September 2015 - arrl-odv - reflector.arrl.org

[arrl-odv:24665] 95
by Kay Craigie 09 Sep '15

09 Sep '15

Rep. Ros-Lehtinen, FL-27, is cosponsor # 95. 73, Kay N3KN Sent from my iPhone

1 0

[arrl-odv:24662] Wouff Hong experience
by vze18vwgu＠verizon.net 09 Sep '15

09 Sep '15

2 1

[arrl-odv:24651] Docket 15-99, LF and MF bands;
by James F. Boehner, MD 08 Sep '15

08 Sep '15

Does it seem odd that they are not opposing granting us in an allocation in the 135 KHz band where they state there are fifty utilities affected, but opposing the 472-479 KHz allocation where practically NO PLC’s are represented? Perhaps they realize that Hams have had experimental licenses in the LF band with no interference recorded, while there is less experience with the MF band? I suppose they feel they can use the “not enough known as to interference potential” card on MF, and would have to resort to proposing heavy restrictions of our operations on LF. This is indeed “whiney”. I hope the FCC has the good sense to tell UTC that a total of less than 10 KHz of the available 481 kHz of spectrum available to PLC’s is an insubstantial amount, and have them develop frequency agility and mitigation technology needed to accommodate other users (licensed ones, in particular). They are well funded, after all. Just a question I should have asked Brennan in the past-Why is the US still on LF and MF for smart grid technology anyway? ’73 de JIM N2ZZ Director – Roanoke Division Serving ARRL members in the Virginia, West Virginia, South Carolina and North Carolina sections ARRL – The National Association for Amateur Radio™ From: arrl-odv [mailto:arrl-odv-bounces@reflector.arrl.org] On Behalf Of Christopher Imlay Sent: Wednesday, September 02, 2015 5:09 PM To: arrl-odv Cc: <ehare(a)arrl.org> Subject: [arrl-odv:24650] Docket 15-99, LF and MF bands; Shortly after my last e-mail to you about this docket our comments finally showed up in the ECFS. Since then, just now, UTC's comments showed up as well. Not unexpected but their 10 pages of largely whiny comments were startlingly insubstantial. They argue against any allocation at 472-479 kHz; they suggest a firm 1 km separation between PLCs and amateur stations, and argue for an elevation in priority of PLCs in the 2200-meter band and coordination by amateurs. The UTC comments are attached for your review. Do yoga before reading them. We will have to file reply comments in this proceeding, again not unexpectedly. -- Christopher D. Imlay Booth, Freret & Imlay, LLC 14356 Cape May Road Silver Spring, Maryland 20904-6011 (301) 384-5525 telephone (301) 384-6384 facsimile W3KD(a)ARRL.ORG

4 3

[arrl-odv:24655] FCC ET Docket No. 15-170
by Brian Mileshosky 06 Sep '15

06 Sep '15

Chris -- (Board copied for its situational awareness.) Is the League researching/engaging ET Docket 15-170? If so, my bad for not recalling. If not, I believe this is something the League should certainly research and, if determined to be necessary, throw its weight behind. Unfortunately, the FCC is in the midst of an IT upgrade that prevents viewing the original document until 08 September, but the Google-cached page that results from a search on "fcc 15-92a1", the website https://libreplanet.org/wiki/Save_WiFi, and other Google searches should provide details in the meantime. As a result of their IT upgrade, I have read that the comment period has been extended to 09 October. By my read, if what's proposed were adopted, this could directly impact or halt the expansion and development of amateur radio mesh networking, HamWan, and other IP-focused ham applications and technologies that leverage modern commercial wireless networking hardware within the United States. FCC's document is 89 pages long, but the general concern I'm raising focuses on what appears to be its prohibiting of new wireless network equipment from end-user modification (i.e. custom software/firmware loads and perhaps even modification of settings that enable out of band operation, both enable amateur use within Part 97 spectrum). A closer look at some of these applications/technologies: --- Mesh networking. Pretty much every mesh network node across the country in use for experimentation, ARES, public service, casual uses are composed of Ubiquiti and Linksys hardware that have been flashed with custom, ham-developed firmware loads that turn them into functional amateur radio mesh networking nodes on 900 MHz, 2.4, and 5 GHz amateur spectrum. --- HamWAN. A different application of IP within amateur radio spectrum, HamWAN sites are composed of Mikrotik hardware that has been modified by the user (legitimately, at least today) to function within Part 97 spectrum. HamWan is likewise used for experimentation, ARES, public service, and casual uses. The main centers of activity are the Pacific Northwest and Memphis, but the technology is also being adopted by hams in other geographical areas. --- There are other amateur radio applications/technologies that leverage modified commercial wireless networking hardware, too. I'm on the leadership team of a Colorado/New Mexico-based ham organization that, among other things, has developed and fielded a 5-GHz IP-based microwave backbone and network that operates on Part 97 spectrum to enable a whole host of applications (repeater linking, ARES comms, experimentation, etc). It is composed of Mikrotik hardware that has also been modified (legitimately, at least today) to function within Part 97 spectrum. This multi-megabit microwave network doesn't rely on the existence of the internet to function, and presently spans from the southern border of Wyoming down to central New Mexico. We are presently working to expand it all the way down to El Paso, Texas. I'd appreciate your read on what FCC is proposing as it applies to the above amateur radio applications/technologies which, among other things, are creating a fair amount of activity on our lesser used bands. These are only three innovative applications/technologies in use within amateur radio spectrum, and more will surely come about in the future through the use of mods to commercial wireless networking hardware. If your read aligns with mine, I'm pleased to help with the crafting of ARRL commentary to FCC. 73, Brian N5ZGT

