Police Activity - AT MY QTH !!!

If you listened to the local scanner feed, you may have heard there was activity at my QTH sometime around 5:00 AM local time this morning. Lemme tell you what I now happened

From what I heard, some moron was in a high speed chase with the cops. After crashing his car (Assuming for a second it wasn't stolen) into a utility pole in front of my apartment building (And taking out the bus stop bench next to it in the process), he then ran toward the building looking to get in. When that failed, he tried hiding in people's patios & (Supposedly) was also shooting at the cops. When the cops finally got air support & flooded the area with light, they found him hiding ON MY MOM'S PATIO (She lives in the same building I do, only next door)

My own patio OTOH looks like the stuff there had been disturbed & moved around but thankfully not broken :)

All this happened while I sound asleep & dead to the world

I'm OK but it's still kinda creepy

Anyway.....Just wanted to let everyone know in case anyone had heard about it & was wondering.....

Where I've Been Lately.....

For those of you who don't follow me on Twitter (Or haven't been doing so), the reason I haven't been blogging lately (Though I've been online via my Android) is because the HD in my laptop died & I had to buy a replacement. Due to the economy & my financial situation, this took quite a while. I first had to secure a new HD (That was Step One)

This was the EASY part (Thanks to Best Buy & Buy.com :) )

Step Two was FINDING SOMEONE TO STICK THE NEW HD IN & PUT WINDOWS ON IT. This proved to be EASIER SAID THAN DONE !!!!!

The first stop on my journey was to the nearby Office Depot (Which has the TechDepot service dept). They wanted $200 EVEN THOUGH I already bought the HD & all that was simply needed was someone to stick it in the laptop & put Windows on it. The guy gave me some lame ass excuse for justifying the expense about having to stick it in & then run diagnostics on it but I didn't buy it (At this point, I'm thinking What part of the word NEW does he not understand?)

My next stop was GeekSquad from the Best Buy store I got the new HD from in the first place. They told me they needed the recovery disk (Which I currently don't have though will order ASAP!). If I had that, they'd have been happy to do it. That made sense (Some places won't do such repairs without it. That's life)

At this point, I'm thinking if Big Business either can't or won't do it for some reason (Understandable or not), then I'll take my business where it will help BOOST THE ECONOMY !!!!! Hence my 3rd (And THANKFULLY final) stop - A little corner computer repair shop down the street from my QTH

While I was there, I asked them if they took in old computers & parts for recycling. They said yes. I told them I had a monitor from an old Desktop I used to have (The tower already went to another small computer shop a few weeks before but they couldn't take the monitor). They told me to bring the monitor in when I pick up my laptop. I did

Not only did I find a new computer hospital to take my computer to when it needs to be fixed I ALSO managed to get rid of my old, antiquated (Circa 2001) Desktop PC to boot. How 'bout Dem Apples ????? :D

As for being online only via my Android, well let's just say that MY FINGERS COULD NOT WAIT for me to get the laptop home & setup again (That meant THEM BEING RELIVED OF HAVING TO TYPE ON A STUPID KEYBOARD FROM A STUPID PHONE !!!!! ) It made ME happy camper too :D

Ever since then, I've been busy catching up on other things first.....

Well.....That's what I've been up to. What's been up with you guys & gals? :)

Cheers & 73 :D

The amateur's Code

The Amateur’s Code « PanhandleARES.org

9/11 First Responders NOT WELCOME TO ATTEND CEREMONIES

The following is cross-posted (With Ham Radio related modifications) from this post of my political blog

As you know, I normally don't get political on here unless it has something to do with Ham Radio (I reserve such ramblings to my political blog) but this is SHAMEFUL & UNAMERICAN



Now as loyal subscribers of both of my blogs know, I normally DO NOT quote ANYTHING from known far Left Wing sources such as this, but unfortunately, there are SEVERAL mainstream media sources which have reported THE EXACT SAME THING

Here are just a few of them.....

