The electronic publication of the Amateur Radio Newsline is distributed with the permission of Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, President and Editor of Newsline. The text version is edited from the original scripts and transcribed from the audio reports by Dale Cary, WD0AKO, and is first published in The Radio & Electronics Round Table on the Genie Online System. If you have any comment, suggestion, or news item you would like to submit, send them via E-Mail to 3241437@mcimail.com or B.PASTERNAK@genie.geis.com. You can contact Newsline at +1 805-296-7180. It is a combination answering and FAX machine, if you have a FAX to send, wait for the voice prompt and press your fax-send button. All other information and disclaimers are in the text header below. - - - - - Sorry for the delay. Had some hardware problems over the weekend. Thanks for your patients... NEWSLINE RADIO - CBBS EDITION #123 - POSTED 05/09/94 (***************************************************************) (* *) (* * * ***** * * **** * ***** * * ***** *) (* ** * * * * * * * ** * * *) (* * * * *** * ** * *** * * * * * *** *) (* * ** * * ** * * * * * ** * *) (* * * ***** * * **** ***** ***** * * ***** *) (* *) (* **** * **** ***** *** *) (* * * * * * * * * * *) (* **** ***** * * * * * *) (* * * * * * * * * * *) (* * * * * **** ***** *** *) (* *) (***************************************************************) The following is late news about Amateur Radio for Radio Amateurs as prepared from NEWSLINE RADIO scripts by the staff of the AMATEUR RADIO NEWSLINE, INC. -- formerly the WESTLINK RADIO NETWORK. For current information updates, please call Audio Version of Newsline ========================= Los Angeles............................ (213) 462-0008 Los Angeles (Instant Update Line)...... (805) 296-2407 Seattle................................ (206) 368-3969 Seattle................................ (206) 281-8455 Tacoma................................. (206) 927-7373 Louisville............................. (502) 894-8559 Dayton................................. (513) 275-9991 Chicago................................ (708) 289-0423 New York City.......................... (718) 353-2801 Melbourne, FL.......................... (407) 259-4479 Electronic Hardcopy Version of Newsline ======================================= GEnie.................................. m345;1 GEnie.................................. m345;3 Dallas Remote Imaging BBS (DRIG)....... (214) 492-7573 In bulletin number 36 The Midwest Connection BBS............. (701) 239-2440 In bulletin number 6 of the ham radio conference Delphi................................. In the ham radio conference For the latest breaking info call the Instant Update Line listed above. To provide information please call (805) 296-7180. This line answers automatically and will accept up to 30 minutes of material. Check with your local amateur radio club to see if NEWSLINE can be heard weekly on the air in your area. Articles may be reproduced if printed in their entirety and credit is given to AMATEUR RADIO NEWSLINE as being the source. For further information about the AMATEUR RADIO NEWSLINE, please write to us with an SASE at P.O. Box 463, Pasadena, CA 91102. Thank You NEWSLINE (**************************************************************** Some of the hams of NEWSLINE RADIO... WA6ITF WB6MQV WB6FDF K6DUE W6RCL N6AHU N6AWE N6TCQ K6PGX N6PNY KU8R N8DTN W9JUV KC9RP K9XI KB5KCH KC5UD KC0HF G8AUU WD0AKO DJ0QN and many others in the United States and around the globe!!! (**************************************************************** [873] (* * * * C L O S E D C I R C U I T A D V I S O R Y * * * * (* * (* The following is a closed circuit advisory and is NOT for * (* transmission over amateur radio. According to Newsline * (* Support Fund administrator Norm Chalfin K6PGX, the funds * (* needed to keep Newsline in operation are still low. * (* According to Norm, it now costs a bit over $850 a month to * (* pay the telecommunications and equipment supply bills. That * (* is up over $150 from the same time last year. * (* For those of you unaware, Newsline pays the cost of three * (* telephones including the one used for news gathering. We * (* also pay for several electronic news and information * (* services, we pay for electronic mail, for raw tape stock and * (* the cost of repairing and updating our production facilities. * (* When Newsline staffers attend a convention or hamfest like * (* here in Dayton, each is on his or her own. Newsline does not * (* reimburse the cost of sending its reporters to these events * (* nor