also continue handling the normal range of member inquiries on reciprocal licensing, station identification, and CC&R questions, while also working to finish the upcoming issue of the Legislative Action newsletter. Media & Public Relations Reported by Allen Pitts, W1AGP A webinar was held on Nov 1st with Howard Price of ABC News and Mark Kraham of RTDNA answering the question "In an emergency, what does the news media want from hams and how do they want it?" Over 200 people participated. While there were some technical problems in the beginning (never try to show a video on GoToMeeting), it went very well. An informal contest has been started asking hams to give their script for a 30 second reply to the question, "What is Amateur Radio?" for non-hams. Prize is the very first DVD copy of the new DIY video. Entries due before Thanksgiving. Brief auxiliary web videos supporting the main DIY video are being created here from leftover clips. Five are already posted (the RIT blimp, solar powered radio on a trike, APRS, HSMM Mesh and satellite work) on WeDoThat.org Reminder that Leonard Award entries are due in by December 9. Development Reported by Mary Hobart, K1MMH With seven weeks remaining in 2011 Development has reached $699,903 or 73% of its fund raising target for the year. The Diamond Club has reached $248,621 or 89% of its $280,000 goal. The annual calendar offer for new and renewing Diamond Club contributions of $100 or more has been included in member renewals. The Education & Technology Fund has reached 66% of its $215,000 goal with a handful of major gifts expected before year end. The Spectrum Defense Fund has reached $254,955 or 73% of its $350,000 goal. The year-to-date total for Spectrum Defense includes a large stock gift that has been transferred to ARRL and is pending liquidation. The final issue of Spectrum Defense Matters is scheduled to mail on or about 11/15/11 and should bring the fund close to the target by December 31. A Year End giving message will be emailed right after Thanksgiving with an offer for Member Rewards certificates for gifts of $50 or more. The ARRL Maxim Society has seen a burst of activity in the past couple of months and the total number of Maxim Society donors totals 90. The Second Century Campaign is moving along with commitments from the campaign committee and one large bequest in hand. The total commitments stands at $2,677,500 with additional committee commitments pending. The ARRL Endowment has grown by $382,255 from estate gifts in 2011 and now totals $3,142,140. Production/Editorial Reported by Joel Kleinman, N1BKE Khrystyne Keane wrote and distributed the ARRL Letter and produced and voiced ARRL Audio News for November 3, 2011. Lab Reported by Ed Hare, W1RFI RFI Power Line Noise Case updates include: * The Bob Thacker, K3GT power line noise case in Pittsburgh area remains ongoing. The initial 60 days are up and the utility has failed to find the remaining sources. * The JC Flynn, W4FGC Power Line Noise is temporarily on hold. The complainant's daughter, Debbie, obtained the services of an independent RFI investigator. He found a number of sources in the complainant's neighborhood. The noise has been reduced by the repairs, but additional work may be required. Mike Gruber developed a report for Chris Imlay and Kay Craigie that details three longstanding power line noise cases, W4FGC, K3GT and W0ZK. Unfortunately their meeting with Laura Smith at the FCC had to be postponed due to illness. The case of a UV light in a septic system is finally closed. This case was ongoing for several years in Cincinnati. After replacing the ballast and related hardware, the complainant reports the noise is gone. Mike Gruber participated in an EMC Committee Webinar. Mike also provided a report on EMC matters, including power line noise case updates, to the Committee members. Mike Gruber continues working with a member in Florida trying to develop a cure for an RFI problem involving a pulsed DC motor in an HVAC system. EMC Committee member Brian Cramer reports that a power line noise case in Henderson, KY is still under consideration by the utility. Product Review Bob Allison completed testing of three medium priced antenna analyzers. Data Tables of each analyzer's performance were written and passed along to the Product Review Editor and the reviewer. Travel On October 21, 2011, Ed Hare was an invited guest at a policy meeting of the HomeGrid Forum, an industry group implementing the ITU-T G.hn BPL standard. He had been asked to present information on why spectral protection for Amateur Radio is necessary, why sufficient notch depth is needed to prevent interference and why the successful practices of some parts of the industry to protect Amateur Radio should be made into equally successful regulations. Ed had been asked to explain why the HomePlug BPL specification has been successful. Overall, Ed reports that the message was generally accepted and that the consensus of the representatives in attendance was that the HomeGrid Forum wanted to one up HomePlug in having good specifications and the support of ARRL. Ed reports that the latter will depend on good results and implementation, as it has for HomePlug. Bob Allison attended the 2011 AMSAT Symposium in San Jose, CA. Bob demonstrated the ARRL's working prototype of OSCAR 1. Working with Lab consultant Jerry Ramie, KI6LGY, Bob videotaped an interview with one of OSCAR 1's key builders, Lance Ginner K6GSJ. Other key AMSAT leaders were also interviewed, including AMSAT President Barry Baines, WD4ASW. A lot of material was gathered about the past, present, and future of amateur satellites for our website. Zack