NETNEWS

by WB6IXN

01/03/2007 10m Phone Net - W6ZE/AF6C checked in IXN, AB, HHC, PFA, N6HC(Arnie), and GMU.  IXN, wid high winds in the San Jacinto Mts. on New Years Day, told PFA that San Sevaine & Crystal seismometers have been off the air for some time.  New Membership Chmn, AB, worked around the house, did sum hamming, and rested up over the holidays as he prepares looks forward to more off-time on Presidents’ Day!  AF6C watched a movie thru midnite New years Eve, and then it was up at 8:00 am. to watch the football game!  HHC, had Monday off wid lots of fun on PSK-31 wid the new Dell computer, working Guadalajara, Russia, Japan, and France, picked up a USB to RS-232 converter, and beat the grandharmonic at poker!  AF6C has a Sensitrol relay wid a switch on both scales which PFA says he used in integrator circuits as current indicators.  GMU is waiting fer his new radio, and HHC announced the Baker-to-Vegas Run coming up in April.

 

01/03/2007 2m Phone Net - W6ZE/IXN checked in JD, AUL, GMU, DLA, AF6C, VDP, HHC, KTS, and KØBWH.   JD, wid the grandkids in fer the holidays, crossed the 70 year mark last Monday, and AUL, bk frm dinner wid friends, and, a happy BD to Lowell,  had to work over the weekend.  GMU, off fer the past two weeks, spent too much, been playing radio, and goes bk to work on the 7th.  NC cud not copy DLA way dwn in the QRN…HHC checked Bruce in…Then Bruce changed rigs and voila!…We were communicating!  AF6C wished JD a belated happy BD, and Bob sent OPs an email article on eliminating RF interference.  AUL suggested putting the article on the Club webpage.  DLA has no idea what is wrong wid the first radio he was using, and VDP will be off to Quartzite to see a friend abt helping VDP to move to AZ…High SA winds took out the corner of Larry’s delta loop ant.  KTS enjoyed a quiet Christmas and New Year, and David got bk frm a MS meeting just before Net.  HHC SKYPE-phone-patched ØBWH into Net frm the Sheldon Trading Post in N. Dakota…Bob now has expanded Sheldon Oil to include a grocery store…The temp in N. Dakota was 30 deg. F.   AF6C then aired ARNewsline #1533…Solar Cycle 24 is going to be a big one!…It will peak in 2010…The Manassas BPL operations are still interfering wid ham frequencies, and the ARRL continues to prod the FCC to discontinue Manassas BPL until they solve interference problems…Tnx, Bob!

 

01/07/2007 OCWN 40m CW Net - NCS/UEB checked in IMW, KFW, OIO, HKT, VDP, IXN, NT, GVG, and NXY.   UEB had a nice eyeball QSO wid NT and IMW yesterday, and today Rick will be taking the harmonic back to UCSD fer the winter quarter.   IMW, running the ARC-5 today, welcomed sig rpts frm OPs today.  And KFW’s XYL started off the year wid a bad cold.  OIO has been sweeping up seeds and seed pods frm the liquid-amber tree, and VDP wid bad band conditions at the QTH, is preparing fer another AZ trip soon. IXN passed along HKT’s report to NCS, and Homer, wid bad band conditions, cudn’t copy most OPs.  NT enjoyed the Rick and Ian eyeball QSO yesterday, and NCS cud not copy GVG.  NXY had strong sigs frm all OPs, and Mike spent Christmas and New Year’s Day in Chicago…Gud to be back! 

 

01/10/2007 10m Phone Net - W6ZE/AF6C checked in CCD, IXN, PFA, KTS, and HHC.  CCD will have cataract surgery next week, and Tom finished installation of the new rig in the truck…Then CCD got the din-din call.  IXN listened to ‘more of the same’ in the Pres. Bush speech, cudn’t find the the band plan update, and must have cataract surgery in the future.  AF6C alerted OPs to a new visible comet in the sky at sunset, and Bob has an antenna rotator problem. PFA’s 7-band vertical is doing a FB job, and it looks like Tom’s old Canon printer has ‘given up the ghost’!  KTS has been doing work on the computer and is now working on din-din while watching TV.  HHC has been chatting wid BWH using SKYPE, and Ken says Bob will join us on 2m later. 

