Courage Kenny Rehabilitation Institute Handiham World Weekly E-Letter for the week of Wednesday, 29 April 2015

Welcome to Handiham World.

In this edition:  

·         Of all the stuff to worry about... Tigers?

·         The week's question answered: How does your summer operating change?

·         Do you know braille and live in the Twin Cities?

·         Check into our daily nets.

·         The Remote Base HF report:  W0ZSW scheduling begins.

·         May audio is in production and April audio is on line.

·         There are some summer tips.  (Like how not to wash your HT.)

·         ...And more!

Read or listen here. 

Courage Kenny Rehabilitation Institute Handiham World Weekly E-Letter for the week of Wednesday, 22 April 2015

Welcome to Handiham World.

In this edition: 

• Daylight changes the bands.  Is that good or bad?
• The week's question answered: Do you take an HT along with you regularly?
• Check into our daily nets. 
• Take a dip in the pool: We look at statistics.
• The Remote Base HF report:  W0ZSW scheduling comes up.
• May audio is in production and April audio is on line.
• There's some stuff on our radar screen this week, including a privacy issue the FCC is asking about.  
• ...And more!

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But first, we are really starting to notice the longer hours of daylight here in North America.  How does that affect our on the air activity?

It seems like just yesterday it was dark when I woke up in the morning and dark right after our evening meal.  Believe me, I pay attention to this because I have two dogs to walk.  Anyone who has a dog knows that they need to go out when they wake up in the morning, throughout the day at strategically planned times, and finally for an evening stroll.  You tend to notice when it is dark outside because you may need to take a light to see and be seen while walking along the park paths or in the street.  During the winter, when the nights are really long and there are few hours of daylight, you have no choice but to hitch up the dogs and head out into the dark.  Doggies cannot wait extra hours for daylight. 

Anyway, that pretty much assures that I know that there is more than enough night to go around all winter long.  Nights in the winter are primo for great, reliable skywave communication on bands like 160, 80, and 40 meters.  

Read or listen to the entire edition here. 

Courage Kenny Rehabilitation Institute Handiham World Weekly E-Letter for the week of Wednesday, 15 April 2015

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Welcome to Handiham World.

In this edition: 

• Fasten your seat belt - change is coming!

• The week's question answered: Checking VoIP audio quality.

• Check into our daily nets. 

• Take a dip in the pool: A question for rookies.

• The Remote Base HF report:  W0ZSW network gets a reboot.

• April audio is on line.

• We get an Icom IC-7200 for Radio Camp!

• ...And more!

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But first, are you ready - mentally - to accept change?

I was browsing through my digital copy of the recently-released May QST, and one of my first stops was the Eclectic Technology column by Steve Ford, WB8IMY.  Steve's topic is "State-of-the-Art Homebrewing", and he covers a circuit simulation program, which allows designers to test a circuit in a software simulation rather than by building a physical circuit.  Simulators have been around a long time for pilot and driver training, but for electronic circuits?  This sure wasn't on my radar screen, but when I think about it, circuit simulation is as revolutionary a development as there is for homebrewers - or "makers", as they are called today.  I think I'd like to retire the term "homebrewer" for ham radio parlance and leave it for use by hobbyists who brew their own craft beers.

Another one of Steve's topics is home circuit board production, but not with chemical etching.  Oh, no - this is way different.  It's about a $1,500 circuit board printer that "prints" two-layered printed circuit boards to the specs you set forth in your circuit design software. 

Yikes!

You can already get circuit board design software for free, and one point five kilobucks isn't that much, either.  You can bet that in a year or two the technology will be even more capable and cheaper.  3D printing is now a thing, and the ham radio maker community is on board.  Look for replacement parts and original designs to start gracing the ham shack in short order.  As if all this isn't enough change to pack into a single column, Steve polishes off the page with news about new very rapid charging lithium-ion batteries using titanium dioxide nanotube technology that can survive 10,000 charging cycles!  

Read or listen to the entire story here. 

Courage Kenny Rehabilitation Institute Handiham World Weekly E-Letter for the week of Wednesday, 08 April 2015

Welcome to Handiham World.

In this edition: 

• W0ZSW has begun TS-590S testing.  We consider HF competency!
• The week's question answered: A great idea for an indoor loop antenna.
• Check into our daily nets. 
• Take a dip in the pool: Two questions about operating near band edges.
• The Remote Base HF report:  Thunderstorm season begins!
• April audio is on line.
• NLS cartridges should go out Thursday if all goes well.
• ...And more!
  
  
  Listen or read the entire edition here. 

Courage Kenny Rehabilitation Institute Handiham World Weekly E-Letter for the week of Wednesday, 01 April 2015

Welcome to Handiham World.

In this edition:

    W0ZSW to begin TS-590S testing soon.

    The week's question answered: Yes, we do allow cats and dogs into the ham shack.  (But you already knew that, right?)

    Check into our daily nets.

    Take a dip in the pool: There are 10 kinds of people:  Those who understand binary and those who don't.

    The Remote Base HF report:  Thunderstorm season begins!

    W0ZSW needs a new trustee.

    April audio is in production.

    ...And more!  Listen or read here.