4 3

[arrl-odv:24654] Rotary may have the answer to the ARRL's membership woes - KB6NU's Ham Radio Blog
by John Robert Stratton 04 Sep '15

04 Sep '15

Rotary may have the answer to the ARRL's membership woes - KB6NU's Ham Radio Blog Download the Twitter app Sent from my iPad

1 0

[arrl-odv:24650] Docket 15-99, LF and MF bands;
by Christopher Imlay 02 Sep '15

02 Sep '15

Shortly after my last e-mail to you about this docket our comments finally showed up in the ECFS. Since then, just now, UTC's comments showed up as well. Not unexpected but their 10 pages of largely whiny comments were startlingly insubstantial. They argue against any allocation at 472-479 kHz; they suggest a firm 1 km separation between PLCs and amateur stations, and argue for an elevation in priority of PLCs in the 2200-meter band and coordination by amateurs. The UTC comments are attached for your review. Do yoga before reading them. We will have to file reply comments in this proceeding, again not unexpectedly. -- Christopher D. Imlay Booth, Freret & Imlay, LLC 14356 Cape May Road Silver Spring, Maryland 20904-6011 (301) 384-5525 telephone (301) 384-6384 facsimile W3KD(a)ARRL.ORG

1 0

[arrl-odv:24649] Matt Wilhelm
by Kramer, Harold, WJ1B 02 Sep '15

02 Sep '15

Hi, It is with much regret, that I need to inform you that Matt Wilhelm, W1MSW, has resigned as Contest Manager. Matt's last day will be September 11. Matt will be taking a new job at the University of Massachusetts where he was previously employed. Matt has told me that he would like to spend more time with his family. This new position will reduce his commute time from between one and a half to two hours each way to only 15 minutes. As Contest Branch Manager, Matt has done an outstanding job under some difficult circumstances. He has made great strides in improving the contest branch while he was here. We all will miss him. We are not filling the position immediately. Matt has left us in good shape with no immediate backlog. The contest branch workload has grown during the past few years and Dave Patton, along with others involved in processing and fulfilling contest results, will be determining what future resources will be required for the efficient operation of the Contest Branch. 73, Harold Harold Kramer, WJ1B Chief Operating Officer ARRL - The national association for Amateur Radio(r) 225 Main Street Newington CT 06111-1494 Telephone: 860-594-0220 Fax: 860-594-0259 email: hkramer(a)arrl.org<mailto:hkramer@arrl.org>