 

01/10/2007 2m Phone Net - W6ZE/IXN checked in JD, N1AB, AUL, KTS, VDP, HHC, DDE, BWH/Ø, AF6C, CCD, and KFW.  JD got an OK report frm the pulmonary doc, and IXN has been trying to get his vision insurance straightened out.  AB plans to plant rose bushes this weekend, WX permitting KØBWH, using a SKYPE phone-patch relayed by HHC, brought back old PA memories wid N. Dakota WX!…wind chill near 0 deg., slippery roads, etc., and Bob, like IXN, will be picking up new glasses…BWH, wid neighbors, will be butchering hogs tomorrow, while Linda enjoys attending their new store!  HHC told VDP that the Club had already renewed the World Radio subscription in Nov!…HHC will check on it.   AUL enjoyed Bfast wid friends last Sat. morning, and Nicolas has 4 or 5 battery holders fer VDP.  KTS, says GE to BWH, and David is working on projects, looking forward to Club meeting next week.  VDP, celebrating the harmonic’s 24th BD wid beer & pizzas, will be off to the new QTH in AZ to do some repair work…IXN will look up W6IJS, Bob Smith, in Club records.  HHC enjoy a tour of the OPD antenna farm, and Ken and DDE are done wid the COAR inventory.  DDE said that 80 deg WX here in CA was a lot better than 20 deg. WX in N. Dakota, and Steve took the trailer to San Dimas fer a campout last weekend.  AF6C will get together wid KFW to work on the Club generator fuel problem, and Bob suspects a bad capacitor or an open wire to be reaponsible fer his dead ant. rotator.  CCD ‘flew in and flew out’.  KFW alerted OPs abt an article on ham radio featuring NOA, Gordy, in the Daily Pilot, a local newspaper.  AF6C then aired the ARRL Audio News fer Jan. 5, 2007…The ISS continues to feature ham radio, making contact with school students in Japan 30 miles north of Tokyo…Astronaut Lopez alegria told the students that being a team player that works well with others is one of the most important attributes of an astronaut…Tnx, Bob!

 

01/14/2007 OCWN 40m CW Net – NCS/UEB checked in IMW, HKT, OIO, IB, RND, KFW, NT, and IXN.  The cold and wind curtailed UEB’s bike riding, but Rick & XYL cleaned out the garage yesterday looking for rats…The XYL was terrified!  IMW gota new job that will require him to be up in Santa Clara fer a few months before he returns bk to Irvine.  OIO is enjoying her FB new windows…Ann doesn’t even know the wind is blowing until she goes out to view the mess!  IB said that the ARRL business is going strong in the Sacramento Valley, and Casey hopes to get out to the horses today and not freeze.  RND cudn’t copy IMW or HKT, and wid an early temp. of 35 deg., John thinks this to be the coldest day this winter…RND will watch two football games today and stay warm!  KFW said it’s so cold it feels like we are in the north country, and Chris announced the OCARC meeting next Friday.  NT, wid a slight pause, forgot to throw the switch, and Ray expects to see ice breakers on the bay anytime now…And NT managed a ’lil DX over the week: Germany, Easter Island and XT2C (NC note: Burkina Faso DXpedition).  IXN didn’t hear HKT or NT in the QRN & QSB, and we hve mice coming into St. Anne School to get out of the cold WX.  NCS cudn’t copy HKT due to high QRN & QSB.

