Foundations of Amateur Radio

Today we have a world where radios are more and more like appliances. We can buy them at a store, ship them to our location, open the box, plug in the radio to an antenn…

Yesterday during dinner I heard an interesting story. Apparently there was a farmer who had a chicken coop that he kept warm at night by using a 240 Volt light bulb hook…

Whenever I go out to play radio, which is whenever I actually want to operate, I try new things. For example I've experimented with different clocks, to keep track of wh…

There are times when you'll find yourself being encouraged to participate in a contest. You might receive an email, a Facebook encouragement, or even hear an item on the…

Today I was looking around my shack and noticed that I have lots of different amateur radio tools that go beyond the simple bits and pieces that I started with, namely a…

Today I had the pleasure of talking to a group of freshly minted Amateurs. It's a semi-regular occurrence where I visit a local club that offers training to obtain an Am…

A recurring topic of conversation is propagation. There is learned discussion about sun-spots, A and K indices, forecasts, ionospheric probing, not to mention half-baked…

Today I'm operating portable, in fact I'm operating portable every day. Though I'd have to confess, some days more than others.

I have to do this by necessity. There is…

Recently I was asked about finding the best antenna calculator. It's a tool that helps you determine what the length of an antenna should be for a particular frequency.

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In your travels around the sun it's likely you've heard the phrase: "Use it or lose it."

Within the ranks of our hobby, that refers to making noise on air and using the…

Today propagation is what it is, yesterday it was different and tomorrow it will be different again. It's one of the fundamental aspects of amateur radio.

We talk about…

Recently I read a comment a fellow amateur made about an antenna. He said: "Of course, that antenna is a compromise..."

Let me say that again: "That antenna is a compro…

Today we have a standard for our on-air phonetic alphabet - technically it's called a spelling alphabet, but I digress.

As you should be aware if you're a licensed Amat…

Today I want to talk about things to say and do in a contest. Before I begin, I must point out that there are many views on this and depending on your aim for the contes…

The hobby we call Amateur Radio is hard to explain to anyone outside. I was recently asked about what it was about the experience that had me hooked. I talked about Summ…

The origins of names of things in Amateur Radio has a long and internet riddled history, with hear-say and false memories added.

The humble BNC connector was patented i…

Today in Amateur Radio is no different from yesterday, last year, last decade or longer. The hobby today is filled with people who are here to have fun, learn stuff and …

There are things that surprise me about this amazing hobby of Amateur Radio every day.

One thing that is not a surprise is that some part of the general public thinks t…

Today I learned something new. A good antenna makes a big difference and you can hear it.

Of late, I've been using the antennas on the boot of my car and have for some …

There is a persistent perception among a small part of the amateur community that you need to build, buy or use antennas with a perfect 1:1 SWR to get the best results. …