March 2009 - Western Illinois Amateur Radio Club
Contents
1. and certificate programs It s a good source of information about updates to DXCC the Logbook of the World LoTW Triple Play Award and many others The URL has recently changed Check it out at http www arrl org blog Century 20Club 20Aw ards Thanks to the ARRL DX Bulletin the Daily DX and the Ohio Penn DX bulletin for some of the information in this month s column 73 and good DX Cliff KOCA Club wants old Memorabilia Do you have any old photographs of club members or club functions Maybe old newsletters Articles written by previous or current members Or even old membership rosters If so please contact Todd AB9QW as the WIARC would love to borrow these items to scan for the WIARC archives Photographs may be in digital format or more likely old style prints If you would care to scan the photographs and forward them on that s fine Otherwise if they could be borrowed for a week or so the items could be scanned and catalogued then returned Todd email is toddc psba com or call 223 4605 For Sale Todd AB9QW has Aerial Targeting material available This is a 12 wide white material used to lie on the ground for reference points during aerial photography fly overs You can use this stuff to form your call letters see the Upcoming events column You will need about 40 linear feet of the material per 10 feet high letter 5 00 letter Contact Todd at toddc psba com or 223 4605 Feedline 2 From2. THE FEEDLINE Volume 33 Issue3 The Voice of the Western Illinois Amateur Radio Club Hello Everyone de WM4D As write this can not believe it is almost March Time flies when you re having fun In an earlier note encouraged everyone to rekindle their activity in our hobby What can you do Some thoughts are Volunteer to help with Field Day or the Swapfest perhaps become a VE and assist Mike and Arlyce They have been carrying much of the load for the Volunteer Exam program More Volunteer Examiners would be a great help to them It would be a good thing if more of our club members would check into the local Adams County Emergency Net on Wednesday evenings Danny Pease NG9R has been named net manager and will be working on improving participation Do come out and enjoy our programs this year and fellowship with your fellow hams Future programs will soon be posted on the web www wYawe org We had an excellent program presented by Kevin Dicks at our last club meeting on the Geographic Information System Even though have visited the Adams County GIS website in the past had not explored some of the useful tools which are available The day after the presentation went to the website overlaid a Continued on page 2 INSIDE THIS ISSUE 1 From the Desk of the President DX and Computer Horizons Moved and Seconded Wanted amp For Sale Dues and Top 10 Signs Year of the QSO Party A Wan Nh S Digital TV in Quin
3. ates are going up on May 11 The first class one ounce rate will go from 42 cents to 44 cents Post cards will be 28 cents Rates to Canada will be 75 cents and to Mexico will be 79 cents Airmail to all other countries will go up to 98 cents For more information the announcement is at continued on page 2 Sa a U Feedline 1 virtual border of my property lines and using one of the measuring tools calculated could place a beverage antenna from a tree just outside my garage to the Northeast corner of my property with a few feet to spare Check it out www adamscountygis com Click to launch the Map Viewer click the down arrow in the Find drop down box at the top of the page select Parcel by Owner to find your property and then you can use the various tools to do a number of tasks Also at our last meeting we discussed this year s Field Day A brief Kangaroo Court was held and Bill Morrison N9UPG was volunteered to be the field day chairman This was all in good fun of course Bill did hit the bricks the very next day in an effort to reserve one of our top three location picks for Field Day Unfortunately all of our preferred locations were reserved An effort will be made this June 01 to reserve Madison Park for 2010 Hopefully we will announce this year s field day location soon The annual audit of the club books was completed on February 17 and everything was found to be in order One last personal n
4. cy Part IM March 2009 DX amp Computer Horizons October 2009 by Cliff Ahrens KOCA As type this the ARRL DX CW contest is in full swing For those of us who wonder where all the DX is at the bottom of the sunspot cycle a quick listen this weekend answers the question Good DX is still there We just need to listen and tune the bands Another great chance to work a lot of DX is during the ARRL DX Phone contest March 7 8 Now here s some highlights of DX operations planned in March PYOF Fernando de Noronha Look for Bill W9VA and Jim K9PPY signing PSOF from Fernando de Noronha an island off the Eastern coast of South America from March 3 19 VK9M Mellish Reef AA7JV and HA7RY are planning a low key simple DXpedition to Mellish Reef from March 22 to April 6 Their callsign will be VK9GMW They will be active on 160 and 80m More information on their trip is at www vk9gmw com Mellish Reef is about 900 km East of Australia QSL via HA7RY direct with 2 U S for up to three cards per envelope They prefer you do not use IRCs They plan to upload their log to LoTW D4 Cape Verde Islands Seven German hams will be on the air from the Cape Verde Islands March 11 25 Callsigns and QSL info are D44TXQ via DL3KBQ D44TXP via DL1COP D44TXF via DG3KAF D44TXR via DL2RSI D44TXI via DH2KI D44TXS via HB9EHQ and D44TXO via DJ2VO What seems to be an annual spring ritual is the USPS postage rate increases U S postage r