 

01/17/2007 10m Phone Net - W6ZE/AF6C checked in HHC and IXN.  AF6C has almost recovered frm the effects of a ’lil virus going arnd last week, and IXN will give HHC a new mike fer the YAESU 757 at Club meeting Fri. eve…Hopalong, skipalong Ken had a problem staying on frequency as he wandered up & down the band!…Ken thinks the problem is in the microphone or cord, either a short or an open!  HHC told OPs not to forget that our speaker will be Bob Heil at Club meeting Fri. night.  AF6C will air an ARRL Audio News on the 2m Net, and IXN read a blurp frm the Sirius Astronomer on dark matter.

 

01/17/2007 2m Phone Net - W6ZE/IXN checked in AB, KTS, HHC, JD, AF6C, VDP, BWH, AUL, and KFW.  All ears were glued to the rigs as BWH, operating SKYPE thru HHC, brought OPs up-to-date on adventures in Sheldon, ND…Bob is having a great time helping to butcher hogs and cattle in temps. ranging frm 12 above to 20 below zero…And what’s this!…Feeding beer sausage to the Coffee Clutch in the Sheldon Trading Post…(naughty Bob & Linda!)…Oh well, BWH will still get a whole hog & a side of beef when its all over!  During the cold spell last week, AB read 26 deg. on the thermometer, and Steve has an empty QTH now wid his eldest daughter, Sarah, in Baltimore, and his youngest daughter up in Northridge.   HHC reminded OPs to attend Club meeting Fri. eve., and Ken alerted OPs to an article on SKYPE in ‘RF’.  And IXN knows where to pick up a DVD on Bob Heil’s performances on a theatre organ.  Wid Malibu’s 1st snow in 20 years, JD will stay in where it’s warm and toasty, and AF6C solved the furnace noise when he uprighted a tilted burner, and IXN wanted to know if AF6C had a spark arrestor on top of the fireplace chimney…AF6C then called N6NWL wid no response.  VDP reported a +10 deg. temp. at the new QTH in Golden Valley, AZ., and last Sun. nite, the pipes froze but were thawed out by Mon. morning…Now VDP will be off to Quartzite, AZ. next week.  AUL says temps can go up & temps can go down, but temps in the computer room are regulated and always stay the same!  KFW is busy programming a microprocessor, and Chris enjoys the BWH adventures in Sheldon, ND!  AF6C then aired Jan 12, 2007 ARRL Audio News…The FCC holds up issuing new vanity call signs while modifying the software…Two naval RAFT satellites have been launched, NAVO 60, and NAVO 61, and they will be designated as OSCAR satellites…Tnx, Bob!

 

01/24/2007 10m Phone Net - W6ZE/AF6C checked in LDC, HHC, CCD, IXN, and KTS.  LDC, hearing all OPs well but KTS, took the XYL in for outpatient surgery yesterday…And Larry will send in his Club dues or bring them to the Club Bfast.   IXN’s mike did not solve HHC’s wandering frequency problem as ‘Hopalong Ken’ moved arnd the 10m band!…And Ken said that CA is way behind in rainfall, and also said that PFA had suffered a mild stroke, but that Tom is doing well now.  CCD won the rare Heil microphone at the club raffle last Fri. eve…Tom will now construct a cable for the new mike.  IXN read a blurp on spinning black holes and AF6C announced excellent pictures of comet McNaught on the NASA APOD site.  KTS enjoyed Bob Heil’s talk at last Club meeting, and David, in his 2nd transmission, developed weak sigs!…KTS then alerted OPs to an upcoming MS group plans to hold a license class.

