WELCOME TO THE
PEACH STATE EMERGENCY INTERTIE SYSTEM
(PEACH STATE INTERTIE)
"MAYTAG'S BLOG"
UPDATED 10/14/2019
Being a ham for over 50 years and a member of the ARRL for most
of that time....It is difficult for me to support the ARRL of any of it's programs
because of past actions and current proposals they have before the FCC.
I worked had for my ticket back in the day....learning the code, studying night after night,
and going the FCC office in Atlanta to take my test. It is so easy to get license today
by going to a ham cram. I don't like ham crams.
If you keep studying and yearning for knowledge after passing a ham cram test that is great.
By doing so you are learning theory and rules and regulations. If you never pick up a book again I feel you are going to miss a big part of our wonderful hobby.
Where have the high standards of practice our fraternity adopted
and upheld through the years gone?
Who am I to say all this?
Just an old timer who doesn't want to see this hobby turn into CB
which I think is happening very fast.
Seems to me the
ARRL and producers of radio equipment want the FCC to pass any proposal to lessen
quidelines for becoming a ham.....More ARRL memberships and radio producers sell more equipment! It's all about money!
Why don't they propose to the FCC to just give away a full priveledge license and callsign in
every box of Cracker Jacks!
Call me what you want...say what you want....my skin is thick.
I have done a lot for ham radio community for many years....
The Peach State Intertie being one of them!
Just an old fart with an opinion which I am entitled to!
JIMMY
WB4NFG
INTERTIE MANAGER
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KERCHUNK! KERCHUNK! KERCHUNK!
Ask any hams that you know of to name one thing that they don't like in ham radio. Most likely that they will tell you it is "kerchunk". This happens mainly on 2m FM repeaters. Kerchunk is when someone presses the PTT button for a short while, triggering the repeater, but have no intention to talk to anyone. People who kerchunk are not necessarily those without amateur radio license, hams also kerchunk the repeater.
The first category are those who press the PTT when there is no one is talking on the repeater. They are lonely and they feel good when they hear the repeater's squelch tail or the courtesy beep. These people are trying to satisfy themselves. We can equate them to doing masturbation. However, the different is that when they press the PTT, they disturb other people who are monitoring. Some hope for kerchunk reply by another fellow kerchunker. Then, they will exchange kerchunks until one of them exhausted (their thumbs get tired).
After that, we have another type of people who kerchunk because they are "shy" or "timid". So, they kerchunk as a way to figure out whether their rig is working, and the repeater is working. It is too troublesome to call for radio check and to mention their callsigns. Maybe, some secret projects are in progress. They are doing this only when they do not hear anyone on air. A sub group of this, are those who test the SWR of their antenna using the repeater frequency with the tone set as well. This really annoys people.
The third group consists of those who kerchunk just immediately after someone tried to make a call. Their intention is to annoy the guy who try to make a contact. To the guy who made the call, it seems like someone is trying to reply him but failed. In actual, it was the joker who kerchunked the repeater. People will try to tell that they are not accessing the repeater well, and the joker will try to kerchunk again. They feel good because someone notices their key-up. On the other hand, some hams will refrain from answering the caller because they are afraid of being mistaken as kerchunkers.
The more annoying one will be those who make a key-up during the 3-second pause between QSO. This creates an impression that someone is trying to break into the QSO, or trying to join the QSO. It really disrupts the smoothness of the communication. Most hams are courteous enough to give breakers the priority. However, these cowards are misusing the chance given to them.
Besides those who kerchunk, there are also jammers. This group will just PTT whenever they like. Some feels good when they managed to jam someone's transmission. They do this as some kind of "revenge". Besides, some jammers are pressing the PTT to purposely jam others when they don't want something to be known to other hams.
Someday, we can organize a kerchunk day (like a field day), and have the public to kerchunk the repeater as well. Another idea is to use repeater kerchunking as a 2 wpm CW. Maybe it could be a good idea to have the Kerchunk All Continent award, or KCC (kerchunked 200 repeaters) award as well. Haha... just kidding.
73
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Proper Phonetics Please!