5. e See The two photos above show the converter box in operation The small antenna is connected to the From Antenna type F connector on the rear of the box Also on the rear is an Output to TV type F connector which goes to the TV using the supplied cable set the converter box to output the analog signal on channel 4 by means of a small switch on the rear ch3 or ch4 The TV was tuned to receive on the same channel ch4 in my case From then on all channel selection is done with the remote control supplied with converter Follow the instructions in the User Manual for intial setup of the converter box The picture on the left has a signal strength page selected from the menu It permits rotating the antenna for strongest reception At 72 as shown the received signal is an estimated 33 dB more than 1000 times above the digital threshold The picture on the right courtesy of KHQA DT shows optional information available about the program The program information is sent along with TV picture using Program and System Information Protocol PSIP Feedline 4 The photo above shows the rear of the converter and the antenna The loop is used for reception of UHF signals and the adjustable dipole is used for VHF reception There is a high pass low pass circuit inside the antenna base for multiplexing the two antennas to a common output In addition to an RF output ch 4 the converter also provides demodulated audio and video It can be very useful i
6. e tests 9 9 Only tracks in the road are hoofprints May amp 8 Aug 10 Graffiti on the tree trunk says Mike NA9Q moved the President appoint a net Osama was here manager who will ensure regular net operation Arlyce NB9Q seconded Motion passed At 8 40 pm it was moved for adjournment by Danny NGOR and seconded by Ben WM9DX We adjourned Any errors or omissions are the responsibility of Your Secretary Ed W9NTG Dues for 2009 are Due If you have not already done so 2009 dues are due by the March meeting Any current member not paying their dues by then will be removed from the membership roster Dues can be paid at the club meeting or via the club mailing address WIARC PO Box 3231 Quincy IL 62305 3132 Checks should be made out to WIARC Dues are 20 and a family with more than one members gets a reduced rate of 20 for the first member and 10 per additional family member in the same household Year of the State QSO Party update A whole bunch of state QSO parties are water under the bridge Vermont Delaware Louisiana Minnesota Mississippi and North Carolina Participation was pretty good in some MN and NC fair in others LA and MS and pretty pitiful in others DE and VT There were quite a few HI and AK stations on for ARRL DX as well Check the ARRL web for rules for this year long event a a s s I _ Feedline 3 Digital Television in Quincy part 3 de K2PEY C
7. formation is based on direct communication with KHQA WGEM and WQEC WTJR s web site stated their discontinue date of January 20th 73 Joe K2PEY Addendum de N9JF As K2PEY noted in this installment there are antenna requirements for the new HDTV system for those of us out in the boonies Since the change over on Feb 17 we have no useable signal from Channel 10 a condition also noted by several of our neighbors Part of my assignment for this weekend is to check the connections to our outside antenna a rather modest commercial model mounted only 20 or so above the ground If it isn t up to the task there is a better one forget where got it parked on the roof of the house along with the other VHF UHF antennas II try it at whatever height it needs to be though sure hope it doesn t have to go up at 110 e Feedline 5 WIAWE W90AB The Western Illinois Amateur Radio Club Inc WIARC homepage http www w9awe org e mail to w9awe qsl net WIARC email reflector wiarc mailman qth net Sponsors of Voice repeater W9AWE R on 147 630 030 Quincy Voice repeater W9AWE R on 146 340 940 Quincy Voice repeater W9AWE R on 147 795 195 Quincy Voice repeater W9AWE R on 448 900 443 900Quincy All voice repeaters use 103 5 sub audible tone APRS digi peater W9AWE 1 on 144 390 Quincy Digi peater W9AWE 2 on 145 910 Quincy ILQDX PacketCluster node W9AWE on 144 910 Quincy ILLINOIS QSO PARTY Newsletter input due b
8. hanges after February 17 2009 shown below Quincy KHQA 4 89 same 7 1 2 7 174 180 Quincy WGEM 3 55 same 10 1 2 3 10 192 198 There is a low power analog translator station broadcasting on channel 18 W18CJ licensed to Three Angels Broadcasting Network Inc Based on FCC data their antenna appears to be on the WTJR tower FCC rules allow W18CJ to continuing broadcasting in analog after February 17 Low cost digital converters began to come available in January 2008 ordered my first 40 coupon from the Government then It arrived in late March Two days before it arrived Walmart had a large supply of converter boxes delayed a day in trying to buy a converter and found their supply depleted Neither Radio Shack nor Best Buy had any either Apparently ZIP code 62301 mailings were made en masse purchased the RCA DTA800 Digital TV Converter Box with coupon about 10 and the RCA Performance Series Indoor Antenna 8 97 It s all you need to be receiving digital TV signals in Quincy with an older analog TV set Indoor reception in a second floor bedroom was very good for all stations The converter box comes complete with a remote control RF coaxial cable box to TV Quick Start Guide and User Manual paeas d ston ue Card Let e3 o euam recom onere gt z P j E cn IAA TIA TAE DWA ea 5 i ty a a p 5 Amanna 2 g j x i aiga Fehi im nai erin a rs p awl bem e TIH Eeg ii ars a e a last