WCBS Radio & TV (New York)
Yahoo! News

And just so we're clear - THIS IS NOT A PARTISAN ISSUE !!!!! Even Fox News, well known for being the mouthpiece of the GOP, is reporting it

Fox News

Furthermore, I think some of us tend to forget that some of the first responders are/were Hams THEMSELVES & responded either as support for the people resonsible for going into the WTC (Area disaster area workers working shelters, command posts & other on site emergency communications infrastructure), broadcast engineers (Who were trying as best they could under the circumstances to keep all the users of the WTC site on the air) or as police, fire & EMS workers THEMSELVES

As I said at the top of this post - This is SHAMEFUL & UNAMERICAN

But we can STAND UP to this. America should DEMAND that first responders be allowed to attend

HAVING A SEPERATE CEREMONY IS NOT GOOD ENOUGH !!!!! Make your voices heard

Mayor Michael Bloomberg's Website
Mayor Michael Bloomberg's Twitter Page

Hams In The Media - AGAIN !!!!!

We Can't get enough of this kind of exposure

WAY TO GO Mark Filla, KS4VT !!!!!

KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK !!!!!

Won A Prize From W5KUB's Coverage Of The 2011 Huntsville Hamfest

Earlier today, I won the KPC 3+ TNC from Kantronics by way of the W5KUB Webcast of the Huntsville Hamfest

Hope to use it to start building an APRS station someday. If not that, then a packet station. I'll have to see what I can do with it once I get it

My Gmail Account Has Apparently Been HACKED

Seems as though SOMEONE has been hacking their way into Gmail accounts again as Gmail informed me that someone from Chile (Or an IP from there) had hacked their way into my account

Doesn't appear to have been any damage but that could be because Gmail deposited server-side backups of my email back into my inbox

Anyhow, I changed my password so the douche bag will have a much harder time of logging on next time *Devilish Grin*

In the meantime, if you use Gmail, you may wanna change your password ASAP !!

Ready To Explore The World Of HF Now

Well in case you haven't figured out by now, old man Murphy struck in a way I never saw coming (Yet was EASILY preventable). As a result, I was forced to miss being on the air for Field Day this year

Here's how the calamity happened.....

It all started (And ended) as I was assembling my BRAND NEW MFJ 1622 HF/VHF antenna. I was mounting the loading coil onto the bracket. Had difficulty mounting it on with the bolt still attached to the bottom of the loading coil so I tried removing the bolt.

M-I-S-T-A-K-E !!!!!

After several attempts to mount the coil with the bolt off, it all came to an abrupt end when the screw which the bolt was attached to before it was removed by yours truly SLIPPED INSIDE THE COIL !!!!!

Can you say UHH OHH ?????

Anyway, I sent the loading coil to MFJ for repair (It cost me nothing since it was under warranty) & got it back today

Now if I can only get enough counterpoise wire exposed (It didn't come that way even though the manual said it was) to get it on right & then figure out how to properly tune it to receive stuff, I'd REALLY be a happy camper :D

I also got the basket for my Pride scooter today but even THAT came with a hitch - They forgot to send a mounting screw meant to be used for securing the basket to the back end of the scooter. No biggie if I can find something on my own that will serve the same purpose. I've probably got SOMETHING that will work. Nevertheless, I called the mobility place to report the matter anyway

Field Day 2011 Plans

Some of you may have heard that won't be working Field Day 2011 at all this year. Well this has (Hopefully!) changed!

Thanks to some PERFECT timing (And my new apartment!), I WILL be working Field Day 2011 after all.

Thanks to this antenna which I plan to get from the local candy store next month & my ICOM IC 706 MKII-G rig, I plan to work the following bands & modes on Field Day this year.....

VOICE

6 Meters
10 Meters (Technician portion only)

CW

6 Meters
10 Meters (Where my licence allows me to work of course)
15 Meters (Where my licence allows me to work & if the band is open of course)
40 Meters (Where my licence allows me to work of course)

Now since I don't have the eye-hand coordination needed to properly work a Morse Code keyer (And even I did, I lack the neurological skills needed to decipher Morse Code anyhow), I'm afraid I'll be limited to a freebie computerized morse code program that can translate the code to text. Short of that, I won't be working CW at all

I'll also be streaming my activities on Hams On Cams via my UStream TV Channel as well

So, there you have it. Going from not working Field Day 2011 at all to working some HF on Field Day!!

