What use is an F-call?
Kanal-Details
What use is an F-call?
Starting in the wonderful hobby of Amateur or HAM Radio can be daunting. Using low power with little experience is challenging but can be very rewarding. Every week I look at a different aspect of the hobby, how you as a beginner might fit in and get the very best from the 1000 hobbies that Amateur...
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Welcome
What use is an F-call?
This podcast started life in 2011 when I was asked to record a story I shared during the production of the weekly...
L.A.S. - Lead Arse Syndrome
What use is an F-call?
It seems that there is a disease within the amateur radio community. It's spreading and seems to be contagious. Th...
OQRS
What use is an F-call?
When you make contacts around the world with other amateurs the traditional way of confirming a contact is with a...
Retaining two letter callsigns is rubbish.
What use is an F-call?
Recently I witnessed a discussion about callsigns. As you know, your amateur callsign is akin to your personal on-...
Stop whining and get with the program...
What use is an F-call?
We are part of an amazing hobby where inventiveness, inquiry and exploration is part and parcel of the thing we do...
Stop and enjoy the electrons along the way...
What use is an F-call?
I'm a child of my time and my perspective is the result of input from fellow amateurs. I'm often in the group of a...
How to roll up coax and rope?
What use is an F-call?
When you start in Amateur Radio you'll come across the problem of rolling up coax and rope. If it goes the way it...
The Community Spirit of Amateur Radio
What use is an F-call?
I've talked in the past about the community spirit that is embodied by Amateur Radio. Yes, I know there are severa...
Learn from every outing!
What use is an F-call?
Recently I had the opportunity to participate in a contest that was specifically set-up for QRP. That is, 5 Watts...
Super Check Partial
What use is an F-call?
If you're into contesting, you're likely to have heard of a thing called the Super Check Partial list and if you h...
Your local repeater is like magic...
What use is an F-call?
If you're new to Amateur Radio like I am, it's easy to turn on your radio, set it up to key your local repeater an...
How do you get gain if you don't change power?
What use is an F-call?
Recently I talked about a digital mode that had the ability to give you an estimated gain of 13dB over Analogue FM...
Planning for operating portable
What use is an F-call?
Operating from your shack is a different experience from operating in another station. It's a completely different...
CODEC2 - 13dB gain, what does it mean?
What use is an F-call?
Recently I spoke about digital voice communications. I made mention of the CODEC2 project being developed by Dave...
Share your radio skills with non-amateurs
What use is an F-call?
During the week I had the opportunity to hear several people use a radio in day-to-day communications. In this par...
A rotator on 4 wheels...
What use is an F-call?
As you might recall, I've been struggling to get an antenna installed on my car. It's been a process that started...
A League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
What use is an F-call?
Amateur Radio is about communication as much as anything else. The whole idea is to get a message from one place t...
Self policing license conditions
What use is an F-call?
Over the years that I've been an amateur I've spent many hours discussing the ins- and outs of being an amateur. I...
More on lightning and bonding.
What use is an F-call?
Last week I spent a little time talking about lightning. I discussed how lightning can affect many different thing...
Lightning, not just the radio...
What use is an F-call?
During the week we were subjected to some unusual lightning activity. There was lots to go around and it raises th...
Digital Voice in Amateur Radio is broken...
What use is an F-call?
Digital Voice in Amateur Radio is broken. It's a big call for a mere F-call to make, so let me back that up with s...
WIA Awards System
What use is an F-call?
As you've heard me talk about making contacts with other countries on many occasions, I thought I'd spend a little...
How do nets work?
What use is an F-call?
In the normal day-to-day interaction between amateurs on air we use the procedure to say the other station's call-...
The LCD is a living document.
What use is an F-call?
When was the last time you went online and downloaded a copy of the LCD? Do you even know where to find it? Do you...
Which way is the Grey Line?
What use is an F-call?
I recently spent some time talking about the Grey Line, about the way it moves around and how it will help you mak...
Remember to stop fiddling every now and then...
What use is an F-call?
I've now been an amateur since December 2010. In the time that I've been part of this hobby I've come to understan...
QRM and morons
What use is an F-call?
Man-made interference is a wonderful thing. It allows you to appreciate that there are both people and morons on a...
The Gray Line changes through the year!
What use is an F-call?
In the past I've mentioned the Grey Line. If you recall, this is a twice daily phenomenon. During dawn and dusk, a...
We need mentors!
What use is an F-call?
Amateur Radio is a personal thing. It's an expression of communication, of exploration, of invention, learning, el...
Programming repeaters.
What use is an F-call?
You purchased a shiny new radio and it's all you imagined and it works great and you're over the moon with your pu...
What is your level of preparedness?
What use is an F-call?
Recently I was part of a discussion about emergency preparedness. The idea being that as radio amateurs we're idea...
Raspberry Pi SDR
What use is an F-call?
I've just built myself v1.0 of a Raspberry Pi SDR. It still has some way to go until I can show it off - needs a t...
Share your experiences...
What use is an F-call?
Amateur Radio is a social activity. It's about communication and community. Ironically, as much as we are about ta...
Learning from listening...
What use is an F-call?
As an F-call, working DX, you'll spend many hours looking for that elusive contact, or you'll turn on your radio,...
The QSL card is not dead!
What use is an F-call?
On previous occasions I've discussed the QSL system in Amateur Radio. It's a mechanism that uses what's known as o...
Small Changes can have a Big Effect
What use is an F-call?
Yesterday I learned an interesting lesson. It wasn't a simple lesson to learn, but I'm guessing it's going to take...
Tuning mobile antennas...
What use is an F-call?
I've recently purchased four verticals, one for each of the HF bands I'm allowed to use. I installed them and star...
Everyday Terms, think about them sometimes
What use is an F-call?
In our hobby we come across terms and names that we use and commonly understand, that is, we think we understand t...
Everything Changes All The Time ... pay attention
What use is an F-call?
When you operate your station on a regular basis you might find yourself lulled into the belief that all is well w...
QRP is everywhere
What use is an F-call?
Having a Foundation License, the basic amateur licence in a three tiered system that is in use in Australia, means...