9. n allowing the old VCR to record new digital programs Limitation The RCA DTA800 does not provide a bypass function In order to receive analog over the air signals such as Quincy channel 18 W18CV it is necessary to manually change the cables If bypass is important in your application find another converter such as the Zenith DTT901 The WGEM website lists 14 converters When connection is required to a really old analog set which has no type F coaxial antenna connection on the rear only 300 ohm screw terminals it will be necessary to purchase a 300 ohm 75 ohm balun Antenna Requirement Summary Antenna selection is the most difficult decision because of the many associated variables such as distance from the TV transmitter elevation blockage due hills or buildings local interference The only sure approach is to conduct a test before making a final setup Here are some suggestions related to the Quincy area Within 10 miles of the TV transmitters a small indoor antenna will likely be satisfactory 10 to 20 miles out Try the small indoor antenna first but expect that a small outdoor antenna at say 15 ft may be needed remember higher is always better 20 to 40 miles out Expect that a medium size outdoor antenna at about 30 ft will be needed 40 miles out Heroic measures may be needed a large antenna with a collocated low noise preamplifier at a minimum of 30 ft placed in an optimum location in the local area The preamplifier c
10. osting between 30 and 60 will effectively negate the feedline cable loss thereby permitting best antenna placement as determined experimentally Late Breaking News On the evening of December 10 2008 the U S House of Representatives approved anew DTV Transition Bill which specifically directs the FCC to develop and implement a program by Jan 15 to encourage and permit where technically feasible the continued broadcasting of analog signals with DTV education information and emergency messaging after the Feb 17 transition date The program will be in effect for a 30 day period beginning Feb 18 The bill passed the Senate in November and now goes to the President for expected signature The final chapter has not yet been written Epilogue Since this article was written on December 17 2008 the US Congress voted to extend the transition date from February 17 2009 to June 12 2009 Despite this vote however many television stations have decided to terminate analog transmissions much sooner than June 12 In Quincy analog transmissions from three of the four major stations has stopped WTJR ceased analog transmission on January 20 WQEC and WGEM ceased all analog transmission as originally planned on February 17 The FCC denied KHQA permission to terminate analog transmission as planned As a result KHQA will continue analog through June 12 Coupons for converter boxes are now available through March 31 or while the supply lasts This in
11. ote concerning my taking pictures of local ham stations The few people have contacted thus far all want me to wait until their shack is cleaned up In some cases this really destroys the character of the place It does not have to be perfect All want is a shot of some of our club members at their operating positions Lastly Take care and hope to see you soon Ken WM4D 4 FEBRUARY MEETING MINUTES The meeting was called to order by Ken WM4D at 7 35pm followed by introductions He announced that the Treasurer was out of town There will be a report and audit at the March meeting The Dec Minutes as published in The Feedline were moved for approval by Mike NA9Q and seconded by Bill NJUPG Motion passed Mike NA9Q chair of the repeater board stated the work on the antenna on the Channel 7 tower is still on the agenda Old business The dinner meeting was attended by 42 Bill N9UPG volunteered to reserve the same room for 2010 The tentative date is 9 Jan Continued page 3 www usps com prices pricechanges htm It s not too early to start including the new postage rates in your QSLing The Rochester ARC is hosting another WODXCC and Contest central convention on July 18 2009 in Rochester MN They hope to feature a report from the K5D Desecheo DXpedition members For more information see http www wO0dxcc com The ARRL s Century Club Awards Web log covers DXCC as well as other ARRL awards
12. page 2 Top Ten Signs you are on a road you The class has 3 studying for Extra and 3 for Tech shouldn t be on New business Mike N9GXW reported receiving a thank you letter 1 Only signs say Township from the school for our help during last year s races Maintenance Ends and Open Mike NA9Q asked about the status of the Range Livestock equipment donated by an estate Danny NG9R said 2 Ruts are dated 1926 it is still pending awaiting the return of the executer 3 All the houses you pass have only The Field Day location tentatively will be in a city AWD pickups in the driveways park Bill N9UPG is chair with help from Mike 4 The only driver you meet stops and NA9Q Mike N9GXW moved to reimburse Bill for up asks you for directions to 50 for the park rental Seconded by Ben 5 People in the last house you passed WM9Dx Motion passed stood and watched you with their There was discussion about keeping the roster up hats removed to date and distribution of membership cards Ken 6 Deer in the road don t move because WMA4D will follow up they ve never seen a car before Mike NA9Q stated there will be a test session at 7 Sign on the lane you passed says 9 30 am at the Red Cross on 7 Feb Don t nobody live here and Don t There will be another test 10 Mar for those Ask completing the class and anyone else who desires at 8 Mailboxes have hitching posts PSB amp Assoc at 7 pm There will be mor
13. y the 20 of the preceding month Editor Jim Funk N9JF jfunk fossnorthamerica com or n9jf arrl net Western Il Amateur Radio Club PO Box 3132 Quincy IL 62305 3132 March meeting Wednesday March 4 2009 Blessing at 14 7 30 PM conference room C in the basement adjoining the cafeteria 2009 dues due ce a Ee Feedline 6
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