Lau attended the Iowa Section Convention, which was part of the 40th Davenport IA hamfest. He presented a talk on Building a 2M Beam to approximately 30 hams. While sitting at the ARRL booth he talked with a ham that previously had a big beam and was wondering whether he would enjoy a low key QRP approach, even if his best CW skills were never better than 15-18 wpm. After a short chat he renewed his lapsed ARRL membership. Zack also figured out a neat trick when getting on little airplanes that require your normal carry-on to be checked at the gate-get on the plane last, so that you will get your luggage back first. The extra 5 minutes can be useful in making your connection. Mike Gruber agreed to speak at the Greater Houston Hamfest in March. The subject of his talk will be power line noise. Electronic Publication Support The mysterious 0xc000007b error has been solved by one of the users-it occurs on 64 bit systems in which Zone Alarm has been installed-uninstalling this security software allows the ARRL Exam Review to work properly. Sales and Marketing Reported by Bob Inderbitzen, NQ1R The warehouse crew fulfilled 784 packages for publication and product orders, 394 membership premiums, and QST mailing supplements. Included with the week's totals were 94 orders to fulfill items purchased through the 2011 ARRL Online Auction. With an interest in expanding ARRL affinity benefit programs for members, Diane Petrilli and Bob Inderbitzen have submitted applications to a handful of affiliate marketing providers: consumer electronic sellers, car rental companies, and other product/service providers. A large membership campaign is being pulled together, for mailing mid-month. A holiday-themed publication flyer is off to the printer, for mailing mid-month. Membership & Volunteer Programs Reported by Dave Patton, NN1N Congratulations go out to the DXCC team who processed over one million QSOs so far this year. DXCC Branch Credits Applications 2010 Carryover 166,115 1,214 2011 Received 926,805 8,181 Cumulative Total 1,092,920 9,395 2011 Processed 1,031,308 8,875 Remaining 61,612 520 Paper/Fieldcheck Processing Time 3 Weeks LoTW Processing Time 3 Business Days Logbook of the World Category Oct 2011 % Change Jan-Oct 2011 QSO Records Entered Into System 374,815,841 16% QSL Record Matches 45,988,948 25% Logs Processed 2,573,442 36% Active Certificates 67,854 17% Registered Users in System 45,168 17 % Logbook (Email Only) Inquiries Oct 2011 Maintenance 713 Initial Setup Inquiries 689 Award Related Concerns 238 Customer Usage Issues 456 Phone Calls 997 Total 3,093 W1AW The early Autumn snow storm that left Connecticut in a mess also took out a few of W1AW's antennas. The two (2) 40-meter yagis and 80-meter cage were damaged beyond repair. The first director on the visitor 10-meter yagi (North tower) was twisted vertical. One leg of the 160-meter dipole was broken as was one leg of the North tower 80-meter dipole. Joe repaired both the 160-meter and North tower dipoles. With help from Dave Patton, they both got these particular antennas back up. Joe spent time early Monday (10/31) with a chain saw removing the large tree branches that fell on W1AW. (He also cleared the Main Street driveway of tree debris as well as the front walk.) Aside from some cracked shingles and bent roof drip-cap, no serious damage was apparently done to the station. In addition to the antenna repairs, Joe constructed a 40-meter "fat dipole" for use with both the broadcasts and visitor operations while awaiting new 40-meter antennas. This dipole is strung between the Satellite and South towers. He also updated the web code practice files. Field Organization/Public Service Team An unusual early snow storm struck the U.S. Northeast on Saturday, October 29, and ARES and SKYWARN groups were activated to respond to the emergencies created by bad weather, power outages and road blockages throughout their communities and the region. Members of the Membership and Volunteer Programs Department kept in touch with ARRL Section Managers and Section Emergency Coordinators in the days following the storm to collect reports on Amateur Radio involvement and to pass this information onto News Editor Khrystyne Keane. One radio amateur from North Texas completed requirements to become an Official Observer this past week. Chuck Skolaut assisted Official Observer Coordinators and Section Managers in the preparation and issuance of five appointment certificates to new Official Observers. A report was received about an unidentified noise on 40 meters, and this was forwarded to our volunteer monitors to investigate. After receiving a report of a Citizen Band operator evidently running high power and interfering with a local business, the complainant was advised to send his documentation to the FCC. Chuck Skolaut also prepared for his trip to the Georgia Section Convention scheduled for November 5. Sincerely Compiled by, Lisa Kustosik, KA1UFZ Assistant to the CEO Hamfest/Member Contact/ARRL Representative/Meetings/Vacations All Staff 11/24-11/25 Holiday Leona Adams 11/11 Vacation Margie Bourgoin 11/10-11/11 Vacation Steve Capodicasa 11/17 Medical Joe Carcia 11/11pm Vacation `` 11/30 Vacation Steve Ewald 11/28-12/2 Vacation Steve Ford 11/23 Vacation `` 12/22-1/2 Vacation Scott Gee 12/23-12/27 Vacation Ed Hare 11/14-11/18 Society of Cable Telecom. Engineers Symposium, Atlanta, GA `` 11/21-11/23 BPL Field Work in NC, VA & PA Dan Henderson 11/21-11/29 Vacation `` 12/16-1/4 Vacation Mary Hobart 11/10-11/11 Vacation Amy Hurtado 11/11 Vacation Debra Johnson 11/14-11/17 Training/Vacation Joel Kleinman 11/22 Vacation Maryann Macdonald 11/16 Vacation

