October 2014 - arrl-odv - reflector.arrl.org

[arrl-odv:23491] Ending the month on a high note
by Sumner, Dave, K1ZZ 31 Oct '14

31 Oct '14

As October draws to a close, Bob Inderbitzen and Diane Petrilli report that we have hit the milestone of 165,000 members - the highest that membership has been since 1998. To all the CW operators, CU in SS. 73, Dave K1ZZ

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[arrl-odv:23490] IN-News
by Kustosik, Lisa, KA1UFZ 31 Oct '14

31 Oct '14

IN-Newsletter Vol. 39, No. 30 October 29, 2014 - Covers the period October 19-25. Upcoming Meetings and Events LoTW Study Committee November 14 @ 9:00am in Newington, CT Administration & Finance Committee November 15 @ 8:30am in Newington, CT Director/Vice Director Elections November 21 Lab Reported by Ed Hare, W1RFI Product Review Bob Allison completed testing of a software defined HF/6 meter transceiver. A data table, charts and a comments document were passed along to Product Review Editor, Mark Wilson, K1RO. Upon his approval, the information was then passed along to the manufacturer. Bob also completed testing of an HF handheld SSB transceiver. Testing of this device was previously halted, after a failure of a component. The device was sent back to the factory for repairs and was returned to the Lab. A data table was passed along to Mark Wilson Bob Allison tested an amplified DSP noise cancelling speaker used for communications purposes. Radio Frequency Interference Mike Gruber investigated a U-Verse complaint at K1PAI in Wethersfield. The problem was traced to a switching mode power supply associated with the U-Verse equipment. AT&T (now Frontier) is changing the supply for one that is known to be quiet. Mike Gruber met with Frank Haas, who was here from Florida on tour with his wife. Frank is an RFI investigator for FP&L, and had assisted in the Lakeland case several years ago. Frank also expressed interest in helping with the proposed IEEE Recommended Practice for locating power line noise. Most of the noise on some bands seems to be originated inside the building. I am working with Greg who will assist in a scheduled (and limited) building power shutdown in an attempt to locate the source or sources. Another source of power line noise was located and called in to CL&P's customer service. Mike Gruber had a detailed telephone discussion with Eaton's Jay Haugen to discuss the AFCI problem. Jay is the manager of the electronic circuit breaker division. He hopes that the new "ham friendly" breakers will phase out the problematic breakers in the next few weeks. The new breakers have also been fixing 99% of the RFI issues so far. Regarding the remaining 1%, most problems are being addressed with added effort. A small portion of the remaining 1% are tripping for unknown reasons. These cases may not be related to Amateur radio. Mike Gruber had a teleconference with John Ellis, NP2B and Kermit Carlson to discuss the issues and status of AFCI problems in the Villages, Florida. Sales and Marketing Reported by Bob Inderbitzen, NQ1R Yvette Vinci reports that our team of Member Service Representatives has been proactively promoting the 2015 Handbook before finishing every phone call. Many of them have been successful convincing members to add the ARRL Handbook to an order or membership renewal. Diane Petrilli reports that targeted membership solicitations by email have returned 130+ members this month. The most recent mailing to lapsed and never members is just beginning to return applications; 70+ so far. The next membership campaign is set to mail on Nov 17. Jackie Ferreira is attending the Direct Marketing Association's national convention this week. The event focuses on most effective marketing trends and tactics-social, mobile, search, retargeting, email, analytics, cutting-edge mail, creative - lots of good strategies for igniting additional member engagement. We have promoted the annual ARRL Auction and November Sweepstakes. Planning is underway to add the Kindle (digital) edition of The ARRL Ham Radio License Manual to Amazon. Amazon already carries the print edition--but we're hopeful the introduction of a digital edition will capture additional interest in the book. The Production Department has already delivered the file--and we're finalizing pricing and other marketing strategies. Summary of warehouse fulfillment activity (reported by Steve Capodicasa): Week ending Packages fulfilled Member Premiums 10/24/2014 938 880 10/17/2014 1,814 120 10/10/2014 1,077 187 10/3/2014 703 682 Membership & Volunteer Programs Reported by Dave Patton, NN1N DXCC Paper/Fieldcheck Processing Time 2 Weeks Logbook Processing Time 3-5 Business Days Field Organization/Public Service Team The Oregon OOC, along with his OOs, is investigating a jamming that's occurring on a local 440 repeater. Updated information was received regarding a net on 3.908 kHz in the western part of the country. Several reports of a station continuing to operate on 75 meters with a very wide signal were received, and the information was forwarded to the FCC. Extensive documentation was received from a North Carolina OO who was helping relay the report from neighbors of a local CB operator that's using high power and causing trouble with interference to their consumer equipment and power breakers. This situation has been going on for an extended period of time, and the information was forwarded to the FCC. Chuck Skolaut ran a morning code practice session at W1AW and gave a tour of headquarters. Steve Ewald has also been filling in as a back-up operator at W1AW while staff members are away from the station. Steve has been working with the Production Department to edit a portion of the 2014 QST CD-ROM that covers Section News reports from this past year. Leona Adams reports that Mississippi Section Manager Malcolm Keown, W5XX, has been nominated to run for another term of office. Also, Wyoming Section Manager Garth Crowe, WY7GC, has been nominated to run for another term of office. There will be an election in Wyoming since Jack Mitchell, N7MJ, was nominated (as reported already) earlier in October. Nominations for this particular Section Manager election cycle are due at HQ by December 5, and new terms of office will begin April 1, 2015. Sincerely Compiled by, Lisa Kustosik, KA1UFZ Assistant to the CEO Hamfest/Member Contact/ARRL Representative/Meetings/Vacations All Staff 11/27-11/28 Holiday All Staff 12/25-12/26 Holiday Leona Adams 11/7-11/10 PTO Bob Allison 11/26 PTO `` 12/5-12/8 PTO `` 12/17 Jury Duty `` 12/22-12/24 PTO Steve Capodicasa 11/24-11/26 PTO Joe Carcia 11/3 PTO `` 11/5 PTO `` 11/14 PTO `` 12/5 PTO `` 12/12 PTO Lauren Clarke 11/25-11/26 PTO `` 12/24 PTO Jackie Ferreira 10/24-10/31 DMA Conference / PTO Steve Ford 11/24-11/28 PTO Scott Gee 12/24-12/29 PTO Dan Henderson 11/14-11/16 Indiana State Convention, Ft. Wayne, IN `` 11/24-11/26 PTO `` 12/17-1/6 PTO Debra Johnson 11/11 PTO `` 11/24-11/26 PTO Sean Kutzko 12/12-12/19 PTO Diane Petrilli 12/22-12/24 PTO `` 1/26-1/30 PTO Barry Shelley 11/6-11/7 PTO `` 11/18-11/20 Risk Strategies, Chicago, IL Chuck Skolaut 11/4 PTO

