Random, extremely geeky, but kind of cool.

[dryfter]

So I recently received my amateur radio license. I had originally signed up as a bit of a spur of the moment thing last autumn, but due to regulatory changes they didn't run any exams around here until March, which I passed, and then OFCOM took weeks to post it out.

Anyway, I had a bit of a mess around with it tonight, and managed to get the right codes into the Bromley repeater to get it to connect itself to another one in Adelaide, so that I could chat with random Aussie people over the radio.
I know I could just do that with a telephone or instant message or IRC or whatnot, but the novelty is there, knowing your voice is being broadcast over half the Fleurieu Peninsula.
According to a guy having breakfast in a caravan in a vineyard in McLaren Vale, it's a sunny morning and is shaping up to be a lovely day.

Amen to that. And now that I've used up my geeking quota for the rest of this entire year, I'm going to go and get a beer.

Comments

[uon.livejournal.com]

Connect to Adelaide! What band was the repeater in? (I've only ever used VHF/UHF repeaters..)

[wintrmute.livejournal.com]

Connecting to GB3OK (http://www.gb3ok.com/) in Orpington, which is VHF. EchoLink to node 20043, Reynella South Australia, which is also VHF and on top of a hill, and apparently gets good coverage for a long way around.

I've only ever used UHF repeaters (CB, in Australia) before, and some limited VHF/UHF ones around London and Cambridge.

I am told there are 6m repeaters around, the nearest one seems to be Farnham - but I don't have an appropriate aerial to try that.

(And my tiny Yaesu handheld looks ridiculous enough as is with the 5/8th-wave VHF antenna on it..)

[mobbsy.livejournal.com]

Ah, a bit of geekery that I never quite got into. I was licenced for a year when I was about 15, and built myself a 2m transceiver from a kit, but never quite got into the whole talking to strangers bit.

[sbp.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I was G7ADG for a bit, but never did a morse test for my Class A or did much transmitting. My dad was much more into it, being an ex-RAF AEO. And he more of a Morse freak than talking to people.

I was interested in the AX25 data-over-radio stuff until the internet arrived. ISTR that the first Demon user software was based on this kind of thing - KA9Q. Looks like Mr KA9Q works at Qualcomm these days.

[wintrmute.livejournal.com]

I was interested in the AX25 stuff as well - tried to get that to work over CB at one point I think, too.

The internet took over my and my friends' interests too.

[battlekitty.livejournal.com]

And my first thought(s)...

"Who was it? And whose vineyard? Or was he in the caravan park? I used to know the people who owned/ran that and could tell you about how they stopped the flooding there..."

[ewtikins.livejournal.com]

Cool!