"
QSL cards confirm either a two-way radiocommunication between two amateur radio stations or a one-way reception of a signal from an AM radio, FM radio, television or shortwave broadcasting station. They can also confirm the reception of a two-way radiocommunication by a third party listener. A typical QSL card is the same size and made from the same material as a typical postcard, and most are sent through the mail as such."
Here's a substantial collection of them.
posted by dersins
on Oct 7, 2009 -
43 comments
I first heard of a 'Paraset' when I saw a message on the
QRP-L reflector announcing an upcoming '
June 6th Paraset D-Day' activity. A search for more information soon revealed that the Paraset was a small vacuum-tube transmitter-receiver unit built during WWII in the UK at the
Whaddon Hall headquarters of the Secret Intelligence Service Communications Unit. Known officially as the '
Whaddon Mark VII', the units were either air-dropped by parachute or carried, by the jumpers themselves, into many of the occupied countries of western Europe. . .
posted by jackspace
on Nov 5, 2008 -
13 comments
It's no secret that
amateur radio operators, or hams, often build their own equipment. Especially with the aid of antenna tuners, most anything can be used as an antenna. One group of hams took this to the extreme, using
ladders and shopping carts as antennas as they started an annual competition that would eventually see
trucks,
train tracks, a
tree, and even a pair of
exercise machines and
a football stadium used. I stumbled across the site last night, and it turns out that this year's competition is
this weekend! Ham radio, by the way, no longer requires a
Morse code exam, just a set of questions on electrical and operations theory. Those curious can take
practice tests online, since the FCC releases the question pools.
posted by fogster
on May 22, 2008 -
23 comments
One might think that in today's world of cell phones, text messaging and the Internet, you shouldn't write off
ham radio just yet. Not only can
Morse code be faster than text messaging, but when
when you need it most, you can still communicate with the world [PDF]. If you're lucky, and the conditions are right, you might be able to chat with operators hundred of miles away thanks to
tropospheric ducting. There's more to ham radio than just the old chatter, though: you can use the ham radio bands to operate radio-controlled planes,
send and receive TV [PDF] (sort of),
wirelessly connect to networks, or
talk with astronauts.
posted by Godbert
on Aug 1, 2006 -
44 comments
Talk to The Hand . They say you should always sing from the heart, but no one ever said anything about what do to with the hands. Enter
Robert A. Wilson, N6TV, manualist extraordinaire. If you thought the
Human Beatbox from Spearhead was great, wait until you see Robert perform the
Theme from Hawai'i Five-O or for Classical music lovers, there's
The Toreador Song, from Carmen and
The William Tell Overture (Lone Ranger Theme).
Robert is no stranger to talking with his hands. He's also a ham radio operator, a
hobby and
public service which is not only
celebrating 100 years of wireless voice communication, but also makes excellent use of another mode of communicating with the hands:
Morse Code. As old and seemingly antiquated as it seems at first glance, Morse Code has been used to allow those with
physical challenges communicate with those around them.
posted by jackspace
on Apr 24, 2006 -
21 comments
Welcome To IOTA NA-178 Mission Control On behalf of IOTA Ham operators WorldWide, the SouthEast Farallon Island - Project NA-178 HAMS HELPING HABITATS project (conducted by K6VVA & K9AJ) will assist the Farallon National Wildlife Refuge ("The Refuge") by transporting materials and equipment via helicopter from the mainland for an important habitat restoration project on SouthEast Farallon Island ("SEFI"), as well as the return of old unwanted infrastructure water pipe from the Island for disposal.
If you thought Eco-tourism was passe, try a
DX-
pedition! Of course
hams have also put their personal concerns aside for other things, such as helping provide
emergency communications during natural disasters.
One thing you might not realize is our penchant for broadband Internet via BPL (Broadband over Power Lines)
may interfere with this hobby of radio enthusiasts.
posted by jackspace
on Feb 15, 2006 -
34 comments