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[arrl-odv:23489] McGan Award voting recap
by Sumner, Dave, K1ZZ 29 Oct '14

29 Oct '14

For the record, all 15 Directors voted in favor of the McGan Award resolution. Dave K1ZZ

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[arrl-odv:23488] Cape Cod PAVE PAWS visit
by Sumner, Dave, K1ZZ 29 Oct '14

29 Oct '14

Dan Henderson recently paid a return visit to the Cape Cod PAVE PAWS facility. While his report mainly addresses the planned upgrade of the radar some of its content may be of broader interest. Please keep the report Board confidential. Incidentally, while most of the rules governing the Amateur Radio Service are in Part 97, §97.313(f) makes reference to footnote US270 in §2.106. We have added the footnote to the website at http://www.arrl.org/us270 which is also reachable from the Part 97 section at www.arrl.org/federal<http://www.arrl.org/federal>. 73, Dave Sumner, K1ZZ _____ On Monday Oct 27th I met with the new commanding officer, Lt. Col. Dave Anderson at the Cape Cod PAVE PAWS site. The meeting was to continue the good working relationship we have been able to maintain with both the Cape Cod and Beale staffs, as well as to ascertain the current "climate." Several things were discussed that have the potential to affect amateurs on the 70-cm bands in and around the Cape Cod site as well as associated with other USAF sites. 1) The long-anticipated upgrade of the Cape Cod radar to the more sensitive UEWR (upgraded early warning radar) that has been in place at Beale is scheduled to commence in the summer of 2015. The anticipated completion timeline for the project is the end of the US FY 2016, approximately October 2016. There will be new EMI interference tests done as part of the certification process for the UEWR, so it is entirely possible that sometime in 2016 a new round of mitigation to Amateur Radio repeaters in the Cape Cod area will need to be addressed. The Air Force continues to see the ARRL as a good-faith partner in addressing this issue long term and I assured Col. Anderson of our continued willingness to cooperatively address future problems. If/when new interference sources are found by their testing, I did re-confirm that we would be provided with an audio recording of the repeater ID in question in order for us to be able to ensure the repeater/source of the interference was properly determined. They see no problem with that procedure continuing. 2) The commanding officers of the various radar site operating under the 21st Space Surveillance Wing (which includes Beale, Cape Cod, Eglin, Clear, Cavalier, in the US as well as sites in Greenland and the UK) hold a weekly teleconference. Col Anderson conveyed that very few issues related to interference from Amateur Radio sources have come up in those teleconferences although there have been references to growing interference at Eglin. It is not clear that amateur stations are thought to be the source but it bears watching. 3) There has been very little interaction between the New England Spectrum Management Council and the base staff in the past 3-4 years. This coincided with the elimination of their full-time PIO, who was a civilian but proved to be a strong asset to connect many constituencies with the base. Col. Anderson wants the local community (amateurs and the non-amateur population) to see the base as a integral part of the community. I offered from the Amateur side, to work with his staff in "re-connecting" with key players within NESMC and local Amateur clubs when requested. Col Anderson also expressed his willingness to build ties with the community, building a good public relations base as they upgrade their site. As one small step, I will be working with Col Anderson to visit ARRL HQ in the first couple of weeks of December to learn more about Amateur Radio. This meeting is still to be scheduled pending their travel schedules, etc. I believe the meeting went exceptionally well, and served its purpose to continue to keep the good working relationship between the ARRL and the Air Force on interference mitigation on track. We have understood that the PAVE PAWS project was never a "one time" fix. I am confident that we are continuing to build on the excellent foundation of the past several years. More challenges may indeed arise, but the working model we have established with the Air Force/Beale/Cape Cod still appears to be in good working order. Dan Henderson, N1ND Regulatory Information Manager ARRL, the national association for Amateur Radio 860-594-0236 dhenderson(a)arrl.org<mailto:dhenderson@arrl.org>

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[arrl-odv:23487] IN-News
by Kustosik, Lisa, KA1UFZ 27 Oct '14

