Amateur Radio Training and License Available

Dear Friends in Emergency Preparedness,

Here are some opportunities to learn and license in amateur (ham) radio.  Spread the word among like-minded friends.  If you're interested, please respond to the appropriate instructors ASAP so they can arrange for the necessary manuals.  The fee to take the exam for FCC licensing is $14.  After this list of upcoming courses, I have added other information about learning amateur radio.

Technician is the entry level licensure by the FCC as an amateur radio operator, General is next and Extra is highest.


From Morris Farmer, callsign AD7SR - Technician course

• Class:           Technician 
• Start date:     Beginning Monday, January 20th from 7pm to 9pm
•                      continuing every Monday thereafter for approx 6 to 7 weeks
• Location:       Holladay, UT
• Cost:             Instruction:  FREE    Book:  $25.00  Testing fee:  $14.00
• Contact:        Email Morris Farmer AD7SR@comcast.net

Bill Rouleau, AE7UI and I will be teaching a course to assist you in becoming a Ham at the introductory, Technician, level.  The course will begin on Monday, January 20th and run for approximately six or seven weeks.

It will be taught at my home where you will have the opportunity to have a hands on experience with Amateur Radio equipment.  Classes will start at 7PM and run for two hours each week.  We will use the ARRL Technician Class License Manual and will have books available the first couple of nights of the course.  Books cost $25.00 each which goes to UARC (the Utah Amateur Radio Club).  There is no charge for the course itself.

If you are interested in taking the course, or know someone that is, please have them contact me, Morris Farmer, AD7SR at AD7SR@comcast.net.  I will send more details about the course and provide directions to my home [abt 5000 S and 1450 E, Holladay]."

Ron Speirs, callsign K7RLS - General course

• Class:           General 
• Start date:     Beginning Tuesday, January 14th from 7pm to 9pm
•                      continuing every Tuesday thereafter for approx 6 to 7 weeks
• Location:       Murray, UT
• Cost:             Instruction:  FREE    Book:  $30.00  Testing fee:  $14.00
• Contact:        Email Ron Speirs:  K7RLS@comcast.net

Ron Speirs will giving instruction starting Tuesday, January 14 in preparation for licensing as General amateur radio operator.  "There is no cost for the class; we only suggest that the students buy the ARRL General Class License Manual, $30.  It has all the information that they need, including the entire question pool."  He will have those for sale at the class but needs a count of individuals planning to attend.  "The only other cost is $14 for the testing fee, which goes to the team who administers the test at the conclusion of the class."  The course will be held in the vicinity of 4200 S and 1100 E in Murray, either in his home or at a nearby church.

For further information, including final location for the class, contact Ron, K7RLS@comcast.net.

From Morris Farmer, callsign AD7SR - General course

• Class:           General 
• Start date:     Beginning in April on Monday Evenings
•                      continuing thereafter TBD
• Location:       Holladay, UT
• Cost:             Instruction:  FREE    Book:  $30.00  Testing fee:  $14.00
• Contact:        Email Morris Farmer AD7SR@comcast.net

I will be teaching a General Class upgrade course beginning approximately the middle of April on Monday evenings."  Contact Morris at AD7SR@comcast.net.

From Morris Farmer, callsign AD7SR - Extra course

• Class:           Extra
• Start date:     Beginning Wednesday, January 15th from 7pm to 9pm
•                      continuing every Wednesday thereafter for approx 16 weeks
• Location:       Holladay, UT
• Cost:             Instruction:  FREE    Book:  $25.00  Testing fee:  $14.00
• Contact:        Email Morris Farmer AD7SR@comcast.net

Ron Speirs, K7RLS, and I will be teaching a course to assist you in upgrading to Extra.  The course will begin on Wednesday, January 15th and run for approximately sixteen weeks.  It will be taught at my home where you will have the opportunity to have a hands on experience with Amateur Radio equipment.  Classes will start at 7PM and run for two hours each week.  We will use the ARRL Extra Class License Manual and we will have books available the first couple of nights of the course.  Books cost $25.00 each which goes to UARC (the Utah Amateur Radio Club).  There is no charge for the course itself.

If you are interested in taking the course, or know someone that is, please have them contact me, Morris Farmer, AD7SR at AD7SR@comcast.net, or Ron Speirs, K7RLS at K7RLS@comcast.net.  We will send more details about the course and provide directions to my home [abt 5000 S and 1450 E, Holladay]."