I wish that amateurs would always use the accepted ITU approved phonetic alphabet when phonetics are used. Hams in all countries generally understand the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) phonetic alphabet. It is used when signing your call or passing information that must be spelled out.
The ITU adopted the NATO phonetic alphabet developed in the 1950s to be intelligible and pronounceable, and is generally understood by all amateur radio operators around the world. It has a long history of working very well in harsh phone conditions.
My callsign phonetically is Whiskey Bravo Four November Foxtrot Golf. If conditions are rough, I'll repeat it phonetically several times. ALL amateurs should KNOW those phonetics, and in my experience they DO! It corrects any misunderstandings very rapidly. If using those phonetics do not clear up a misheard letter, then the conditions are just not favorable for a phone contact.
My callsign phonetically is NOT Willie Baker Four Nice Fine Guy. Whether you are in Indiana or India, as an amateur radio operator (or any voice communications type person) you will understand the ITU phonetic alphabet.
It's a pet peeve of mine. You will all do what you will, but I know it is much more impressive and I consider it to be GOOD OPERATING
PRATICE to use the ITU phonetic alphabet.
NATO/ITU Phonetic Alphabet
A - Alfa
B - Bravo
C - Charlie
D - Delta
E - Echo
F - Foxtrot
G - Golf
H - Hotel
I - India
J - Juliet
K - Kilo
L - Lima
M - Mike
N - November
O - Oscar
P - Papa
Q - Quebec
R - Romeo
S - Sierra
T - Tango
U - Uniform
V - Victor
W - Whiskey
X - X-Ray
Y - Yankee
Z - Zulu
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IT IS MY OPINION...... "ROGER THAT"..... OR ...."ROGER ON THAT" ARE CITIZENS BAND RADIO SLANG TERMS
AND SHOULD NOT BE USED IN HAM RADIO...
BUT WHO AM I TO SAY?
MAYBE I AM TOO "OLD SCHOOL"
OR JUST AN OLD CUS
OR CYNICAL
OR...
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A LITTLE HISTORY ABOUT THE EXPRESSION
"73"
I DO NOT SEE AN "S" ............................MAKING IT 73'S
AND CERTAINLY NOT "RD'S" ...............MAKING IT 73rd's
FROM THE ARRL WEBSITE
The traditional expression "73" goes right back to the beginning of the landline telegraph days. It is found in some of the earliest editions of the numerical codes, each with a different definition, but each with the same idea in mind--it indicated that the end, or signature, was coming up. But there are no data to prove that any of these were used.
The first authentic use of 73 is in the publication The National Telegraph Review and Operators' Guide, first published in April 1857. At that time, 73 meant "My love to you!" Succeeding issues of this publication continued to use this definition of the term. Curiously enough, some of the other numerals then used have the same definition now that they had then, but within a short time, the use of 73 began to change.
In the National Telegraph Convention, the numeral was changed from the Valentine-type sentiment to a vague sign of fraternalism. Here, 73 was a greeting, a friendly "word" between operators and it was so used on all wires.
In 1859, the Western Union Company set up the standard "92 Code". A list of numerals from one to 92 was compiled to indicate a series of prepared phrases for use by the operators on the wires. Here, in the 92 Code, 73 changes from a fraternal sign to a very flowery "accept my compliments," which was in keeping with the florid language of that era.
Over the years from 1859 to 1900, the many manuals of telegraphy show variations of this meaning. Dodge's The Telegraph Instructor shows it merely as "compliments." The Twentieth Century Manual of Railway and Commercial Telegraphy defines it two ways, one listing as "my compliments to you;" but in the glossary of abbreviations it is merely "compliments." Theodore A. Edison's Telegraphy Self-Taught shows a return to "accept my compliments." By 1908, however, a later edition of the Dodge Manual gives us today's definition of "best regards" with a backward look at the older meaning in another part of the work where it also lists it as "compliments."
"Best regards" has remained ever since as the "put-it-down-in-black-and-white" meaning of 73 but it has acquired overtones of much warmer meaning. Today, amateurs use it more in the manner that James Reid had intended that it be used --a "friendly word between operators."
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