27 Oct '14

IN-Newsletter Vol. 39, No. 29 October 22, 2014 - Covers the period October 12-18. Upcoming Meetings and Events LoTW Study Committee November 14 @ 9:00am in Newington, CT Administration & Finance Committee November 15 @ 8:30am in Newington, CT Director/Vice Director Elections November 21 Regulatory Information Reported by Dan Henderson, N1ND HR 4969 has been the primary focus of work in the Regulatory Information office since the beginning of July. Work continues to support the Washington team and the membership in soliciting co-sponsors for the bill. Lists of FCC amateur radio licensees in 132 congressional districts from 34 states have been prepared and distributed by the DC team to members of Congress, quantifying the number of their constituents this legislation potentially affects. To date, approximately 5,000 letters have been received and distributed on Capitol Hill from ARRL membership supporting HR 4969. We have continued to make updates to various web pages, including most recently the updated Mobile Amateur Radio policy adopted by the Executive Committee at its October meeting. Some updates on reciprocal operating information have been added to the various pages on the ARRL web. A meeting is scheduled for Monday October 27 with the new Commanding Officer at the Cape Cod PAVE PAWS radar site. We also are investigating the report of a business purchasing the inexpensive BaoFeng 70-cm HTs, programming them to several amateur frequencies and using them unlicensed for their company's business communications. We are seeking more information from the party making the initial report before considering the next course of action. We continue to work with the new Contest Branch manager, mentoring him as he learns the job. Sales and Marketing Reported by Bob Inderbitzen, NQ1R We successfully represented ARRL at Pacificon, October 10-12 in Santa Clara, California. The event was the last of the 6 ARRL Regional Centennial Events sanctioned this year. Our exhibit area spanned 4 booths-primarily serving as a membership meet-and-great area and promoting publications and products. Ed Hare was among the Pacificon forum presenters. President Kay Craigie gave the banquet keynote address. Pacific Division Director Bob Vallio W6RGG presented the division's Ham of the Year Award to John Bigley, N7UR for his outstanding contributions to the Amateur Radio Service. Our exhibit contributed revenues of $22,722. There were 148 membership applications returned totaling 296 membership years, including 1 new Life Membership pledge, 36 new and previous members, and 111 renewals. Product sales topped $11,000 (Orlando $10.5k, and Huntsville $8k). We sold nearly $1,000 of the new "Arduino for Ham Radio" book-our top selling book at Pacificon. A $1,000 contribution was accepted from a member for ARRL Foundation scholarships. The ARRL team of staff and officials included Kay Craigie, N3KN, Bob Vallio, W6RGG, Vice Director Jim Tiemstra, K6JAT, Section Managers Brandon Bianchi, NI6C, Ron Murdock, W6KJ, Bill Hillendahl, KH6GJV, Gary Grant, K7VY, Jim Latham, AF6AQ, Dan Pruitt, AE6SX, and Rob Griffin, K6YR; and staff Yvette Vinci, KC1AIM, Lauren Clarke, KB1YDD, Diane Petrilli, KB1RNF, Bob Inderbitzen, NQ1R, and Ed Hare, W1RFI. Bob Inderbitzen posted photos to ARRL's Facebook<https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152527933037408.1073741863.2006…> page throughout the event. Diane Petrilli had reported that September ended with 164,679 members, a gain of 89 over August (a gain of 232 was forecasted). We have 1,799 members over the year-to-date goal. 71.83% of September 2014 expirees paid on time (vs. 73.80% last September). A 40,000-piece membership mailing was sent on October 10. Responses have not started to come in yet. The previous membership mailing, sent last month, has returned at 1.65% 5 weeks out. A Columbus Day membership