 

01/24/2007 2m Phone Net - W6ZE/IXN checked in KTS, JD, AUL, HHC, BWH/Æ, AF6C, AB, KF6EVX(Robert), KFW, EH, KB6COM(Gene), and K6RMR(Stan).  KTS says that the VHF rig might need some cleaning, and David learned a lot frm the Bob Heil talk at last Club meeting.  JD also enjoyed last Club meeting, said HI to BWH, and kicked bk to listen to the rest of the Net.  AUL, at home, plans to check in DX via SKYPE at next Wednesday’s Net!  HHC reported 47 OPs and guests came to OCARC meeting last Fri. eve., and the Club garnered $200 on the raffle!  BWH said the WX was nice in Sheldon, ND, wid heat wave temps of 26 deg. above zero!…And Bob inadvertently found himself on TV discussing the closing of a K-6 elementary school at a group meeting in Sheldon…OPs will try to see Bob’s TV appearance at: www.wday.com , checking the TV Monday News, “Saving Sheldon”.   AF6C had company last Sunday, wid his sister coming in a couple of weeks…And Bob still has a stuck ant. rotator, probably a broken wire! AB ‘flew in and flew out’, EVX, Robert, checked in frm Anaheim…A Tennis Tournament in Fullerton will need 10 OPs to help wid communications…Contact Gene Thorpe, KB6COM, if you can help on Feb 3,4 and 10,11. K6RMR, Stan, checked into Net frm Huntington Beach, and KFW, watching sum TV,  developed a bad cold last week.  EH, wid everyone sick but Paul, will be off in a day or two to put in an application for a ‘change-in-career’ job.  AF6C then aired the ARRL Audio News for Jan 19, 2007…International Morse Code officially ends in the U.S. on Feb. 23!…FCAL is now an OSCAR satellite…KD5DLV wants to set a new record fer ARISS contacts frm space…Tnx, Bob!

 

01/31/2007 10m Phone Net - W6ZE/AF6C checked in KTS, IXN, and HHC.  KTS is busy on the computer wid loan projects and helping friends, trying to get on the “50s Net”, and has not worked on the antenna as yet.  And  AF6C has been moving equipment, dusting, and making room for new test equipment.  IXN had a nice landline QSO wid JOR who brought Bob up-to-date on Silent Key W6COJ, Dave Hollander.  HHC said COJ is probably “still making chili up in heaven”, and Ken had the COAR inventory completed…Then HHC told OPs that disconnecting SKYPE and RS-32 cables, solved the problem of the wandering VFO in the YAESU 757.

 

 

01/31/2007 2m Phone Net - W6ZE/IXN checked in JD, KTS, EVX, ACT(Greg), HHC, KØBWH,VDP, and AF6C.  JD’s XYL will be off next week to visit & celebrate her sister’s BD.  KTS didn’t hear the QRM on the Net tonite, and David is eating din-din after which he will kick back, listen, and relax.  EVX is fighting the flu, and AF6C told Robert that the Fullerton Tennis Match info. is up on the Club webpage.  HHC SKYPEd KØBWH

into the Net frm Sheldon, Iowa…ACT, Bob’s friend and former co-net control on an 80m net, talked wid each other via the SKYPE phone-patch.   ACT enjoyed HHC’s article on SKYPE patching on the Club website, and Greg says he’ll be bk on 2m again for another SKYPE patch wid BWH.  AF6C has an ARRL Audio News for the Net, and, What’s this!!? Bob has loaded his MAC Book wid WINDOWS!!?  HHC and AF6C are looking fer a way to ship Silent Key NGO’s 1100 lb. tower to a ham bk East.  And HHC said that AUL will not SKYPE patch in frm Costa Rica tonite…Nicolas had to attend a company dinner!  ØBWH, VDP, and ACT are all interested in old Studebakers and Studebaker parts.  BWH, just bk frm a coverall bingo game, has been selling fuel at his gas pumps on the honor system…All is OK at present!!…And BWH is busy selling fuel as vy cold WX is expected in Iowa next week!  VDP said there was over 100 hams at the meeting in Quartzite, and Larry said that Parker and Havasu have really grown!  AF6C then aired the Jan. 26 ARRL AUdio News…Come Feb 23, no more code requirement fer a ham license!…AO27 is now operational, details on www.AO27.org…Another SUITSAT will be launched next Fall…also, you’ll pay $20.80 fer vanity call signs…Tnx, Bob!

 

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