does it compensate them for any expenses that they may * (* incur. All funds donated to Newsline go directly to keeping * (* these news bulletins on the air and nothing else. * (* Many Newsline reporters and engineers not only volunteer * (* their time and talent to making these weekly newscasts * (* possible. They reach into their own pockets as well. * (* Therefore we are once again appealing to all of our listeners * (* to assist in any way that you can so that Newsline can * (* continue to bring you these weekly ham radio news bulletins. * (* Our address is the Newsline Support Fund, Post Office Box 463 * (* Pasadena, CA 91102. * (* Again, and as always, we thank you for your ongoing * (* interest and support. That ends the closed circuit advisory * (* with Newsline report number 873 for release on Friday, May 6, * (* 1994 to follow. * (* * (* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * The following is a QST From ham radios greatest show on earth, the 1994 Dayton Hamvention, this is Newsline. This weeks top story is the Hamvention itself. Newsline has several reporters here on the scene. (***** 10 WPM CW PROPOSED The biggest news out of Dayton involves a plan being hatched by amateur radio equipment manufacturers and magazine publishers. They want easier licensing requirements for access to HF spectrum. Amateur Radio Industry Group members say the 13 word per minute Morse Code requirement for HF access should be lowered to 10 words a minute and they plan to work toward that goal. At their April 28th meeting, group members discussed the plan, including petitioning the Federal Communications Commission. Giving advice to the group is former FCC official Ray Kowalski. He tells group members the timing for such a move is excellent, since Washington's political climate is so heavily geared toward emerging technologies. "What's good for amateur radio is good for America. This is where the technicians and the bright young minds get their start. This is the fertile ground where they are planted. And if we don't nurture that and keep it growing and going, comes the next time we need engineers maybe we will rent them from Taiwan or some place, we will not have them home grown." Ray Kowalski, former FCC official. The hottest selling ham gear lately has been VHF and UHF equipment. That reflects the strong growth in codeless technician class hams. But equipment manufacturers are frustrated by marginal profits from sales of big ticket HF items. Some manufacturers say current code requirements act as a barrier to hams who would otherwise populate the HF bands. Ray Kowalski, currently a Washington lawyer dealing in communications issues, tells group members they should act on their wishes before the year is out. "There is a window of opportunity that is now open. In Washington, when a new administration comes in, it takes them a year to get their act together, and by the fourth year they are hunkering down for the election. They don't want to do anything that will make anybody mad. So there is that two year window of opportunity in any administration where everything gets done. We are in that window now. So this is a great time to be thinking about what changes are necessary and natural for this service, this hobby, what ever you want to call it." Ray Kowalski, former FCC official. One of those attending the amateur group meeting is Yaesu USA's Kevin Karamanos, WD6DIH. "I think in the long term the industry is going to try to get together and promote the technician to move up to general class and hopefully populate the HF bands. We need to do what ever we can to get more folks up there and move up." Kevin Karamanos, WD6DIH, Yaesu USA. (***** THE RAINS CAME The hottest selling product at this year's Hamvention '94 just may have been the 2 dollar poncho. The skies opened up over Hara Arena, dumping nearly an inch and a half of rain on tens of thousands of hams. The plastic sheets covering acres of flea market spaces soon carried small rivers of water. Some flea market vendors say the torrents of water killed their business. "It's wet and it's cold today. Yesterday it was at least warmish rain. This one is not nearly as much fun." "If it'd quit rainin', it'd be nice." "Has the rain hurt you?" "Yes it has." A flea market vendor from St. Joseph Missouri knows that lousy weather is a Hamvention tradition. "It's bad weather. We have had bad weather for the fourth year in a row now. It's defiantly the biggest and the best ham convention that there is in the United States or in the world but the weather has not cooperated. The gods are not favoring