emailing brought in nearly 50 members. Other seasonally-themed appeals will email later in the month. A test membership mailing to new hams started this week. We are testing responses to the QuickStart Guide vs. a new mailing that includes a 2015 ARRL Calendar. Jackie Ferreira reported that September product sales were at $245,796, exceeding the sales forecast of $176,896. Direct sales were $154,801; dealer sales were $90,995. Year to date sales are $2,351,898; ahead of forecast by $176,664. Among the top publication sellers was "Arduino for Ham Radio"--contributing $28,234; 1,208 units. The Centennial edition "ARRL Handbook" stocked out in early September-helping clear the deck for the introduction of the 2015 edition "Handbook" in October. A 2015 "Handbook" solicitation, which mailed to 60,000 members and past purchasers, continues to drive-in orders. The response rate has already exceeded 1.3%. Now Shipping: The 2015 "ARRL Handbook" hardcover<http://www.arrl.org/shop/ARRL-Handbook-2015-Hardcover-Edition/> and softcover<http://www.arrl.org/shop/ARRL-Handbook-2015-Softcover-Edition/> editions, and the 2015 ARRL Calendar<http://www.arrl.org/shop/ARRL-Calendar-2015/>. Advance orders have all been shipped. Copies to Directors will ship within the week. Yvette Vinci prepared the email notification for the November 2014 digital edition of QST, distributed to ARRL members on Wednesday, October 15. The distribution list included 114,976 members--up a bit from last month (114,693). Our email distribution list for Publication & Product Announcements has just crossed 80,000 subscribers-up 6,000 from October 2013. The list includes 78,000 members who receive new publication announcements and special offers throughout the year. Summary of warehouse fulfillment activity (reported by Steve Capodicasa): Week ending Packages fulfilled Member Premiums 10/17/2014 1,814 120 10/10/2014 1,077 187 10/3/2014 703 682 9/26/2014 789 655 Membership & Volunteer Programs Reported by Dave Patton, NN1N Field Organization/Public Service Team Steve Ewald traveled to the Arkansas State Convention in Batesville on Saturday, October 18, to represent ARRL Headquarters. Director David Norris, Past President Joel Harrison and Steve gave presentations during the forum. Arkansas Section Manager Dale Temple, W5RXU, was there and several other Arkansas Section Leaders also attended. Leona Adams has been working on updates and additions to ARRL Field Organization appointment data base. She has also been sending out initial supplies and informational correspondence to new Field Organization appointees. We have also noticed an increase recently in the receipt of Section Manager expense reports. Radio amateurs from Missouri, Michigan, and Western Washington successfully completed requirements to become Official Observers this past week. Chuck Skolaut compiled and sent the monthly Official Observer Summary to all OOs, OOCs, and Section Managers. Several reports were received regarding a station on 75 meters with a wide signal. Several complaints were received about a station operating on 28.425 MHz that's causing problems and possible interference. The Orange OOC outlined problem areas there and possible ways to address them. Chuck was in the operator's chair to handle a morning code practice session at W1AW. Education Services Reported by Debra Johnson, K1DMJ We published a Fall issue<http://www.arrl.org/files/file/Radio%20Waves%20Newsletter/Fall%202014%20Rad…> of Radio Waves in September. The distribution went to 10,448 addresses. License Instruction Instructor and Teacher registrations continue to pour in. We received 148 registrations between Sept. 1 and October 15. Quite a few of those registering as an instructor mention that they are planning to start license instruction anew in their communities. As a result of our development of a web page where we can