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[arrl-odv:20307] Re: Having Surgery
by Kay Craigie 10 Nov '11

10 Nov '11

Jim, Carter and I will keep a good thought for your complete recovery. The screening tests for various kinds of cancer are not fun, but they save lives. Please get the tests appropriate to your age and gender. 73, Kay N3KN Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

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[arrl-odv:20305] Re: Having Surgery
by w9gig＠arrl.org 09 Nov '11

09 Nov '11

9 NOV 2011 - 1545 CST My father and my father's father died from colon cancer. I have a colonoscopy every three years after a non-cancerous polyp was found and removed about 20 years ago. If there is anybody who reads this message who has been ignoring, or has reservations about, this procedure, please, please contact me. Jim, you will be in our thoughts and prayers until I hear that you are truly in the clear on this issue. 73 - Dick, W9GIG

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[arrl-odv:20301] Magazine Article About Ham Radio
by Bob Vallio 08 Nov '11

08 Nov '11

This is snipped from a reflector to which I subscribe: "K1DG has written an excellent article in the EDN Magazine about development of Ham Radio in the last 60 years and its position in the 21st century. It is worth reading. Doug should be thanked for his work. It shows to the members of the Electronic Industry what we are and what we do. Please spread the word." www.edn.com/article/519742-Ham_radio_in_the_21st_century.php A great job by Doug Grant, K1DG. Why aren't we leading the way? 73, Bob -- W6RGG

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[arrl-odv:20300] Steve Mendelson W2ML in the NY Sunday Newstoday
by Joyce Birmingham 07 Nov '11

07 Nov '11

A very nice article about Steve Mendelsohn - W2ML http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/more-sports/nyc-marathon-cancer-won-t-radi o-volunteer-article-1.972728 ARRL - The national association for Amateur RadioT Joyce A. Birmingham, KA2ANF ARRL Director - Hudson Division 235 Van Emburgh Avenue Ridgewood, NJ 07450-2918 201-445-5924 ka2anf(a)arrl.net

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[arrl-odv:20298] LOTW Processing
by Shelley, Barry, N1VXY 04 Nov '11

04 Nov '11

The following item was just posted on the news crawl on the ARRL web page: The log processing delay for Logbook of The World (LoTW <http://www.arrl.org/logbook-of-the-world> ) remains at approximately 60 hours, with approximately 8000 logs queued for processing. Please do not upload the same log more than once. According to ARRL IT Manager Michael Keane, K1MK, the League has implemented an interim "fast lane" for processing logs: "In order to do this, resources have been shifted from servicing interactive requests to the processing of logs. As a result, LoTW users may notice some sluggish performance. Since these changes have been put into place, the number of logs waiting to be processed has been reduced by approximately 20 percent. The expectation is that this new measure will continue to make inroads into eliminating the backlog." For the benefit of the Board, despite reports from uninformed individuals, the LOTW system has NOT gone down and it is operating as originally designed. The perfect storm of factors including propagation, new countries and participation in the large CQ WW contest the past weekend resulted in an unprecedented number of logs being submitted. Exacerbating the situation was the fact that, for a variety of reasons, there were an usually large percentage of duplicate logs submitted. Some of these were probably the result of the impatience of our members and, we suspect, some may be the result of certain logging programs. Almost 25% of the logs in the queue were duplicates. While they are not processed twice the server does need to go through a process to identify the log as a duplicate and discard it. We have tweaked the processing program to prioritize log processing and this has helped the pace of processing somewhat. It will, however, slow down the response time for interactive users trying to check awards, etc. on the system. At this point, we have done what we can. We will be reviewing the situation and looking at possible solutions as well as the cost/benefit of providing those solutions after we get past this current situation. 73, Barry J. Shelley, N1VXY Chief Financial Officer ARRL, Inc. The National Association for Amateur Radio (860) 594-0212 www.arrl.org

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[arrl-odv:20297] PSC Committee Minutes for the July 2011 meeting
by Bill Edgar 04 Nov '11

04 Nov '11

Attached are the minutes for the PSC during the July 2011 meeting. - Bill N3LLR

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[arrl-odv:20296] PSC Committee Minutes of the July 2011 meeting
by Bill Edgar 04 Nov '11

04 Nov '11

Attached are the minutes for the PSC during the July 2011 meeting. - Bill N3LLR

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