us right now." But enthusiasm still manages to run high. The Hamvention is, after all, one of the world's ultimate trips down the electronic information superhighway. As Tracy Douglas from Akron, Ohio, learns, the Hamvention means money. "I'm a retired computer scientist that did fifteen years of computer work. And I became a ham radio operator last year. this is my first time selling at the Dayton Hamvention. I do repairs on all types of computers and peripherals. I had five dealers come in here and wipe out a hundred and six hard drives. I grossed over five thousand dollars in an hour." Money changes hands inside Hara Arena, too. With thousands of flea market shoppers forced inside by the rain -- and the thousands of people already there crowds are 15 deep at some booths. Huge masses of people move along at a snail's pace. "There are so many people and so little space!" Yaesu USA's Kevin Karamanos. Despite the weather, Hamvention '94 draws widespread praise. It's an opportunity to learn, spend and socialize. Hamvention '94 is quickly drawing to a close. Regardless of the weather, everyone we have spoken with says that this years Dayton Hamvention will be a show that will be very hard to beat. More on Hamvention '94 in future reports. (***** UNLICENSED BROADCASTER LOOSES COURT CHALLENGE TO FCC BAN In other news, a protest to the Federal Communications Commission's ban on so called low power micro broadcasters has been dismissed by a San Francisco federal appeals court. That court says the case belongs in a lower court first. The FCC's refusal to license radio stations less than 100 watts is being challenged by William Dougan of Phoenix, Arizona. Dougan's half-watt transmitter was shut down by the commission back in 1992. Dougan's lawyer said his client broadcast for about a month to the 600 residents of his mobile home park before the FCC ordered him to stop. Dougan was also fined $17,500. In his filing to the court, Dougan argued that the ban on low power radio stations is unneeded for orderly regulation of broadcasting. He also claimed that it violates his freedom of expression and reserves the airwaves for the wealthy. But the FCC responded by saying it was acting within its legal authority to apportion the limited number of frequencies available. Without discussing those arguments, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday April 20th said suits challenging FCC forfeitures, such as Dougan's fine, can be filed only in a U.S. District Court. The District Court ruling can then be appealed back to the 9th Circuit. Dougan filed his suit in the appeals court, which directly reviews rulings by a number of federal agencies. But the court, in a 3 to 0 ruling by Judge Cecil Poole, said it had no jurisdiction in the case. (***** FCC URGED TO RAISE FINES ON INDECENT BROADCASTS In the nations capitol members od Congress are telling the Federal Communications Commission that it should impose higher fines on broadcasters who use indecent language on the air. The FCC has already fined shock jock Howard Stern and the company that broadcasts his programs over $1 million for using indecent language in his programs. Stern and the company are appealing the fines, saying they violate free speech protection. But FCC Chairman Reed Hundt is saying that even if higher monetary forfeitures are mandated, the commission lacks the resources to handle all its responsibilities. Hundt told a House of Representatives Appropriations subcommittee hearing on Monday April 18 that a staff shortage was hindering efforts to handle license and merger applications and to increase competition in telecommunications and cable TV. Hunt added that FCC resources are not sufficient to achieve the agency's goals. He would like another 200 full time staff to join the 2,050 now on staff. The Office of Management and Budget must approve any such staffing request. (***** KY1T FIRED BY ARRL Another story making news here at Hamvention '94 is the firing two weeks ago of Luck Hurder, KY1T, Deputy Manager for the ARRL's Field Services Department. No specific details of the circumstances leading up to Hurder's dismissal been made public by the American Radio Relay League. The unofficial word on the convention floor is that his firing was over a directive by his superiors at headquarters for Hurder to first consult with them before posting information or responses on various public bulletin board and Electronic Mail systems he was assigned to operate for the League. In his last year of service in Newington, Hurder devoted a considerable amount of time answering questions on