Now I just have to hope that OLD MAN MURPHY stays away & doesn't strike (Knocking HARD on wood) :)

Old Man Murphy STRIKES AGAIN !!!!!

Even when trying to set up a TEMPORARY MAKESHIFT antenna setup on my brand new Pride Go-Go Elite Traveller Mobility Scooter & my ICOM T7H HT, Old Man Murphy STILL has ways of sneaking up on me.

First (In full disclosure as to what I plan to do long-term), I plan on taking a simple dual band mag mount antenna & sticking it in the rear basket of my scooter. Problem is I DO NOT HAVE THE REAR BASKET. Neither Medicaid nor Medicare will pay for such things as they're considered optional accessories (This however is hardly a surprise). I would then thread only the amount of cable I needed to stretch across from the base of the antenna to the radio using adapters as & where needed (Making sure to leave just enough slack to avoid a trip hazard but so much whereas it drags on the ground & runs the risk of getting snagged somewhere underneath the scooter though).

However, since I have to order the basket (At the pretty penny of $112 plus change which includes tax) & getting the neccessary parts from a bike shop & hardware store would likely cost about as much (And that would be WITHOUT it being pre-made for my scooter), I figured it'd be a whole easier & simpler if I just ordered from Pride Mobility itself via the medical supply company that provided me the scooter in the first place.

But in the meantime, I decided to try to set up a temporary makeshift setup using the stuff I already have.

This is where Old Man Murphy enters the picture

Knowing I already have a dual band mag mount antenna, all I needed to do was figure out a way to mount it onto the back of the scooter. I managed to find a basket & a rod to insert into the back of the scooter (The rod actually being part of an armrest from my old scooter). I then HOOKED the scooter onto the armest/rod and let it drop to the bottom whereas it would rest on the back end of the scooter). I then put the antenna into the basket

Next, I then tried retrieving an SO-239 to BNC adapter from a cable coupling which I was not using which I was going to attach to the cable on the antenna base which was already in the basket & threaded to the front of the scooter. Problem with that is the cable & the adapter wouldn't seperate. I'd unscrew & unscrew & unscrew but could NEVER get the two seperasted (My guess is that rust built up on the inside of the SO-239 end of the adapter, thus forming an unbreakable bond between the cable & the adapter)

My next problem occured when I simply decided to give up on the above & just simply couple the antenna cable & the cable that had the adapter together. It would make for an MUCH LONGER cable than I needed but it sure beat what was turning into AN ACT OF FUTILITY

Or so I thought

As I was re-threading the antenna cable, my fingers came across something foreign on the cable. When I turned the cable over to investigate, I noticed THE CABLE WAS FRAYED

My reaction - Peachy. JUST WHAT I HAVE ALWAYS WANTED ON AN ANTENNA CABLE - A FRAYED SPOT

NOT !!!

My next problem came in the form of an old Radio Shack 6m/2m mag mount antenna (Remember those?). While the very tip was snipped off & it wouldn't have done much in my ability to get out on the 440 machines in town, I would've at least been able to safely get on the local 2 meter machines in town. It still has a sturdy & STRONG base (This has been my 6 meter antenna for years!). Problem with it was - You guessed it - A FRAYED SPOT on the cable.

My (Thankfully but hardly mercifully) LAST problem came in the form of another antenna I have sitting around (Mainly just collecting dust). That being an MFJ 172B. Problem with it was although the cable is in excellent condition (Not a surprise since it had not been used that much), I couldn't insert the antenna into the base because I had screwed the tiny screw it comes with so deep into the base when I first got it & put it together & I lost the little wrench that came with the antenna too (I've got to get a COMPLETE SET set of those wrenches from the hardware store someday so I don't have that problem!)

So suffice to say (And with my UNPLEASANT compliments to YOU KNOW WHO, I've got to take a trip down to the local candy store & get me a new antenna

In the meantime, I'm just gonna have to go around with a telescopic whip on my HT as a rubber duck just won't do the trick in my new neighborhood (I"m told I'm unintelligable to others listening if I'm even bring up the repeaters AT ALL)

Wish me luck.....

Cheers & 73 :D