<<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