various commercial e-mail systems like Genie, Prodigy and America Online. He even serves as the assistant SySop on the America Online ham radio board in addition to having been the operations director of the ARRL's own public access board. No successor has yet been named to replace KY1T. (***** 900 MHz PAGING The FCC has released the text of a rule making order that grants channel exclusivity to several classifications of 930 MHz paging systems. Under the new rules, paging system licensees may qualify for channel exclusivity by constructing systems consisting of a specified minimum number of channels. There are three sub categories that fall under the new rules. These are local, regional and national. The commission says that it intends to protect qualified local and regional applicants from interference by applying minimum separation standards of co-channel national systems. It will also act to prevent the hoarding of frequencies by limiting applicants to one exclusive frequency assignment at a time. (***** DL HACKER On the international scene, word that German police have cracked down on a nationwide ring of computer hackers who found a way to telephone around the world without being billed. The regional criminal office in Munich said U.S. telephone companies alone had suffered millions of dollars in lost revenue because the ring had used computers to tap into networks illegally and make phone calls. In a coordinated search, police raided the homes of about 60 suspected hackers all over Germany. Some were identified as being ham radio enthusiasts, though no call signs were given. (***** HUNGARIAN TV Commercial TV may be just around the corner in Hungary -- if the political and legislative embargo that has kept the broadcast sector hamstrung since 1989 finally comes to an end. Executives at the long suffering TV Channel 3, a Budapest regional station with a license but no frequency to broadcast, has yet to receive word as to when a frequency will be allocated. Up until now, Hungary's private TV and radio industry has been stymied by a ban, imposed by parliament in 1989, on the issuance of broadcast licenses. Parliament has vowed not to lift this nationwide ban until the government formulates acceptable post communist legislation regulating the nation's electronic media sector -- something Hungary's ruling coalition has yet to do after four years in power. Parliament did agree last year to partially lift this moratorium and permit the establishment of private radio and TV stations in local and regional markets. It was during this period that Channel 3 received official sanction to begin broadcasting in Budapest. (***** DX In DX, look for Saint Marten on the air from May 24th to 30th. VP2ML, and AH0W will be signing PJ7/WB2CHO and PJ7/OH2LVG respectively. They will also team up to operate in the CQ WPX CW Contest as PJ8X. QSL PJ7 via K1RH. (***** RAFFERTY MEMORIAL Closer to home, word that the memorial fund raising by the Northern California DX Foundation for Jim Rafferty, N6RJ, who died in June of 1993 raised nearly $8,000 from 125 individuals and organizations. The donors' call signs or organizational names were inscribed on a plaque presented to Jim's widow, Shirley Rafferty. The plaque will eventually be displayed at the Anaheim, California Ham Radio Outlet store where the Jim worked. (***** RCA TO THOMPSON Finally, do any of you know the name of the dog listening to the phonograph in the old RCA Logo? We will have that piece of information in a moment. But first this related story about a well known midwest radio club has decided to change its name to reflect the corporate image of the company that it is allied to. The RCA Radio Club of Indianapolis, Indiana has been re-named the Thompson Amateur Radio Club for two reasons. First, it is the French owned Thompson that actually manufactures RCA brand label consumer products in North America. Even more important is the fact that the General Electric Company owns the rights to both the RCA name and the well known RCA dog and phonograph logo which for a long time have adorned the masthead of the club newsletter. Some club members were reportedly concerned over the possibility of legal action by General Electric. As far as we can determine GE never said a word but rather that take a chance the RCA name was dropped and replaced by Thompson. And oh yes. The name of the dog in the old RCA logo was Nipper. (***** For this week, that is all from the Amateur Radio Newsline. You can write to us at Post Office Box 463 in Pasadena, CA 91102. (* * * Newsline Copyright 1994 all rights are reserved. * * *