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The rich history of ham radio culture

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Re: The rich history of ham radio culture

#101

Post by justin66 »

BobbyTables2 wrote: post #98
simonw wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I got my HAM license in the USA a while ago. I'm in it mainly for the emergency communications side of things: I live in a coastal community in California with three roads in and out, all three of which can be affected by affected by storms, earthquakes etc. I've joined ARES: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amateur_Radio_Emergency_Servic... - which coordinates to provide HAM support for emergency communications. If a b…

Jus curious, respectfully, is ARES still relevant? These days it seems like a few portable cell towers should outstrip what a motley group of HAMs can humanly do. About 30 years ago, the people I met who were into ARES seemed a bit weird — sorta a radio version of “preppers”. Maybe I was just in an area not prone to earthquakes…

"If a big earthquake temporarily disables a chunk of communications infrastructure." OP is talking about the kind of thing that kicks in if that cell phone network, or 911 response, or what have you is compromised.

Re: The rich history of ham radio culture

#102

Post by wkjagt »

mordae wrote: post #58
CalRobert wrote: post #12

As the internet gets more balkanized, censored, and controlled by a few giant companies, it makes me think that it's time for a different hobby. Something that can be used to subvert censorship (remember the whole "interprets it as damage and routes around it" conceit?) and is more hobbyists and less corporate sounds appealing. Is Ham that hobby? I am genuinely asking. A few days ago a thread here had lots of people…

It's mostly old guys erecting large antennas to connect their boat anchor tube radios to, from what I read online. It's a great hobby if you are in it for the actual tech itself. Check out e.g. https://pysdr.org/ for a nice introduction. There is https://www.rtl-sdr.com/ to get you started and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_Radio for more advanced stuff. You don't need a license to listen! Also, people are doing s…

Old guys are amazing. They have a lot of knowledge and stories to share. I got into ham radio earlier this year, got my license too, and now learning CW (Morse). I've learned so much from these "old guys".

Re: The rich history of ham radio culture

#103

Post by chillingeffect »

BobbyTables2 wrote: post #98
simonw wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I got my HAM license in the USA a while ago. I'm in it mainly for the emergency communications side of things: I live in a coastal community in California with three roads in and out, all three of which can be affected by affected by storms, earthquakes etc. I've joined ARES: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amateur_Radio_Emergency_Servic... - which coordinates to provide HAM support for emergency communications. If a b…

Jus curious, respectfully, is ARES still relevant? These days it seems like a few portable cell towers should outstrip what a motley group of HAMs can humanly do. About 30 years ago, the people I met who were into ARES seemed a bit weird — sorta a radio version of “preppers”. Maybe I was just in an area not prone to earthquakes…

Ham range can be 100s or >1000 of miles. Cell towers much shorter, under abs max ideal conditions 45 miles. And require much more config and admin.

Hams aren't "motley." They're well-organized. That's why they appear to you as "preppers."

Re: The rich history of ham radio culture

#105

Post by BenjiWiebe »

simonw wrote: post #27
ianburrell wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Amateur radio is not that hobby. There are significant restrictions on what it can be used for. And providing uncensored communication for others is not allowed. Amateur radio is not for public use like public park. It is like a public golf course, where have to pay for membership and can only use it for certain things. Also, amateur radio does not have that much spectrum for the bandwidths we expect for internet. Th…

I agree that understanding the restrictions on HAM usage - including the ban on encryption, and strict rules on what kind of material can be broadcast (since anyone can hear it) - is really important. You don't have to pay ongoing fees: the initial outlay in the USA is $35 for the license (you have to pass the exam) plus the cost for your equipment (~$70 for the cheaper HAM radios on Amazon), but after that there are…

There is a renewal fee for the license, every 10 years. But it's negligible.

Re: The rich history of ham radio culture

#106

Post by wkjagt »

assimpleaspossi wrote: post #75

It's interesting how I read so often of people calling this HAM. Such as, "Is Ham that hobby?" below. I first got started in amateur radio with my novice license in 1966. We always called it "ham radio" or "amateur radio" or said I was a ham radio operator but no one ever called it HAM or spelled it in all caps. On HN, at least, I see it every time the subject is brought up. And it seems to be a fairly recent event.

I noticed this week that even Radioddity doesn't know it's not an acronym.

"Whether you’re a first-time buyer or a seasoned HAM, we hope you’ll find our products, prices, content and resources to be just what you need."

https://www.radioddity.com/pages/about-us

Re: The rich history of ham radio culture

#107

Post by II2II »

wkjagt wrote: post #102
mordae wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's mostly old guys erecting large antennas to connect their boat anchor tube radios to, from what I read online. It's a great hobby if you are in it for the actual tech itself. Check out e.g. https://pysdr.org/ for a nice introduction. There is https://www.rtl-sdr.com/ to get you started and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_Radio for more advanced stuff. You don't need a license to listen! Also, people are doing s…

Old guys are amazing. They have a lot of knowledge and stories to share. I got into ham radio earlier this year, got my license too, and now learning CW (Morse). I've learned so much from these "old guys".

I think a lot of it depends upon how you are exposed to the stuff. When I started studying more my license, I was interested in the technical side of things and dreaded having to learn Morse. I got lucky in that the requirement was dropped before taking the exam, but it still left a sour taste in my mouth. It also doesn't help when you go to the local hamfest and sizable fraction of the gear on the tables is tube related. It gives the impression that the hobby is not only stuck in the past, it is stuck in the distant past.

Don't get me wrong, I am fascinated by tube computers. Yet that has more to do with being interested in modern computers and having a desire to learn about how we got to where we are today. Without that interest in the contemporary, the historic would have little relevance to me.

Re: The rich history of ham radio culture

#108

Post by Carrok »

anal_reactor wrote: post #79
chinchilla2020 wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Technical hobbyists also have a genuine interest in technical work. Contrast this with the flood of new college graduates who have minimal interest in engineering, yet want the high salaries that tech was famous for (until recently).

I really wish I was more passionate about tech, but I'm not. I open IDE in my private time about once per year. Computers just aren't that fun to me anymore, they became the symbol of the absurdity of modern society. I greatly prefer to have a walk outside. This is sad and I'd love to have my hobby back, but I don't see a way I could change this.

Well, anal_reactor, it can be about more than tech for techs sake. My side projects help actual people in the real world, so working on them feels like more than twiddling bits.

Re: The rich history of ham radio culture

#109

Post by hilbert42 »

dyauspitr wrote: post #89
hilbert42 wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"…a bunch of racist humor" Huh, perhaps where you are but I've never heard any of note. AR is pretty clean in that respect, self-policing works very well.

Yes your experience is heavily location dependent.

OK, I'll have to accept that expansion. Was it mostly on VHF (would seem more likely)?

Re: The rich history of ham radio culture

#110

Post by hilbert42 »

shiroiushi wrote: post #94
hilbert42 wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

""Old dudes being boring" for sure are a staple of the ham radio community, but if you come into it with prejudice, you probably won't have the experience you want or make many friends." Ha, one of the great modern (and unsung) ironies of Amateur Radio can only be seen from today's perspective. When I first got my amateur license decades ago long before the internet, amateurs would find themselves on the end of dispa…

>I've often wondered why Amateurs don't rub this fact home to the Great Unwashed with much glee They probably have, but using a communications medium that only they ever use, so no one else knows or cares.

Likely so. :-)
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