1 0

[arrl-odv:24648] IN-News
by Kustosik, Lisa, KA1UFZ 02 Sep '15

02 Sep '15

IN-Newsletter Vol. 40, No. 30 September 2, 2015 - Covers the period August 23-29. Upcoming In-Person Meetings and Events Section Managers' Workshop September 17-19 - ARRL HQ Executive Committee October 3 @ 8:30am in Bloomington, MN LoTW Study Committee November 13 @ 9:00am - ARRL HQ Administration & Finance Committee November 14 @ 8:30am - ARRL HQ Director/Vice Director Elections November 20 @ 9:00am - ARRL HQ CEO Office The office will be closed Monday, September 7 in observance of Labor Day. Have a safe & fun Holiday weekend! Sales and Marketing Reported by Bob Inderbitzen, NQ1R Diane Petrilli reports that August ended with 167,449 members, 1048 members ahead of the year-to-date goal. This represents a gain from July of 136 members; a gain of 222 was forecasted. The on-time renewal rate for August is 71.77% vs. 73.86% last August. The top sources of acquisition this month were associated with membership appeals by e-mail, and our direct mail to non-members with upcoming expiring licenses and new hams. Also contributing to acquisition in August were applications received from Austin Summerfest (Texas) and Boxboro (Massachusetts). Jackie Ferriera reports that August product sales were $201,415, falling short of the sales forecast of $216,065. Direct sales were $124,070 (up 12% from Aug 2014); dealer sales were $77,345. Royalties earned on sales of our Kindle e-books were $7,130. We now have 15 titles in Amazon's Kindle marketplace; 6 of those added in August. Yvette Vinci reports that on Tuesday, August 25, a reminder emailing was sent to members with a summary of "What's trending" in September QST-taking advantage of some early analytics shared by Alli Barbieri. The notification was sent to 121,735 members. Summary of warehouse fulfillment activity, reported by Steve Capodicasa: Week ending Packages fulfilled Member Premiums 8/28/2015 788 375 8/21/2015 867 304 8/14/2015 1,123 455 8/7/2015 647 395 Field Services & Radiosport Reported by Dave Patton, NN1N DXCC Paper/Fieldcheck Processing Time 3 Weeks Logbook Processing Time 2-4 Business Days Number of Centennial applications processed: Centennial Challenge QSO 2521 W1AW/WAS 1789 W1AW Scott Gee and Dan Wall have begun to sort out the thousands of W1AW/portable QSL card requests located in the W1AW conference room in anticipation of eventual processing. Scott worked on slow and fast code practice files for the week. he also processed VUCC applications and certificates. Field Organization/Public Service Team Leona Adams reports that the following incumbent Section Managers have submitted nominating petitions to run for a new term of office in their respective sections: Keith Miller, N9DGK (Tennessee), Ed Emco, W1KT (Western Massachusetts), Ron Cowan, KB0DTI (Kansas), Jim Latham, AF6AQ. The next term of office for this particular election cycle starts on January 1, 2016, and petitions need to be submitted to Headquarters by September 4, 2015. Steve Ewald continues to coordinate with fellow staff members and organize the upcoming Section Managers' Workshop that is scheduled to be held at ARRL Headquarters from September 18-20. The twenty one Section Managers are scheduled to arrive in Connecticut throughout the day on Thursday, the 17th. One amateur from Missouri successfully completed requirements to become an Official Observer this past week. Chuck Skolaut received an updated report on operations on 3940 kHz along the west coast. A drift net beacon was heard on 28226.4 kHz by a south Texas station using an ID as "CW." Threats heard on an Arizona repeater were passed along. Questions handled this week dealt with operating overseas, antenna zoning, a pending license renewal and providing communications for a road rally. Chuck returned from a successful ARRL State Convention in Kansas. Sincerely Compiled by, Lisa Kustosik, KA1UFZ Assistant to the CEO Hamfest/Member Contact/ARRL Representative/Meetings/Vacations All Staff 9/7 Holiday Bob Allison 10/18 Connecticut State Convention, Meriden, CT Steve Capodicasa 9/21-9/25 PTO Lauren Clarke 9/3pm PTO `` 9/14-9/18 PTO `` 11/25 PTO `` 12/24 PTO Mike Corey 11/13-11/15 HamJam, Alpharetta, GA Steve Ford 9/3-9/4 PTO `` 10/9-10/11 Digital Comm. Conference, Chicago, IL / PTO `` 10/16-10/18 AMSAT Symposium, Dayton, OH Mike Gruber 9/28-10/2 PTO `` 10/16 NEAR-Fest, NH Ed Hare 9/11-9/13 Southwestern Division Convention, Torrance, CA Dan Henderson 9/3-9/6 Roanoke Division Convention, Shelby, NC `` 10/8-10/18 RSGB Convention, Milton Keynes, UK / PTO Gail Iannone 8/27-9/4 PTO Bob Inderbitzen 10/16-10/18 Pacific Division Convention, San Ramon, CA Debra Johnson 8/31-9/4 PTO `` 9/10-9/14 PTO Dave Pingree 8/19-9/22 PTO Brennan Price 10/16-10/18 Microwave Update, San Diego, CA Barry Shelley 10/1-10/2 PTO Dave Sumner 9/4 PTO `` 9/14-9/15 Findlay Hamfest / Club talk, Findlay, OH `` 9/16am PTO Yvette Vinci 9/4 PTO

1 0

[arrl-odv:24646] FCC's Electronic Comment Filing System and ARRL's Filed Comments in Docket 15-99
by Christopher Imlay 02 Sep '15

02 Sep '15

I have heard from several of the ARRL official family and staff that the ARRL's comments, which were e-filed Monday (on time) via the ECFS on the FCC web site have not yet shown up on the ECFS, though some others have. That would have worried me except that I have a printed copy of the confirmation of filing (showing ECFS filing receipt confirmation number 2015831595358) proving that the comments were filed on time. I nevertheless called the ECFS help line just now and was told that there was a "glitch" (apparently a technical term of art among IT professionals) in the "system" for Monday's filings and 'they are working on it". Because this offers me an overwhelmning sense of reassurance and confidence that our filing is in good hands with dedicated professionals, I will do as they advised and wait a while longer... before complaining bitterly to the Office of the Managing Director. Franz Kafka is laughing at me now from wherever he is..... 73, Chris W3KD -- Christopher D. Imlay Booth, Freret & Imlay, LLC 14356 Cape May Road Silver Spring, Maryland 20904-6011 (301) 384-5525 telephone (301) 384-6384 facsimile W3KD(a)ARRL.ORG

2 1

[arrl-odv:24645] Sen Wicker thanks ham radio & supports The Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2015
by Tom Abernethy 01 Sep '15

01 Sep '15

For your information: Sen. Wicker thanks ham radio operators for their lifesaving role during Katrina & supports The Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2015. http://www.wlox.com/story/29911122/sen-wicker-thanks-ham-radio-operators-for -their-lifesaving-role-during-katrina 73, Tom - W3TOM

1 0