Additional information:

If you are interested in supplementing your training by online resources, here is one: http://www.hamradiolicenseexam.com/index.html

You can preview and practice online for free (e.g., http://www.dxzone.com/cgi-bin/dir/jump2.cgi?ID=5626 and http://www.dxzone.com/cgi-bin/dir/jump2.cgi?ID=19673), although you don't get personalized tracking of your scores and weak areas as you would at the subscription site.

You can see more free sites at:   http://www.dxzone.com/catalog/Ham_Radio/Exams/Exam_Practice/

Some people study solely from manuals or online and attend a testing session to obtain their license.  Here is a schedule of many of the test sessions locally in the coming months: http://www.xmission.com/~uarc/testinfo.html
If you go this route, you would need to check if the session you choose would be open or allows only class participants to test.

Here is some general information about obtaining a license in amateur radio:
http://www.qrz.com/i/ham-radio-howto.html.



Of course, there is no limit on the information you can find online.  Here is a little more information:
www.BeReadyHerriman.blogspot.com,  Thursday, February 5, 2009:

Getting Started with Ham Radio

We've occasionally been asked how to get started with Amateur (Ham) Radio. Here's how to get started in a nutshell:

1.  Understand the basics of ham radio .
2.  Prepare for the exam

• Find a class to attend
• Check out The ARRL Ham Radio License Manual from the library or buy your own copy or take the study course online (more expensive).
• If you are already have a good background with electronics, you could probably review the FCC rules and regulations that apply to Amateur Radio and pass the test without a class. Download the question pools to ensure your knowledge is adequate.

3.  Take online practice tests (you will first test for the lowest level of Technician, but can take exams for                 General and Extra Class licenses; select the appropriate level from the links)
4.  Schedule and take the real exam.
5.  Set up a station.
6.  Get on the air and get involved by networking with other ham radio operators in the community  .

FAQ:
Q: Do you have to know Morse Code to get an Amateur Radio license?
A: NO!

Q: Why is amateur radio helpful in emergencies?
A: When traditional communication methods (landlines, cell phones) fail, ham radio is available.

Q: Is ham radio expensive?
A: It varies just as much as buying a television varies. You could go for a small radio with fewer options or a very expensive unit with all the bells and whistles. When you're licensed there will be many other hams who are willing to give suggestions.
Posted by Be Ready Herriman

Following up on the last question (expense), see my article:
http://www.slcfoothillnetham.blogspot.com/2012/02/what-radio-should-i-purchase.html
Even since it was posted, there are many more options for radios, including the Baofeng radios.

If you get your license, please let me know so I can pass on a list of local ham nets that would be useful for starting your amateur radio experience.  For future reference, the SLC Southeast Division Emergency Communications Net is held each Thursday at 9 p.m., simplex frequency 147.50 MHz.

Please share this information.  Many of the recipients on this email already have their amateur radio licenses and can attest to the camaraderie and satisfaction of providing a valuable service in communications for emergencies and public events . . . and ham radio can be just plain fun!

Susan Smith
KJ7ABC

2014 Utah VHF Society Swap Meet

The 2014 Utah VHF Society Swap Meet

Date:          Saturday, February 22nd
Location:     Davis County Fair Park Legacy Events Center
                  151 South 1100 West
                  Farmington, Utah
Time:          9am opening time

The 2014 Utah VHF Society Swap Meet will be held on Saturday, February 22, 2013 in Farmington at the Davis County Fair Park Legacy Events Center with the doors opening at 9:00 AM.

This is the same location as in 2013, but note that the starting time - 9:00 AM - is one hour later than in past years.

As usual, admission will be Free to current members of the Utah VHF Society with a nominal charge for non-members.  There will also be a charge for table and/or floor space should you be going there to sell your stuff.  If you do plan to sell something, doors will open at 8 PM for set-up.

