20171119 - VK6ARN NewsWest for Sunday, 19 November 2017

Disclaimer

NewsWest is produced and presented by WA Amateur Radio News and opinions expressed in this news may not reflect the opinion of the news team, the broadcaster or the WIA and are shared in the open spirit of Amateur Radio.

IRN

In previous episodes of New Hams, I’ve run quickly through EchoLink and AllStar.

Today I’d like to introduce IRN.

The IRN, International Radio Network, is a Voice-over-IP/Radio-over-IP system using Teamspeak,  that allows users to Transmit and Receive using RF around the World using  different devices fo riree. This includes  mobile Phones,  tablets and  computers.

Have you heard of Teamspeak??? NO??? nor had I until I started looking at IRN 6 months ago. It’s what the gamers use for audio comms in multi-player online gaming – put don’t let that deter you – it’s great for Amateur Radio.

Have you ever wanted to play radio on repeater typically on the 2m or 70cm bands but don’t have a repeater close by to get into?

In September 2016 the IRN server was created and access was given to other licensed hams so that they could use it too.

Since then, it's grown... the original Echolink connection is no longer active, and Allstar has been the mode of choice with the system, connecting up to a mix of repeaters, hubs and nodes around the globe.

The IRN server allows full TX and RX so you can use it like a radio. There are also channels that are just live RX feeds from other systems like D-Star and Echolink.

What make it great for newbies, or people considering entering the hobby is the system also caters for non-licensed users, and those that are looking to do their exams to join us hams, and experience what certain modes are like. The way the IRN Server works means that voice rights can be assigned to certain channels thus ensuring that non-licenced users are not able to transmit, but they are able to listen.

More recently, the IRN System has created a partnership with The Guild Global, a World Wide Amateur Radio Guild.

The Guild also have additional channels that aren't crosslinked into any RF based systems but do crosslink into their Zello Crosslink, to allow non licensed users to enjoy full transmit and receive rights and mix with radio hams.

The creators appreciate that RoIP systems like this aren't going to be for everyone, and aren’t trying to take people away from "real radio".

Not everyone has the option on what they can use due to location or their personal circumstances. This system gives them to ability to talk to users all around the World on several different systems, and all for free! I’ve found it really convenient when away from my QTH, either travelling, on business or at a location just on the fringe of the repeater on RF.

There are a comprehensive set of Ts & Cs for use of the system – but to make it clearer a set of guidelines have been published.. Most of it is common sense – which at times… isn’t as common as it used to be.

So how does this relate to VK6?? Here in W.A., IRN is hooked into the VK6 AllStar hub, which then links to the list of nodes and repeaters I mentioned last month. It’s a great way to hook into VK6RLM and its linked repeaters when away from home.

Of course, if you are in VK6, or anywhere that’s internet accessible,  and like talking across the world, it is also hooked into some of the other big AllStar hubs in the U.K. and U.S.

As a side-note, the system also allows users to create private talk groups for point-to-point or private group QSO's.

Look for the links, including the setup guides to get  you started,  in the online version of this story at VK6.net.

http://www.internationalradionetwork.co.uk

http://www.internationalradionetwork.co.uk/app/download/893287/How+to+set+up+Teamspeak+3+Android.pdf

http://www.internationalradionetwork.co.uk/app/download/893326/How+to+set+up+Teamspeak+3+Iphone.pdf

http://www.internationalradionetwork.co.uk/app/download/893337/How+to+set+up+Teamspeak+3+Windows+PC.pdf

http://www.internationalradionetwork.co.uk/app/download/6108274/IRN+-+How+to+use+the+IRN+Server.pdf

http://www.internationalradionetwork.co.uk/app/download/3386075/IRN+TC%27s.pdf

Myths 03 Foundation Licensees Cant Fix Anything

Myths I have Known. 

When listening around the Ham bands, reading comments on social media and email reflectors, even talking face to face with Amateurs, I sometimes hear things said that are simply wrong.  In this series I seek to address some of these myths.

The Foundation License was introduced to Australian Amateur Radio in 2005. I wasn’t in the hobby then, however I imagine that there was a lot of discussion about the concept of an entry level Amateur Radio license.

The myth de jour is that “Foundation licensees may not repair radio equipment”.  This myth turns up regularly, often after a Foundation Licensee asks a question on social media about fixing some sort of problem with their equipment.

Let’s begin with some background information. The Australian Communications and Media Authority, better known to us as the ACMA, amend and publish a document called the “Radiocommunications Licence Conditions (Amateur Licence) Determination”, known more commonly as the “LCD”.  This document is the ACMA’s interpretation of the Radiocommunications Act and regulations as they apply to Amateur Radio Operators.

The LCD tells Amateurs which frequency bands and transmission modes that they can use, and it also describes how a licensee must run their station. 

With reference to equipment, the LCD is silent about which equipment Amateurs can use, EXCEPT for Foundation licensees, where it says that they may only use a commercially manufactured transmitter.

Now let’s explore this myth about repairing equipment.  Several years ago, a Foundation licensee, who is a professional communications technician, announced that he had repaired a fault on a local Amateur repeater.  There was an astonishing flow of protests that as a Foundation licensee he wasnt allowed to effect such repairs.

Let’s go back to the LCD.  Load up the document, and search for the word “repair”.  It isn’t there. Nor is the word “modify”.  Hold that thought.

An Amateur Radio license is a permit to operate radio transmitters according to the level of the license.  It’s not a license or qualification to repair radios.  A Standard or Advanced license may give you some technical knowledge to enable you to tackle the task, but it’s not a qualification to do so.

An Amateur Radio license at any level is not an indication about what you know about anything.  It is issued because you passed an examination, that assumes you may have learned something.  It is possible, and quite frequently likely, that a Foundation licensee knows more about radio than an advanced licensee, because the Amateur Radio qualification is not a measure of your total knowledge and experience. I repeat that it means you passed an exam.

In conclusion, then, where did this myth come from?  My theory is that Foundation licensees were in early days cautioned that what they learned on the course wasnt sufficient for them to safely repair or modify  radio transmitters, and in true chinese whisper form, it grew into the myth that Foundation licensees may not repair their equipment.  Exactly the same argument applies to modifying equipment. The word “modify”, like “repair”, doesnt appear in the LCD

I’m Bob

VK6POP

Its on again!

PARG SWAP Meet February 4th 2018

The Peel Amateur Radio Group is pleased to announce that our next Annual Swap meet will be held on Sunday the 4th February 2018 at the Bortolo Pavilion in Mandurah.

The Bortolo Pavilion has been a great venue for us, it is also AIR CONDITIONED and being the middle of summer it will be nice to keep cool whilst attending our 3rd annual ‘Swap Meet’. We look forward to seeing you all there.

We are now taking bookings of tables. 

Please RSVP to parg_secretary@iinet.net.au with your expression of interest – tables are free to book.

Although the hall is not as big as Cyril Jackson I am sure we can fit quite a few sellers in, going on last year we can fit about 20 -25 comfortably.

Doors will open for sellers at 8am and buyers from 9am – entry fee $5 per head. Closing approx. 1pm

There will be raffle tickets on sale as well as refreshments to get you through the day.