publish online classes, the Long Island instructor who has been using this web page to provide information about his classes has been receiving an overwhelming number of inquiries and is now offering sessions for as many as 50 students at one time. He is enrolling students from across the US, including Hawaii and Alaska. ARISS On October 17 the US partners opened a window to accept new proposals from US educational institutions that seek to host an ARISS contact. The proposal window will remain open until December 15, 2014 for contacts to be scheduled in 2015. For details visit www.arrl.org/hosting-an-ariss-contact<http://www.arrl.org/hosting-an-ariss-contact>. Several contacts planned for October have had to be rescheduled due to changing schedules on the ISS related to a delayed Space X launch and changes in various planned EVAs. The only US contact thus far in October was last Friday, Oct. 17 with students at Indiana Area School District in Indiana, PA. This was s telebridge contact with astronaut Alexander Gerst, KF5ONO. There is one more contact scheduled on Oct. 25 with the Explorer's Club, in New York City before crew replacements that will result in a hiatus when no licensed US crew will be on board. September contacts in the US included the following: September 3: A direct contact between students at the Evansville Day School, Evansville, IN and astronaut Greg (Reid) Wiseman. Students prepared for the event during the summer practicing radio contacts and participating in license classes. Read more<http://www.courierpress.com/news/2014/may/24/eds-students-will-use-ham-radi…>. View a local media story<http://www.tristatehomepage.com/story/d/story/students-contact-astronaut-on…> about the contact. September 8: A direct contact with students at St. Joan of Arc School, Lisle, IL. Students interviewed astronaut Alexander Gerst, KF5ONO. The lead teacher attended the ARRL Teachers Institute in July 2014. Listen to a local media report<http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2014/09/08/students-at-lisle-school-chat-with-a…> and an interview<http://www.therainreport.com/> with the lead teacher by Hap Holly on the Radio Amateur Information Network. September 9: A direct contact with students at Lanier Middle School and Lanier Cluster Schools in Sugar Hill, GA. Listen to a local media report<http://www.gwinnettdailypost.com/news/2014/sep/09/radio-contact-allows-lani…> about the contact. During the September-mid October time period the ARISS team also supported 5 contacts internationally, included contacts with schools and educational venues in Germany, Japan, Russia, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. NASA's contractor, CASIS<http://www.iss-casis.org/>, which manages the ISS National Lab, has confirmed with ARISS leadership that the ham radio station will continue to be a welcome payload in the ISS National Lab. CASIS has promised to dedicate support from their development staff to help raise in-kind and/or funding support to sustain the program and improve equipment. NASA's Satellite Communications and Navigation (SCaN) Program has made a commitment to provide funding for the operational support of the program through March 2015. Sincerely Compiled by, Lisa Kustosik, KA1UFZ Assistant to the CEO Hamfest/Member Contact/ARRL Representative/Meetings/Vacations All Staff 11/27-11/28 Holiday All Staff 12/25-12/26 Holiday Steve Capodicasa 10/27 PTO `` 11/24-11/26 PTO Joe Carcia 10/24 PTO Lauren Clarke 11/25-11/26 PTO `` 12/24 PTO Jackie Ferreira 10/24-10/31 DMA Conference / PTO Dan Henderson 10/27 Cape Cod Pave Paws site `` 11/14-11/16 Indiana State Convention, Ft. Wayne, IN `` 11/24-11/26 PTO `` 12/17-1/6 PTO Debra Johnson 11/11 PTO `` 11/24-11/26 PTO Sean Kutzko 12/12-12/19 PTO Diane Petrilli 12/22-12/24 PTO `` 1/26-1/30 PTO Barry Shelley 10/23-10/24 PTO `` 11/6-11/7 PTO Chuck Skolaut 11/4 PTO