Click here for the Utah VHF Society posting and more information:

The 2014 Utah VHF Society Swap Meet

Training Comment for the SLC SE Division Net

Training for the December 26, 2013

Salt Lake City Southeast Division Emergency Preparedness Net

By T. Michael Smith (KM7TMS)

System Fusion

As perhaps many in this audience know, early radio transmitters used spark gaps to produce radio frequency oscillations in antennas.  It was an on and off carrier, key type of technology.   Efforts to reduce interference and obtain even waves led to a CW -- or a wave of constant amplitude and frequency.  The general license manual I’m reading tells me that Morse code is considered a digital mode (5-3).  The advent of wireless telegraphy around the turn of the 20th century led to Marconi and Braum winning the Noble Prize in 1909.  Radiotelegraphy was off and running, only to be later eclipsed by the advent of voice wireless technology.  Then came our electronic computers and the communications world significantly changed again. We Hams have many forms of digital communication in addition to our continuing CW. Today’s important digital forms include a lingering radio teletype (or RTTY), and packet, and D-star and the new Yaesu digital.  This evening the last is my main topic – the emerging digital Yaesu offering.

Yaesu FTM-400DR

 If some of you have been following what little we publicly know about this developing technology, you realize it promises to offer strong competition to our previous digital modes and place Yaesu firmly within the Ham digital market.  You also know that it is now arriving.  It is labeled “System Fusion,” perhaps because of its very interesting marketing move to offer two new digital transceivers and a new UHF/VHF repeater which repeater can receive and transmit both analog and Yaesu digital signals.  System Fusion is “FM Friendly,” apparently meaning both analog and Yaesu digital users can share one new Yaesu repeater and communicate with each other.    The most visual part of the system‘s roll-out are its two digital transceivers, as few users will start with the repeater.  A digital dual band handheld called the FT1DR and a dual screened dual band mobile called the FTM-400DR are offered.  I refer you to the Yaesu website and something like the recent HRO catalog for more particulars.

Being more of an ICOM man, I was not very familiar with Yaesu’s development, until I recently became part of the team that is working to outfit the Salt Lake City Public Safety Building’s Ham Radio Room.  The Yaesu system had been under corporate development for some time and a few rumors of such development would occasionally be heard in the Ham community.  Perhaps you heard some.  Fortunately for our SLC team that was advancing the equipment purchase list to city authorities, Yaesu was just going public when we needed them to be opening up.  Marvin Match was leading the team and I thank him for his electronics expertise.  Thanks to the team’s work and progress with SLC Emergency Management, I can say tonight that our city’s Ham Radio Room will have a Yaesu digital component.  But, don’t get the notion that we have just gone digital Yaesu.  The room will also have a D-Star, packet, CB and possibly in the distant future, HF capability.  We have focused on the 2 meter and 70 cm bands, analog and digital.

Because this new SLC digital Yaesu component is becoming part of what we do, Susan and I will be adding digital and mobile Yaesu’s to our personal radio gear.  Perhaps, some of you may want to consider such for your stations.

Digital communications have become very popular in the land radio market because of their clarity and information capabilities. Digital communications have a reputation of occupying narrower bandwidth than analog, making their use of frequency space more efficient.  Yaesu chose the C4FM method of digital communication.   This 4 level frequency shift key approach is currently a leading, popular technology that encodes bits of data as frequency shifts.  The competing D-Star signal uses, and lauds a narrower bandwidth path in its transmission.  The Yaesu’s is said to be about twice as wide, and hence, claims a greater capacity.  As long as the larger width is not a problem for your local frequency neighbors, the Yaesu approach could be better for passing more data.  I’m among those eager to try this new equipment.

Icom IC-2820H

Before anyone gets overly excited about the arriving Yaesu technology, I remind my Ham buddies that with a D-star and free D-rats software, I can digitally communicate with other Hams around the country or even abroad if I so choose.  And, I can do it on my rather simple, inexpensive 2 meter/70 cm transceiver at low wattage with a simple small antenna.  Some operators even go with just the standard internet and a dongle device that replaces the radio.  D-star has been around long enough to grow a distribution of repeaters, although it’s a little lean locally, and also reflectors, over much of the country and some of the world, not to mention all the user groups, online reference tools, known nets and frequency locations.  With that Icom perspective, I note that we all now will have the additional opportunity of trying a new, competing Yaesu technology, and then watching it grow and develop.  If we get the Yaesu equipment in and up by April, we can anticipate a digital Yaesu component in the spring 2014 ShakeOut drill. 

This is KM7TMS returning the microphone back to net control and standing by for questions and comments you may want to advance.