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[arrl-odv:23486] Logbook status
by Sumner, Dave, K1ZZ 24 Oct '14

24 Oct '14

Logbook of The World processing stopped yesterday afternoon. Uploads are being received and are queued. IT staff is working on the problem, well aware of the flood of CQWW logs that will be hitting the server starting on Sunday night. We'll post a public status report shortly. Dave K1ZZ

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[arrl-odv:23484] Fw: A Message from Congressman Tim Bishop
by Mike Lisenco N2YBB 22 Oct '14

22 Oct '14

Good Morning ODV, I just received this email from a member. While Congressman Bishop (NY-1) has already informed us that he will co-sponsor HR-4969, this email response to our member shows that Mr. Bishop really understands. This is very encouraging. 73 de Mike N2YBB From: ARTHUR SUHR Sent: Wednesday, October 22, 2014 9:57 AM To: n2ybb(a)arrl.org Subject: FW: A Message from Congressman Tim Bishop Mike, I sent a letter to Congressman Tim Bishop and below is his reply. Art. (N2BJL) n2bjl(a)optimum.net -------- Begin forwarded message -------- Subject: A Message from Congressman Tim Bishop Date: 10/21/14 05:45:21 PM From: NY01TBCRM(a)housemail.house.gov To: n2bjl(a)optimum.net October 21, 2014 Mr. Arthur Suhr 7 Kristal Court Coram, NY 11727-2340 Dear Mr. Suhr: Thank you for contacting me regarding the Amateur Radio Parity Act. It is important for me to have the benefit of your views, and I appreciate you taking the time to contact me. As you know, restrictions may be put in place by builders or homeowners associations (HOAs) preventing licensed amateur radio operators from erecting modest antennas from their homes. The Amateur Radio Parity Act would direct the FCC to extend the “reasonable accommodation” provisions to those amateur radio operators who live in deed-restricted communities, thereby allowing amateur radio operators to install this equipment to enjoy their hobby or provide information to their community. There are more than 720,000 licensed amateur radio operators in the United States. While amateur radio is often regarded as a hobby, it also serves the public during times of emergency when other communication lines may be inoperative. Regardless of its intended use, amateur radio operators should not face unreasonable restrictions based on where they live. The Amateur Radio Parity Act was referred to the House Energy and Commerce Committee last June. It awaits further consideration by the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology Subcommittee. You can be assured that I will support this legislation if it is considered by the full House of Representatives. Thank you again for sharing your views. I encourage you to visit my website at http://timbishop.house.gov for more information regarding this and other issues that I am working on in Congress. Please do not hesitate to contact me again if I can be of any other service. Sincerely, Tim Bishop Member of Congress TB/ts Washington Office 306 Cannon H.O.B. Washington, DC 20515 Phone: (202) 225-3826 Fax: (202) 225-3143 Patchogue Office 31 Oak Street, Suite 20 Patchogue, NY 11772 Phone: (631) 289-6500 Fax: (631) 289-3181 Southampton Office 137 Hampton Road Southampton, NY 11968 Phone: (631) 259-8450 Fax: (631) 259-8451

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[arrl-odv:23481] New Signer
by Jim Pace K7CEX NW Division Director 22 Oct '14

22 Oct '14

With local persistence and a good letter writing campaign, Congressman Peter DeFazio (D-OR) has agreed to become a co-sponsor for HR 4969. The Northwestern Division has had some success in its efforts to find co-sponsors but seems to be facing a little resistance due to some spirited campaigns leading up to this election and having large geographic areas that are not impacted by antenna regulations. Even so, we now have two and are about to engage in a final push. I attribute the success we have had to the hundreds of Hams that took on the challenge, and attempted to mimic the 'blue card campaign' of Mr. Maxim and Mr. Tuska. My hat is off to the NW Division members. 73 and good Hamming Jim, K7CEX

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[arrl-odv:23480] LoTW Transparency Suggestion
by Bob Vallio 22 Oct '14

22 Oct '14

Below is an unattributed and well-stated suggestion to me for "us" to react more quickly and positively when an LoTW problem is discovered. ------------ "Have you seen the rash of complaints about LoTW being down? It would be helpful if the League had a blog, or even a twitter account where they could post the status of LoTW. Today, finally, there is a notice posted: The Logbook of the World servers have been accepting logs for the past day but processing of those logs has been delayed. Processing should begin by noon today (1600 UTC on October 21, 2014). The queue status page exists. However, it clearly shows LoTW isn’t processing logs. The question that always arises is - does HQ staff notice that the LoTW service is down? A bit of info - “Hey, we know LoTW is having trouble, stay tuned” would go a long ways. *Of course, my reply to a lot of the complainers is - QRX and chill."* ------------ The bolding of the text on that last line was added by me, to point out that his comments are not confrontational. Is there merit in having a blog or twitter account for the purpose he has suggested? Are there monetary costs attached to our doing so? Are there membership costs to our not doing so? Bob Vallio, W6RGG

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[arrl-odv:23479] HQ Systems Shutdown
by Shelley, Barry, N1VXY 21 Oct '14

21 Oct '14

All: The following news item will be posted to the ARRL Web site and the LoTW User Group later this afternoon. HQ Systems will be down for maintenance. Beginning at 6 pm tomorrow evening (2200 UTC on Wednesday, October 22nd), ARRL Headquarters systems will be taken down to perform maintenance functions. This will impact operations of Logbook of the World, On-line DXCC, the Centennial web sites and e-mail coming in and out of the building. E-mail sent to ARRL HQ will be queued for delivery once the systems are restored to operational status. The systems will be down for approximately 3 hours. Access to the ARRL web site (www.arrl.org<http://www.arrl.org>) will not be affected. Thank you for your patience as we upgrade certain key components of our infrastructure. For your information only, the IT staff will be replacing one of the firewalls with an upgraded appliance. 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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